Kalidou Koulibaly says Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy deserved Ballon d’Or shortlist nomination
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Published 12/10/2021 at 10:16 GMT
The 30-man shortlist for the 2021 Ballon d’Or only featured one goalkeeper - Gianluigi Donnarumma. That has caught the eye of Napoli centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly, who thinks his Senegal team-mate Edouard Mendy should have been nominated after helping Chelsea to win the Champions League last season.
Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy
Image credit: Getty Images
Napoli centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly has expressed his disappointment that Senegal team-mate Edouard Mendy did not get shortlisted for the Ballon d’Or.
The only goalkeeper on the 30-man shortlist is Gianluigi Donnarumma, who played a key role in Italy’s Euro 2020 victory.
But Koulibaly thinks Mendy should be included after he helped Chelsea win the Champions League last season.
“It’s a real shame that Edou isn’t one of them. He is the first African goalkeeper to win the Champions League,” said the defender after Senegal’s 4-1 World Cup qualifying win over Namibia.
“We must continue to work and move forward. We have to do the double [the work] of some people to be well judged.
“Edou is a very positive person. We talked about it together. He will continue to fight to be part of it. For me, he has a place among these 30 players.”
Chelsea and Manchester City are the clubs with the most nominees (five), followed by PSG (four), Juventus, Manchester United, Inter and Real Madrid (two).
Lionel Messi, Jorginho and N'Golo Kante are expected to be the leading contenders for the award, along with Robert Lewandowski and Cristiano Ronaldo.
THE 30-MAN SHORTLIST
GOALKEEPERS
Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG)
DEFENDERS
Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus)
Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus)
Simon Kjær (AC Milan)
Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea)
Ruben Dias (Manchester City)
MIDFIELDERS
N'Golo Kante (Chelsea)
Mason Mount (Chelsea)
Nicolo Barella (Inter Milan)
Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)
Pedri (Barcelona)
Luka Modric (Real Madrid)
Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City)
Jorginho (Chelsea)
Phil Foden (Manchester City)
FORWARDS
Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City)
Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund)
Harry Kane (Tottenham)
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
Raheem Sterling (Manchester City)
Lionel Messi (PSG)
Neymar (PSG)
Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan)
Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Gerard Moreno (Villarreal)
Luis Suarez (Atletico Madrid)
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