To begin with, it should be remembered that the winners are not chosen by a special FIFA committee, but by the coaches and captains of all the teams that are part of FIFA, with a few exceptions. For example, this year Croatian national team coach Dalic refused to participate because FIFA had included only one Croatian player Luka Modric in the list, despite his team winning bronze at world Cup. But Russian national team coach Valery Karpin and Georgy Jikia attended the ceremony and voted.
And here’s how they voted:
Best player:
George Jikia: Mbappe, Messi, Benzema
Valery Karpin: Messi, Benzema, Mbappe
Best Coach:
George Jikia: Deschamps, Regragi, Ancelotti
Valery Karpin: Ancelotti, Guardiola, Deschamps
Best Goalkeeper:
George Jikia: Alisson, Bunou, Courtois
Valery KarpinPeople: Courtois
As you can see, only one of the six positions has been guessed. Karpin chose Messi as the best player and he finished with the most points – 52, Mbappe – 44, Benzema – 34. Martinez was ahead of Courtois and Buna, and Scaloni – Ancelotti and Guardiola.
Martinez vs. Courtois
Let’s analyze each nomination and start with the keepers, since Martinez’s choice has the highest claims.
The main stone in the garden of Martinez is the goalkeeper for 1 tournament, he normally played only 7 games and for these games he was awarded the best player, although it was worth watching all year. The remark is reasonable, but if you understand the essence of the vote, it is immediately brushed aside.
Coaches and players vote, and many of them are based on a territorial basis, either for teammates or for their country’s representatives. Voting is therefore highly subjective. Africans still vote for Mane and Salah, and now Hakimi and Regrad have been added to them. Latin America chooses between Argentinians and Brazilians, etc. These players and coaches do not follow the national championships and do not see the players all year round, they, like most supporters, only follow the World Cup and the Champions League. And the world championship for any player and coach is a status tournament. Also, they interview national team coaches, not clubs. Voting for teammates is also ubiquitous. But there are exceptions, now everyone is jumping on Austrian Alaba for giving maximum points to Messi, not teammate Benzema, and that’s the wrong reaction. Everyone blames Eurovision for voting for its neighbors and the situation is the same here. Vote often for friends, not the best.
And in such an orgy, the end results are achieved. But in this case, they reflect the real state of affairs. Martinez played 7 games at the World Cup and took out the Argentina national team, winning two heavyweight shootouts. He didn’t show anything at Aston Villa, but in Qatar it was a highlight and everyone remembered it. Yes, in terms of number of saves, Martinez is almost the worst in the tournament, but did anyone look at the stats before voting? Poland’s Szczesny became the best savior of the World Cup, as his team played defenseless and flew to the 1/8 finals. The best goalkeepers according to statistics do not play in the best teams, the champion teams. On the contrary, among the weak, who are constantly on the defensive.
And just like with Courtois, he was far from the best save keeper in the Champions League. According to this indicator, Shakhtar’s Trubin was the best. And Courtois? Everyone remembered him for taking 9 shots in the final and the fans felt he coached Real Madrid to the title. In fact, this game was the only one for Courtois to 0 in the playoffs. In the semi-finals, he received 5 goals from Manchester City. In Manchester he missed 4 out of 5 hits. From Chelsea in the quarter-finals he missed 4. In Madrid – 3 out of 7 hits. I conceded 2 goals from PSG.
At the World Cup, each team hit him 4 times on target, Morocco scored 2 goals. For an extravaganza, a year is somehow not enough, considering again that no one has followed the national championships. 7 games from Courtois and 7 games from Martinez, and here the player’s contribution to the victory is important, it is higher for the Argentine, since the defense is weaker, and two shots on goal add weight.
Yassin Bunu can compete with Martinez in terms of contribution, if he played in the final or at least won the bronze he could also qualify for the prize.
Scaloni versus Ancelotti
The choice of the best trainer and the victory of Lionel Scaloni. In this appointment, initially unequal forces, at least because Scaloni has fewer matches than Ancelotti, and again there is a choice of which trophy is more significant – the World Cup or the Champions League. And the answer is obvious, so the Argentine’s victory is natural.
Messi vs Mbappé and Benzema
The choice of the best player also always attracts attention. Let’s take a look at the top three.
Statistically, Messi has the fewest goals, but he creates chances for the partners. Mbappe has scored the most but won nothing and can be ruled out as goals in Ligue 1 aren’t what it takes to be recognized as the best. Mbappe scored 2 Champions League goals against Real Madrid, while Benzema netted 3 to knock PSG out of the competition. In total, Benzema scored 15 goals in the last Champions League. He contributed to the relegation of PSG (3 goals), Chelsea (4 goals), Manchester City (3 goals). He didn’t score in the final, but this Champions League is the best performance of his career and Karim deservedly took the Ballon d’Or. And after that, due to injury, he missed the World Cup.
In Qatar, Mbappe and Messi had a shootout, Kylian won the goalscoring race with 8 goals, Messi scored 7 but won the trophy. And that predetermined the choice of the best player of the year. Had Benzema been in Mbappe’s place, his total achievements would have been higher, but in December everyone was talking only about Messi and this informational backdrop hasn’t calmed down yet. Moreover, now Messi is also the main contender for the next Ballon d’Or.
Coming back to the prize, the best have not always received it, like the Ballon d’Or. The names put pressure on coaches and players, and in 3M’s case even more so on journalists who don’t always follow all of European football, especially if they don’t represent it. And it wasn’t always enough to win the World Cup or the Champions League to win a personal prize.
Messi and Ronaldo won the Ballons d’Or from 2009 to 2021 with a break for 2018 and the success of Modric (an example of how contributing to the success of a team that is not the strongest in the Cup of the world is evaluated). However, they haven’t even won the Champions League every year. In 2010, Messi was awarded the Ballon d’Or, although his club did not make the Champions League final, the team flew to the quarter-finals, and Lionel himself did not Scored one goal in 5 games. Sneijder was Inter’s main star and won the Champions League, made the World Cup final, but he wasn’t even in the top three. The world champions Xavi and Iniesta, who held the center of the field, “Barcelona”, were also left without a trophy. Is it right?
Ballon d’Or 2012 and Messi’s victory again. Although Chelsea won the Champions League. European champion Iniesta was again left without a trophy. In 2021, Messi already played at PSG and rather weakly, but it turned out that Argentina won the America’s Cup and only for this he received the Ballon d’Or again. gold, although Robert Lewandowski tore up the Champions League. Robert was stripped of the trophy. But then he at least won the FIFA vote. And now Messi’s victory and that just makes sense. A number of his Ballon d’Ors are controversial, but given the importance of the tournament and the team’s contribution to victory, Messi is now out of contention and it is unlikely anyone can deprive him of the title. victory at the end of the year.
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Source: Sport
I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.
