Bayern Munich: Two players feature on final list of Ballon d’Or 2022
The Ballon d’Or ceremony took place early this year due to World Cup. Several superstars gathered in Paris on Monday for the award ceremony. Bayern Munich was well represented at the event as Sporting Director Hasan Salihamidzic travelled to Paris. In terms of the final Ballon d’Or list for 2022, only two Bayern players made it to the final list of 30 players.
Joshua Kimmich finished 25th on the list after having a very good season with Bayern in the center of the park. In terms of trophies, Kimmich helped Die Roten to retain a record tenth Bundesliga title in a row. If Bayern had gone deeper into the Champions League, Kimmich would have ended up higher on the list.
Meanwhile, Sadio Mane secured a place on the podium at Ballon d’Or 2022. The 30-year-old forward had an incredible year for club and country. He was a crucial member of the squad at Liverpool that competed for the quadruple until the end of the season. The Merseyside club eventually had to settle for a domestic cup double. Mane managed to score 23 goals for Liverpool across all competitions.
Along with delivering stellar performances for Liverpool, Mane also helped Senegal to win their maiden AFCON title. He also helped Senegal in securing a spot in the next month’s World Cup in Qatar. If Liverpool had won the Champions League final against Real Madrid in May, Mane would have edged Karim Benzema for the Ballon d’Or 2022.
Mane also made a very solid start to his time at Bayern. The Senegalese forward has scored nine goals in 16 appearances for Die Roten across all competitions. The Bavarian faithful will be hoping to see Mane lift the Ballon d’Or next year by guiding Bayern to several trophies this season.
Musiala and Gravenberch finish in top 10 for Kopa Trophy
Considering the stellar performances Jamal Musiala has delivered for Bayern Munich in the past 12 months, it was surprising to not see him win the Kopa Trophy for the best young player in the world. Barcelona’s Gavi was the winner of the Kopa trophy, while Musiala finished third in the list behind Gavi and Eduardo Camavinga. Ryan Gravenberch finished sixth, along with RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol.
They may have denied you of your Kopa Trophy, but they won’t deny you of your future Ballon d’Or #GoldenBoy 🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/8YQXkWuVzw
— Alphonso Davies (@AlphonsoDavies) October 18, 2022
Manuel Neuer finished outside the top 5 for Yashin Trophy
The awards from France Football are always cruel to Bayern Munich players. Manuel Neuer continues to remain one of the best goalkeepers in the world, but he ended up finishing seventh on the list for Yashin Trophy. Considering his performances over the last 12 months, Neuer should have been in the top five for this award.
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Mane wins inaugural Socrates Award
Apart from finishing second in the Ballon d’Or list, Sadio Mane was also awarded the newly introduced Socrates Award for his outstanding social work off the pitch. The 30-year-old winger has done outstanding social work in Senegal. A class act on and off the pitch.
Former Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski won the first edition of the Gerd Muller trophy. The Polish striker scored 50 goals for Die Roten last season before moving to Barcelona in the summer transfer window.