Lamine Yamal's father slams Spain with explosive claim after son finishes behind Kane and Mbappe at 2026 Ballon d'Or
Mounir Nasraoui, the father of Lamine Yamal, has taken aim at Spain's Ballon d'Or voter, suggesting Real Madrid's pull cost his son a higher finish after the Barcelona star finished third behind Harry
Mounir Nasraoui, the father of Lamine Yamal, has taken aim at Spain's Ballon d'Or voter, suggesting Real Madrid's pull cost his son a higher finish after the Barcelona star finished third behind Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappé.
Yamal took 881 points in the vote released by France Football. Kane won with 1,055, 28 clear of Mbappé's 1,027, after scoring 73 goals in 65 games for Bayern Munich and England, becoming the first English winner since Michael Owen in 2001.
The ceremony was held at the London Palladium on 26 October. Lamine Yamal, a World Cup winner with Spain and a La Liga champion with Barcelona, had finished second behind Ousmane Dembélé a year earlier too.
Nasraoui claimed that Mbappe got more votes from Spain simply due to the fact that he plays for Real Madrid. Speaking on the YouTube channel of journalist Jota Jordi, Nasraoui said:
"I wish one day to see on screen one of those who voted for Mbappé, and I would like to speak with him, and you too, my friend, one of Mbappé's fans.
"This thing only happens here in Spain. If the best player in the world plays for Real Madrid, then vote for the national team! I'm not saying, it's an award for a player and not for a team. We are in the twenty-first century, man!"
Lamine Yamal's own response was calmer. A day after the gala, where he collected a third consecutive Kopa Trophy and said it should have gone to teammate Pau Cubarsí, he wrote on Instagram that good things take time and that his moment would arrive.
He also congratulated the winners and said his focus had returned to making Barcelona win again.
What did Hansi Flick say about Lamine Yamal missing out on the Ballon d'Or?
Barcelona boss Hansi Flick addressed the Ballon d'Or result in his press conference before the Alavés game last week and gave a rather different reading of it. Speaking to reporters, as reported by ESPN, he stated:
"You know my opinion about Lamine. He is on this level to win this trophy. I am very proud about Lamine. He reacted good in my opinion and has been focused in training. This is how champions respond."
Flick also said that Kane deserved the prize and admitted he was glad the debate was over. Notably, Barcelona had lost 2-1 at home to Real Madrid in the Clasico before the Ballon d'Or gala was held in London.
