A previous Ballon d'Or winner has claimed that Liverpool's "serious problems" earlier this year will hurt Mohamed Salah's chances of winning the award.
Read: Salah Hits Back At 'Selfish' Claim By Liverpool Legend
The Egypt superstar has been touted by many as the best player in the world at the moment after his impressive form for the Reds this season, which has seen him bag 15 goals in 12 appearances across all competitions.
While Salah has been superb this season, 1990 Ballon d'Or winner Lothar Matthaus feels the Reds' disappointing 2020/21 campaign will dent the Egyptian's chances of becoming the second African player to win the award.
"What Klopp's superstar Salah has been delivering for a few months is, of course, absolutely world-class," the 1990 FIFA World Cup winner told Sky.
"It is quite possible that this will help him a lot in his choice of world footballer. But that was not the case for the whole year. In the spring, he and Liverpool had serious problems.
"Jorginho from Chelsea has been convincing for almost the entire last season and played a key role in winning the Champions League and the European Championship with Italy.
"He's not as spectacular as [Robert] Lewandowski, whom I personally keep my fingers crossed for the most. This time, however, he lacks the international title.
"Messi won the Copa America with Argentina, but achieved nothing great with Barcelona. There are no top favourites."
Click through the gallery below to see the highest-paid players in the Premier League this season:
