Hansi Flick says Lamine Yamal deserves Ballon d’Or

Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick believes teenage forward Lamine Yamal deserves to win the Ballon d'Or after another outstanding performance in their 5-1 Champions League victory over Feyenoord here at rain-soaked Spotify Camp Nou on Wednesday.

Yamal scored his fifth goal of the season with a free-kick and provided two assists as Barcelona made an impressive start to their European campaign.

The 19-year-old was included in the 30-player Ballon d'Or shortlist earlier this week, with the winner set to be announced at a ceremony in London on Oct. 26th.

Flick strongly backed Yamal’s Ballon d’Or credentials, praising the teenager’s exceptional performances.

"Of course, he's my player, a player from Barcelona," Flick said.

"He deserves to win the Ballon d'Or. For me, it's great.

"You can see in every game he's special. No one has this like him. I think he deserves it."

Yamal's goal was his 12th in the Champions League, leaving him one short of Kylian Mbappe's record of 13 for a teenager in the competition.

His goal and two assists also took his career goal contributions for Barcelona to 101, with 54 goals and 47 assists.

Flick also expressed surprise that Barcelona duo Raphinha and Pedri were omitted from the Ballon d'Or shortlist.

"They are too good to not be there," the German coach said. "But we cannot change it. But they are fantastic players and deserve to be there."

Raphinha scored twice against Feyenoord and has now netted eight times this season, becoming the first Barcelona player since 1950 to score in each of the club's opening five matches.