Michael Carrick was 'convinced' Man Utd flop would win Ballon d'Or

Michael Carrick believed a former Manchester United teammate was a potential Ballon d'Or winner, according to Rio Ferdinand.

Carrick played alongside and then managed Cristiano Ronaldo, a five-time Ballon d'Or winner who first win the prize at United back in 2008.

But he felt as though another had the capacity to follow in Ronaldo's footsteps and be crowned the best player in the world. The revelation was revealed by former long-time colleague Ferdinand, who recently interviewed Diogo Dalot - a key member of United's backline under Carrick - for his Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast.

The Portugal international was asked to name his ultimate five-a-side team from players he has played with. Dalot surprised Ferdinand by including Anthony Martial, who scored 90 goals in 317 goals for United.

Dalot explained that while he ultimately struggled for consistency, he claimed Martial could have "easily" been the best player in the world if he applied himself.

"I’m going to say it because I’m going to combine what, obviously, he could do in games, but in training," Dalot said.

"And I played a lot against him, so it was really, really tough to play. And he was one of those that, if he had obviously a bit more consistency, sometimes he would disconnect a little bit from everything. But if he wanted, he could be the best player in the world. Easily."

Martial scored 90 goals for United. Image: Getty

That prompted Ferdinand to reply, "You know, Carrick said to me when he first signed that Martial could win the Ballon d’Or".

Dalot said he "would believe that" as Martial could come up with moments in training that "you’d say you had to stop training" and "go inside".

Martial joined United from Monaco as a teenager for an initial £36 million in 2015, scoring on his debut against Liverpool.

He was a teammate of Carrick's for a period until the former England midfielder hung up his boots and joined Jose Mourinho's coaching staff in 2018.

Martial had Ballon d'Or clause which wasn't activated

Martial had his best ever season in the 2019/20 campaign where he bagged 23 goals in 48 appearances and the former Sevilla loanee later struggled with fitness and form - ultimately leaving on a free transfer in 2024 when many thought he should have left much earlier.

The Frenchman's move to United included a number of potential add-ons which totalled £21.6 million, with one bonus payment in particular hitting headlines.

Anthony Martial is currently playing in Mexico with Monterrey. Image: Getty

It was widely reported that Martial's contract included a Ballon d'Or clause, meaning United had to pay Monaco around £8-10 million if he did live up to expectations.

But while he won the Golden Boy award, Martial never even made the Ballon d'Or shortlist at any point and so United avoided the payment.

Martial moved to AEK Athens in Greece after United and then signed for Mexican side Monterrey CF, where he has scored just one goal in 19 appearances.