Lamine Yamal has made another bold Ballon d’Or statement, saying he deserves the award over Kylian Mbappé while also comparing his early success with Messi, Ronaldo and Maradona.

Lamine Yamal says he deserves Ballon d’Or over Mbappé and makes bold Messi-Ronaldo claim

Lamine Yamal has made one of his strongest statements yet in the 2026 Ballon d’Or debate, putting himself alongside Kylian Mbappé as one of the world’s best players and explaining why he believes he deserves the award.

The Barcelona superstar spoke in a major interview with Jorge Valdano for Movistar Plus+.

Yamal also compared the success he has achieved at such a young age with some of the biggest names in football history.

That included Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Diego Maradona.

Yamal puts himself alongside Mbappé

When discussing the Ballon d’Or race, Yamal did not try to hide his confidence.

He believes two players currently stand above the rest.

“Mbappé and I are the two best players in the world.”

But when asked who should receive the Ballon d’Or this year, Yamal backed himself.

He explained that what he has achieved during the season gives him a strong argument.

Yamal believes he deserves the award ahead of Mbappé because of what he has won.

Yamal explains what the Ballon d’Or should reward

The 19-year-old also gave his opinion on how the Ballon d’Or should be decided.

For Yamal, the award should go to the best footballer in the world.

He does not believe the winner should automatically be the player who scores the most goals or wins the Champions League.

Yamal argued that goals already have their own awards, while the Ballon d’Or should recognise the player who performs at the highest overall level.

That view clearly strengthens his own argument in the debate with Mbappé.

A bold comparison with Messi and Ronaldo

Yamal then made another statement that quickly attracted attention.

He spoke about the incredible success he has already enjoyed at only 19 years old.

The Barcelona winger mentioned some of football’s greatest players, including Messi, Ronaldo and Maradona.

Yamal said that no recent player had won so much so early in a career.

He identified Pelé as the major historical exception.

The point was not that Yamal believes he is already greater than Messi or Ronaldo.

Instead, he was comparing how many major achievements each player had collected at the same young age.

Yamal has already won major trophies

There is a reason Yamal feels confident about his early career.

Despite being only 19, he has already collected major trophies with both Barcelona and Spain.

He was part of the Spain team that won Euro 2024.

He later helped his country win the 2026 World Cup.

At club level, Yamal has also won domestic titles with Barcelona while becoming one of the team’s most important attacking players.

Few players have built such a large list of achievements before reaching their twenties.

But Yamal says he still has much more to do

Despite the bold comparison, Yamal also made an important clarification.

He knows that winning trophies at a young age does not automatically put him alongside Messi, Ronaldo or Maradona in football history.

Yamal admitted that he still has a huge amount to achieve before he can secure his place among the game’s true legends.

That part of the interview is important because some social-media posts have presented his comments very differently.

Yamal did not simply say that he had already become greater than Messi and Ronaldo.

Did Yamal really say he ‘beat Mbappé in everything’?

A much stronger version of Yamal’s comments has started circulating online.

Some posts have claimed that he said:

“I have beaten Mbappé in everything.”

However, that exact statement does not appear in the official material released from his Movistar Plus+ interview.

What Yamal actually said was that he and Mbappé are the two best players in the world in his opinion.

He then said he believes he deserves the Ballon d’Or this year because of what he has won.

That is a strong statement, but it is different from claiming he has beaten Mbappé in every category.

Did he say he has surpassed Messi and Ronaldo?

The same clarification is needed for his comments about Messi and Ronaldo.

Yamal did not say that he is already a better footballer than either legend.

He was specifically discussing how much he has achieved at his age.

His argument was that Messi, Ronaldo and Maradona had not collected as much success so early in their careers.

Pelé was the exception he mentioned when discussing historic young players.

That is very different from saying Yamal has already surpassed Messi and Ronaldo overall.

The Ballon d’Or battle with Mbappé is getting hotter

Yamal’s comments come at a time when the 2026 Ballon d’Or debate is becoming increasingly intense.

Mbappé has also spoken openly about his ambition to win the award.

The Real Madrid superstar recently said he believes the Ballon d’Or should return to the Santiago Bernabéu.

Now Yamal has responded with an equally confident message about his own chances.

Both players clearly believe they have done enough to win football’s biggest individual prize.

Two superstars with very different arguments

Mbappé can point to his extraordinary individual numbers and goals.

Yamal can point to his performances as well as the major trophies he has already collected.

That creates an interesting debate over what voters should value most.

For Yamal, the answer is simple. The Ballon d’Or should go to the player who is actually the best, not automatically the biggest goalscorer or the player from the Champions League-winning team.

And he clearly believes that player could be him.

Yamal is not hiding his ambition

At only 19 years old, Yamal is already comfortable discussing himself alongside the biggest stars in world football.

He believes he and Mbappé currently stand above the rest.

He believes his trophies give him the stronger Ballon d’Or case this year.

And he believes his early achievements are unusual even when compared with legends such as Messi, Ronaldo and Maradona.

But Yamal also understands that a great start to a career is very different from building a legendary career over many years.

That will be his next challenge.

For now, however, his latest interview has added even more fuel to one of football’s biggest debates.

Mbappé or Yamal?

The 2026 Ballon d’Or race just became even more interesting.