Lionel Messi has won the FIFA Best Player Award three times, but Roberto Martinez claims “mistakes” were made during the latest voting process.
The Argentine superstar was once again recognized as the best player on the planet during a prestigious ceremony which took place in London on January 15. The Inter Miami star, who won his eighth Ballon d’Or in 2023, beat Manchester City striker Erling Haaland to win the most prestigious award.
The Best continues to be talked about
Messi and Haaland finished with the same number of points, but the 2022 World Cup winner walked away with the Holy Grail after garnering more votes from international team captains. Martinez believes uncertainty among voters may have contributed to the success, with the Portugal coach surprisingly backing Croatian star Marcelo Brozovic in his choice for third place.
Asked about this vote by A Bola, Martinez – who now works with Cristiano Ronaldo internationally – said: “ It was a mistake. Now we have a lot of votes, we have a lot of elections. We have the FIFA player, the best player, who has been there all season. This is the first time we have had a World Cup in winter and the votes are strange, because it only lasted six months. For me it is difficult to give individual awards in football. »
“ I think the player on an individual level represents what the team has done. And what about Brozovic and Bernardo Silva, and the players who appeared in the Champions League final and won domestic trophies? But Brozovic is a player who represents an idea of the game, who represents what Croatia does. But it was a mistake, for the period in question. And I think I’m not the only one who made this mistake, because when you see the votes, I think there is more intention to see what happened at the World Cup“.
