Manchester City are expected to dominate the upcoming FIFA The Best awards, having won the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup during their incredible 2022-23 season
Erling Haaland will go head-to-head with Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe to be crowned the best player in the world.
Haaland is one of six of Manchester City’s Treble-winning stars to be up for prizes in FIFA’s The Best awards with Pep Guardiola also in contention for the managerial award. Messi is the current award holder but this year’s qualifying period for the men’s award runs from December 19, 2022 – which is the day AFTER Argentina won the World Cup – until August 20, 2023.
âCity striker Haaland has already won the respective awards from the Football Writers’ Association and Professional Footballers’ Association in England after setting a new goals record in his first season in the Premier League. Julian Alvarez, Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan, Rodri and Bernardo Silva are the other City players to be nominated while Arsenal’s Declan Rice is also on the 12 player shortlist.
âCroatia’s Marcelo Brozovic and Napoli pair Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Victor Osimhen are the others on the shortlist compiled by world football’s governing body. Tottenham’s Ange Postecoglou is on the managerial shortlist after leading Celtic to the Treble while Guardiola is favourite and Xavi and Luciano Spalletti have also been nominated.