Duhé comments on his surprise exclusion from the Ballon d'Or nominees

French player Désirée Doyé of Paris Saint-Germain has commented on his surprising absence from the thirty-man shortlist for the 2026 Ballon d'Or, confirming that his focus is on continuing to work and achieving more accomplishments during the current season, despite being excluded from the competition for the individual award.

Doyen's comments came after his impressive performance in Paris Saint-Germain's 4-2 victory over Barcelona on Tuesday evening in the UEFA Champions League, having scored his team's first goal and assisted a goal for Luis Hernández, earning the Man of the Match award and confirming his increasing importance in coach Luis Enrique's lineup.

Doyen, responding to his exclusion from the Ballon d'Or nominees, said: "I am not a candidate today for the Ballon d'Or, everyone has their choices, and this is the nature of things. I will continue to work on my side, and my goal is to break records and win everything again this season, so we will keep working."

When asked about the player he recommends for the award, the Paris Saint-Germain winger added: "For me, it's a player from Paris Saint-Germain, without any hesitation," before clarifying that French players also deserve recognition, stating: "Or a French player, because we have done what we had to do both with Paris and in the World Cup, and there are players with very great talent, so we will see what happens."

Doyé finished 14th in the Ballon d'Or rankings for 2025, receiving 1.10% of the votes, despite a remarkable season in which he scored 13 goals and provided 11 assists in 41 matches during the 2025-2026 season. He also contributed to Paris Saint-Germain's victory in the UEFA Champions League, scoring two goals in the final against Inter Milan, which ended with the French team winning 5-0.

Despite being absent from this year's nominees, the player who won the Golden Boy award in 2025 emphasized his ambition to continue developing, stating: "I work and work, I am a person who works a lot, and today the fruits of this work are starting to show, but I need to perform better."

He concluded his statements by affirming that his ambitions do not stop at what he has achieved so far, adding: "I have big ambitions, and it is great to deliver this performance on Tuesday, but there is still much more I can offer to do better."