Harry Kane has been widely discussed as a potential Ballon d’Or contender after another remarkable goalscoring season with Bayern Munich, but former Bayern midfielder Didi Hamann believes the England captain has not done enough to win the award.
Hamann was asked whether Kane deserves to be crowned the world’s best player, and his answer was straightforward:
“Does Harry Kane deserve to win the Ballon d’Or? I’d be surprised, to be honest. Obviously, scoring goals is one thing, and in Munich, every centre-forward
scores goals, maybe not as many as he has, but Lewandowski did,” Hamann told Andy’s Bet Club.
Hamann points to Robert Lewandowski as an example of how extraordinary goalscoring numbers alone may not be enough. Lewandowski came extremely close to winning the award during his time at Bayern Munich, only for the 2020 Ballon d’Or to be cancelled.
The bigger issue for Kane, according to Hamann, is his record in the biggest matches. Kane’s individual production has been extraordinary, but Bayern Munich, of course, ultimately fell short of the Champions League final. Hamann also believes Kane’s World Cup campaign could have an adverse effect on his chances to win the Ballon d’Or.
“Robert Lewandowski was close to winning it when it was cancelled. Obviously, you still had Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo plying their trade in Europe back then. I know Kane scored an awful lot of goals, but in the Champions League, the semifinal was the last stop for them,” Hamann said. “Then in the World Cup he didn’t score after the round of 32. I think he might have scored one penalty in the games against Mexico, the last goal from open play he scored in the last 32 against Congo – obviously he took two goals really well.”
Ultimately, Hamann believes Kane’s numbers are impressive but not sufficient when compared with the other leading candidates.
“I’m not sure that’s enough to win a Ballon d’Or, I think there’s two or three contenders who are ahead of him.”
Kane may have a compelling case, but according to Hamann, winning the Ballon d’Or requires more than putting up spectacular numbers. The biggest stages and biggest moments could ultimately determine whether Kane finishes at the top of the voting.
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