"Completely incomprehensible to us" - Bayern Munich executive unhappy with star's snub from Ballon d'Or shortlist
Bayern Munich executive Max Eberl expressed his disappointment after Jamal Musiala was excluded from the 2024 Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist. The 21-year-old midfielder was one of Germany's best players in their Euro 2024 campaign.
Musiala was also key to Bayern Munich's journey to the UEFA Champions League semi-finals, where they lost 4-3 aggregate to Real Madrid. In a conversation with DPA, Max Eberl expressed his disappointment at Musiala's snub, and said (via GOAL):
"I'm happy for every player nominated for the Ballon d'Or, but we at FC Bayern are very surprised that Jamal Musiala is missing from this list. Jamal was one of the outstanding players at the Euros, was voted into the best XI and was one of the tournament's top scorers. In addition, FC Bayern reached the semi-finals of the Champions League thanks to Jamal's great performances."
The Bayern Munich executive continued:
"The fact that he's not even one of the 30 best players of the last season is completely incomprehensible to us. In our eyes, Jamal is one of the most fascinating players in international football with absolutely exceptional, unique abilities. We are very proud of what he's doing for FC Bayern and also for the national team."
In overall 38 appearances across all competitions, Jamal Musiala registered 12 goals and eight assists last season for Bayern. He also scored three goals for Germany in Euro 2024, before being eliminated from the tournament after a 2-1 loss to Spain in the quarter-final. He also tied for the highest number of goals scored in Euro 2024.
Harry Kane was the only Bayern Munich player to make it to the 2024 Men's Ballon d'Or shortlist
England international Harry Kane was the only Bayern Munich player to make to the 30-man shortlist for the 2024 Men's Ballon d'Or. It is set to be awarded in Paris on October 28.
Kane joined Bayern Munich for a reported £82 million from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2023. In his debut season at the Allianz Arena, he scored 44 goals and recorded 12 assists in 45 appearances across all competitions.
The Englishman became the highest scorer of the Bundesliga in the 2023-24 season with 36 goals in 32 appearances. He was also awarded the European Golden Shoe last season for scoring the most number of goals in Europe. He became the joint-highest scorer in the UEFA Champions League with eight goals.
Harry Kane also led England to the Euro 2024 final this summer and scored three goals in the tournament. However, the Three Lions lost 2-1 to Spain in the final. Kane's stellar individual numbers led him to be nominated for the 2024 Ballon d'Or.