Lionel Messi sends heartfelt message to former teammate Ousmane Dembele as latter wins 2025 Ballon d'Or

Lionel Messi has reacted to Ousmane Dembele winning the 2025 Ballon d'Or. He congratulated the Frenchman and added that he deserves the coveted prize.

Ousmane Dembele was announced as the winner of the 2025 Ballon d'Or at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris on Monday, September 22. He ranked above Lamine Yamal (2nd) and Vitinha (3rd) in the list. After the win, Dembele shared a carousel post on his Instagram account from the event and wrote in the caption (translated from French):

"Lots of joy, pride and emotion. A dream come true. Thank you to all those who have always supported me throughout this journey. #ballondor"

Lionel Messi commented on this post, writing:

"Great Ous!!! Congratulations, I'm very happy for you. You deserve it"

Ousmane Dembele helped Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) win five trophies last season. They won the UEFA Champions League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, Trophee des Champions, and UEFA Super Cup. The Frenchman scored 35 goals and provided 16 assists in 53 games across competitions for the Parisians.

He also helped France reach the UEFA Nations League semi-finals, where they were eliminated by Spain.

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When ex-Barcelona star explained how Lionel Messi's training influenced 2025 Ballon d'Or winner Ousmane Dembele

Ousmane Dembele joined Barcelona from Borussia Dortmund for a massive reported fee of €148 million, including add-ons, in 2017. Hence, he also shared a dressing room with Lionel Messi.

Former Barca midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng once revealed that Messi's training methods influenced Dembele, leading to his injury issues. He said that young players like the Frenchman would follow the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner, saying:

"So we come in the dressing room, he's just sitting there on his phone (and) gets a massage sitting down. Two minutes before we go out, he just stands up, closes his boots, and goes out. The warm up for the Champions League game against Liverpool, (we did the) crossbar challenge and then he goes back inside. (The) coach made the last adjustment. (Messi) is on the phone face-timing, (and) 30 seconds before we go out, he just comes and puts his jacket on, and BOOM, goal, goal, goal." "That's what the young players did in Barcelona: Malcom, Dembele, they looked at him, and they didn't train so then going to the game, they got injured. He's (Messi's) the only one in the world that can do that," he added.

Lionel Messi and Ousmane Dembele shared the pitch 95 times for Barcelona, combining for 15 goals. They couldn't do it for PSG as the 2025 Ballon d'Or winner arrived in the summer when Messi left the French giants.

Edited by Aditya Singh