Marcus Rashford, Vinicius Jr, and more: Nominees for the Socrates Award at the Ballon d'Or ceremony revealed

Vinicius Junior and Marcus Rashford are among the nominees for the Socrates Award at the Ballon d'Or ceremony. A total of five nominees have been named for the award.

Apart from the two players mentioned above, FC Barcelona member Asisat Oshoala, Real Madrid's Antonio Rudiger, and USWNT's Alex Morgan have also been nominated.

The Socrates Award is given to players for their charitable work outside of football. The award was introduced last year. Sadio Mane won it last year for his charity work in Senegal.

Marcus Rashford is well-known for his charity work and has previously received the MBE for his contributions towards the society. Vinicius Junior has also done his fair share of work for the society. The Brazilian launched an education app back in 2021 to help poor and troubled students.

Ronaldo Nazario slammed Flamengo for how they handled Vinicius Junior

Vinicius Junior

Vinicius Junior is one of the leading attackers in world football at the moment. The Brazilian has been a key player for Real Madrid in recent seasons. He made 55 appearances across competitions for Los Blancos this past season, scoring 23 goals and providing 21 assists.

While there is no denying Vinicius' skills and flair, Brazilian football legend Ronaldo Nazario slammed the player's former club Flamengo for not improving his left foot. The legendary striker said (h/t Madrid Xtra):

"They (Flamengo) didn’t prepare him well at the youth level. They didn’t improve his left foot, the technical fundamentals, the time and space on the pitch. He learned it all at Madrid."

Vinicius Junior is only 22 years old. However, he has already become one of the most devastating attackers in world football. Fans can expect the player to grow in the years to come. He will wear the number 7 jersey for Real Madrid next season.