Arsenal Legend, Thierry Henry has nominated Karim Benzema and Sadio Mane as his choice players for this year's Ballon d’Or.
Both players, Mane and Benzema will come face to face in the Champions League final slated for France by end of this month after Real Madrid and Liverpool secured their places. Liverpool netted Villarreal to emerge victorious in the final, as Real Madrid rubbished Manchester City in the semi-final.
Benzema during the season has in total netted 43 goals in all the competition, scoring four times across both legs of the quarter-finals against Chelsea.
Similarly, Mane has set a similar record for Liverpool and later his home state Senegal, scoring in crucial matches for both his club and his country which makes him an eligible candidate for the Ballon d’Or.
However, Henry opined that Benzema is still taking the lead against Mane in the chances for the award.
Henry while speaking to CBS sports said, “If you think about the [Champions League] final and to make it even bigger, the two favorites for the Ballon d’Or are Mane and Benzema,”
“So that will add a little extra spice into it.
“I still believe that Benzema is ahead, but if Mane wins it with Liverpool and they do make the quadruple, that would be a pretty strong case, Henry added.
He concluded, “It would be great for Africa, but I’m still going with Benzema.”
