This Friday, FIFA released the three finalists nominated for The Best 2021 award, given to the best player in the world of the year. They are: Lionel Messi, from PSG, Robert Lewandowski, to Bayern MunchenMohamed Salah, do Liverpool.
The federation also released the finalists for the women’s award. Sam Kerr, of the Chelsea, and Jenni Hermoso, from the Barcelona, will try to unseat the favorite Alexia Putellas, also from Barça, winner of the 2021 Golden Ball, an award granted by the magazine France Football.
The announcement of the winners, including the other categories, as best coach, will take place on January 17th.
???????? The final three in the running to be #TheBest FIFA Men’s Player 2021!
???????? Who should be crowned #TheBest in the world?
???????? @lewy_official | @pzpn_pl
Lionel Messi | @Argentina
???????? @BrothersDay | @EFA pic.twitter.com/1kVGi5nRZ9— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) January 7, 2022
The Argentine forward emerges as the favorite. In November 2021, Messi ousted Lewandowski and was awarded by the magazine France Football with its seventh Golden Ball.
In the first half of 2021, while playing for Barcelona, Messi, despite his failure in the Champions League, was a great highlight and won the Copa del Rey. In addition, he helped Argentina win the Copa América, beating Brazil in the final. For PSG, the player has not yet managed to present his best football.
On the other hand, Lewandowski, winner of the last edition of the awards, has individual brands in his favor. The Polish striker broke the record for goals in a single edition of the German Championship, with 41 balls in the net. The Bayern player also finished as top scorer of 2021, with 69 goals, equaling Cristiano Ronaldo’s top scorer year.
Despite the good phase, the striker was unable to classify Poland for the knockout of the Euro Cup. However, the year ended with the achievements of the Bundesliga and the 2020 World Cup.
Finally, Salah is considered the underdog in the dispute. The Egyptian has an excellent season, with 23 goals and nine assists in just 26 games. However, his first half with Liverpool did not have the same pace, ending 2021 without a title.
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