The Ballon d'Or shortlist threw up its usual smorgasboard of people who deserve to be there and those who probably don't. Paul Pogba has selected the four men he thinks deserve to win.
Did anyone check on Graeme Souness on Monday afternoon? Not only did Paul Pogba have a tremendous second half on Sunday in Manchester United's comeback win over Newcastle but the Frenchman was also named on the Ballon d'Or 30 man shortlist.
Sure Pogba wasn't actually picked for his form for Manchester United but for his part in France winning the World Cup but you can still imagine his appearance on the 30 man list would have sent Souness into a rage.
This year's Ballon d'Or is an interesting one as the recent 'The Best FIFA Awards' proved that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo no longer have a duopoly on the awards.
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Luka Modric walked away with FIFA's version of the best player in the world award and there's a good possibility the Croatia midfielder could do the same again with the more illustrious version of the award.
Pogba though thinks that four of his international teammates are deserving of the award, telling AFP, via the Mirror:
"Whether it's Grizou (Griezmann), Kylian (Mbappe) or Raph' (Varane), they deserve it much more than me. I can not designate one. But I hope with all my heart that this is one of the three.
"One of the four also because there is NG (Kante). That's all I hope for anyway, because there are many who deserve it. I do not put myself in."
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Of the four men the most likely to get his hands on silverware later in the year is Mbappe. The youngster won the Best Young Player of the Tournament at the World Cup and is likely to win the new Kopa Trophy, the young Ballon d'Or.
No French player made it into FIFA's top three with Modric joined by Ronaldo and Mo Salah and Antoine Griezmann was baffled by that fact saying at the time, "It's a prize from FIFA and it seems a pity that no World Cup winners were nominated."
But the Atletico Madrid man is clearly hoping that he or his countrymen get recognised later in the year, adding, "I think the Ballon d'Or has more prestige, a richer history."
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It's a pretty fair point from Griezmann especially as Salah, for all the good he did for Liverpool, failed to win any silverware last season with the Reds.
Can a Frenchman take home the Ballon d'Or?
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Paul Pogba, Football News, Manchester United, Lionel Messi, Antoine Griezmann, Ballon d'Or, Kylian Mbappe, World Cup, Raphael Varane, France, N'Golo Kante, Cristiano Ronaldo