National players Alexandra Popp and Lena Oberdorf can hope to win the Golden Ball. German U21 players are also nominated for the men.
Alexandra Popp and Lena Oberdorf belong to the list of candidates that the French football magazine “France Football” published on Friday (08/12/2022). There are 20 players in total, including Spaniard Alexia Putellas, who won the 2021 award.
Messi has not been there for the first time since 2005
Superstar Lionel Messi is not on the list of 30 nominated players for the first time since 2005. In contrast, his longtime rival Cristiano Ronaldo belongs to the elite circle.
Frenchman Karim Benzema, who won the Champions League with Real Madrid, is the favorite for the election. The striker also became the top scorer in the premier class with 15 goals. With ten goals in the knockout phase, he set a corresponding record of former Real star Ronaldo.
The goalkeepers are national keeper Manuel Neuer (Munich) and Eintracht Frankfurt’s Europa League hero Kevin Trapp. A total of ten candidates hope to win the Yashin trophy.
Musiala, Wirtz and Adeyemi on the list
Three German national players are among the candidates for the trophy, which is awarded to the best U21 player of the year. Jamal Musiala from Bayern Munich, Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen and Karim Adeyemi from Borussia Dortmund are up for election. The Bundesliga is by far the best represented with six players among the ten nominees.
In addition to the three Germans, the Englishman Jude Bellingham (Dortmund), cup winner Josko Gvardiol (Croatia/RB Leipzig) and Bayern newcomer Ryan Gravenberch (Netherlands) can also hope for the award. The top ten are completed by Frenchman Eduardo Camavinga (Real Madrid), Gavi (Spain/FC Barcelona), Bukayo Saka (England/FC Arsenal) and Nuno Mendes (Portugal/Paris St. Germain).