Hindi English Translation || Editorial || ​Golden feats: On the Ballon d’Or

​Golden feats: On the Ballon d’Or

Football is a team sport, but it allows for individual brilliance (प्रतिभा)

Choosing the best footballers on the planet is an unenviable (Difficult, undesirable, or unpleasant; not to be envied) task. Aside from the fact that elevating individual players to superstardom (The state of being a very famous and successful performer or athlete) in a quintessential (सर्वोत्कृष्ट) team sport is fraught with pitfalls, France Football, the French magazine which has long presented the Ballon d’Or, sets exacting standards. The criteria for the 100 journalists from the top 100 FIFA-ranked countries — 50 in case of women — to keep in mind while voting includes ‘individual and decisive (निर्णायक) performance, collective successes and team achievements, and fair play and public image’, an incredibly tough balance to achieve. In Paris on Monday night, this arduous (कठिन) exercise for the 2024-25 season culminated (पराकाष्ठा पर पहुँचना) in Ousmane Dembele and Aitana Bonmati being adjudged the best men’s and women’s footballers, respectively. For the 28-year-old Dembele, the award represented a redemptive (मुक्तिदायक) arc. After first breaking out at French club Rennes as a boy wonder and then exhilarating (उल्लासपूर्ण) fans in Germany while playing for Borussia Dortmund, Dembele’s career stagnated following a big-money move to Barcelona in 2017. Joining in the immediate aftermath of Brazilian’s superstar Neymar’s exit from the Spanish giants, the Frenchman crumbled (टूटकर बिखरना) under pressure and gained the reputation of being wayward and lacking in discipline. But after moving to Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in 2023 and taking nearly a year to settle, Dembele has thrived.

Under Spanish coach Luis Enrique, Dembele scored a career-high 35 goals and assisted 16 across 53 appearances in all competitions in 2024-25. It helped that there were no international men’s competitions of repute and club form was all that mattered. And Dembele led PSG to a fantastic treble of Ligue 1, Coupe de France and a historic first UEFA Champions League title. At the start of the season, PSG lost one of its biggest stars Kylian Mbappe to Real Madrid. Dembele was not part of Enrique’s initial solution and was even dropped for a match after reporting late for training. But once he was thrust (धक्का देना) into the leader’s role in December 2024, Dembele took off, adding ruthless (निर्दयी) efficiency to his incredible dribbling and running skills, and never looked back. Bonmati’s accolade, in contrast, is for sustained excellence. She collected her third successive best player award to join Lionel Messi and Michel Platini as the only three to have done so. She led Barcelona to a domestic treble, and her country Spain to the final of the European Championship this July barely weeks after recovering from viral meningitis. Spain lost the final to England on penalties and the 27-year-old missed a spot-kick, but her Player of the Tournament award then and the Ballon d’Or now are affirmations that she is the undisputed best.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.Brilliance (Noun)

Hindi Meaning – प्रतिभा
English Meaning – The quality of being magnificent or splendid; great intelligence or skill.

2.Quintessential (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning – सर्वोत्कृष्ट
English Meaning – Representing the most perfect or typical example of a quality or class.

3.Decisive (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning – निर्णायक
English Meaning – Settling an issue or producing a definite result; showing firmness and resolve.

4.Arduous (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning – कठिन
English Meaning – Involving or requiring strenuous effort; difficult and tiring.

5.Culminate (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – पराकाष्ठा पर पहुँचना
English Meaning – To reach a climax or a point of highest development.

6.Redemptive (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning – मुक्तिदायक
English Meaning – Acting to save someone from error or sin; serving to restore or improve.

7.Exhilarating (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning – उल्लासपूर्ण
English Meaning – Making one feel very happy, animated, or thrilled; exciting.

8.Crumble (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – टूटकर बिखरना
English Meaning – To break or fall apart into small fragments; to deteriorate.

9.Thrust (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – धक्का देना
English Meaning – To push or shove forcefully; to propel something forward.

10.Ruthless (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning – निर्दयी
English Meaning – Having or showing no pity or compassion for others; cruel and determined to achieve a goal regardless of the harm done.

11.Unenviable (Adjective)

English Meaning – Difficult, undesirable, or unpleasant; not to be envied.

12.Superstardom (Noun)

English Meaning – The state of being a very famous and successful performer or athlete.