How Real Madrid can do Barcelona and Lamine Yamal a big favour with a win against PSG | OneFootball

The Club World Cup has become the perfect stage for the world’s best players to make their final case for the Ballon d’Or, with not only glory and a big financial prize at stake but also the chance to claim football’s top individual award.

And despite not participating in the event, Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal is still in contention, and the upcoming semi-final between Real Madrid vs PSG could be key to his chances..

Before the tournament kicked off, the main favourites for the Ballon d’Or were clear: Yamal and PSG’s Ousmane Dembele. Vitinha also had an outside chance after helping Portugal win the Nations League against Spain.

In Madrid, some believed Kylian Mbappe could force his way into the conversation with a stellar Club World Cup, but missing early matches due to illness and scoring only once in the quarter-final against Dortmund has left him well behind.

How Real Madrid can help Yamal

Ironically, Barça’s eternal rivals, Real Madrid, could end up giving Yamal the biggest favour of all. If Real Madrid manage to knock out PSG in the semi-finals, Dembele’s chances of winning the Ballon d’Or will take a big hit.

Real Madrid can do Lamine Yamal a big favour. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)

That is because if PSG win the Club World Cup, Dembele would finish the season with five trophies (French Cup, Ligue 1, French Super Cup, Champions League, and Club World Cup), making him the likely winner of the award.

Only the Nations League would have slipped through his fingers.

But a Real Madrid victory over PSG would keep the race for the Ballon d’Or wide open and give Lamine fresh hope.

Even though Barcelona fell just short of the Champions League final and Spain lost in the Nations League final, Yamal’s performances have been breathtaking.

His role in leading Barça to a national treble and his standout displays all season make him a top candidate for football’s biggest individual honour, despite being only 17.

With European champions PSG facing Real Madrid, the outcome could shape not just the Club World Cup final but also the future of the Ballon d’Or.

For Barça fans, a Real Madrid win might be the unlikeliest but most effective way to bring the prestigious award back to Camp Nou through Lamine Yamal’s brilliance.