Karim Benzema wins Ballon D’Or, Sadio Mane close behind

French professional footballer, Karim Benzema wins the enviable Gold Balon D’Or trophy with Senegalese star Sadio Mane claiming the second position.

The Real Madrid forward becomes the fifth French player to win the coveted trophy and the 8th Real Madrid player to win it.

Karim Benzema fired Real Madrid to winning the 2021/22 Champions League in a hard fought battle against Sadio Mane’s Liverpool. He also scored a total of 27 goals and provided 12 assists in the La Liga winning season for the Los Blancos.

“I’m really proud seeing this prize, it’s been my dream since I was a kid. I grew up with this in my head, and after that I had the motivation,” Benzema said. “I had two role models in my life: Zizou [Zinedine Zidane] and [Brazil legend] Ronaldo. It’s a lot of work; I never gave up and I kept that dream in my head. He said after being announced winner.

Bayern Munich’s Sadio Mane placed second Al after having a fantastic season with his former club Liverpool scoring 16 times and leading the English giants to winning a domestic double and making the Champions League final. He also led the Senegalese nation team to winning the African cup of Nations and making booking a slot for the upcoming 2022 Qatar World Cup.

Manchester City’s Kelvyn De Brunye, Barcelona’s Robert Lewandoski and Liverpool’s Mohammed Sallah placed 3rd, 4th and 5th respectively.