Paris Saint-Germain superstar Lionel Messi surprisingly overlooked teammates Kylian Mbappe and Neymar when giving his verdict as to who should win this year's Ballon d'Or award.
Karim Benzema, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah were all tipped to be potential candidates for the 2022 version of the famous prior to Saturday's UEFA Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool.
Scroll through the gallery above to see some stars who could be in line to win the 2022 Ballon d'Or
Ultimately, it was the Spanish giants and Benzema who emerged victorious on the night with a 1-0 victory courtesy of Vinicius Junior's solitary strike.
On Los Blancos' way to their latest continental triumph, they overcame Messi's PSG in a two-legged round of 16 affair, with Benzema scoring a scintillating hat-trick in 17 minutes to end the Argentine's hopes of securing his first UCL trophy since the 2014/15 season.
This seemingly left a mark on the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner, who revealed in a recent interview who he feels the 2022 Golden Ball should go to.
"There are no doubts; it's very clear that Benzema had a spectacular year and ended up victorious in the Champions League," Messi told Argentine TV channel TyC Sports.
Read: Messi: Real Madrid were not the best team
"He was fundamental in all the matches from the round of 16 onwards. I think there is no doubt this year."
The Ballon d'Or award is set to be presented on 17 October, with the nominees set to be revealed on 12 August. The trophy will now be awarded on the basis of a regular season from August to July, rather than a calendar year.
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