This year, for the first time since 2003, Messi and Ronaldo are no longer on the Ballon d'Or nomination list. Therefore, many people believe that this will be the era of top strikers like Haaland, Mbappe or Vinicius.
But according to former Argentina international Mario Kempes, striker Lautaro Martinez is just as good as Haaland or Mbappe. He told Gazzetta dello Sport: “A man like me, who lives to score goals, watches football and judges strikers in a certain way. Lautaro is really good at scoring goals, it’s in his DNA, he feels it inside. Only real strikers have that.
Lautaro is at the same level as Haaland and Mbappe. For him, passion is more important than money. There are very few number 9s like him and Lautaro is among the best. It is good that he plays for Inter Milan , where Lautaro calls home.”
Lautaro Martinez is also on the final 30-man list for the 2024 Ballon d'Or, despite being a little-known star. But when it comes to both team and individual awards, the Inter Milan captain is actually a worthy contender for the prestigious individual award.
Last season, Lautaro Martinez won Serie A with Inter Milan, where he was the top scorer with 26 goals. For the Argentina national team, Lautaro also contributed greatly to helping his team win the Copa America 2024 and continued to be the tournament's top scorer with 5 goals. With titles won with both the club and the national team, Lautaro clearly had a more complete year than Haaland, Bellingham or Vinicius.
