Thierry Henry explains key reason Raphinha has edge over Mohamed Salah AND Harry Kane in Ballon d'Or race as he hails 'complete' Barcelona talisman

The Brazilian winger has displayed sublime form in the 2024-25 campaign, and on Tuesday, he starred with a brace in Barcelona's 3-1 win over Benfica in the second leg of their Champions League round of 16 fixture. Bayern Munich also progressed to the quarter-finals after they beat Bayer Leverkusen 5-0 on aggregate, with Harry Kane contributing with a goal and an assist in their win in the second leg.

While Kane and Raphinha had stellar outings with their respective teams, Mohamed Salah had an off day on the pitch as Liverpool crashed out of the Champions League after losing 4-1 in a penalty shootout against Paris Saint-Germain. After Tuesday's European fixtures, Raphinha is slowly catching up with Kane and Salah in terms of total goals across all competitions this term. While England's captain and the Egyptian star have scored 32 goals each, the Brazilian now has 27 goals to his name, including a competition-leading 11 in the Champions League, the most of any Brazilian player in a single season of European football.

Hailing Raphinha's incredible season, Arsenal legend and pundit Thierry Henry made a bold claim that the Blaugrana attacker is now the favourite to win the Ballon d'Or, giving him the edge over Kane and Salah because he doesn't take penalties. Speaking on CBS Sports, the Frenchman said: "Raphinha is ahead for me now, he is ahead because of what he is doing in the Champions League. He has 11 goals in the Champions League. Mo Salah is a great contender for it, Kane is a contender and [Ousmane] Dembele. It depends if you perform in the Champions League, on top of winning your league. Raphinha is on a lot of goals and with only one penalty.

"I am not saying that Kane and Salah should not be having penalties. Mo Salah is having a season in the Premier League that we will never see again. I am saying that if a guy has virtually the same amount of goals as you guys scored, without penalties, I am not going to say that is bad what you did - it is outstanding - but this guy I have to talk a bit more about him. Raphinha, when people talk about being complete as a striker, you need to know about putting on pressure, defending, and helping your full-back. And he has it all."

Compared to Raphinha's one goal from the penalty spot, Kane has converted 12 spot-kicks across all competitions, while Salah has scored nine penalty goals out of his 27 in the Premier League. If Barcelona manage to win the Champions League this season, the 28-year-old will become a serious contender for the golden ball.