In the section VZ 5 makes football zone a daily selection of the five most important news stories from the past 24 hours. Handy for those who haven’t been able to follow everything, and great for those who like to read it again. It is not necessarily about the most viewed articles on the website, but really about the story of the day.
Karim Benzema wins his first Ballon d’Or after an unparalleled season
Karim Benzema has won his very first Ballon d’Or. The Frenchman left behind teammate Vinícius Júnior, Robert Lewandowski, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mané and Kevin De Bruyne in Paris. It was the first time that the award was presented on the basis of performance in a single season. Benzema is the fifth Frenchman, after Raymond Kopa, Michel Platini, Jean-Pierre Papin and Zinédine Zidane, to win the Golden Ball. Sané finished in second place, while De Bruyne was third.
Read more about the award ceremony here
Gavi trumps Ryan Gravenberch and seizes Kopa Trophy
Gavi seized the Kopa Trophy during the Ballon d’Or election on Monday evening. The Barcelona midfielder is therefore the successor to teammate Pedri, who won the France Football trophy for the best player under 21 years ago twelve months ago. Gavi trumps, among others, the also nominated Ryan Gravenberch: the latter finished in sixth place.
Click here for more details about the Kopa Trophy
Danny Buijs has to leave the field at KV Mechelen after twelve games
Danny Buijs has to leave the field at KV Mechelen after twelve games. The forty-year-old trainer lost his last three competition matches and is currently in thirteenth place in the Jupiler Pro League with his (ex) team. Assistant coach Steven Defour will take over Buijs’ duties for the time being. This brings an early end to the first foreign adventure of the former FC Groningen coach.
Here you will find more information about the dismissal of Buijs
Schreuder suddenly named as candidate for position in Bundesliga
VfB Stuttgart would like to take over Alfred Schreuder from Ajax, the German sports magazine Kicker reported. The number fourteen of the Bundesliga is still looking for a new trainer after the departure of Pellegrino Matarazzo. Although Schreuder has only been employed by Ajax since this summer and has a contract until mid-2024, the Germans think that the coach is high on the list in Stuttgart.
You can read the whole story about Schreuder here
Mbappé breaks silence and addresses rumors about departure wish
Kylian Mbappe has no intention of forcing a January departure from Paris Saint-Germain. The French media speculated extensively last weekend about an alleged wish of the star attacker from Paris, but these rumors were suppressed by Mbappé himself after the Ligue 1 match with Olympique Marseille (1-0 win). “I never asked for my January departure.”
Read the complete article about Mbappé here