‘Stars need to align’ for Jude Bellingham or Declan Rice to achieve what Steven Gerrard & Frank Lampard couldn’t – with Michael Owen talking Ballon d’Or bids

Asked if fate will play a serious part in the respective Golden Ball bids of two all-action midfielders, Owen – who now serves as Casino.org’s ambassador, helping British players compare the best online casinos selected for UK players – told GOAL: “You just said it, the stars need to align. You need to be, obviously, an exceptional player, but in an exceptional team, winning exceptional trophies – the stars really do have to align. That’s the key to it.

“You look at the points that they say are voted on, and that’s it. They’re the thing. So, you can’t be an absolute outstanding player in a team that wins nothing, or more to the point, with no achievement.

“You could say somebody like [Kylian] Mbappe has won nothing this season so why are they in it? But then when you look at it, and he’s been the top goalscorer in the Champions League, the top goalscorer in La Liga, and the top goalscorer in the World Cup. It’s pretty impressive, no mean feats any of those. So, that’s the line.

“The stars really do have to align. But the likes of the people that you mentioned there, in particular Jude Bellingham, that’s got a bit of stardust about him, then absolutely. He’s playing at the right team that can win the right trophies, and if he is the starring role, starring performer in England having a good major tournament, then that’s the type of thing that can win you it.”