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World football’s top players and managers of 2023 are being recognized at The Best FIFA Football Awards show on Monday. Below, theScore is tracking all the winners of the various trophies handed out in London.
Best Men’s Player finalists
- Erling Haaland (Manchester City and Norway)
- Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain and France)
- Lionel Messi (Inter Miami and Argentina)
Can Messi get one over on Mbappe yet again? The Argentine will look to retain the honor he won last year when he beat out his former Paris Saint-Germain teammate. The two superstars will face stiff competition from Manchester City striker Haaland for FIFA’s top individual prize, which was inaugurated in 2016 following the governing body’s split with Ballon d’Or organizer France Football. For this year’s award, accomplishments from Dec. 19, 2022, to Aug. 20, 2023, were taken into consideration by voters.
2022 winner: Lionel Messi
Best Women’s Player finalists
- Aitana Bonmati (Barcelona and Spain)
- Linda Caicedo (Real Madrid and Colombia)
- Jennifer Hermoso (Tigres and Spain)
Bonmati can cap one of the most dominant individual seasons in the history of women’s soccer on Monday. The World Cup-winning midfielder, already having captured the Ballon d’Or and various other accolades over the last 12 months, is looking to succeed compatriot Putellas, who won this award in each of the last two years. The qualifying period for this year’s honor was Aug. 1, 2022, to Aug. 20, 2023, the date of the most recent Women’s World Cup final, which saw Bonmati’s Spain defeat England.
2022 winner: Alexia Putellas
Puskas Award finalists
One of the sport’s most coveted individual trophies. This year’s Puskas Award, given to the scorer of the best goal, covers the period between Dec. 19, 2022, and Aug. 20, 2023. Finalists include a long-range strike to conclude an excellent team move, a sensational bicycle kick, and a perfect rabona.
2022 winner: Marcin Oleksy
Best Men’s Coach
Pep Guardiola (Manchester City)
This was never really up for debate. Guardiola’s tactical ingenuity came to the fore over the 2022-23 campaign as he shook up his approach to accommodate an out-and-out striker in Haaland, encouraged defenders to cavort into midfield, and sometimes ditched full-backs entirely. The result was silverware for Manchester City in the Champions League, Premier League, and the FA Cup. Former City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan said last summer he “didn’t know anything about football” before working for Guardiola. Gundogan was 25 when he joined Guardiola at City.
Beaten finalists: Simone Inzaghi, Luciano Spalletti
Best Women’s Coach finalists
- Jonatan Giraldez (Barcelona)
- Emma Hayes (Chelsea)
- Sarina Wiegman (England)
A mixture of club and international coaches are vying for this prize. Wiegman and Hayes are the two most recent winners. The England manager has taken the award home on three occasions, more than any other bench boss (male or female). Giraldez, meanwhile, is looking for his first FIFA honor.
2022 winner: Sarina Wiegman
Best Men’s Goalkeeper finalists
- Yassine Bounou (Al-Hilal and Morocco)
- Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid and Belgium)
- Ederson (Manchester City and Brazil)
Bounou helped Sevilla win yet another Europa League crown in 2022-23 before departing for Saudi Arabia, while Ederson backstopped Manchester City to a trio of titles during the club’s record-breaking campaign. Courtois is the only finalist to have won this award before.
2022 winner: Emiliano Martinez
Best Women’s Goalkeeper finalists
- Mackenzie Arnold (West Ham and Australia)
- Catalina Coll (Barcelona and Spain)
- Mary Earps (Manchester United and England)
Three netminders who shone brightly at the 2023 Women’s World Cup will battle for this accolade. Coll helped Spain take home the title, while Arnold and Earps have become cult heroes in their respective countries. The latter, in particular, is one of the most popular footballers in England thanks to her combination of on-pitch excellence and off-field personality.
2022 winner: Mary Earps
Men’s FIFA FIFPro World11
Thibaut Courtois; Kyle Walker, John Stones, Ruben Dias; Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne, Jude Bellingham; Lionel Messi, Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior
Women’s FIFA FIFPro World11
To be announced.
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