Why Ronaldo doubts Lamine Yamal’s Ballon d’Or chances

Cristiano Ronaldo has poured cold water on the growing hype around Lamine Yamal’s chances of winning the Ballon d’Or, insisting the Barcelona starlet must be given time to mature before being considered for football’s most prestigious individual accolade.

Yamal, who is of Equatorial Guinean and Moroccan descent, has dazzled with his performances at both club and international level.

Despite his early promise, Ronaldo pointed to the 17-year-old’s youth and Barcelona’s lack of success in the UEFA Champions League as major factors limiting his Ballon d’Or prospects.

“Lamine Yamal is doing very well, he is taking full advantage of his talent,” Ronaldo said, addressing the media.

“Now let the kid grow and don’t put too much pressure on him. Let him be and let him grow well, take the pressure off him. He has no shortage of talent.”

The Portugal captain also cast doubt on the credibility of the Ballon d’Or selection process, suggesting that recent awards have lacked broad consensus and no longer reflect purely on-field achievements.

Ronaldo, a five-time winner of the prize, emphasised that Champions League success should be the key metric, but admitted the reality is often more complicated.

“The individual awards have lost some consensus; I can’t say anything about who should win,” he said. “In my opinion, those who stand out and win the Champions League should win. But there is no consensus.”

He added: “I don’t believe much in individual awards because I know what goes on behind the scenes. Lamine could win, like Dembélé or Vitinha, other emerging players… But individual awards are irrelevant.”