Cristiano Ronaldo Beats Lionel Messi and Neymar to FIFA Best Player Award

Cristiano Ronaldo has been named the Best Men’s Player at the FIFA Football Awards after beating rivals Lionel Messi and Neymar to the illustrious prize. The Real Madrid and Portugal superstar, 32, has enjoyed another sensational year, scoring 45 goals in 48 appearances and winning the Champions League and La Liga during the 2016-17 campaign.

Ronaldo won the inaugural award in January and defended his crown at Monday evening’s event held at the London Palladium. Messi, for his part, contributed 49 goals and 11 assists in 50 appearances in 2017 for Barcelona and Argentina but was once again overlooked as Ronaldo took home the award. The third nominee was Neymar, who became the most expensive player in the world when he joined Paris Saint-Germain in the summer.

Ronaldo said: ‘Thank you a lot for this, I have to mention Lionel and Neymar for being here. I want to thank the Real Madrid supporters, my team-mates, my coach, my president… they all support me throughout the year so I must say thank you to them. ‘This is a great moment for me. I know I have fans all over the world so thanks for the support. It was great to be here, around these great players. I’m so happy.’

Netherlands star Lieke Martens, meanwhile, won the Best Women’s player award and said: ‘Thank you very much, I want to thank all my team-mates, without you I couldn’t achieve this. ‘I would also like to thanks my coaches and family – this one is for you.’

Comments

Real Madrid Left Back Marcelo Ruled Out for One Month while Toni Kroos will Miss Real Madrid's trip to Alaves

Real Madrid star Toni Kroos is set join Marcelo in the treatment room when Los Blancos visit Alaves on Saturday (23 September) after suffering a rib injury. The news is a fresh concern for Zinedine Zidane as Karim Benzema, Theo Hernandez, Jesus Vallejo and Mateo Kovacic are also ruled out for the visit to Mendizorroza due to various injuries. Kroos, 27, missed the last weekend's 3-1 victory over Real Sociedad due to a fitness problem. The Germany international returned to Zidane's starting line-up for Wednesday's 1-0 defeat to Real Betis and was able to complete the full 90 minutes. However, it looks like Kroos suffered a recurrence of the problem in that game after Real Madrid revealed on Friday morning that the midfielder skipped the final training session before Los Blancos' trip to Vitoria. Zidane himself later confirmed the blow in a press conference, adding that he expects the midfielder to recover in time for the crucial Champions League trip t...

Tottenham Close to Completing £23m Serge Aurier Transfer

Tottenham are closing in on a £23million move for Paris Saint-Germain defender Serge Aurier. The Ivory Coast international has been free to leave the French giants following the arrival of Dani Alves to the club. Aurier, 24, has been heavily linked with Manchester United and Chelsea but Spurs have shown the firmest interest in the right-back. Mauricio Pochettino sanctioned Kyle Walker’s £50million move to Manchester City on the basis that Kieran Trippier had shown he was a worthy replacement towards the end of last season. However, the Argentine wants greater strength in depth and the Evening Standard claim Spurs are close to a £23m deal and Aurier will sign a five-year deal. Aurier was denied entry into the UK last October for Paris Saint-Germain’s clash with Arsenal because he was found guilty of elbowing a police offer a month earlier. The ban is still in place but Aurier is currently contesting the charge and Spurs are clearly confident that he will win his case....

Chelsea Forward Lucas Piazon Suffers Broken Leg

Chelsea playmaker Lucas Piazon suffered a suspected broken leg last night. The 23-year-old was in action for Fulham, where is on loan for the season, when the injury occurred. The Brazilian forward, who scored a late equaliser against former club Reading over the weekend to secure Slavisa Jokanovic's 10 men an unlikely point, had to be carried off the pitch in the 35th minute of a Tuesday night (15 August) Championship stalemate at Leeds United after being hurt by a strong challenge from Conor Shaughnessy. The clash, which did not even produce a free-kick, left Piazon with a broken fibula. ‘We are so disappointed for this situation about Lucas Piazon. I believe he broke the fibula or broke the leg,’ said Fulham manager Slavisa Jokanovic. ‘It’s a very bad injury and we will lose him for a long time. It’s not a question about complaining – it can be bad luck or a tackle outside of the normal. ‘But I’m really disappointed with what I heard from one of the referees w...

Plauseorminus

Search This Blog