“Without doubt” – David Alaba breaks silence after fan outrage over voting in favor of Lionel Messi ahead of Karim Benzema at FIFA Best awards

Real Madrid defender David Alaba has opened up about his decision to choose Lionel Messi over teammate Karim Benzema as his top pick for the Best FIFA Men's Player award of 2022. The Austrian captain insisted that the entire national team has a say in the vote and it was not decided by himself alone.

Alaba received harsh abuse for his vote to snub Karim Benzema in favor of Lionel Messi as massive outrage from fans took place on social media.

The former Bayern Munich man took to Instagram to defend his decision and wrote:

"Regarding FIFA The Best Award: The Austrian national team vote for this award as a team, not me alone. Everyone in the team council is able to vote and that's how it's decided."

Expressing his love and admiration for his Real Madrid teammate, Alaba added:

"Everyone knows, especially Karim, how much I admire him and his performances and I have often said that for me he is the best striker in the world, and that is still the case. Without doubt."

His vote did help in favor of the Argentine superstar as Lionel Messi won the Best FIFA Men's Player of 2022 award, beating Karim Benzema as well as Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) teammate Kylian Mbappe.

The Argentine captain had an exceptional campaign at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, scoring seven goals and providing three assists. The World Cup winner also received the Golden Ball award at the tournament in Qatar.

Meanwhile, Karim Benzema missed the World Cup due to a thigh injury he suffered prior to the commencement of the tournament. However, the French striker has been in stellar form for Real Madrid, bagging 18 goals and five assists in 25 games this season.

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Revealed: The Best FIFA Men's Player 2022 rankings - Lionel Messi, Karim Benzema, Kylian Mbappe and more

While Lionel Messi took the trophy home, other notable names have been revealed in the rankings for the Best FIFA Men's Player 2022 award. Messi's PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe finished in second place, while Karim Benzema finished third.

Lionel Messi and Mbappe were the stars of the show at the 2022 FIFA World Cup final. The Argentine captain bagged a brace in the encounter, while the French superstar managed an extraordinary hat-trick for his side. The PSG duo converted their respective spot-kicks in the penalty shootout as well.

Following Karim Benzema, Real Madrid teammate and Croatia captain Luka Modric sits in fourth place. Manchester City striker Erling Haaland, who is in red-hot goal-scoring form in the Premier League this season, finds himself fifth in the rankings.

The rest of the top ten includes Sadio Mane, Julian Alvarez, Achraf Hakimi, Neymar Jr., and Kevin De Bruyne in that order.