2025 Ballon d’Or: French Coach Herve Renard Backs Achraf Hakimi to Win Award
- The 2025 Ballon d'Or race is heating up after the conclusion of the FIFA Club World Cup in USA
- Paris Saint-Germain attacker Ousmane Dembele is the odds-on favourite to win the coveted award
- French coach Hervé Renard has backed an African player to win the award ahead of other top stars
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Saudi Arabia national team head coach Hervé Renard has backed an African player to win the 2025 Ballon d'Or as the race for the coveted award heats up.
The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is the last major tournament under the timeline that qualifies a player to be considered for this year's award.
Source: Getty Images
According to beIN Sport, the 30 nominees will be announced on August 7, while the award ceremony will be held on September 22 at Théâtre du Chatelet in Paris.
Paris Saint-Germain attacker Ousmane Dembele is the favourite to win the award, and his main challenger is Barcelona youngster Lamine Yamal.
Dembele was pivotal in helping Luis Enrique’s PSG win their first UEFA Champions League trophy as part of a treble-winning season.
Other PSG stars have shouts for individual awards this year, including Desire Doue, Achraf Hakimi, Nuno Mendes and Vitinha, amongst others.
Hervé Renard tips Hakimi for Ballon d'Or
Saudi Arabia head coach Renard has tipped an African player to win the Golden Ball, with Hakimi and Mohamed Salah the top African players in contention.
Renard sided with his former Morocco national team player after his exploits for PSG in a remarkable season, acknowledging him as one of the best players in the world.
“He is one of the best players in the world today. For me, he is the Ballon d'Or winner of this season, as he has been exceptional, consistent, and decisive in all his performances,” he told Le360 Sports.
Renard, who gave Hakimi his national team debut, also stylishly tipped the former Real Madrid star to win the African Footballer of the Year by naming him the best player in Africa.
“Today, Achraf Hakimi is the best player on the continent. And given his young age, he's far from finished adding to his list of achievements,” he added.
Source: Getty Images
As noted by Transfermarkt, Hakimi scored 11 goals and provided 16 assists in 55 games in all competitions for PSG, making him the defender with the most goal contributions last season.
Salah, who is the other African star in the running for the Ballon d'Or, is Hakimi’s main challenger for the CAF Best Award. He scored 34 goals and provided 23 assists in 52 games.
The Moroccan defender was close to winning the CAF Best Award last year, but finished second behind Super Eagles and Atalanta forward Ademola Lookman.
Dembele reclaimed top spot in Ballon d'Or rankings
Legit.ng reported that Ousmane Dembele reclaimed the top spot in the latest Ballon d'Or rankings released after losing it after the Club World Cup final.
His performance in the Club World Cup final initially allowed Lamine Yamal to claim the top spot in the power rankings, but the French star has moved up to number one.
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Source: Legit.ng
