Players Enzo Maresca turned from nobodies into world class: Cole Palmer went from City's bench to a superstar. Enzo Fernández went from overpriced to elite. Moisés Caicedo went from a flop to one of the best midfielders in the league. Marc Cucurella went from a laughing stock to a top left back. Levi Colwill went from a prospect to a key player. Noni Madueke went from inconsistent to a serious winger. And somehow, people still think Maresca did nothing at Chelsea.

Enzo Maresca, Pep Guardiola and Hansi Flick are the only managers I trust to take a young player nobody rates and turn him into a star. They don't just give youngsters minutes and hope for the best. They know how to develop them, build their confidence and make them look like they belong at the highest level. Some managers buy ready made superstars, but these three know how to create them.

Why is everyone acting like Man City should be scared of Brighton? They play good football, but some people are talking about them like they're unbeatable. Liverpool just beat them 2-0, and this is the same Liverpool side people have been questioning all season. Brighton couldn't even find the net. If Liverpool can expose them, Man City have absolutely no reason to fear Brighton. Respect them, yes, but fear them? Never.

Arsenal players crying that Max Dowman should escape a red card because he is a kid is genuinely irritating. The rules apply to everyone. This victim mentality is consistently embarrassing.

Arsenal paid £75m for Bruno Guimarães, nearly half the value of Fleetwood’s entire squad, and he still missed a penalty against them. You can’t make this up. £75m and he didn’t even look better than anyone on that pitch. Arsenal fans really sold us dreams about this guy.

Arsenal really had to bring in more of their big names against Fleetwood Town, a League Two side. Imagine needing that much firepower just to get past a team four divisions below you. For a club whose fans constantly talk about being the best in England, needing that much help against Fleetwood is embarrassing.

I saw Arsenal fans comparing Max Dowman to Ryan McAidoo and I honestly don't get it. What exactly has Dowman done for people to be putting him in the same conversation? Ryan McAidoo is clear of him in my opinion. Arsenal fans are getting carried away with Dowman already, and I don't see why Man City fans should accept these comparisons.

We don't talk enough about the genius of Pep Guardiola. The man allowed Viktor Gyökeres to score a hat-trick against Man City just to convince Arsenal that he's the striker they've been missing. Pep took one for the team and sacrificed three goals so Arsenal could spend their money on him.

That first half against Fleetwood perfectly exposes Arsenal. I actually convinced myself Manchester City had the weakest backline recently, but this Arsenal defence is easily the worst in the league.

I really hope Maresca finds a solution at right back because he can't keep playing Khusanov there. He's a centre back and we're limiting him by forcing him to play out of position. Why not try the three man defence Man City used in their treble winning season with Gvardiol, Rúben Dias and Khusanov? It could solve the right back problem and get the best out of all three defenders.

I don't know why Arsenal fans are hyping up Saka's Socrates Award like he's won something for his performances on the pitch. It's a humanitarian award for charity work, not a football award. What exactly does this have to do with how good he is at football? Arsenal fans will turn absolutely anything into a Saka achievement. Not every award needs to be used to push a football agenda.

Mbappé really went on a full Ballon d’Or campaign and still didn’t get the ending he wanted. Looking back at what he said before the ceremony makes it even funnier. “I always think I’m the best player in the world.” Fair enough, but imagine saying this and then watching someone else take the award. “Who do I vote for? Myself.” Even the other nominees weren’t campaigning this hard for themselves. Man was ready to hand himself the trophy. “I’d be disappointed if I didn’t win.” We can see that now. The confidence before the ceremony was one thing, but all those declarations make the disappointment look even worse. “I hope I can leave with the Ballon d’Or and, in one way or another, dedicate it to Africa.” Bringing Africa into your acceptance speech before you’ve even won is a different level of campaigning, especially when the continent represents a significant share of the voters. Mbappé spent weeks making his case publicly, talking about why he deserved the award and why his individual performances should count most. Now that the result is in, those quotes hit differently. The funniest part is that he could have let his season speak for itself. Instead, he gave everyone a whole collection of quotes to bring back after the ceremony. Kylian, this is football, not an election campaign.

It is obvious the Ballon d'Or is prioritizing the World Cup. That means only Lamine Yamal, Fabian Ruiz, or Rodri can actually win the award. If anyone outside of those three ends up taking it home, you can officially call me a fool. The voting criteria is completely set in tone.

PSG winning club of the year exposes their league. They can rest nine players and still win the title. That is why we never regard them as a top club, even though they are.

How insane would it be if Harry Kane wins the Ballon d'Or, a man who spent years at Tottenham with nothing to show for it until Bayern gave him his first trophy From ZERO trophies at 31 to the favourite for the best player on the planet, the first Englishman to win it since Owen, and Tottenham fans have to watch every minute of it.

It’s actually funny that Haaland is the one carrying Man City in this Ballon d’Or conversation and some of our own fans are still backing Rodri to win it. Haaland is giving everything for this club while Rodri left for Barcelona and City fans are still campaigning for him. I honestly don’t get it. I just wish the other City players would step up and match Haaland’s level instead of leaving one man to carry the whole conversation.

The only possible winners for the Ballon d'Or: 1. Erling Haaland 🇳🇴 2. Harry Kane 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 3. Rodri 🇪🇸 4. Lamine Yamal 🇪🇸 5. Lionel Messi 🇦🇷 Any other name being mentioned right now is just pure PR.

There is absolutely no reason Haaland shouldn't be top two for the Ballon d'Or. He took Norway to their first World Cup quarter-final since 1998 and scored seven goals along the way, but somehow people are still acting like his campaign wasn't special. The agenda against this man is insane.

The Ballon d’Or is tonight and these are my predictions. Haaland at number one because goals and individual impact should count for something. 1. Men’s Ballon d’Or: Erling Haaland. 58 goals in 64 games. That is a Ballon d’Or case. 2. Women’s Ballon d’Or: Mariona Caldentey. Big performances on the biggest stage. 3. Men’s Young Talent of the Year: Lamine Yamal. Already playing like a superstar. 4. Women’s Young Talent of the Year: Vicky López. A talent worth watching. 5. Men’s Goalkeeper of the Year: David Raya. Consistency and reliability. 6. Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year: Hannah Hampton. Big saves when they matter. 7. Men’s Coach of the Year: Luis Enrique. Built a team that delivers. 8. Women’s Coach of the Year: Andrée Jeglertz. Manchester City’s coach deserves recognition. 9. Men’s Club of the Year: Paris Saint-Germain. Their European success speaks for itself. 10. Women’s Club of the Year: Barcelona. A team that keeps setting the standard. 11. Men’s Striker of the Year: Harry Kane. The numbers are impossible to ignore. 12. Women’s Striker of the Year: Khadija Shaw. A goal threat every defence fears. 13. Sócrates Award: Sadio Mané. His work beyond football deserves recognition. These are my predictions, not the popular picks. If Haaland doesn't win the main award, I want to hear the argument for whoever finishes ahead of him.

This year's Ballon d'Or might be the first in history with no clear winner. For once, there isn't one obvious favourite who stands above everyone else. Harry Kane, Erling Haaland, Lionel Messi, Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappé have all had exceptional campaigns. Every one of them has a genuine case to make. That's what makes this year's award special. Whoever wins it will have earned it, and nobody should be able to say the award was undeserved.