Indonesia
Nigeria
South Africa

Paris Saint-Germain's Lionel Messi named 2022 Best FIFA Men's Player

sportsmole.co.uk, 27 February 2023, 21:39
Paris Saint-Germain and Argentina attacker Lionel Messi has named The Best FIFA Men's Player for 2022.

The 35-year-old achieved his lifelong dream of becoming a World Cup winner with La Albiceleste in Qatar, during which he also won the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player.

Messi scored seven goals and provided three assists at the 2022 World Cup - including a brace in the final against France - and he also helped PSG regain the Ligue 1 title in the 2021-22 campaign.

Despite struggling to hit his usual goalscoring heights during his debut season in Ligue 1, the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner already has 17 goals and 16 assists from 28 games in the 2022-23 campaign, and he has won the award for the second time after triumphing in 2019.

Messi beat PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe and Real Madrid attacker Karim Benzema to the accolade, and he was also voted into the FIFA FIFPRO Men's World XI alongside the two Frenchmen.

Erling Braut Haaland completed a fearsome attack in the men's team, which also comprised Luka Modric, Kevin De Bruyne, Casemiro, Joao Cancelo, Achraf Hakimi, Virgil van Dijk and Thibaut Courtois.

Meanwhile, the award for The Best Women's Player went to Barcelona and Spain star Alexia Putellas, who retains her crown from 2021 after also winning back-to-back Ballon d'Or Femenin accolades.

Putellas won the vote over Beth Mead and Alex Morgan, and all three were unsurprisingly named in the FIFA FIFPRO Women's World XI, where Mead was one of four England players alongside Lucy Bronze, Leah Williamson and Keira Walsh.

Putellas and Mapi Leon completed the Spanish representation in the team, and there were also places for Samantha Kerr, Wendie Renard, Lena Oberdorf and Christiane Endler.

Elsewhere, Argentinian World Cup-winning manager Lionel Scaloni won The Best FIFA Men's Coach over Carlo Ancelotti and Pep Guardiola, while England manager Sarina Wiegman clinched the women's prize.

There was further success for La Albiceleste in the goalkeeping awards, as Emiliano Martinez won the men's honour ahead of Courtois and Yassine Bounou.

England's Lionesses would dominate the women's categories, as Mary Earps won the first prize of the night - The Best FIFA Women's Goalkeeper - beating Endler and Ann-Katrin Berger.

The Puskas Award for the best goal was won by Polish amputee footballer Marcin Oleksy, who scored a sensational bicycle kick for Warta Poznan against Stal Rzeszow.

The FIFA Fair Play Award went to Cremonese defender Luka Lochoshvili, who saved the life of Georg Teigl while playing for Wolfsberger against Austria Wien last February, and Argentina won the FIFA Fan Award over Japan and Saudi Arabia for their vociferous support in Qatar.

FIFA THE BEST AWARDS 2022 WINNERS IN FULL:

The Best FIFA Men's Player: Lionel Messi

The Best FIFA Women's Player: Alexia Putellas

The Best FIFA Men's Coach: Lionel Scaloni

The Best FIFA Women's Coach: Sarina Wiegman

The Best FIFA Men's Goalkeeper: Emiliano Martinez

The Best FIFA Women's Goalkeeper: Mary Earps

FIFA Puskas Award: Marcin Oleksy

FIFA Fair Play Award: Luka Lochoshvili

FIFA Fan Award: Argentina

FIFA FIFPRO Men's World XI: Courtois; Hakimi, Van Dijk, Cancelo; Modric, Casemiro, De Bruyne; Messi, Haaland, Benzema, Mbappe

FIFA FIFPRO Women's World XI: Endler; Bronze, Williamson, Renard, Leon; Walsh, Putellas, Oberdorf; Kerr, Mead, Morgan

Top News

11 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Should Liverpool be beaten by Accrington Stanley in the FA Cup on Saturday afternoon, it would be one of the biggest upsets in the club's history, Reds expert David Lynch has claimed. 11 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Bristol City vs. Wolves (Saturday, 12.00pm) Wolverhampton Wanderers will put their Premier League survival bid to one side when they travel to Ashton Gate to face Championship side Bristol City in the third round of the FA Cup on Saturday lunchtime. 11 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Looking to clinch major silverware for the first time in their humble history, Bournemouth commence their 2024-25 FA Cup campaign with the hosting of West Bromwich Albion at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday afternoon. 11 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Freiburg will be looking to get 2025 in the Bundesliga off to a winning start when they play host to a struggling Holstein Kiel at Europa-Park Stadion on Saturday afternoon. 11 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Ross County, aiming to extend their lead over the relegation zone, are set to face Scottish Premiership league leaders Celtic at the Global Energy Stadium on Saturday afternoon. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk A place in the quarter-finals of the Taca de Portugal will be up for grabs when Gil Vicente and Moreirense go head to head at the Estadio Cidade de Barcelos on Sunday evening. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko is reportedly wanted by Inter Milan in a deal that could help the Gunners pull off a blockbuster move for AC Milan's Theo Hernandez. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk NAC Breda and Heerenveen will draw the curtain on round 18 of the 2024-25 Eredivisie season with a meeting at the Rat Verlegh Stadion on Sunday afternoon. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Two teams that could really do with a victory in round 18 of the 2024-25 Eredivisie campaign will do battle at Euroborg on Sunday as Groningen entertain the challenge of Almere City. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United winger Antony has reportedly turned down the chance to join Olympiacos, as the Brazilian attacker is favouring a switch to a La Liga club instead. 10 January 2025 talksport.com Manchester City have agreed a deal to sign Abdukodir Khusanov from Lens, talkSPORT understands. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk AC Milan head coach Sergio Conceicao has refused to rule out a January move for unsettled Manchester United attacker Marcus Rashford. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Casa Pia and Rio Ave will be looking to book their spot in the quarter-finals of the Taca de Portugal when they go head to head at the Estadio Pina Manique on Sunday. 10 January 2025 talksport.com Ian Wright was left fuming by a hugely controversial decision in Aston Villa's FA Cup third round win over West Ham. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Relegation-threatened Montpellier HSC will be searching for their first victory in six Ligue 1 matches when they host Angers at the Stade de la Mosson in Sunday's gameweek 17 clash. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk RB Leipzig boss Marco Rose will hope to leave the rumours of his potential dismissal behind in 2024, and start 2025 with a win in the Bundesliga against Werder Bremen at home on Sunday at Red Bull Arena. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester City have reportedly reached an agreement with Lens to sign defender Abdukodir Khusanov. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Sivasspor will look to arrest their alarming slide when they host Alanyaspor in round 19 of the Turkish Super Lig on Sunday. 10 January 2025 talksport.com Graham Potter made history in Friday night's FA Cup clash at Aston Villa. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Two teams aiming to recover from disappointing league defeats in their opening games of 2025 face off on Sunday, as Trabzonspor host Antalyaspor in a Turkish Super Lig encounter. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea youngster Sam Rak-Sakyi has reportedly attracted the interest of Championship outfit Coventry City. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Undefeated Galatasaray travel to the Basaksehir Fatih Terim Stadium on Sunday to take on Istanbul Basaksehir, aiming to maintain their unbeaten run and extend their lead at the top of the Turkish Super Lig. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Brazilian giants Palmeiras have supposedly been offered the opportunity to sign Arsenal midfielder Jorginho, who is weighing up an early exit from North London. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk After clinching the Trophee des Champions last Sunday, Paris Saint-Germain return to Ligue 1 action this weekend as they welcome Saint-Etienne to the Parc des Princes. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea have apparently turned down a proposal from Wolverhampton Wanderers to sign Renato Veiga during the January transfer window. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Arguably the pick of the matches in the Eredivisie this weekend will come from Stadion Feijenoord, where Feyenoord will be playing host to FC Utrecht on Sunday afternoon. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk An out-of-form Reims side will once again go in search of their first win of 2025 when they welcome European hopefuls Nice to the Stade Auguste-Delaune in Ligue 1 on Saturday. 10 January 2025 talksport.com West Brom are close to appointing Raphael Wicky as their new boss, talkSPORT understands. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Reigning Premier League champions Manchester City welcome League Two side Salford City to the Etihad Stadium for a third-round tie in the FA Cup on Saturday afternoon. 10 January 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Palmeiras have supposedly turned down Manchester City's opening approach for highly-rated centre-back Vitor Reis, but the Premier League champions remain confident of striking an agreement.