French legend Emmanuel Petit believes Harry Kane has little chance of winning the Ballon d'Or.
Kane scored six goals on his way to a third-place finish at the World Cup, but failed to score again after the round of 16 match against Mexico. Petit criticized him for not shining in major tournaments, whether representing Bayern Munich in the Champions League or England in the World Cup.
In an interview with SPORT1, the French legend said: "After the World Cup, Harry Kane's chances of winning the Ballon d'Or have diminished. If you only look at the Bundesliga, he is certainly a Ballon d'Or candidate, but in the Champions League and with the national team, he has mostly disappeared when it comes to truly crucial moments."
Petit continued, "I think there will be some names ahead of him. Although the competition may still be very close in the end, because by the end of the World Cup, favorites like Ousmane Dembélé, Kylian Mbappé and Olise have also been disappointing."
Kane won the double with Bayern Munich
The 70th Ballon d'Or ceremony will be held in London on October 26, the birthplace of England's captain. Until then, the debate surrounding Kane will focus on one issue: his almost outrageous goal-scoring record and his persistent lack of the most important international trophy.
Last season, the 33-year-old top scorer won the Bundesliga Golden Boot, won the league and German Cup double with Bayern Munich, and reached the Champions League semi-finals and the World Cup semi-finals with England.
“Kane completely disappeared in the second leg of the Champions League semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain,” Petit recalled. “He could have done more. It was a real shame for such a great season. The same thing happened at the World Cup: he started very strongly, but from the quarter-finals onwards, he seemed to lack both the necessary stamina and the necessary luck.”
The French legend believes Kane still has a very slim chance in the Ballon d'Or voting because "no player has truly broken through the gap so far, and players like Messi only regain attention because of the World Cup." However, in his view, Messi didn't perform well in the final, and Yamal has never truly played at his best in this World Cup.
