Lewandowski wins record-equalling second FIFA The Best award
Mendy named Goalkeeper of the Year as Chelsea dominate award
Bayern Munich ace Robert Lewandowski was named as the FIFA The Best Men’s Player of the Year at the award held in Zurich, Switzerland, after a stellar 2021 for club and country.
The 33-year-old striker won the award for the second year running after he narrowly missed out on the Ballon d’Or earlier in the year. The prolific front man scored 69 goals in 59 appearances in 2021 and broke the Bundesliga goals record set by Gerd Muller. Lewandowski helped Bayern Munich win a ninth successive Bundesliga title.
Lewandowski beat Lionel Messi and Mohamed Salah to the award after he polled 48 votes to Messi’s 44 votes. It is his second consecutive FIFA The Best Men’s Player of the Year award, after he won it in 2020. It is also his second time of winning the award since its inception in 2017, drawing him level with Cristiano Ronaldo as the player with the most FIFA The Best Men’s Player of the Year awards.
At the award gala, Chelsea had a clean sweep as both their male and female managers were named FIFA The Best Male and Female manager of the Year. Thomas Tuchel and his counterpart, Emma Hayes, won the awards.
Chelsea’s Edouard Mendy was also named as FIFA The Best Men’s Goalkeeper of the Year, making him the first African to win the award. Despite polling an equal number of votes, he beat Italy and PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to the award because more captains voted for him.
Sevilla winger Erik Lamela won the Puskas Award for his audacious rabona effort as a Tottenham Hotspur player against Arsenal in the Premier League last season.
FC Barcelona Femeni forward Alexia Putellas was voted as the FIFA The Best Women’s Player of the Year, crowning a special year for the Spaniard after she also won the Ballon d’Or.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Christine Sinclair won the FIFA The Best Special Award for their record-breaking goalscoring feats in international football.
The FIFPro World XI was also announced as follows:
Gianluigi Donnarumma
Ruben Dias
David Alaba
Leonardo Bonucci
N’Golo Kante
Kevin De Bruyne
Erling Haaland
Cristiano Ronaldo
Robert Lewandowski
