The nominees for the 2023 Ballon d’Or award have been announced by French Football, the organisers of the prestigious prize. The award honours the best player in the world based on their performances over the past year.
Among the 30 players shortlisted, one name stands out for Nigerian fans: Victor Osimhen. The Napoli striker had a sensational season, scoring 27 goals in 32 Serie A games and helping his club win their first Scudetto since 1990. He also impressed for the Super Eagles, scoring six goals in eight games in the World Cup qualifiers.
Osimhen will face tough competition from other stars, such as Lionel Messi, who led Argentina to their first World Cup title in 2022 and moved to Inter Miami in a shock transfer. Messi has won the Ballon d’Or seven times before and is widely regarded as the greatest player of all time.
The winner of the Ballon d’Or 2023 will be revealed at a gala ceremony in Paris on October 30. Here is the full list of the nominees:
- Josko Gvardiol (Manchester City)
- Andre Onana (Manchester United)
- Karim Benzema (Al Ittihad)
- Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich)
- Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
- Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid)
- Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
- Randal Kolo Muani (Paris Saint Germain)
- Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City)
- Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
- Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Napoli)
- Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa)
- Ruben Dias (Manchester City)
- Nicola Barella (Inter Milan)
- Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
- Yassine Bounou (Al Hilal)
- Martin Odegaard (Arsenal)
- Julian Alvarez (Manchester City)
- Ilkay Gundogan (Barcelona)
- Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid)
- Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona)
- Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid)
- Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan)
- Lionel Messi (Inter Miami)
- Rodri (Barcelona)
- Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint German)
- Kim Min-Jae (Bayern Munich)
- Victor Osimhen (Napoli)
- Luka Modric (Real Madrid)
- Harry Kane (Bayern Munich)
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