THE winner of Fifa’s prestigious The Best Men’s Player award has allegedly been leaked online.
The likes of Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe go head-to-head tonight for the chance to lift the award after strong years on the pitch.
But who is the apparent winner of this year’s award among the already announced nominees?
According to journalist Francesc Aguilar, who works for Mundo Deportivo, the winner should come as a little surprise given the superstar’s success at the World Cup.
Aguilar has claimed: “Lionel Messi is The Best. On Monday, FIFA will remind L’Equipe and France Football that they did not include Leo among the candidates for the Ballon d’Or.
“To make matters worse, FIFA will hold The Best gala in…Paris!”
READ MORE IN FOOTBALL
This information was also reported by journalist Fabrizio Romano on Sunday.
Messi put in a stunning performance to help guide Argentina all the way to the World Cup trophy in Qatar, including scoring twice in the final and being awarded the Golden Ball.
The 35-year-old was on fire for PSG in the second half of the year after struggling to find his scoring touch in the first, a fact which saw him omitted from the nominees for the Ballon d’Or, which was won by Champions League winning Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema.
It means Messi will win the award for the second time since its inception, having previously picked up the gong in 2019.
Most read in Football
FREE BETS AND SIGN UP DEALS – BEST NEW CUSTOMER OFFERS
It will also see Frenchman Mbappe denied his first win of the award.
The 24-year-old had a truly remarkable year, becoming just the second player to ever score a World Cup final hat-trick, taking the golden boot in Qatar and scoring the most goals in Europe’s top five league in 2022 with 44.
Benzema is another name set to be snubbed despite his Ballon d’Or win and Champions League victory with Real Madrid last season.
The ceremony will begin at 8pm this evening.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
