Don’t make a fool of Lionel Messi! Although Lautaro Martinez was considered a potential Ballon d’Or winner by his Argentina captain, his inconsistent form at Inter indicates he’s far from competing with Vinicius Junior, Erling Haaland, Mohamed Salah, and others

The striker was the top scorer in Serie A last season and earned the Golden Boot at the Copa America, yet questions remain about his reliability.

While the global debate raged over whether Rodri or Vinicius Junior should win the 2024 Ballon d’Or, eight-time winner Lionel Messi was advocating for his fellow Argentine, Lautaro Martinez.
“He had an incredible year, being the top scorer in the Copa America and scoring in the final,” noted the Argentina captain in October. “He deserves the Ballon d’Or more than anyone.”

Nonetheless, despite Italian media speculating that Lautaro would at least finish in the top five, he ended up in seventh place—over 500 points behind the podium. Even more surprising, the 2023-24 Serie A MVP did not receive a nomination for The Best FIFA Men’s Player award, and his exclusion hardly made waves outside Italy and Argentina.