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The Ballon d'Or is undoubtedly the most prestigious individual award in the world of football. Only the very best in the business have had the privilege of wrapping their hands around the coveted trophy. The Ballon d'Or is presented to the best performing footballer in a calendar year by French news magazine France Football.
They have released the 30-man shortlist for the 2022 Ballon d'Or and the following players have been included:
Karim Benzema, Trent Alexander-Arnold, João Cancelo, Casemiro, Thibaut Courtois, Ronaldo, Kevin de Bruyne, Luis Díaz, Fabinho, Phil Foden, Erling Haaland, Sébastien Haller, Harry Kane, Joshua Kimmich, Rafael Leão, Robert Lewandowski, Riyad Mahrez, Mike Maignan, Sadio Mané, Kylian Mbappé, Luka Modrić, Christopher Nkunku, Darwin Núñez, Antonio Rüdiger, Mohamed Salah, Bernardo Silva, Son Heung-min, Virgil van Dijk, Vinícius Júnior and Dušan Vlahović.
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#5 Luis Diaz (Colombia/Liverpool)
Luis Diaz had an impressive season. He did a pretty good job for FC Porto in the first half of the campaign before copping a move to Liverpool in January. He won the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup with the Reds but did not exactly play an extensive role in either triumphs.
He provided just two assists in eight appearances across both tournaments last term. Diaz also failed to inspire Colombia to World Cup qualification. The 25-year-old is undoubtedly a brilliant forward but he may not have done enough to warrant a place on the Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist.
He finished the 2021-22 season with 22 goals and 11 assists in 54 appearances across all competitions for Porto and Liverpool.
#4 Joshua Kimmich (Germany/Bayern Munich)
Joshua Kimmich did a very good job for Bayern Munich in midfield last term. However, he missed a fair bit of the 2021-22 campaign through various injuries and illnesses. The Germany international made a total of 39 appearances across all competitions for the Bavarians, scoring three goals and providing 12 assists.
But it beats us why Kimmich made it to the shortlist ahead of someone like Thomas Muller, who was arguably more influential in Bayern's Bundesliga triumph. Muller scored 13 goals and provided a whopping 25 assists in 45 appearances across all competitions for the Bavarians last term.
As such, Kimmich making the list over Muller despite having the same number of trophies and not being arguably as influential is surprising.
#3 Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal/Manchester United)
Cristiano Ronaldo did have a decent year on the goalscoring front. But it's worth noting that Portugal had to go to the World Cup qualifying playoffs to eventually book a spot in Qatar. Ronaldo has done a decent job for Manchester United but his inclusion in the list has come as a bit of a surprise.
The Red Devils had a famously horrendous season. They finished the 2021-22 Premier League campaign with their lowest ever points tally of 58. Ronaldo scored 24 goals and provided three assists in 38 appearances across all competitions for Manchester United last term.
He did not win any silverware. As such, it's appalling that someone like Ciro Immobile, who finished the 2021-22 season as Serie A's top scorer, wasn't given the nod ahead of the 37-year-old in the Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist.
#2 Harry Kane (England/Tottenham Hotspur)
Harry Kane was heavily linked with a move to Manchester City in the summer of 2021. Tottenham Hotspur refused to let him go and the Englishman was clearly unsettled at the club in the first half of the season. He struggled to score goals but eventually regained his form once Antonio Conte was appointed as manager in November.
Kane did play a pivotal role in Spurs qualifying for the Champions League but that's as far as his accomplishments go. He ended up scoring 27 goals and providing 10 assists in 50 appearances across all competitions for the Lilywhites in the 2021-22 season.
It's worth noting that six of those goals came in the UEFA Europa Conference League and its qualifiers. He did not exactly have a season worth writing home about and his inclusion in the Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist is surprising.
#1 Rafael Leao (Portugal/AC Milan)
Rafael Leao was named the Serie A MVP for the role he played in AC Milan's Scudetto win last season. For a young attacker, he did do a pretty good job. But overall, there's a feeling that Leao's selection has come at the cost of a couple of players who did a lot more.
Leao scored a total of 14 goals and provided 12 assists in 42 appearances across all competitions for the Rossoneri. He won the Serie A title but while players like Lionel Messi, Neymar, Ciro Immobile, Mason Mount and Thomas Muller have been snubbed, it's difficult to justify Leao's inclusion in the Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist.
