He had obtained a nice 9th position in the ranking of the Ballon d’Or for the 2018 edition, just behind Eden Hazard. This time, Kevin De Bruyne will have to settle for a new place of honor. Eighth, just ahead of Kylian Mbappé, but behind Mohamed Salah, the Manchester City player would no doubt have dreamed of a better result if he had been spared from injuries.
It still matches Eden Hazard’s ranking three years ago, which was the best for a Belgian since Enzo Scifo’s 6th place in 1990. The record 4th position set by Paul Van Himst (1965) and Wilfried Van Moer (1980) is therefore safe, for at least twelve additional months.
As for Romelu Lukaku, the only other Belgian present among the thirty finalists for the Ballon d’Or, he finished 12th. Which remains a very good result knowing that it was his very first nomination among the finalists. The striker also won, with Chelsea, the title of Club of the Year.
On the other hand, Thibaut Courtois will be less satisfied with his result in the Yachine trophy rewarding the best goalkeeper. The Real Madrid goalkeeper only takes 8th place, despite being excluded from the top 10 in 2019.
The fourth and last Red Devil attentive to the results of the evening was Jérémy Doku. Named among the ten best players under 21 for the Kopa trophy, the Stade Rennes striker finished in 9th place, tied with Giovanni Reyna (Dortmund).
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