Kylian Mbappe does not believe he has ruined his chances of winning the Ballon d’Or award by opting to extend his stay at PSG.
The Frenchman snubbed a move to Real Madrid this summer by signing a new three-year contract in Paris. And the 23-year-old has refuted the notion that he has diminished his chances of claiming the ultimate individual accolade by rejecting a move to the Spanish giants.
“Real is a machine for Ballon d’Or’s, it must be recognised,” Mbappe told L’Equipe. “There is a real know how. But the most important thing is yourself.”
“It’s not your club that will get your Ballon d’Or, but it’s you first. And I remain convinced that I will be able to win it one day in Paris.”
Mbappe also recognised the public efforts from senior Real Madrid figures that increase their players’ chances of winning the Ballon d’Or.
“You have the part of your teammates who support you, that of your club, that of your coach,” added the Frenchman. “When you repeat, and make repeat, every week ‘he is the best player in the world, he must win the Ballon d’Or this year’, at some point it ends up reaching the voters.
“Even when they sleep, they must hear these noises. Real know how to do this very well. They manage to convince you almost every year that their player is the number one candidate.
“And, even if you don’t always notice it at first, I’m sure that when the refrain repeats itself every day, especially when the voting period draws closer, it may have a small influence.”