"He's a very good player but he's from Barcelona" - Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappe makes claim when asked if Lamine Yamal can win 2025 Ballon d'Or

Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappe has refused to back Barcelona teenager Lamine Yamal for the Ballon d'Or this year. He did not want to praise the Spaniard, as he was from their LaLiga rivals.

Speaking to BILD, Mbappe admitted that Yamal was a very good player, but was not backing him for the Ballon d'Or. The teenager has been nominated in the top 30 this year, and has been touted to be among the front-runners for the award.

However, the Real Madrid star said (via Le Parisien)

"Lamine Yamal? He's a very good player but he's from Barcelona. I can't say anything."

Former Barcelona star Gerard Deulofeu also spoke about the Ballon d’Or in August, and backed Yamal for the award. He said:

"It’s not about who I want to win, but honestly, being a football player, watching football and watching a lot of Barcelona games, European games, there’s no doubt for me that the best football creator is Lamine Yamal.

"He may be young, he may be what people want, someone else may have won more titles, but if you watch the games, the greatest football creator is Lamine Yamal and for me there’s no doubt that he’s been the best this year."

Lamine Yamal won the league title and Copa del Rey with Barcelona, while Kylian Mbappe's Real Madrid failed to win any major silverware.

Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappe not in the Ballon d'Or race with BarcelonaLamine Yamal, says Jérôme Rothen

Jérôme Rothen spoke about the Ballon d’Or on RMC Sport earlier this summer and claimed that Kylian Mbappe was not in the same league as Lamine Yamal and Ousmane Dembele. He claimed that the Real Madrid star has not done well in the season and said:

"Mbappe again doesn't deserve to be in the discussion for the Ballon d'Or. Today, he is not in the same league as Lamine Yamal or Ousmane Dembele. We all know perfectly well that Mbappe doesn't deserve to be there."

It was not the first time he spoke about the Frenchman, saying on RMC Radio earlier this year:

“People are talking about Kylian Mbappé. He arrived at his dream club with the ambition of winning every trophy, including the Champions League, and also of being among the best players in the world and winning the Ballon d'Or. Collectively and individually, he is a failure.

"He will not win the Ballon d'Or this year. He is a resounding failure. At the start of the season, mitigating factors were found. He could have had time to adapt, but when you're Mbappé, the adaptation time is shorter. He scored a lot of goals, but in the game he's catastrophic."

Lamine Yamal faced Real Madrid in four El Clásico matches last season, with the Barcelona star coming out victorious in all games.