Paris Saint-Germain’s (PSG) dressing room has been embroiled in massive turmoil ever since their defender Achraf Hakimi opined that he deserves to win the prestigious Ballon d’Or Award over clubmate Ousmane Dembele.
“There aren’t many players that have scored in the quarter-final, semi-final, and final as a defender, where it is more difficult. People think that I’m a forward or a midfielder, but I play in a back four, and I have to think about defending. That is more difficult. The stats that I had this year aren’t those of a normal defender. I think that, when a defender does that, he deserves more than a forward,” Hakimi told Canal Plus.
“If I have the possibility of winning it, I think I deserve it,” he added.
Thereafter, PSG’s communications department reportedly tried to block the network from publishing Hakimi’s views, aware of the delicate egos within the squad. However, that did not happen, and according to L’Equipe, it set off rumblings in the team.
Interestingly, PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma also joined the debate and reminded that he is the only goalkeeper truly worthy of the prize.
Donnarumma’s agent, Vincenzo Raiola, openly backed his client in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport: “Dembele has achieved a lot with his goals, but without Gianluigi’s saves against Liverpool, Aston Villa, and Arsenal, PSG would never have won the Champions League.”