Ballon d'Or: Why are Sadio Mane and Kalidou Koulibaly miffed with the 30-man shortlist?

Liverpool star winger Sadio Mane and Napoli centre-half Kalidou Koulibaly voiced their annoyance at the shortlist for the Ballon d'Or 2021 award after they saw Senegalese teammate Edouard Mendy was not on the list. Mane claimed it was 'unacceptable,' while Koulibaly insisted that it was a 'shame' not to see the Chelsea goalkeeper on the list.

Mendy had one of the best seasons with the Blues last year as he helped them to win the UEFA Champions League. He registered a staggering 25 clean sheets in 44 matches for Thomas Tuchel's side last season. Despite such a remarkable form, he was not included in the Ballon d'Or award list, which is to be announced on November 29.

Ballon d'Or: Mane and Koulibaly comment on Mendy's exclusion

While speaking after Senegal's 3-1 win over Namibia during the international break, Sadio Mane said, "It is unacceptable. I do not understand." Similarly, Senegalese teammate Kalidou Koulibaly echoed Mane's remarks as he said, "It’s a real shame that Edou isn’t one of them. He is the first African goalkeeper to win the Champions League. We must continue to work and move forward. We have to do the double [the work] of some people to be well judged. Edou is a very positive person. We talked about it together. He will continue to fight to be part of it. For me, he has a place among these 30 players."

Edouard Mendy gave his remarks on exclusion from Ballon d'Or list

While Senegalese teammates Kalidou Koulibaly and Sadio Mane were unhappy with the committee's decision to exclude Edouard Mendy from the Ballon d'Or list, the Chelsea goalkeeper said that there will always be debates. However, he made it a point to state that he respects the votes of the Ballon d'Or journalists. He added that while he is 'proud' to 'be among the 10 best goalkeepers in the world,' he still has 'a lot of ambitions' moving ahead.

Ballon d'Or 2021 award 30 man shortlist

GOALKEEPERS

1) Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG)

DEFENDERS

2) Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus)

3) Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus)

4) Simon Kjær (AC Milan)

5) Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea)

6) Ruben Dias (Manchester City)

MIDFIELDERS

7) N'Golo Kante (Chelsea)

8) Mason Mount (Chelsea)

9) Nicolo Barella (Inter Milan)

10) Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)

11) Pedri (Barcelona)

12) Luka Modric (Real Madrid)

13) Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City)

14) Jorginho (Chelsea)

15) Phil Foden (Manchester City)

FORWARDS

16) Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City)

17) Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund)

18) Harry Kane (Tottenham)

19) Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)

20) Raheem Sterling (Manchester City)

21) Lionel Messi (PSG)

22) Neymar (PSG)

23) Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan)

24) Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)

25) Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)

26) Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea)

27) Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)

28) Kylian Mbappe (PSG)

29) Gerard Moreno (Villarreal)

30) Luis Suarez (Atletico Madrid)