Bernardo Silva ‘Betrays’ Haaland, Picks Lionel Messi As Ballon d’Or Favourite

• Lionel Messi is perceived to be the leading candidate to win a record-extending eighth Ballon d'Or prize
• However, the mercurial Argentine playmaker faces stiff competition from Man City star Erling Haaland
• The Norwegian is on the cusp of winning the Premier League, FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League

Bernardo Silva has revealed his preferred candidate to win the 2023 Ballon d'Or award.

Silva, who has been immense in Manchester City's treble charge this season, considered his choice for the coveted individual diadem from a pool consisting of PSG superstar Lionel Messi, teammate Erling Haaland, and Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior.

The diminutive Portuguese midfielder, who scored two precise goals and delivered an outstanding personal performance on May 17, as City triumphed over the Champions League title holders with a 4-0 win at the Etihad Stadium, hinted that Messi is the frontrunner for the top prize.

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However, he conceded his teammate, Haaland, stands a chance of winning his first Ballon d'Or award should the latter help City win the Champions League on the back of his surreal season.

Silva did not rule out the outside chance of Vinicius as well, the Sun reports.

"If Haaland wins the league and the Champions League, you can put him in the Ballon d'Or discussion, and you can also talk about Vini Jr. if Madrid win the Champions League, but in general, it is between Messi and the winner of the champions," he said as quoted by Sportskeeda.

When pressed to pick his choice for the gong, Silva snubbed the Norwegian for Messi.

"And so far, I will give it to Messi."

Silva sparkles in City rout

Meanwhile, Bernardo Silva was a fitting catalyst for Manchester City's majestic march into the Champions League final as one of Pep Guardiola's trusted lieutenants stole the spotlight on a defining night for his manager, Sports Brief reported.

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Prior to City's 4-0 rout of Real Madrid in Wednesday's semi-final second leg, the tie was billed as the stage on which Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne would underline their immense star power.

But it was the understated Silva who stole the spotlight on a cathartic evening for a club desperate to rewrite their tortured Champions League history.

Messi leads Ballon d'Or rankings

Earlier, Sports Brief reported that sometime in March this year, after Paris Saint-Germain had been knocked out of the UEFA Champions League by Bayern Munich, we predicted the 2023 Ballon d'Or is a controversial spectacle waiting to happen.

Unlike in 2022, we do not have a clear winner, with Lionel Messi's World Cup triumph complicating issues. The question we posed then was how someone who had been eliminated from the Champions League so early could win the Ballon d'Or.

But how tables have since turned. Haaland has undeniably narrowed the gap on Messi or even passed him, depending on how you see it.