Yamal reacts to missing Ballon d'Or: 'Good things take time'

Yamal finished third in the Ballon d'Or voting behind Kane and Mbappé but won the Kopa Trophy for the third consecutive year.

Lamine Yamal responded to missing out on the Ballon d'Or with a measured statement on Instagram, finishing third behind Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappé. The Barcelona winger said "good things take time" and expressed confidence his moment would come, stating his focus is now on winning trophies with Barcelona.

Yamal was not entirely empty-handed at the London ceremony. He won the Kopa Trophy for the best young talent of the year, claiming the award for the third consecutive year. This marks his second close call with the main prize after finishing second last year behind Ousmane Dembélé.

During the presentation, Thierry Henry created a moment of controversy by asking Yamal with a wink whether the Kopa Trophy was really the prize he wanted to win, highlighting the gap between the young talent award and the main honour.