Antonio Rudiger Names Chelsea Star Who Deserved Ballon d'Or Nomination

Antonio Rudiger Names Chelsea Star Who Deserved Ballon d'Or Nomination

SportsBrief.com, Babajide Orevba
updated at April 12, 2023 at 7:41 PM
  • Edouard Mendy was easily the man of the moment as Chelsea stunned Brentford to secure a 2-0 vital win
  • The Senegalese produced stunning saves especially in the second half to help his side bag the three points
  • His performances caught the eye of Antonio Rudiger who wondered why the shot-stopper was not nominated for the Ballon d'Or
  • The Blues have five players on the 30-man shortlist for the prestigious award including N'Golo Kante and Jorginho

Antonio Rudiger has expressed disappointment at not seeing Edouard Mendy nominated for the prestigious Ballon d'Or award.

Edouard Mendy while in action for Chelsea during a past match. Photo: Getty Images.
Edouard Mendy produced stunning saves to help Chelsea stun Brentford in the Premier League. Photo: Getty Images.
Source: Getty Images

Rudiger demanded an explanation why the Senegalese was snubbed from the 30-man shortlist for the prize following his masterclass against Brentford.

Mendy staged a man of the match performance against the newly-promoted side on Saturday, October 15, with his crucial saves helping Chelsea secure a vital 1-0 win.

In the absence of Rudiger and Thiago Silva, Thomas Tuchel had no choice but to parade a makeshift defence to take on the Bees.

The tie saw Malang Sarr handed his Premier League debut after his arrival in the summer, with the promising Trevor Chalobah also starting in the heart of defence.

The Blues had a pretty decent start to the clash as they managed to cope with Brentford's physical threat before they took a deserved lead before the break via Ben Chilwell's volley.

However, the second period of the match saw the home side staged a scintillating performance, with Chelsea being left to the mercies of Mendy who made stunning saves to keep his side in the game.

Reacting to the narrow win and Mendy's influential role in the clash, Rudiger wondered why the Senegal international was not afforded a place in the Ballon d'Or shortlist.

"Someone explain why he’s not nominated for the Ballon d’Or," Rudiger wrote on Twitter.
"What a performance… EDOUARD MENDY," he added.

The Blues already boast five nominees for the Ballon d'Or including Jorginho, Romelu Lukaku, Mason Mount, N'Golo Kante and Cesar Azpilicueta.

Mane speaks on Mendy's Ballon d'Or snub

Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported Liverpool forward Sadio Mane has described the decision to omit Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy from the Ballon d'Or shortlist as "unacceptable."

According to the Liverpool ace, the Chelsea keeper deserved recognition considering his recent achievements.

"It is unacceptable. I do not understand, these are things to deplore," Mane was quoted saying.
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Babajide Orevba
Babajide Orevba is a CAF accredited Nigerian journalist and HOD of the Local Desk with over 10 years of experience in media landscape.He studied NCE Political Science/Social Studies, AOCOED.
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