“Greatest moral harm to a human being” - Lamine Yamal’s father hits out at decision to give Ballon d’Or to Dembele

Lamine Yamal's father Mounir Nasraoui has criticised the decision to hand the Ballon d'Or to Ousmane Dembele this year. The Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) star became the sixth Frenchman to receive the prestigious award following an impressive year for club and country.

Nasraoui spoke with the press after the award ceremony, pointing to Dembele's victory on the night as a harmful decision against his son. He explained that he considers Yamal to be the undisputed best player in the world, and expressed confidence that the youngster will receive the award next year. He said (via DAZN);

"The greatest moral harm to a human being. I believe that Lamine is the best player in the world by far, by a huge margin. Not because he's my son. he's just the best in the world. I don't think he has rivals. I say that something very strange has happened here. Next year the Ballon d'Or will be Spanish, will be ours."

Lamine Yamal finished second behind Dembele in the Ballon d'Or voting despite helping Barcelona win LaLiga, Copa del Rey, and the Supercopa de Espana. The teenage star won the Kopa Trophy as the world's best U-21 player, claiming the award for a second successive year.

Yamal scored 18 goals and provided 21 assists in 55 appearances across all competitions for Barcelona in the 2024-25 season. Dembele scored 33 goals and provided 13 assists in 49 appearances across all competitions for PSG, helping them to win their first UEFA Champions League title as part of a treble.

Neymar expresses disappointment at teammate's Ballon d'Or position

Santos star Neymar has hit out at France Football for the final position of Raphinha in this year's Ballon d'Or. The Brazil international finished in fifth place after the rankings for the award was revealed at the gala in Paris.

Neymar replied to a post on Instagram, criticising Raphinha's rank and calling it a joke, seeing how the Barcelona star performed in the 2024-25 season. According to GOAL, the former Barcelona and PSG superstar found it absurd that Raphinha was not part of the top three.

"Raphinha in 5th is too much of a joke", he commented.

Raphinha enjoyed a career-best season in 2024-25, equalling Cristiano Ronaldo's record of the most goal contributions in a single UEFA Champions League campaign with 21. He also scored 18 league goals as La Blaugrana strolled to the league title, reclaiming it from their bitter rivals Real Madrid. He formed a deadly trio in attack with Lamine Yamal and Robert Lewandowski under Hansi Flick.

Edited by Sulayman Salahudeen