Real Madrid winger Eden Hazard has overlooked Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi and has called for the 2019 Ballon d'Or to be awarded to one of three Liverpool stars. According to the Belgian, either Sadio Mane, Virgil van Dijk or Mohamed Salah will be a worthy winner than the pair.
Up until 2018 where Luka Modric won the coveted honor awarded by France Football magazine, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo had staged a duopoly, winning the accolade a record five times each. The opportunity for one of them to take the lead once more presented itself when the pair were named in a 30-man shortlist earlier in October this year.
However, according to Eden Hazard - who was also nominated for the award - one among Mane, Salah and Van Dijk should be considered for the honor instead of Ronaldo and Messi.
"I would give it to a Liverpool player. Mané, Salah or Van Djik deserve it, he told Le Parisien.
"If Sadio had won AFCON with Senegal, there would have been no debate. It would be beautiful if he won it. Or Momo (Salah), who is one of my friends. It would be a good thing for both African and English football."
The winner of the 2019 Ballon d'Or will be announced in Paris on 2 December 2019.
