Manchester City's Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma has looked past Lamine Yamal, Kylian Mbappe and Harry Kane in the race for the 2026 Ballon d'Or, backing his former team-mate Ousmane Dembele instead. The goalkeeper, who swapped Paris Saint-Germain for the English giants, kept it brief when asked for his pick by French sports daily L'Equipe. "For me it's Ousmane Dembele," he said. Against the backdrop of the Nations League meeting between Italy and France, Donnarumma stressed the close bond the pair built in Paris.
Dembele has already won the award once, in 2025, and has lifted the Champions League with Paris Saint-Germain in each of the last two seasons. Yet most international experts regard Barcelona's 19-year-old star Lamine Yamal as the favourite after he won the World Cup with Spain. The winner will be officially announced at the end of the month.
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