Bayern Munich striker, Robert Lewandowski has won the 2021 FIFA The Best Men’s Player award for the second time in a row. He is the second player after Cristiano Ronaldo to win the award twice in the history of the award.
The 33-year-old Polish striker won the 2020 edition of the award for the first time in his football career. In the 2021 edition of the award, many thought it would go to Lionel Messi who won the 2021 Ballon d’Or but Robert Lewandowski ended up winning it.
Initially, Lewandowski was nominated for the award alongside the usual suspects, including Messi of Paris Saint Germain, Cristiano Ronaldo of Manchester United, Mohamed Salah of Liverpool, and Karim Benzema of Real Madrid.
Afterward, the list was cut into three nominees which left Lewandowski to compete with Messi and Salah in the final phase of the award.
At the end of the voting process, more national team coaches, captains, and some selected media practitioners voted for Robert Lewandowski.
The Poland international received 48 points of the votes, Lionel Messi received 44 points of the votes while Salah received 39 points of the votes. Hence, the Bayern Munich striker won the award with 48 points, Messi came second and Salah came third.
Reports claimed that 25 percent of the awards came from national team coaches and captains.
The voting pattern at the 2021 FIFA The Best Men’s Player which favored Robert Lewandowski
After Robert Lewandowski was named the winner of the 2021 FIFA The Best Men’s Player award, it was revealed that the Polish striker voted for Messi, Chelsea’s Jorginho in second, and Cristiano Ronaldo in third as the captain of the Poland national team.
On the part of Messi, the Argentina national team captain voted for Paris Saint-Germain teammates Neymar then Kylian Mbappe, with Karim Benzema earning his third spot.
While Ronaldo voted for Lewandowski, Chelsea’s N’Golo Kante, and Jorginho as the captain of Portugal’s national team.
Reports claimed that Portugal head coach, Fernando Santos decided to snub Ronaldo and opted for Kante, Jorginho, and Lewandowski. While Argentina national team head coach, Lionel Scaloni voted for Messi as expected.
After he was named the 2021 FIFA The Best Men’s Player, Lewandowski took to his Instagram page to share pictures from the award. In one of the pictures he shared, he posed with the coach of Bayern Munich, Julian Nagelsmann.
In the caption, Robert Lewandowski wrote: “I would like to congratulate all tonight’s award winners.
“Receiving The FIFA Best Men’s Player award tonight is a massive honor for me. It is an incredible feeling.
“We dedicate our lives to improving, excelling, and reaching new heights. We push our bodies to the limit for our team, our coach, and the fans.
“Football is the world’s sport. It’s unlike any other in the way it connects people. It’s a language understood on every continent.
“As players, we have a responsibility to represent the values of the game – fair play, respect, and sportsmanship. And I’m proud to do so – for club @fcbayern and country 🇵🇱 @laczynaspilka.”
