One Manchester City star has been tipped to win the Ballon d’Or in the next three years.
Pep Guardiola’s squad is brimming with world-class players and has several potential candidates for football’s biggest personal accolade in its ranks.
Though Lionel Messi claimed last year’s award thanks to his World Cup heroics, Manchester City dominated the top 10 by taking up half the spaces.
Erling Haaland finished second ahead of Kylian Mbappe as Kevin De Bruyne came in fourth spot just in front of Rodri in fifth.
Messi’s international teammate Julian Alvarez came seventh while Bernardo Silva claimed ninth position.
Ilkay Gundogan and Ruben Dias also finished in the top 30 though one man who didn’t make the cut was Phil Foden.
But former elite agent Jon Smith thinks that will soon change.
Phil Foden tipped to win Ballon d’Or
Smith told Caught Offside: “Thomas Frank made a lovely statement recently about Phil Foden being the closest English player to winning a Ballon d’Or and I hope it’s true because I love Phil Foden.
“I think he’s a great English footballer with a brain that’s a lot more ‘international.’
“He’s maturing, he’s high energy and with a lot of trickery – and he had a good World Cup.
“I think you should ask me that in three years’ time, and I hope my answer is yes because he is the complete package.
“He just needs to keep his head in the right place.”
Can Phil Foden win the Ballon d’OR?
Winning the Ballon d’Or is a great ambition for Foden to have and he’s certainly got the quality to do so.
The award has been dominated by Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo for most of the last 15 years but now the duo have left European football, the competition is wide open.
Foden can stake his own claim if he continues his fantastic form. The 23-year-old is enjoying his best season yet and has particularly benefited from being given more opportunities to play in the middle.
The ‘Stockport Iniesta’ already has 25 goal contributions this season, just one shy of his best-ever tally of 26.
If he can keep it up and City go on to claim yet more silverware, he will have a great chance of winning some of his own.
But competition will be fierce. There will be enough of his teammates in contention before you then consider Mbappe, Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Jr and Harry Kane.
