He won everything — Chelsea legend predicts Ballon d'Or winner

Former Chelsea defender Frank Leboeuf has sparked controversy by insisting that Real Madrid right-back Dani Carvajal deserves to win the 2024 Ballon d'Or.

Leboeuf believes Carvajal's impressive trophy haul this year makes him the standout candidate for the prestigious award, ahead of other notable contenders like Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Jr., and Rodri.

This claim comes as a surprise, given Carvajal's relatively low profile compared to his peers. However, the Frenchman argues that the Spain defender's lack of goals shouldn't overshadow his exceptional contributions to his team's success.

Speaking on ESPNFC, Leboeuf emphasized:

"Carvajal, he's won everything. So we have to call it the forward Ballon d'Or [if Bellingham or Vinicius wins it]. Vini won the Champions League, won the league, but was not really good in Copa America. Bellingham wasn't good at the Euros."

Leboeuf also acknowledged the impressive performances of other contenders, saying:

"And then you have two guys, Rodri didn't win the Champions League but he has been absolutely outstanding and the best player in the Euros, won the Premier League."

Despite this, Leboeuf remains convinced that Carvajal's achievements make him the most deserving candidate:

"Then you have Carvajal, nobody likes him because he doesn't have [many goals]. He is like our times' right-back, dirty, tricky or whatever but the guy won everything.

"So you can tell me what it is, whether it's the Ballon d'Or of some people or the Ballon d'Or for all footballers. If that's the case [Carvajal should win]."

It's worth noting that the current Ballon d'Or holder is Lionel Messi, who has won the award a record-breaking eight times and it will be interesting to see if Carvajal can indeed follow in his footsteps.

The 2024 Ballon d'Or winner will be announced in October.