Thibaut Courtois: Kylian Mbappé deserves the Ballon d'Or

Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has backed club teammate Kylian Mbappé to claim football's most prestigious individual accolade – the Ballon d'Or.

Speaking to Onda Cero, the Belgian shot-stopper was full of praise for the French forward's extraordinary qualities:

"In my opinion, Kylian Mbappé deserves the Ballon d'Or. I've discussed it with teammates both at club level and with the national team. Everyone is blown away by the way he leaves defenders in his dust with sheer pace. And on top of that, of course, you have his incredible goalscoring record."

Courtois also weighed in on the voting criteria, insisting the prize should be judged on individual footballing excellence rather than silverware alone:

"The award should go to the best player, not the one who has accumulated the most team trophies. By that logic, Carvajal would have won it two years ago."

This year's awards gala is set to take place on October 26 in London. The ceremony is moving away from its traditional home in Paris for a historic milestone – commemorating 70 years since English legend Stanley Matthews collected the inaugural award.

Founded by French publication France Football, the men's Ballon d'Or has been awarded since 1956, while the women's category was introduced in 2018. The winners are determined by a vote among international journalists representing the top 100 nations in the FIFA men's rankings and the top 50 in the women's rankings.