In a press conference before France-Spain, Pau Cubarsi (18, FC Barcelona) spoke about the battle for the Golden Boy and the Ballon d’Or. Quoted by L’Équipe, the Catalan defender believes that he and 20-year-old Désiré Doué (PSG) both deserve the Golden Boy award, and places 28-year-old Ousmane Dembélé among the legitimate favourites for the Ballon d’Or after his exceptional season with Paris.
Cubarsi: “He wouldn’t steal the Golden Boy from me
“He wouldn’t steal the Golden Boy from me. Doué played a magnificent final and I think we both deserve the trophy this season.
Dembélé?
This year, he’s shown his true level. He got rid of all the bad things in his head, he played with the right mentality and he was perfect. He’s a candidate for the Ballon d’Or and if he wins it, he’ll deserve it.”
Pau Cubarsi, hot favourite for the Golden Boy 2025 award, showed remarkable fairness in acknowledging the exceptional season of Désiré Doué, MVP of the Champions League final with PSG. For the Barça defender, the Parisian’s competition was no theft: both shone and deserved the trophy, which symbolises a talented new generation making its mark in Europe.
Cubarsi was also keen to pay tribute to Ousmane Dembélé, whose mental transformation and consistency at the highest level this season he highlighted. In his opinion, Dembélé has fully justified his status as a candidate for the Ballon d’Or: rid of his doubts, the Paris winger has played with an irreproachable mentality and, if he were to win the supreme prize, it would be richly deserved.
On the eve of the France-Spain clash, Cubarsi reminds us that individual recognition owes nothing to chance, but to a full season of consistency and excellence.
