Man City star Bernardo Silva believes team-mate Erling Haaland is still lacking and not enough to compete for the 2023 Ballon d’Or title.

Joining Man City from the summer of 2022, Erling Haaland immediately caused a storm in English football when he broke the record of goals scored in a season in the Premier League in his first season. Up to now, the Norwegian striker has 51 goals in 47 matches in all competitions, becoming the best scorer in all of Europe.

The achievement makes him a leading candidate to compete with Lionel Messi in the 2023 Ballon d’Or race. However, his teammate Bernardo Silva feels that Haaland is not yet qualified to challenge El Pulga.

Speaking to France Football, the Portuguese star explained that Haaland still lacks titles with Man City as a competitive advantage in the Golden Ball race. At the moment, the top candidate is still Messi.

“If Haaland wins the Premier League and Champions League, you can name him in the Ballon d’Or discussion. Similar to the case of Vinicius Jr if Real Madrid won the Champions League. All in all, it’s the story between Messi and the Champions League winner. And so far, I still believe that Messi will win.”

Messi has scored 20 goals and has 19 assists in 38 games for PSG this season. Late last year, Leo led Argentina to the impressive 2022 World Cup title. As a result, the tournament’s best player in Qatar holds a big advantage in the 2023 Ballon d’Or race, although it has declined slightly after PSG’s elimination from the Champions League.

As for Haaland, it is clear that he will need to help Man City win the Premier League and Champions League to break through in this year’s Golden Ball race. Recently, the Norwegian striker pocketed the title of Best Player of the Premier League 2023 by the Football Journalists Association (FWA). Most likely, Haaland will acquire the Premier League Top Scorer award in the 2022/23 season with 35 goals, 8 goals ahead of second-placed Harry Kane with only 3 rounds remaining.