The race for this year’s Ballon d’Or is heating up, with several players delivering standout seasons across Europe
Mohamed Salah is backed to win the award, having led from the front as Liverpool won their 20th Premier League title in Arne Slot’s debut season. His goal contributions were nothing short of phenomenal
Others firmly in the race are Barcelona stars Raphinha and Lamine Yamal, PSG’s Ousmane Dembele and Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe.
However, Brazil legend Kaka has now named one other Liverpool star among his favourites for the prestigious award – Virgil van Dijk.
Kaka names Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk among his favourites for Ballon d’Or 2025
Kaka, who won the Ballon d’Or in 2007, was asked who he thinks deserves the award this year and while the Brazil legend named the likes of Mo Salah, Raphinha, Yamal, Dembele and Mbappe, he mentioned another Liverpool star
Kaka named van Dijk, stating that he deserves recognition for his performances this season, having played a massive role in leading the Liverpool team to glory.
Speaking to SPORTbible, he said:
“It’s hard to say deserve right now because it’s important to wait until the end of the season with the Champions League final and the final of the leagues.
“For the race, I would say Mohamed Salah. Virgil Van Dijk, I think, is back [to his best] and should get recognition as well
I would say Kylian Mbappe if he can get the Bota de Oro (European Golden Boot).
“And I would say Lamine Yamal and Raphinha, [because] Barcelona won La Liga, the Copa del Rey and [reached] the semi-finals of the Champions League.
“[Depending] on the Champions League final, Dembele has had a really good season as well, and if he can be the protagonist in the final, he will be one of the favourites as well.”
Kaka backed Van Dijk to win Ballon d’Or in 2019 as well
This is not the first time the AC Milan icon has backed the Dutch defender to win the award.
The £75m defender was a leading contender to win the award in 2019 after an incredible season with Liverpool in 2018/19, helping the Reds win the Champions League.
He was nominated for the Ballon d’Or and made it to the final three, with many backing him to win it, including Kaka, who said ‘it would be nice’ to see another defender win it. He said (via Liverpool’s official website):
“It’s really nice to see a player like Van Dijk battle to be one of the best.”
“It would be nice to see another defender winning an award like that. If I’m not wrong, the last one was Cannavaro. It would be nice to see him there and fighting for this
Van Dijk ended up losing it to Lionel Messi by just seven points, finishing second with Cristiano Ronaldo finishing third followed by Sadio Mane and Mo Salah.
Ballon d’Or 2025 to be decided between Mo Salah, Raphinha and Ousmane Dembele
Despite Kaka’s mention, Van Dijk is not among the top favourites to win it this year, with Salah in a much better position to claim the award.
Salah’s numbers have been incredible, scoring 28 goals and assisting another 18 in the Premier League, and 33 goals and 23 assists across all competitions
He does face stiff competition from Raphinha, who has been incredible for Barcelona this season, helping them win three domestic trophies this season.
It is going to be a close fight between the two of them, while Dembele could be another contender if PSG wins the Champions League