Ousmane Dembele shares his top three Ballon d’Or picks, with just one PSG player making the list.
Ousmane Dembele recently shared his top three picks for the Ballon d’Or, and he included his Paris Saint-Germain teammate Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
Dembele, 29, won the 2025 Ballon d’Or after a fantastic 2024-25 season, scoring 35 goals and providing 16 assists for PSG, who are the European champions. He also picked up several awards like Ligue 1 Player of the Season and Champions League Player of the Season. But it looks like he won’t win the award again this year.
Before the official nominees came out on Tuesday, Dembele told France Football that his top three are “Kvara, Harry Kane, who had a really good season, and I think Kylian Mbappe.”
Mbappe has faced some criticism for his comments about this year’s Ballon d’Or race. Ahead of Real Madrid’s big Champions League game against Inter Milan, he confidently said, “When you play for Real Madrid, the best club in the world, people link you to the Ballon d’Or. Lots of people talk about me and the award. I’ve made history in the top competition, so maybe this is my year, but people will vote how they want.”
In a different interview, Mbappe told France Football, “I feel like I can win it this year. I haven’t ruled it out.”
Meanwhile, Dembele focused more on PSG’s team efforts rather than his own chances. He even gave a shoutout to another PSG player, William Pacho.
He said, “Me? No, I never pick myself. If I were voting, I wouldn’t choose me. There are many others too, like Michael Olise, who had an amazing season and was the best in the German league, Lamine Yamal, Fabian Ruiz, and William Pacho.”
“We sometimes forget about Pacho,” Dembele added. “I hope people remember him this year because he really deserves it.”