For the Barcelona teenager, the award should honour players who bring something special to football - those who make supporters smile, create memorable moments and inspire people to watch simply for the joy of seeing them play.

The 19-year-old is again among the contenders after finishing second to Ousmane Dembele last year. The winner will be announced in London on October 26, with Dembele, Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe and Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane also in contention.

Kane has the strongest goalscoring figures among the leading contenders, having scored 61 goals for Bayern and helped the club win the Bundesliga. Mbappe scored 42 for Real Madrid, while Yamal netted 24 and Dembele scored 20 for PSG, who won the European title.

Yamal, however, does not believe the award should simply go to the player with the highest goal tally.

Speaking to L'Equipe, he argued that the Ballon d'Or should recognise qualities that make a footballer distinctive and exciting to watch. He cited Lionel Messi and Ronaldinho as examples of players whose appeal extended beyond statistics, combining creativity, flair and the ability to make fans want to watch them play.

Yamal believes his own playing style is one of the strongest arguments for his candidacy.

In an interview with TVE, he said relatively few players in modern European football play in the way he does. He emphasised the enjoyment he tries to bring to supporters and identified Neymar as an important influence because of the Brazilian's ability to entertain.

For Yamal, the Ballon d'Or should recognise not only performance but also the excitement and emotion a player creates.

Yamal's case is also supported by an impressive list of honours. Despite being only 19, he has already won major trophies with Barcelona and Spain, including the European Championship and World Cup.

The Champions League remains one of the major team honours missing from his collection.

While winning the Ballon d'Or is clearly an ambition, Yamal insists it is not an obsession. His broader goal is to leave a lasting mark on football rather than constantly compare himself with players such as Messi or Pele.

The leading candidates present different arguments. Kane combines prolific goalscoring with a Bundesliga title, Mbappe produced another high-scoring campaign, while Dembele paired his performances with European success. Yamal offers a combination of creativity, goals, club honours and international success.

Kane has also received public support from Bayern teammate Luis Diaz, who praised the striker's performances and mentality.

The final decision will be made by journalists, with the candidates representing different interpretations of what defines the world's best player.

For Yamal, the Ballon d'Or should therefore be about more than numbers. In his view, it should also reward the player who can make people dream, enjoy football and look forward to watching the game.

Arthur Sales opens goal-scoring account to help Sundowns beat Sekhukhune