The 2024 Ballon d’Or date has been announced and Neymar already knows who should take home the prize given to the best player of the season. According to the Al Hilal star, Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior should be in pole position to emerge triumphan on October 28 in Paris.
“I love Vini. Vini is a great friend who football introduced me to and he had a great season. He certainly played a lot an I’ll definitely be rooting for him to win the Ballon d’Or. For me there is no one else but him to win and we hope this returns to Brazil soon right? Let it be now with Vini,” Neymar told Band Sports.
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Vinicius, 23, comes from a fantastic campaign with Los Blancos, recording an impressive 24 goals and 11 assists in 39 appearances across all competitions. On top of that, he helped the club win LaLiga and the UEFA Champions League, scoring against Borussia Dortmund in the final at Wembley.
“He’s a guy who deserves it, because he’s a fighter who suffered a lot throughout his life, but he surpassed all the expectations, he surpassed all the criticisms they made of him,” Ney added. “Today he has become a great idol, a great hero for us. So I’m very happy that he’s carrying this Brazilian flag around the world.”
Vinicius is seen as one of the strongest contenders for this year’s Ballon d’Or, with Real Madrid teammate Jude Bellingham perhaps his biggest competitor for the prize. We’ll have to wait and see whether Neymar’s wish comes true.
Remembering Zagallo
Sambafoot Series launched a new documentary about the football legend Zagallo. Known as ‘Velho Lobo‘ and as superstitious as it gets, Zagallo helped shape what Brazilian football is nowadays — as a player and as a coach.
Binge the full series, available on Sambafoot’s Youtube channel.
