Gavi, a midfielder for Barcelona, has revealed his nominee for the Ballon d’Or in 2025, and he has decided that neither Raphinha nor Lamine Yamal should hold the award.
Gavi, who is twenty years old, entered the game during Barcelona’s Champions League round of sixteen match against Benfica, which they won 3-1 (4-1 on aggregate). The match took place at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium on Tuesday evening.
Raphinha, who is 28 years old, and Yamal, who is 17 years old, were the stars of the show.
There were a total of 46 goals contributed by the Brazilian in 41 appearances this season. The Brazilian scored twice and provided an assist for the teenager’s sensational first-half strike, which brought the total number of goals contributed by the former Leeds United player to 46.
“You can argue that with his numbers this season, [Raphinha’s] in contention for the Ballon d’Or,” Owen Hargreaves, a former midfielder for Bayern Munich and Manchester United, said on TNT Sports. Rafaelna is currently in contention for the award.
The way he has finished has been out of this world; he is the captain of the club, and he has been an absolute revelation. At this point in time, I believe that you could say that he is currently in the running for the Ballon d’Or.
“Salah and Raphinha have similar numbers in terms of goals and assists, which is quite remarkable,” said Hargreaves in conclusion.
It is imperative that you take home the most prestigious trophies. If you are successful in winning the big ones, then you have a chance. At the moment, I believe that Salah is the most likely candidate, but Raphina is very close.”
Obviously, because there is not going to be a major international tournament this summer, the vote will not be affected by the Copa America, the World Cup, or the European Championships. This is in contrast to the situation that occurred the previous year, when Vinicius Jr. of Real Madrid was beaten out by Rodri of Manchester City. Rodri had previously assisted Spain in winning Euro 2024 in Germany and had also won the 2023/24 Premier League.
On the other hand, Gavi mentioned another Spanish player who, in his opinion, is deserving of the Ballon d’Or for the year 2025.
Following the match on Tuesday, Gavi stated to the media that “nobody deserves the Ballon d’Or more than Pedri, everyone knows what kind of a player he is.”
Although there is no question about Pedri’s ability to perform on the pitch, he has struggled with injuries since 2021, when he won the Kopa Trophy and the Golden Boy award. Pedri is currently 22 years old.
A previous conversation between the Spain international and the media revealed that he “hopes” to be given the chance to win the Ballon d’Or.
“I hope I have the opportunity to be [a Ballon d’Or winner], it is a very complicated prize,” he stated in an interview with SPORT in 2022.
It is clear that you are the best in the world; however, I still have a lot to learn and work on in order to reach this point.
