Former Ballon d’Or recipient Jean-Pierre Papin has backed Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal to take home the 2025 edition of the prestigious award.
The ex-striker, who had spells with Bayern Munich and AC Milan, chose not to support fellow French players Ousmane Dembele and Kylian Mbappe, despite their presence among the frontrunners.
Yamal had a standout campaign for Barcelona last season, playing a key role in their domestic treble triumph.
The young forward contributed 18 goals and 25 assists across 55 matches for the Spanish giants.
Papin told SPORT, “Lamine Yamal deserves to win the Golden Ball this year. For me Yamal was the best and had an exceptional season.”
He faces stiff competition on the 30-man shortlist published by France Football, with names like Dembele, Mbappe, and Vitinha also in contention.
If successful, Yamal would become the seventh Barcelona player to secure the accolade, and the first since Lionel Messi’s win in 2019, with the ceremony scheduled for September 22.
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