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Liverpool: Rio Ferdinand Makes Bold Ballon d’Or Claim About Mohamed Salah 3fk11

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Sushan Chakraborty
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Sushan Chakraborty Sports Editor

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Published05 Mar 2025

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Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand has said Liverpool frontman Mohamed Salah is the undisputed favourite for the 2025 Ballon d’Or.

Salah, 32, has been enjoying the best season of his professional career. He has linked up flawlessly with teammates, created goalscoring opportunities on cue, and, most importantly, scored decisive goals in games that matter.

Since the start of the 2024-25 Premier League season, Salah has scored 25 goals and provided 17 assists in 28 appearances. He is currently the runaway leader in both the Golden Boot and the Playmaker Award races. The former AS Roma winger has also chipped in with three goals and four assists in seven UEFA Champions League outings.

Rio Ferdinand Says Mohamed Salah Is Leading the Ballon d’Or Race 3t1h4r

Despite winning it all with Liverpool, Salah has not gotten his hand on the coveted Ballon d’Or award. Premier League legend Ferdinand believes 2025 could finally be his year.

Speaking on TNT Sports ahead of Liverpool’s UEFA Champions League Round of 16 meeting with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), Ferdinand remarked:

“Right now at this moment in time, I don’t think there’s anyone else on the podium with him.”

The Englishman, however, cautioned that Salah could face stiff competition from Real Madrid trio Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Jr., and Jude Bellingham if they step up in the business end of the Champions League.

He added:

“But I think with the way the Champions League works, as you get through the knockout stages and someone starts coming to the fore, they end up there.

“It comes down to moments in big games, really. You can throw Salah in there, you can throw Dembele in there if PSG go far. Mbappe will be there, [as will] Vinicius and Bellingham.”

Ferdinand concluded by adding:

“Whoever keeps their status and turns up in the semi-final and final will win it. If they [Liverpool] win the Champions League, I’m sure he’ll play a big part.”

The Liverpool No. 11, who is in the final year of his contract, has twice finished fifth in the Ballon d’Or race. Last year, however, the Egypt international did not even make the 30-man shortlist.