FIFA's Best player award: Who the top footballers and coaches voted for

The combined votes for Ronaldo from the FIFA enlisted countries of both the national team coaches and captains was 43.16%, which was more than what Messi and Neymar put together could manage.

Published : Oct 24, 2017 14:54 IST

Cristiano Ronaldo was voted as FIFA's best player for the year 2017 ahead of Lionel Messi (R) and Neymar (L).
Cristiano Ronaldo was voted as FIFA's best player for the year 2017 ahead of Lionel Messi (R) and Neymar (L).
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Cristiano Ronaldo was voted as FIFA's best player for the year 2017 ahead of Lionel Messi (R) and Neymar (L).

Cristiano Ronaldo was adjudged the FIFA best men's player for the second year in a row on Monday evening . The 32-year-old scored 44 goals in the calendar year in 48 appearances, including 11 for Portugal to take home the award.

The Portuguese forward garnered an overwhelming majority of votes over rivals Lionel Messi and Neymar. The combined votes for Ronaldo from the FIFA enlisted countries of both the national team coaches and captains was 43.16%, which was more than what Messi and Neymar put together could manage.

Ronaldo, Portugal's captain and its all-time leading scorer, gave all his three votes for fellow Real Madrid team-mates. His no.1 pick went to Croatia midfielder Luka Modric, while Sergio Ramos and Marcelo came in behind him.

READ:  Real Madrid dominates FIFA FIFPro World XI of 2017

Argentina captain Lionel Messi voted for Barcelona team-mate and Uruguay striker Luis Suarez as his best player. Dani Alves voted for Neymar in his capacity as the skipper of the Brazil national team.

Ronaldo got the first choice vote from his Real Madrid team-mate and Spain captain Ramos, who himself made the line-up for the FIFA's FIFPro XI. Ramos was voted the best player by his national team coach Julen Lopetegui.

Spain's most capped outfield player also had the backing of India's captain Sunil Chhetri. Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi were his second and third best players in the voting list. 

 

The national team coaches of Ronaldo and Messi - Fernando Santos and Jorge Sampaoli - did their bit in ensuring that their captains got the best chance in being crowned the best player on the night.

But Brazil's coach Tite felt Ronaldo had a superlative year than his mercurial forward Neymar, who recently completed a world-record move to Paris Saint-Germain. Neymar was voted in second place ahead of his former Barcelona team-mate Messi.

 

Stephen Constantine, the head coach of the Indian national football team, voted for Borussia Dortmund forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as his best player. He also voted for France's N'Golo Kante and Germany's Toni Kroos to complete his choice.

Kroos, who won the LaLiga and Champions League double with Real Madrid in 2016-17, was voted the best player by World Cup winning Germany coach Joachim Low. His national team captain Manuel Neuer also voted in the favour of the midfielder.

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