Lionel Messi, the Argentine and Paris St-Germain forward, has been awarded the men’s player of the year at the 2022 Best Fifa Awards, triumphing over French forwards Kylian Mbappe and Karim Benzema.
As a seven-time Ballon d’Or winner, Messi’s impressive performance throughout the 2021-22 season saw him score 27 goals in 49 games for both club and country, contributing to Argentina’s victory at the 2022 World Cup held in Qatar.
Barcelona’s Alexia Putellas also received recognition, being named women’s player of the year. During the ceremony in Paris, Lionel Scaloni, the coach who led Argentina to their third World Cup title, was named men’s coach of the year, surpassing Pep Guardiola, who guided Manchester City to their sixth Premier League title, and Carlo Ancelotti, the winning boss of Real Madrid’s Champions League. Meanwhile, England manager Sarina Wiegman received the women’s coach of the year award, having led the Lionesses to their first major trophy, the European Championship, on home soil.
In addition, Aston Villa and Argentina’s Emiliano Martinez was recognized as the top men’s goalkeeper for his crucial saves during the World Cup, including four penalty saves, including one in the final shootout against France.
Lastly, the Fifa Puskas award, recognizing the best goal in world football, went to Marcin Oleksy, an amputee footballer from Polish side Warta Poznan, for his remarkable overhead volley scored against Stal Rzeszow with the aid of his crutches.