Salah for Ballon d'Or?

You have to dig back through the archives to Kaka's triumph in 2007 to find the last time the coveted Ballon d'Or was lifted by someone other than Ronaldo or Messi. Since then, Real Madrid's legendary No. 7 and Barcelona's magic maestro have turned the trophy into a two-horse race that no outsider has come close to contesting. 

Cue the 'Egyptian King' - Mo Salah. No other player has had a season quite like his. After signing for Liverpool for an initial fee of £36.9 million in the summer, Salah netted on his debut and hasn't slowed down since. 

He's broken records left, right and centre. Salah is the Premier League's highest scoring African, he has the most Player of the Month awards in a single season (three - and counting) and, in March, he became the first Egyptian to score a hat-trick in England's top flight after putting four past Watford.

 

24 April 2018

When you compare the goalscoring prowess of Salah, Ronaldo and Messi this season, it's the 'Egyptian King' who sits on the throne:

Goals in all competitions in 2017/2018:

Salah - 43
Ronaldo - 42
Messi - 40

Nevertheless, the Ballon d'Or isn't won on goals alone. In their respective leagues, Salah (10) has double the number of assists as Cristiano (5), but finds himself two short of the Messi's tally (12). What's more, in last night's thumping 5-2 victory against Roma, the Egyptian became the first player in the history of the Champions League to score two goals and lay on two more in the semi-finals.

With his dicing runs, lightening speed and thunderous left-foot, the Liverpool man has dazzled the Premier League this season and terrorised defences on Europe's biggest stage. 

One foot already in the final, Salah is en route to claiming his first Champions League in a record-breaking debut season on Merseyside. Ronaldo and Messi, who both cradle five Ballon d'Ors a piece in their arms, may well have to wait until next year to battle it out for a sixth.