Considering the phenomenal success Liverpool have enjoyed over the last 60 years, it’s a little odd that they have only ever had one winner of the Ballon d’Or. Michael Owen is the Reds’ sole recipient of France Football’s annual award for the best player in European (and later World) football, collecting the honour in 2001.
There have been other near misses. Kenny Dalglish was runner-up in 1983, and Virgil van Dijk emulated the king by finishing second in the voting 36 years later. The Reds saw Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah placed fourth and fifth respectively in 2019 too.
But the latter only finished seventh in 2021, a decision which surprised him. "I have nothing to prove that there is something wrong. I really don't know, but I was shocked at the result,” was Salah’s verdict on his relatively lowly placing last year.
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It now looks likely that the Liverpool forward won’t be winning the Ballon d’Or this year either. The bookmakers have Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema as the red-hot favourite and it’s easy to see why. He has already scored over 40 goals this season, including nine in his side’s first five matches in the Champions League knockout phase. Madrid may yet recover from their semi-final first leg defeat to Manchester City to reach the final, and they will be La Liga champions yet again in 2021/22.
After a campaign like that, it will be a tall order for anyone else to finish ahead of Benzema. If the betting markets are to be believed, Salah is second favourite to be crowned the best player in the world this year, ahead of Kevin De Bruyne, Kylian Mbappe, Robert Lewandowski and Mane.
While Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich have won their respective leagues, it’s hardly a surprise because they usually do. As both sides failed – in relative terms – in the Champions League, it feels unlikely that either Mbappe or Lewandowski can claim the award. The latter will forever remain unlucky that the pandemic caused the ceremony to be cancelled in 2020 when he would surely have won.
The three Premier League stars who are in the running will have a chance depending on how the end of the season unfolds. If either Liverpool or Manchester City manage to win both the league and the Champions League, their players will be ripe for recognition.
Even if the Citizens were to achieve that, it may still be a stretch to see De Bruyne honoured by France Football. He picked up 73 votes last year when Lionel Messi took 613 to win the award, and that was following a season in which City won the league and reached the final of Europe’s premier club competition. His form has been sensational in 2021/22, but has it been strong enough to make up that level of shortfall?
The Liverpool pair are likely to have a better chance, simply because goals are all-important when it comes to the Ballon d’Or. Aside from Luka Modric’s surprise win in 2018, the prize has been won by either Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo every year from 2008 onwards.
Salah is having his standard spectacular season on this front, and it would be a surprise if he does not collect the third Premier League Golden Boot of his career. While setting up goals probably doesn’t carry as much sway with the voters, Salah could also become only the third player (after Andy Cole and Harry Kane) to record the most goals and assists in the same top flight campaign.
The Egyptian is unlikely to top the goal standings in the Champions League, though as Benzema is the only player ahead of him who remains in the competition, a runner-up spot is not out of the question. Having helped Egypt to the final of the Africa Cup of Nations can only help his cause too.
Except that Mane went all the way, scoring the decisive penalty which ensured that Senegal won the continental crown for the first time. If a champion of Africa helps his club side become kings of Europe while picking up trophies in England, it has to make a strong case that he deserves the Ballon d’Or.
Ultimately the award is largely political. Messi and Ronaldo are so beloved across the world they will both collect plenty of votes despite having less than stellar seasons (to put it mildly). But although Benzema is a worthy favourite, only a fool would entirely dismiss the hopes of Salah and Mane whilst Liverpool’s quadruple bid is still in full flow.
