Will Mohamed Salah Win the Ballon d’Or?

By his own admission, Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah is having one of the best seasons of his career. He’s accrued 41 goals + assists so far in the Premier League. The mark is 12 more than the next-highest player with 29. Salah is a big reason why his club is on the verge of winning the Premier League this season.

Additionally, he says that this is his best season because he helps his teammates around him perform better.

Speaking during an interview with TNT Sports, Salah emphasized that his game is being taken to the next level because he’s adapted his game to help his team in the way coach Arne Slot wanted him to:

This is my best season because I have made other players around me better. That’s what I feel. I know their games.

If you look at the numbers of the other players, it will be higher than their previous seasons. My assist numbers are higher this years, and that shows that I help my teammates a lot.

Cody Gakpo and Lucho [Luis Diaz] as well as other players are having their best seasons, better than any other season so I think this is my best one.

In his eighth year with Liverpool, Salah has evolved his game beyond being just a potent attacking threat. Since even before he signed for Liverpool, he was lighting up the Italian Serie A by scoring loads of goals and assists. Now, he tracks back on defense more and puts in tackles like a right back, all while being one of the most consistent attacking threats in the league.

This level of play would certainly be worthy of the Balon d’Or, one of the most prestigious individual awards in the sport. It seems there are fewer better players this season. Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr. and Barcelona’s Raphinha have been in the conversation, but their output has been nowhere near the Egyptian’s level.

Is Salah the nailed-on winner for the award? Not so fast, says his manager Arne Slot. If he wants the award, he needs to do one thing this season: win trophies.

Mo is in the discussion as that means he is doing well and that means we are doing well. For him to stay in that discussion he should bring the same performances as he has done for seven or eight months now. In general, someone who wins the Ballon d’Or needs to win something as well.

If we as a team win something he has a far better chance to win an individual prize like the Ballon d’Or.

Salah himself appeared to agree with the sentiment. When asked if he is the favorite to win the prize, he said: “Let us win the Premier League and Champions League and we will see.”