LAST UPDATE | 4 Sep 2018
ANTOINE GRIEZMANN’S CLAIMS to the 2018 Ballon d’Or have been talked up by Atletico Madrid and France team-mate Lucas Hernandez.
A man who helped his club to Europa League glory last season before landing the ultimate prize at World Cup 2018 with his country is considered to be back in contention for football’s most prestigious personal prize.
Griezmann has pushed the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo close in the past, finishing third in the Golden Ball vote back in 2016.
Hernandez believes he should take top spot this time around, despite Luka Modric, Neymar and Mohamed Salah joining Ronaldo in competition for the award.
The Atletico full-back told France Football:”Antoine deserves it. He is my favourite.
“He has been a key man in all of the major competitions he has played in this year. He has won almost everything and contributed everywhere.
He has been so consistent. He has been up at the top for two or three years.
“He has taken another step since 2016 when he was in the final of the Euros and third in the Ballon d’Or vote with France Football.”
Hernandez is another of those at Atletico to have seen their profile rise over recent years.
He is now an established performer for club and country, with a man who has lived in Spain since the age of four delighted to have chosen to represent the land of his birth at international level.
The 22-year-old defender had hinted in the past that he was prepared to consider representing his current home, but was talked around by Les Bleus boss Didier Deschamps.
“I couldn’t disappoint him,” said Hernandez, who made his senior debut in March.
“From the start, he picked me for my qualities as a defender, but he asked me to do different things, which meant taking risks in attack.
“Even Diego Simeone told me that he discovered new things about me during the World Cup.”
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