Vinicius Junior 'has to be firm favourite' for the Ballon d'Or after Real Madrid won the Champions League, with Thierry Henry hailing him 'the best player in the world'
- Thierry Henry believes Vinicius Junior is 'the best player in the world' right now
- Some pundits put the Real Madrid star as the favourite for the 2024 Ballon d'Or
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Pundits believe that Vinicius Junior has to be a 'firm favourite' for this year's Ballon d'Or, following his starring role in Real Madrid's Champions League victory.
Carlo Ancelotti's side saw off Borussia Dortmund 2-0 at Wembley on Saturday night, with the Brazilian getting the second of Real's goals.
Thierry Henry believes that Vinicius Junior is 'the best player in the world' right now, and others agree that he is surely a likely winner of this year's award, which is awarded in the autumn by France Football.
Post-match, Ancelotti said: 'Vini Jr deserves the Ballon d’Or. I’ve no doubts'.
He is only the second player in history have scored in multiple Champions League finals before turning 24 years old - and the other one was Lionel Messi.
![Vinicius Junior has been tipped by pundits and his manager to win this year's Ballon d'Or](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/06/02/00/85606773-13484651-image-m-2_1717285693322.jpg)
Vinicius Junior has been tipped by pundits and his manager to win this year's Ballon d'Or
![The Real Madrid star stunned during their 2-0 win over Borrusia Dortmund at Wembley](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/06/02/00/85606779-13484651-The_Real_Madrid_star_stunned_during_their_2_0_win_over_Borrusia_-a-4_1717285758275.jpg)
The Real Madrid star stunned during their 2-0 win over Borrusia Dortmund at Wembley
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Henry said 'For me, Viní Jr. is the best player in the world.'
Jamie Carragher concurred, noting: 'I think Vinicius Junior is the best player in the world.'
Steve McManaman told TNT Sports: 'He has to be firm favourite now. He scored, he was excellent in the two semi-finals against Bayern Munich.
'He was the catalyst, scored again tonight. And he must be favourite. Kylian [Mbappe], Harry Kane, had wonderful seasons, but personally, he's the nailed-on favourite now.'
![The Brazilian wants to remain at Real Madrid and make history like the club's long list of icons](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/06/02/00/85606783-13484651-image-m-6_1717285776002.jpg)
The Brazilian wants to remain at Real Madrid and make history like the club's long list of icons
For his part, Vinicius Junior has no plans to leave the successful Real Madrid camp, revealing after the game: 'Let's see if the president sees this interview and renews me again.
'I want to make history here like Toni [Kroos], Luka [Modric], [Dani] Carvajal or Nacho.'
![](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/08/02/636x90_facebook_ad_sport.png)