KARIM BENZEMA has been criticised for social media posts made after he was snubbed at the Fifa Best Awards.
Lionel Messi scooped the player of the year gong at Monday’s ceremony in Paris.
The Argentine, 35, claimed the honour following his World Cup triumph in Qatar.
He beat fellow nominees Benzema and Kylian Mbappe to the award – and matched Cristiano Ronaldo’s record of two wins.
And Real Madrid’s talisman does not appear to have taken the decision well.
Benzema, 35, posted a screenshot from a fan account which listed all his achievements from August 2021 to December 2022 – the time period in consideration for the awards.
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The forward, who missed the World Cup through injury, then shared a picture of himself smiling and the caption: “Good night” and a smiling emoji.
Benzema’s social media posts have not been received positively by fans.
One fan said: “World Cup year and he wasn’t even part of the squad, shouldn’t complain.”
Another added: “No way this one-season wonder is still crying 😭😭”.
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A third replied: “Why’s this guy so salty ffs”.
And a fourth responded: “What a cry baby”.
Benzema’s comments come despite Messi including him in his own top three.
By contrast, the Real striker’s team-mate David Alaba voted for Messi – although he later clarified his vote was collaboratively decided by the Austrian national team.
Benzema won the Ballon d’Or last year after bagging 44 goals in 46 games to help Los Blancos win LaLiga and the Champions League.
But Messi inspired his country to their first World Cup in 32 years with a host of remarkable performances.
He also contributed 15 goals and 14 assists for Paris Saint-Germain in the first part of the season prior to the World Cup break.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
