There's no need for a grand Ballon d'Or ceremony in 2026, folks, because Thomas Frank has spoken. The Dane knows who'll be winning next year's illustrious individual prize.
His Tottenham team succumbed to a chaotic 5-3 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday night, ending their fortuitous unbeaten start to the league phase. Spurs now have a battle on their hands to qualify for the round of 16 automatically, but one win from their remaining three outings should be enough to see them into the knockout playoff round.
Few expected anything in the French capital off the back of a woeful North London Derby display, but Spurs were distinctly improved in Paris and, ultimately, squandered a good opportunity to secure a huge win. The visitors took 1-0 and 2-1 leads on either side of half-time, but a rapid collapse after Randal Kolo Muani's first goal for the club allowed the European champions to seize control.
Still, there were positives to be taken ahead of a significant Premier League bout at home to Fulham on Saturday, with Spurs falling foul to the mighty talent at Luis Enrique's disposal.
Thomas Frank tips Vitinha for Ballon d'Or glory in 2026
PSG have a Ballon d'Or winner in their ranks, but Ousmané Dembélé could only perform a cameo role off the bench for the hosts, having just recovered from injury.
However, Frank believes there's another future Ballon d'Or victory in the Parisian ranks, and their footprints were all over PSG's triumph.
Vitinha's maiden career hat-trick was aided by some passive Tottenham defending on the edge of their box, but the quality of the midfielder's first two goals, one with each foot, was staggering. He completed his trio of strikes, just after Kolo Muani scored his second, from the penalty spot, having been culpable of sparking the sequence which led to Spurs' third goal.
Enrique commented that his engine room maestro showed character to score from the spot after his error, while Frank was completely taken aback by Vitinha's display.
“I think the next Ballon d’Or winner was playing in midfield [for Paris Saint-Germain], Vitinha, wow. What a player," he said, before labelling the Portuguese international as the "best midfielder in the world."
Frank's claim is hardly preposterous, with Vitinha finishing third in the 2025 Ballon d'Or ranking, behind Dembélé and Lamine Yamal. In 2024, we saw another midfielder in Rodri claim the esteemed prize, so, should PSG come to dominate again this season, Vitinha, who'll be at the heart of their success, surely has a chance of such lofty recognition.