Van Dijk's reaction to the controversy at the 2025 Golden Ball

Virgil van Dijk broke his silence after being ranked 28th in the list of 30 candidates for the 2025 Ballon d'Or.

Van Dijk is underrated in the 2025 Ballon d'Or.

On the morning of September 23, Ousmane Dembele (PSG) was named for the prestigious individual award at the Chatelet Theater, Paris. However, Van Dijk's position near the bottom surprised many fans and created fierce controversy on social networks.

Meanwhile, teammate Mohamed Salah finished 4th. The Champions League round of 16 defeat to PSG is said to be the reason why Salah could not go further, although many people believe he deserves at least a place in the Top 3.

Two other Kop stars were also nominated. Alexis Mac Allister ranked 22nd, while Florian Wirtz ranked 29th thanks to his brilliant performances for Bayer Leverkusen before moving to Anfield.

Van Dijk was the first Liverpool player to publicly react. On Instagram , he posted a series of photos from the gala with the ironic caption: "Maybe next time will be better luck" with a smiley face and crossed fingers. A gentle message but enough for fans to feel disappointed and dissatisfied.

In other categories, Alisson Becker finished second in the Yashin Trophy (Best Goalkeeper) award, while coach Arne Slot lost to Luis Enrique (PSG) in the race for coach of the year.

The last time a Kop player won the Ballon d'Or was Michael Owen in 2001, when he became the youngest player in history to win the award. Since then, Van Dijk, who finished runner-up in 2019, has come closest to winning it.

Source: https://znews.vn/phan-ung-cua-van-dijk-truoc-tranh-cai-o-qua-bong-vang-2025-post1587742.html