Official – Inter Milan Captain & Argentina Superstar Finishes Fourth In Ballon D’Or Voting
Inter Milan captain Lautaro Martinez has finished fourth in the voting for the Ballon D’Or voting for 2024.
Manchester City and Spain midfielder Rodri won the award this year ahead of the Nerazzurri captain. Meanwhile, Real Madrid duo Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham finished second and third respectively.
The Ballon D’Or has officially been awarded for 2024.
And this year, it was a competitive field for the presitigious individual award.
There were a number of outstanding potential candidates among the thirty-player shortlist for the award this year. However, no one player necessarily stood out head and shoulders above the rest.
There were two Inter players on the thirty-player shortlist.
Firstly, there was midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu. The former AC Milan and Bayer Leverkusen midfielder, who also captains Turkey, was recognized for his importance to Inter’s Serie A title win.
However, a Ballon D’Or victory never likely in the cards for Calhanoglu.
Inter captain Martinez was a different story, however.
Inter Milan Captain Lautaro Martinez Places Fourth In Ballon D’Or Voting
Nerazzurri captain Martinez received plenty of attention as a potential candidate to win the Ballon D’Or.
At the very least, the expectation was that the 27-year-old would be somewhere near the podium.
And indeed Martinez has finished in the top spots. He has not, however, managed to crack into the top three or win the honour.
Rather, the Inter captain is just off of that level. He finished fourth in the voting.
Martinez enjoyed an absolutely exceptional 2023-24 season with Inter in Serie A.
In his first season as the Nerazzurri’s captain, he was the top scorer not just for Inter but for all of Serie A. He scored a total of 24 league goals.
This was pivotal for Inter winning the Serie A title.
Meanwhile, Martinez also won the Copa America for the second straight time with Argentina.
And the Inter captain was no bit part player. Martinez was the top scorer for the Copa America, including scoring the winner in the final against Colombia.