Kane says Yamal and Mbappe’s Ballon d’Or comments will not sway voters

Harry Kane says he prefers other people to assess his achievements rather than promote himself, as the Ballon d’Or debate intensifies ahead of the award ceremony on 26 October.

The Bayern Munich and England captain is among the leading contenders after scoring 73 goals last season. He will face Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal when England meet Spain in the opening match of the UEFA Nations League on Saturday.

Yamal appeared to question Kane’s candidacy when he said the Ballon d’Or should go to the “best player in the world”, rather than simply to someone who “scores 80 goals”. The Spain international has described winning the award, presented by French magazine France Football, as a “dream”.

Real Madrid and France forward Kylian Mbappe has also spoken about his desire to win the prize.

Asked about the number of contenders discussing the award in recent weeks, Kane said: “Everyone has the right to do what they want in this situation.”

The former Tottenham striker added, in comments reported by The Standard: “Obviously, the Ballon d’Or has grown bigger and bigger in recent years, mainly because of social media, all the noise and all the discussion around it.

“For me, it is not in my personality to talk about myself in that way. I am still very proud of what I achieved. In principle, I know what I achieved last season was at the level of anyone else, so I do not want to shy away from that either.

“But ultimately, my mentality is to move forward.”

Kane says voters will make their own judgement

Kane acknowledged that the timing of the award can make it difficult for players to focus on the previous season.

“The timing of the Ballon d’Or is difficult because you are already in a new season and focusing on what you can achieve in it,” he said.

“After every game, you are asked to talk about what you did last season, so I find that difficult to take in. But from my point of view, it would be incredible to win it and I would be extremely proud.”

Kane believes he has a genuine chance of receiving the award but said the final decision would be down to the voters.

“I think I am definitely in the running to win it, without a doubt,” he said. “Time will tell, and the voters will vote for whoever they want.”

Asked whether the amount of media work completed by each nominee could affect the result, Kane said it would have an impact on the wider debate, but was less certain that it would influence the voting itself.

“It definitely has an impact socially and in the discussion around the award,” he said. “As for the voters themselves, I am not 100% sure. I think they will vote for who they feel deserves it. They will have the information and the statistics, and they will decide.”

Kane added: “For me, I get more joy from other people talking about me – team-mates, former players or anyone praising what I have achieved. That makes me prouder than trying to talk about myself.”