“His influence on the team is outstanding” – Joe Cole names player who was ‘overlooked’ for 2021 Ballon d'Or

Former Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole has suggested Blues midfielder N'Golo Kante should have won the 2021 Ballon d'Or after helping Thomas Tuchel and Co. win the Champions League.

France Football announced Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) superstar Lionel Messi as the winner of last year's Ballon d'Or award in December. The Argentina international beat the likes of Robert Lewandowski and Jorginho to bag the award.

However, former Chelsea attacker Cole is of the view that Chelsea midfielder Kante was overlooked for the Ballon d'Or. The Englishman hailed the 30-year-old's role in Chelsea's Champions League-winning run last term. He told Coral [via The Daily Mail]:

"I'm going to go with a Chelsea player, having won the Champions League, and say N'Golo Kante. He was overlooked for the Ballon d'Or. I've watched him week in, week out and his influence on the team is outstanding. He has missed large chunks of the season through injury and he has been missed. When he has played, he has been outstanding."

Cole added:

"The run-up to the Champions League last season, from the quarter-finals onwards, six out of seven games, including the final, he was the Man of the Match. Our eyes are always drawn towards the goalscorers and the technicians, but the influence that man has on his teams is incredible."

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Making his point, Cole went on to insist that Kante outperformed his Chelsea teammate Jorginho, who finished third in the Ballon d'Or rankings. He said:

"He'll finish his career with a bucket load of trophies, including the World Cup, and I think he's probably one of the most outstanding midfielders ever seen. And he also got overlooked for the player of the year awards."

He added:

"When we talk Jorginho, he won the European Footballer of the Year and obviously had a great season as well. But N'Golo Kante, I feel he actually outperformed him in similar positions."

Where did Kante finish in the Ballon d'Or race?

Messi won his seventh Ballon d'Or award last month while Lewandowski came second. Jorginho finished third in the race after helping Chelsea and Italy win the Champions League and the European Championship, respectively.

Real Madrid frontman Karim Benzema was placed fourth in the rankings. Kante, who Cole feels was overlooked for the Ballon d'Or award last year, came fifth. The midfielder finished above the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Mohamed Salah.

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About the author

Dakir is a European and Indian football journalist at Sportskeeda with an overall experience of 10 years. Holding a Master’s degree in Journalism & Mass Communication, and currently pursuing Master’s in Sports Journalism from Sheffield Hallam University, he is a seasoned football journalist who has interviewed the likes of former Liverpool star John Arne Riise, covered the entire 2022-23 Indian Super League season of the Kerala Blasters, and has delivered a seminar at an international conference held by St. Albert's College, Ernakulam.

Thanks to his extensive academic background in journalism, Dakir understands the importance of accuracy and spends a significant amount of time researching the subject. In today’s data-driven world of football, where players are perceived as machines, he prides himself amplify the voices of the people that make football the beautiful game that it is.

He started following football in 2013, and more specifically, Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool, and admires Jurgen Klopp for his untouched charisma and unmatched legacy. A perpetual underdog supporter, he is a fan of under-fire Reds forward Darwin Nunez and can’t wait for him to show the world what he truly is. Trent Alexander-Arnold’s iconic “corner taken quickly” corner assist for Divock Origi in Liverpool’s 4-0 UCL semifinal win over Barcelona left a lasting impact on him.

When not writing, Dakir enjoys indulging in his guilty pleasure - watching mass commercial movies.

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Edited by Ritwik Kumar