Mohamed Salah's fourth-place finish in the 2025 Ballon d'Or has vindicated former Liverpool teammate Daniel Sturridge's prediction that the Egyptian's continued snubbing was "getting out of hand". The 33-year-old achieved his highest-ever ranking despite contributing 57 goals and assists to Liverpool's Premier League title triumph.
Sturridge's February warning proved prescient as Salah again missed out on football's top individual prize. "If we're not talking Ballon d'Or's for Mohamed Salah now, then it's getting out of hand," the former striker said as a Sky Sports pundit after watching Salah score and assist in a victory over Manchester City.
PSG's Ousmane Dembele claimed the award after leading the French club to a treble, with Barcelona's Lamine Yamal finishing second and PSG teammate Vitinha third. Dembele scored 35 goals and assisted 16 in all competitions last term, contributing significantly to PSG's historic season.
Liverpool's tribute to their star
Liverpool responded to Salah's placement with a social media tribute captioned "A season to savour from Salah". The Instagram carousel featured the Egyptian with the Premier League trophy alongside his individual awards from the record-breaking season.
Salah's previous best finishes came with fifth-place rankings in 2019 and 2022. His fourth-place result represents progress in the voting, though Sturridge had questioned why the winger hadn't received higher recognition in previous years.
Player's team-first mentality
Salah has consistently emphasised team success over individual accolades. "The only thing in my mind, to be fair, is I want Liverpool to win the league and I just want to be part of that," he told Sky Sports last December.
The Liverpool star was absent from Monday night's ceremony in Paris. Head coach Arne Slot, sporting director Richard Hughes, captain Virgil van Dijk and goalkeeper Alisson Becker represented the club at the event.
Sturridge had suggested the award traditionally favours La Liga players, though this year's result broke that pattern with PSG's dominance. The voting by journalists from FIFA's top 100-ranked nations ultimately recognised Dembele's treble achievement over Salah's individual brilliance.
Sources used: "Liverpool Echo", "Mirror", "Daily Star" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
