In Pictures: 7’6” basketball player Mamadou N’Diaye dwarfs 6’4” Ballon d’Or candidate Erling Haaland and other Man City stars

Erling Haaland is a towering figure on the pitch who stands at 6-foot-4 and is on the taller side of most soccer players. He would even fit in as a guard on a basketball court. However, he and his Manchester City stars are small in comparison to 7-foot-6 basketball player Mamadou N’Diaye.

The Senegalese basketball player N’Diaye took pictures with some of the Man City stars in their locker room following a game. He took a picture with Haaland, Bernardo Silva and Ederson. He dwarfs Haaland and the other soccer stars. Silva who is 5-foot-8 looks almost childlike next to the big man.

N’Diaye made it to the national stage as a center in college basketball in the US. He played for UC Irvine. He then went undrafted when he came out in the 2016 NBA Draft.

He struggled to find a team. He was waived by the Detroit Pistons and Golden State Warriors. He then played in the Mexican professional league from 2018-20.

Erling Haaland named to Ballon d’Or finalist list

Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland lead the list of 30 names on the finalist list for the Ballon d’Or list. The list was released earlier this year.

Haaland will have stiff competition from the G.O.A.T. Lionel Messi. The Argentina superstar was left off the shortlist last year. He then led Argentina to the World Cup title, helped PSG to a French league title, and has been dominating MLS since arriving with Inter Miami.

If Messi wins this, it would be his eighth time winning the award. He has won the award more than any other player. Cristiano Ronaldo is second with five, while Haaland is gunning for his first.

The winner will be announced at a ceremony in Paris on October 30. The three highest vote-getters will be in attendance for the ceremony.

Erling Haaland has had another hot start to the Premier League season. He has seven goals in five EPL games thus far.

In the Premier League 2022-23 season, Erling Haaland scored 36 goals in 35 games. The 23-year-old broke the single-season scoring record in the EPL. He also helped the club to the treble by winning the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup.

Messi and Haaland are the favorites for the prestigious award. Here is the full list of the 30 finalists.

Full list of men's Ballon d'Or nominees:

André Onana - Manchester United/Cameroon

Josko Gvardiol - Manchester City/Croatia

Karim Benzema - Al Ittihad

Jamal Musiala - Bayern Munich/Germany

Mohamed Salah - Liverpool/Egypt

Jude Bellingham - Real Madrid/England

Bukayo Saka - Arsenal/England

Randal Kolo Muani - Paris Saint-Germain/France

Kevin De Bruyne - Manchester City/Belgium

Bernardo Silva - Manchester City/Portugal

Emiliano Martínez - Aston Villa/Argentina

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia - Napoli/Georgia

Rúben Dias - Manchester City/Portugal

Nicolo Barella - Inter Milan/Italy

Erling Haaland - Manchester City/Norway

Yassine Bounou - Al Hilal/Morocco

Martin Ødegaard - Arsenal/Norway

Julián Álvarez - Manchester City/Argentina

Ilkay Gündogan - Barcelona/Germany

Vinícius Júnior - Real Madrid/Brazil

Lionel Messi - Inter Miami/Argentina

Rodri - Manchester City/Spain

Lautaro Martínez - Inter Milan/Argentina

Antoine Griezmann - Atletico Madrid/France

Robert Lewandowski - Barcelona/Poland

Kylian Mbappé - Paris Saint-Germain/France

Kim Min-jae - Napoli/South Korea

Victor Osimhen - Napoli/Nigeria

Luka Modric - Real Madrid/Croatia

Harry Kane - Bayern Munich/England