Yamal Is Only Player Who Deserves Ballon d’Or —Ex-Man City Star
Barcelona defender Joao Cancelo has insisted that club teammate Lamine Yamal is the only player who deserves to win the 2026 Ballon d’Or award.
The race for this year’s Ballon d’Or is unusually open, with no outright favourite emerging before the final 30 nominees are considered.
Yamal is among them, though his candidacy has steadily gathered support from within Barcelona and beyond.
Hansi Flick and Deco have previously backed the teenager, while former Netherlands international Giovanni van Bronckhorst also praised Yamal after facing Barcelona with Feyenoord.
Cancelo has now gone a step further by arguing that the Barcelona winger should be the clear winner.
The argument behind Cancelo’s endorsement is built around what Yamal achieved across an extraordinary 2025/26 campaign.
The teenager produced 24 goals and 18 assists in 45 appearances for Barcelona, giving him more than 40 direct goal contributions while helping the club secure La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup.
His influence did not stop at club level. Yamal also played an important role in Spain’s 2026 FIFA World Cup triumph, adding the biggest international prize to an already impressive collection of honours.
At just 19, his trophy cabinet has become one of the central talking points surrounding his Ballon d’Or candidacy.
Yamal’s third Ballon d’Or nomination comes after he finished second in last year’s voting behind Ousmane Dembele. Cancelo believes this time there should be no debate over the winner.
“The only player who deserves to win the Ballon d’Or is Lamine Yamal,” he stated, as per Fabrizio Romano (Barca Universal).
The Barcelona defender then pointed to the teenager’s success at both club and international level while making an even stronger assessment of his individual quality.
“He’s won so many trophies at 19, World Cup, Euros, all trophies with Barça and his season was incredible… and he’s by far the best talent and best player in the world.
“For me, there’s no other player who can win the Ballon d’Or. It has to be Lamine,” he concluded.
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