Aboutrika: 'Haaland went to the Ballon d'Or to clap for Messi'
On August 31, striker Haaland surpassed Messi to win UEFA's best player of the year award. Two days later, he scored a hat-trick to help Man City beat Fulham 5-1 in the fourth round of the Premier League.
Commenting on beIN Sports after the match, Aboutrika said: "I'm happy that Haaland won the UEFA award, but the Golden Ball is for Messi. Haaland's role in the Golden Ball award ceremony will be to applaud Messi."
Aboutrika was an Egypt international from 2001 to 2013, helping the team to win the Africa Cup twice in 2006 and 2008. Also in 2008, he was chosen by the BBC as the best player in Africa. He is also an idol of star Mohamed Salah.
Aboutrika isn't the only one who thinks Messi will win the 2023 Ballon d'Or, not Haaland. In a survey by Spanish newspaper Marca last month, the Argentine superstar still led the poll, followed by Haaland, Kylian Mbappe and Rodri respectively.
Bookies also think that Messi deserves to receive his eighth Golden Ball this year. The top British bookmakers all give him the lowest odds of winning the prize at 1/5 (a five-to-one bet), and the highest at 1/12. The Norwegian striker's odds of winning the award are only 10/3 to 13/2.
The 2023 Golden Ball will announce nominations at the end of September 6, and the award ceremony will take place on October 30. This is the second year the award is awarded based on seasonal performance, from August 1, 2022 to July 31, 2023, rather than the calendar year.
During the above period, Messi won the World Cup with Argentina, was the best player in the final as well as the whole tournament. He also won the World Cup Silver Shoe with seven goals and three assists. At the club level, Messi and PSG won Ligue 1 with 16 goals and 16 assists, 21 goals and 20 assists in all competitions. The Leagues Cup title with Inter Miami will count towards the 2023-2024 season achievement.
At the same time, Haaland won the European Golden Shoe with 36 goals in the Premier League, and was also the best player in the tournament. He is also the Champions League top scorer with 12 goals, helping Man City win the treble. In the last club season, the 23-year-old striker scored 53 goals and assisted nine times.
