The FIFA Men’s Award: Which Three Players Will Make the Final Shortlist?

Almost immediately after the FIFA World Cup, as if someone somewhere was waiting for the perfect timing, one of the most anticipated lists in the football world was released.

The ten-man shortlist for The Best FIFA Men’s Player 2018 award – based on their respective achievements during the period from 3 July 2017 to 15 July 2018 inclusive – which was compiled by a panel of FIFA Legends was released.

This ten-man shortlist will be reduced to three finalists and will be revealed at a later date. The winner of the award will be revealed at The Best FIFA Football Awards show in London on 24 September.

You’ve probably seen this list. But just in case you haven’t, here’s a list of the players who got shortlisted:

• Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid/France)
• Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus/Portugal)
• Eden Hazard (Chelsea/Belgium)
• Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City/Belgium)
• Harry Kane (Tottenham/England)
• Kylian Mbappe (PSG/France)
• Lionel Messi (Barcelona/Argentina)
• Luka Modric (Real Madrid/Croatia)
• Mohamed Salah (Liverpool/Egypt)
• Raphael Varane (Real Madrid/France)

According to FIFA, “…the fans, now have a say and can vote for their personal top three. Their votes will be equally weighted alongside the votes of other key members of the footballing community – namely journalists, national team coaches and captains.”

What this means is that fans can now, to an extent, influence which player will win the next The Best FIFA Men’s Player award.

As a football fan, if you were to cast your personal vote now, which of these three players will make your final shortlist?

While Brazil’s Neymar Jr. was a notable omission from the list, every other name in there seem to have deserved a spot on that list.

Although Portugal didn’t go far at the World Cup, Cristiano Ronaldo, who is now fondly known as “The Myth” by his Juventus fans, helped Real Madrid to a FIFA Club World Cup last year December and another UEFA Champions League trophy.

France, the World Cup winners have the most players on the list: Antoine Griezmann (a UEFA Europa League winner), Kylian Mbappe (second youngest player after Pele to score in a World Cup final), and Raphael Varane (a UEFA Champions League and FIFA World Club Cup winner).

It’s easy to look at that list and just pick all three for your shortlist.

But then there’s Harry Kane (the Russia 2018 highest goal-scorer), Kevin de Bruyne (who was a key part of Manchester City’s record-breaking season) and then Luka Modric (who won the Adidas Golden Boot after captaining Croatia to their first ever FIFA World Cup final).

Lionel Messi who won the La Liga title cannot be overlooked. Same can be said about Mohamed Salah (who set a new PL record for most goals scored in a single campaign). Then there’s Eden Hazard somewhere in the mix.

All ten players had an amazing year between 2017 and now. But which of them do you think will make the final three? Join the conversation by leaving us your comments and sharing your views. We’ll love to hear from you.

Tags: FIFA Men’s Award