These were the compelling reasons why Frenchman Ousmane Dembélé won the Ballon d'Or over Lamine Yamal.

The Ballon d'Or ceremony saw local players Ousmane Dembélé and Aitana Bonmatí take centre stage by winning the coveted award, while Barça's young talent Lamine Yamal received the Kopa trophy and Luis Enrique was named best coach.

The Ballon d'Or will have to wait to be awarded to Yamal, who was confirmed as the best player in the world under 21 years of age. Despite arriving at the ceremony held at the Châtelet Theatre in Paris surrounded by family and friends, he had to settle for a time to win an award that all indications are that it will one day go to his showcases if his popularity continues.

"It was a gala with a strong blue and red, PSG, and Barça flavor, with uncertainty surrounding the Ballon d'Or winners until the very end, and culminating in the designation of Dembélé as the successor to the Spaniard Rodri," EFE reported.

"The name of the Parisian number 10 was announced by Brazilian Ronaldinho at the final award ceremony of the evening, amid applause from the majority of the spectators, who had chanted his name minutes earlier. His 35 goals and 16 assists, as well as PSG's Champions League, Ligue 1, and Coupe titles, all weighed heavily in the journalists' vote, ahead of Lamine Yamal," the agency reported.

“Thank you, I really have no words. It was an incredible season with Paris Saint-Germain. I thank PSG for coming to get me in 2023,” Dembélé said.

"We practically won everything; this individual trophy was achieved by the team," added the former FC Barcelona player.

Ousmane Dembélé has undergone a true transformation in just a few months. The unbalancing player praised for his dribbling but criticized for his lack of goalscoring is now a finisher.