Real Madrid boss says he hasn’t given Ballon d’Or winner “much thought”
Xabi Alonso has refused to be drawn into discussion over the Ballon d’Or ahead of Real Madrid’s trip to Levante.
Paris Saint-Germain’s Ousmane Dembele and Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal are among the favourites for the award, which will be presented in Paris on Monday.
“We’ll see what happens,” said Alonso. “I watch a lot of football but it’s not my thing. I don’t have to vote. We’ll see who the winner is after the ceremony. I haven’t given it much thought.”
Madrid forward Vinicius Junior was considered a leading candidate for the award last year, but he missed out on it to Manchester City’s Rodri. The Spanish club were so outraged that they boycotted the event.
But Alonso said he had no interesting in debating whether Dembele or Yamal deserves the award, preferring instead to focus on his own team.
“Tomorrow we have a match against Levante and every match is very important,” said Alonso. “My focus is solely on that.”
Madrid have won five of their opening five games in La Liga to sit atop of the table. Their last match was a 2-0 victory over Espanyol on Saturday. In the midweek they also won their opening match of the Champions League, beating Marseille 2-1.
“We’re improving,” said Alonso. “We’re a work in progress. We can still be better. We’re still in the process of building pillars and foundations.
“It’s five league games and one Champions League game, it’s nothing. We have to have the ambition to want more and be consistent in our football.
“We’re still in a building phase, but the results help us see that we’re on the right track. The team has to be united and play collectively so that everyone benefits.”
