Liverpool and Real Madrid will meet in the Champions League final on Saturday at the Stade de France (9 p.m.). Beyond the trophy at stake, it may also be the Ballon d’Or 2022 that will be played on the lawn of Saint-Denis. With three contenders for the coronation: Karim Benzema, Sadio Mané and Mohamed Salah.
Like at home. Or almost. Karim Benzema is about to experience one of the greatest moments of his career. The Real Madrid striker will challenge Liverpool in the Champions League final on Saturday at the Stade de France (9 p.m.). In his country. And the striker of the France team should be supported by a good part of the public of Saint-Denis. What bring him to the fifth C1 of his career? If that happens, the 34-year-old center-forward will also pocket the 2022 Ballon d’Or (the ceremony is scheduled for October 17 in Paris).
It’s a near certainty. The award criteria have evolved and the lucky winner is now chosen for his performance during the season (and not during the calendar year as up to now). The World Cup in Qatar will therefore not be taken into account. A major advantage for KB Nueve, who performs a stratospheric exercise. At the dawn of the last match, the native of Lyon posted 44 achievements and 15 assists in 45 matches (all competitions combined).
The crazy epic of Benzema
Top scorer and second best passer in La Liga, he almost single-handedly carries Real Madrid on his shoulders. In prison mode. In its wake, the merengue club has made an impression in recent months. Beyond their coronation in Spain, the people of Madrid delighted the audience with their Hollywood journey in the Champions League. Manhandled by PSG, Chelsea and Manchester City, Carlo Ancelotti’s players chained comebacks at a spectacular pace. With a Benzema touched by grace, who has scored ten goals since the round of 16 (including two hat-tricks against the Parisians and the Blues). This fantastic epic makes the French international (94 caps, 36 goals), who also lifted the League of Nations at the end of last year, the natural favorite for the Ballon d’Or.
Provided you negotiate this final against Liverpool. Because the Reds are also having a great season. Long on the way for a legendary treble, they can still afford a resounding treble, having won both domestic cups in England and trailing just behind Manchester City in the Premier League.
Mané and Salah as outsiders
Even if their European course is less flashy than that of Real (Inter, Benfica, Villarreal), it does not lack flavor. Sadio Mané’s season either. Refocused as a centre-forward, the 30-year-old striker has multiplied class actions and decisive goals. He also won the first CAN in Senegal’s history this winter, wearing his country’s armband. If he seems to be a step behind Benzema, a monumental final at the Stade de France could reshuffle the cards for the Ballon d’Or. With a double or triple for example.
The finding is similar for Mohamed Salah. The 29-year-old winger has been putting out top-flight performances since last summer. To the point of finishing joint top scorer in the Premier League (23, like Heung-min Son) and joint top passer (12, like Trent Alexander-Arnold). His long strides, short hooks and surgical strikes made Anfield happy. Not to mention the CAN in Cameroon, where he hoisted Egypt in the final, before falling on penalties against the compatriots of Mané (0-0, 4 tab to 2).
Mbappé, Lewandowski and De Bruyne left behind
At the time of the big meeting against Real, he is clearly not the favorite. But there again, a grandiose final would necessarily put him back in the debate. It would be revenge for him after that of 2019 (3-1 victory over Real Madrid), when Sergio Ramos injured him half an hour into the game… Behind this Benzema-Mané-Salah trio, the other candidates for the season seem left behind in the race for individual rewards, like Kylian Mbappé, Robert Lewandowski or Kevin De Bruyne. Even if the votes have already reserved some surprises in the past.
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