Arsenal legend Thierry Henry believes that Barcelona winger Raphinha is currently leading the race for the 2025 Ballon d’Or, ahead of Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah and Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane.
Henry’s assessment comes in light of Raphinha’s outstanding performances in the UEFA Champions League, where he is currently the top scorer with 11 goals. Raphinha’s contributions have been pivotal in Barcelona’s campaign this season.
In addition to his Champions League exploits, he has accumulated a total of 27 goals and 19 assists across all competitions.
Raphinha’s recent performance against Benfica, where he scored twice in a 3-1 victory, was instrumental in securing Barcelona’s place in the Champions League quarter-finals.
In contrast, Mohamed Salah has also showcased exceptional form this season, recording 32 goals and 22 assists. Despite his individual brilliance, Liverpool faced elimination from the Champions League following a penalty shootout defeat to Paris Saint-Germain.
Henry highlighted the significance of Raphinha’s goal tally, noting that only one of his goals came from the penalty spot, whereas Salah’s total includes 11 penalties. He emphasized the importance of non-penalty goals in evaluating a player’s impact.
The former striker also praised Raphinha’s all-around abilities, including his defensive contributions and pressing, which he believes enhance the Brazilian’s candidacy for the prestigious award.
“He is up there. Raphinha is ahead, yes, because of what he is doing in the Champions League, 11 goals,” said Henry last night on CBS.
“Mo Salah is a great contender, Kane is a contender and Dembele it depends if you perform in the Champions League on top of winning your league.
“Raphinha is on a lot of goals with one penalty, I’m not saying Kane shouldn’t have penalties and Mo Salah is having a season in the Premier League that we will never see again hopefully – usually when you have records they’re to be beaten.
“I’m saying if a guy has virtually the same amount of goals without penalties, I’m not going to say that’s not bad it’s outstanding but this guy I have to talk about him.
“When people talk about being complete, as a striker you need to understand how to defend, help your full-back and press well, it’s a lot of things you need to do well and Raphinha has it all.”
