Paris Saint-Germain boss Luis Enrique has backed Ousmane Dembele to win the Ballon d’Or after he helped inspire the French club’s maiden Champions League success last season ahead of the 69th edition of the awards ceremony which will take place at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris today, 22 September.
Softfootball understands that Dembele is one of the top contenders to win this year’s Ballon d’Or after the best season of his career. The former Barcelona man helped PSG win the Champions League for the first time, along with coming out on top in Ligue 1 and the Coupe de France.
The 28-year-old, who is vying with the likes of Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal and Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe for the Golden Ball, also scored 35 goals and added 16 assists last season, but if he wins the award today, he may not have the honor of being present at the prestigious ceremony.
According to Fabrizio Romano via his Facebook page, Paris Saint-Germain manager Luis Enrique has reiterated that Ousmane Dembélé has been his Ballon d’Or pick for months. The Spaniard pointed to the forward’s standout performances particularly in last season’s Champions League final as proof of his quality and influence. The post reads:
Luis Enrique: Ousmane is MY BALLON D’OR since MONTHS AGO. Remember how he defended in that Champions League final.
The Ballon d’Or ceremony could be without several of Paris Saint-Germain’s biggest names after organizers confirmed that the highly anticipated Le Classique against Marseille has been rescheduled to Monday night due to forecasts of severe storms in southern France.
The change creates a major scheduling headache for the Ligue 1 giant, as the match will now clash with the Ballon d’Or ceremony where several of the club’s top players are expected to be honored. Among them is Ousmane Dembélé, widely tipped as one of the leading contenders for the men’s Ballon d’Or,
Nine other PSG players have also been nominated for awards, making the Parisian side the most represented club on the shortlist. However, with the game now kicking off at the same time in Marseille, players could be forced to prioritise the derby over football’s most prestigious individual awards.
PSG boss Luis Enrique is already without Dembélé and rising star Désiré Doué for the match due to injury, meaning the pair may still be able to attend the ceremony if they choose.
The Bouches-du-Rhône region, where the Vélodrome is located is currently under an orange alert for heavy rain, flooding and thunderstorms, prompting officials to postpone Sunday’s fixture to avoid safety risks.
The clash between club duty and football’s glitziest awards night comes a year after Real Madrid overshadowed the 2024 ceremony by boycotting it in protest of Vinícius Júnior missing out on the top prize to Manchester City’s Rodri. This time, PSG’s potential absence would be for entirely different reasons, a fixture reshuffle rather than protest.
