"I love them both; I can't tell the difference" - Jose Mourinho snubs Dembele and Yamal, names his 2 favorites for 2025 Ballon d'Or

Jose Mourinho has backed the Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) duo of Vitinha and Nuno Mendes to win the Ballon d'Or this year. He wants one of the two Portugal internationals to win the award over Lamine Yamal and Ousmane Dembele.

Speaking to Canal11, Mourinho said that his agent, Jorge Mendes, would be unhappy with his comment, but still backed the PSG Portuguese duo to win the award. He opined that individual awards should be directly related to what the player has won with the club and country in the season and said (via SPORTbible):

"Football, as much as we all want to make players special people, coaches special people, for me, it remains about the team. And for me, any individual trophy must always have a direct connection to titles. I love them both; I can't tell the difference. The only thing I'd say is that there's still a small group of good midfielders there, and now full-backs like that. I'd like one of them to win, obviously, but then Jorge Mendes will get mad at me because he only thinks Yamal, his player, should win."

Vitinha and Nuno Mendes won the treble with PSG, securing the Ligue 1 title, the UEFA Champions League, and the Coupe de France trophy. They also won the UEFA Nations League with Portugal, which their club teammate Ousmane Dembele missed out on, after France lost the semifinal to Spain.

Roberto Martinez wants Portuguese star to win Ballon d'Or

Roberto Martinez spoke to the media earlier this summer and backed Vitinha to win the Ballon d'Or. He claimed that the PSG star was one of the key reasons for the club's success and said (via GOAL):

"One thing is what Vitinha is doing this season. For me, without a doubt. He is a player who was essential for PSG to win everything they have won. I think that due to Vitinha's style and effectiveness, he deserves to be awarded the Ballon d'Or."

Vitinha formed a formidable partnership in the midfield with Fabrian Ruiz and Joao Neves, as PSG swept away all the trophies available to them in Europe. Their only failure in the season in terms of silverware was at the FIFA Club World Cup earlier this month.

The Ligue 1 side reached the final after beating Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, and Atletico Madrid in the tournament. However, they fell short in the final with Chelsea easing to a 3-0 win.

Edited by Sankalp Srivastava