Lionel Messi has named four current players who he believes can potentially win the next Ballon d’Or.
The Argentine forward won his record eighth Ballon d’Or on Monday night, beating away competition from Erling Haaland to win the coveted award.
Now playing in the MLS, Messi is approaching the end of his career and won’t be able to win the award forever.
Speaking after the ceremony, the 36-year-old named four players that he thinks can go on to win the award.
“The players to compete for the Ballon d’Or in the coming years? There may be a very beautiful rivalry in the coming years with players like Haaland, Mbappe, Vinicius and many young players competing for the Ballon d’Or.” he told L’Equipe.
“I also think that Lamine Yamal, who is still very young and now plays for Barcelona, will play a prominent role and fight for it in the future too, and certainly there will be others competing for it, new players that we do not know will appear, because there are always new players, and I think it will be a very beautiful era to enjoy.”