Lionel Messi did his Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Kylian Mbappe no favours as he voted for Neymar and Karim Benzema ahead of the French superstar at The Best FIFA Football Awards.
Messi was named the best men’s player in the world at the ceremony in Paris after seeing off competition from second-placed Mbappe.
Given his status as Argentina captain, Messi was permitted to vote and he elected for Neymar as his first choice ahead of another of his PSG team-mates in Mbappe – who didn’t get a vote as he is not France’s captain.
Votes were cast by supporters, national team captains, national team coaches and 300 journalists from various nations, with each of the four pillars given 25 per cent of the vote.
England captain Harry Kane voted for Messi, Sadio Mane and Benzema as his top three. Kane didn’t include Mbappe, who was part of the France side that knocked England out of the World Cup at the quarter-finals stage.
Lionel Messi voted for Neymar ahead of Kylian Mbappe for FIFA’s The Best award
Messi elected for Neymar as his first choice, with Mbappe in second and Karim Benzema third
Mbappe finished in second place in the overall award, with Messi winning the prize
Despite captaining Portugal at the World Cup, Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t vote in the awards
VOTING RESULT IN FULL
Lionel Messi – 52 points
Kylian Mbappe – 44 points
Karim Benzema – 34 points
Luka Modric – 28 points
Erling Haaland – 24 points
Sadio Mane – 19 points
Julian Alvarez – 17 points
Achraf Hakimi – 15 points
Neymar – 13 points
Kevin de Bruyne – 10 points
Vinicius Jr – 10 points
Robert Lewandowski – 7 points
Jude Bellingham – 3 points
Mohamed Salah – 2 points
Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t vote in the awards, with Pepe listed as Portugal’s captain despite Ronaldo being their official captain at the World Cup and him not having retired from international football yet.
Pepe, the veteran defender who previously played for Real Madrid, didn’t include his old Barcelona rival Messi in his top three. Instead he chose Mbappe, Modric and Benzema.
Liverpool star Mohamed Salah, the captain of Egypt, selected Vinicius Junior as his first choice. The Brazilian star scored the winner for Real Madrid against Liverpool in the Champions League final last season.
Salah opted against including his former Liverpool team-mate Sadio Mane in his top three – there were frequent suggestions of discontent between the pair when they played together and Mane got the better of him in the Africa Cup of Nations final last year. Instead, Salah rounded off his top three by choosing Kevin De Bruyne and Achraf Hakimi.
Meanwhile, England boss Gareth Southgate went for Messi, Luka Modric and Mbappe.
Harry Kane didn’t vote for Mbappe, whose France side knocked England out of the World Cup
Salah’s first choice was Vinicus Junior, who scored v Liverpool in the Champions League final
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni unsurprisingly voted for Messi as his winner, with another of his players named in second place in Julian Alvarez. Modric was his third choice.
France manager Didier Deschamps went for Mbappe ahead of both Benzema and Messi.
Hugo Lloris, the France captain, opted for an identical trio as his manager in the same order.
Korea Republic boss Michael Franz Muller, Guyana manager Sam Cox and Central African Republic’s Raoul Savoy all put 19-year-old England midfielder Jude Bellingham as their first choice.
Pepe didn’t include his old rival Messi in his top three – going for Mbappe, Modric and Benzema
Three managers voted for England starlet Jude Bellingham as their first choice player
England manager Gareth Southgate’s top three consisted of Messi, Modric and Mbappe
Martin Odegaard included his Norway colleague Erling Haaland as his second choice
Brazil captain Thiago Silva voted for his compatriot Neymar followed by Messi and Benzema.
Germany coach Hansi Flick chose Messi as his winner but didn’t include Mbappe or Benzema in his top three, instead going for Modric and Robert Lewandowski.
Lewandowski himself had Messi in first place followed by Mbappe and Modric.
Martin Odegaard had Messi as first choice, with his Norway colleague Erling Haaland in second and Mbappe third.
Greece boss Gustavo Poyet, meanwhile, had Haaland as his first choice above Messi and Benzema.
Spain manager Luis de la Fuente chose Manchester City striker Julian Alvarez in first place, with Bellingham second and Modric third.
source: dailymail.com
