Nigerian Jay Jay Okocha, a former attacking midfielder for Paris Saint-Germain, believes that the Ballon d'Or award should go to French striker Kylian Mbappe, the Spanish Real Madrid player.
The Golden Ball Awards will be held in London on October 26, which will be the 70th in the history of the award, while voting will close approximately 10 days from now.
Okocha said in statements to the French newspaper “Journal du Dimanche”: “The excitement is now greater than ever, as there are at least 12 nominated players, such as Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappe and Lamine Yamal.”
He added: “I think Mbappe deserves the award, after he topped the list of top scorers in the World Cup (10 goals), as well as the Champions League (15 goals), and the Spanish League (25 goals).”
Okocha previously also represented the German clubs Eintracht Frankfurt, Fenerbahce in Turkey, Qatar Club of Qatar, Bolton Wanderers and Hull City in England. He was a member of Nigeria's golden generation that won the 1994 African Cup of Nations and the 1995 Afro-Asian Cup, in addition to the 1996 Atlanta Olympics gold medal. He also won the BBC Award for Best Player in Africa twice.
Manchester City star Erling Haaland spoke with great pride after his team's victory over Liverpool amid a hostile atmosphere at Anfield.
Manchester City beat Liverpool 3-0 on Sunday, taking advantage of the numerical deficiency in its opponent's ranks, in City's first match after being found guilty of financial violations of the English Premier League regulations.
Manchester City's players shined despite being subjected to booing throughout the match, as Haaland opened the scoring with a quick hat-trick for his team after Liverpool's Ryan Kravenberg was sent off.
Haaland said on Sky Sports: “This is a wonderful moment for all our fans, which will remain immortal for a long time, whether felt during or after the match.”
The Norwegian star added: “It was a difficult and arduous match, but we showed a strong character. I am very proud.”
For his part, Manchester City midfielder Elliot Anderson praised his team's courage, saying: "We showed a high fighting spirit, and we were a cohesive team."
He added: “The atmosphere at Anfield is difficult, and it remains a great challenge, but we stuck together, fought for each other, and played bravely.”
When asked about the booing from Liverpool fans, Anderson replied: “It was more than usual, whether when we arrived on the field or in the first 10 minutes, but I think we succeeded in silencing them.”
Haaland relatively disagreed with his colleague, saying that the atmosphere was not different, and said: “Playing at Anfield is always difficult.”
He added: “In the era of Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp, the matches were very difficult for the two teams.”
The City star concluded: “Mental stability in such circumstances is important, as is focusing on performing the tasks required of us, striving to perform well, and fighting together.”
The Olympique Marseille team emerged from the dark tunnel with a valuable victory away from home over Troyes with a score of 2-0 at the conclusion of the sixth round of the French Football League, on Sunday evening.
The visitors scored two goals in the second half, as Marseille took the lead with a goal from Algerian Amine Harit in the 50th minute, and his compatriot Hamad Abdali added the second goal in the 98th minute from a penalty kick.
With this victory, Marseille overcomes the setback of losing in four consecutive matches in the league championship, raising its score to 6 points, jumping to thirteenth place in the standings, and temporarily moving away from the relegation struggle.
As for Troyes, it suffered its fourth loss in a row, leaving its score frozen at 4 points, in seventeenth and penultimate place.
