Mbappe has long been seen as one of the stars to dominate the award alongside Erling Haaland once Lionel Messi’s stranglehold on the prize comes to an end.
However, France’s failure to win the World Cup despite Mbappe’s hat-trick in the final defeat to Messi’s Argentina and PSG’s inability to claim the Champions League trophy have prevented the 24-year-old from being named the best in the world.
Instead, the striker came in third in the voting as world champion Messi claimed a record-extending eighth Ballon d’Or and Haaland was runner-up after helping Manchester City win the European and English treble.
PSG coach Luis Enrique is confident his star forward will get his hands on the prize eventually, but explained what he needs to do to achieve
“To win the Ballon d’Or, in addition to individual performances which are very good for Kylian, you have to win club and national trophies,” he told reporters. “We try to win as much as possible in Paris and Kylian can also do it in the national team. I am sure he will win many Ballons d’Or.”
