Kylian Mbappe has put himself in contention for the Ballon d’Or alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric and Raphael Varane, with the Paris Saint-Germain forward finding no room for Lionel Messi on his shortlist.
The 19-year-old is considered to be a future winner of the most prestigious individual award in football, with it possible that 2018 could be the year in which he gets his hands on the prize.
A World Cup triumph with France has enhanced his claims to the title of best player on the planet, with the youngster starring for Les Bleus as they swept to glory in Russia – with his four-goal haul including a fine finish in the 4-2 final victory over Croatia.
If Mbappe is to claim the Ballon d’Or, then he will have to break a decade-long monopoly of the crown by Ronaldo and Messi.
The €100 million (£88m/$117m) Juventus signing is likely to be back in the hunt this year, along with an eternal rival at Barcelona, but there are other leading candidates on the books of Real Madrid and PSG.
Mbappe told France Football when asked to pick out the likely winners: “For the favorites, I will say Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric, Raphael Varane... and me.”
The teenager added that he had full faith in those around him for club and country, never doubting that France were destined to secure a second World Cup title this summer.
Mbappe added on the efforts of Didier Deschamps’ side: “You have to be honest. I first had the idea we would win some time ago.
“From the beginning I was convinced that we had everything to go to the end. I even said it before the start of the tournament and some people took it for arrogance when it was just confidence.
“I had come for the cup and I'm leaving with it. I had programmed myself to win.”
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