Thierry Henry Picks Kylian Mbappe to Win Ballon d’Or Over Harry Kane

Thierry Henry says he wants fellow Frenchman Kylian Mbappe to win this year's Ballon d'Or, going against Harry Kane, who many see as the favorite.

Mbappe has never won the award, but Henry thinks that should change after the Real Madrid forward scored 25 goals in LaLiga and 15 in the Champions League last season.

"It's Kylian Mbappe," Henry said. "And yes, people will tell me that he didn't win anything. I think it happened in history. I think some people need to do their research on that one."

Henry pointed to Mbappe's numbers across multiple competitions as the reason for his pick. "But for me, it's Kylian. When you see what he has achieved individually... Top goal scorer in the Champions League, top goal scorer in LaLiga and also the World Cup. Michael Olise has the same thing in terms of assists."

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Henry also rates Bayern Munich winger Michael Olise above Kane this year, even though Kane scored 36 goals in the Bundesliga last season compared to Olise's 15 goals and 21 assists.

"I just wanted to explain that there are a lot of people that are candidates and they're not like Mickey Mouse candidates, in all fairness," Henry said. "But I will personally go with Mbappe. Michael Olise, close."

He also named Rodri, Lamine Yamal, Erling Haaland and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia as players in the running, and said Lionel Messi might have been a contender for a ninth award had Argentina managed to defend their World Cup title. "And I think if they won the World Cup, I think they would have brought the Ballon d'Or to him," Henry said.

Henry admitted the race feels tighter than it did last year, when he correctly backed eventual winner Ousmane Dembele. "It's not as easy as it was last year," he said. "I think this year is a bit more complicated... Harry Kane, it's not me, but the best player in Germany last year was Michael Olise."

He also touched on the debate in England around Jude Bellingham, saying fans there might point to his World Cup performance even though his club season did not stand out as much. "If you ask people in England who had the best World Cup, they would say Jude Bellingham... You would say that maybe that his season wasn't too great at Madrid."

Mbappe himself was asked earlier in the week whether he considers himself the best player in the world, and he gave a measured response. "Everyone has their own opinion. Some people here will think so, and others won't. Not everyone has to think like me," he said, speaking before Real Madrid's 2-1 Champions League win over Inter Milan, a game in which he scored the opening goal and was handed last season's top scorer trophy.

Mbappe added that while this could be his year, the final decision is out of his hands. "This year might be a good one to win the Ballon d'Or, but it's voted on by journalists, and they'll choose."