England currently have a generation of very talented players but will any of Gareth Southgate’s squad secure the Ballon d’Or?
“Foden is a very good player, for me he is the closest England will get to winning a Ballon d’Or in the future,” Brentford manager Thomas Frank said ahead of the Bees’ 1-0 defeat to Manchester City on Tuesday night.
The 23-year-old is having an exceptional season at the Etihad Stadium and it is a campaign many have been waiting for the City midfielder to produce for a while now.
However, when it comes to winning a Ballon d’Or it is about more than what you do on the field of play and Stan Collymore believes one England star has a “better chance” of winning the biggest individual prize on the planet over the Man City star.
Is Man City’s Phil Foden England’s best hope of winning a Ballon d’Or?
Writing in his latest exclusive column for CaughtOffside, Stan Collymore has said that he thinks Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham will likely win the competition before Foden as the midfielder not only has the ability but is also a very popular figure amongst fans and journalists.
“For me, it is really simple, I have every respect for Phil Foden but I think the Ballon d’Or winner is usually someone with a mixture of ability and personality,” the pundit said.
“I’m not saying that Phil doesn’t have personality but when Jude Bellingham does something spectacular at Real Madrid, it reverberates around the planet. Foden does miraculous things with a football but it doesn’t seem to have the same impact outside of England
“If Jude Bellingham was to win the Champions League with Real Madrid and the Euros with England this year, starring and producing big moments for both, along with his iconic celebration being shared around on social media; then I think he has a much better chance of lifting that golden ball.
“The midfielder is just more marketable and unfortunately, that plays a big role in winning the biggest individual prize on the planet. Either way, I am delighted that they both happen to be English.”