"It bothers the French that he might win the Ballon d’Or before Mbappe" - Karl Toko Ekambi on lack of support for France star in race for award
Al-Ettifaq forward Karl Toko Ekambi has opined that French football might be worried that Ousmane Dembele might win the Ballon d’Or before Kylian Mbappe. This comes as the Paris Saint-Germain forward has emerged as a dominant contender for the prestigious football award this year.
In a discussion on Twitch with streamer Ange GR, Toko Ekambi spoke about the rumored lack of support for Dembele. He said (via FootBoom):
"I even think, in my view, that it bothers the French that Dembélé might win the Ballon d'Or before Mbappé."
Dembele registered a strong and resurgent performance in the 2024-25 season. This saw him add four trophies to his cabinet, including PSG's historic first-ever UEFA Champions League title.
The Frenchman also scored 21 goals to emerge as the Ligue 1 top-scorer last term and was named the league's Player of the Year. As regards goal contributions, Dembele registered 33 goals and 15 assists in 49 outings across competitions.
Meanwhile, most of the hype and media endorsement arguably seems to be around Barcelona's Lamine Yamal. The teenage sensation has also received numerous endorsements from his teammates, both at the club and national team levels.
On the flip side, Mbappe, who moved from PSG to Real Madrid last summer in search of a UCL title, failed to secure the trophy. Hence, there's a good probability that Dembele could win the Ballon d’Or before his compatriot.
"We should all be supporting Ousmane Dembélé" - Toko Ekambi on PSG star's Ballon d’Or push
Toko Ekambi has urged that French football should be supporting Ousmane Dembele for the Ballon d’Or. He also complained about the lack of support for the PSG star, insisting that Dembele has faced criticism even from his compatriots.
In the same discussion with Ange GR, the former Lyon forward said (via Foot Boom):
"Lamine Yamal is Spanish, and the Spanish always stand firmly behind their players, placing them at the very top, 100%. In France, we tend to criticize our players. We should all be supporting Ousmane Dembélé, but instead, we constantly point out his flaws, If there is a debate between Lamine Yamal and Dembélé for the Ballon d'Or, it's because in France, we are not united behind Dembélé. Do you think in Spain there would be any debate if Dembélé had this season? If Messi or Cristiano were in Dembélé's place, there would be no debate at all."
Yamal and Dembele have been recently nominated for the Ballon d’Or award by the organizers. The ceremony and the winner of the award will be disclosed on September 22.