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Hello and welcome to our assessment of the top contenders for the Best FIFA Men's Player Award for the year 2019 at the start of June 2019. With less than 4 months left for the awards, the race has warmed up very well so far. This year's award is scheduled for 23rd of September 2019, at Milan.
FIFA has been presenting FIFA World Player of the Year award since 1991, but from 2010, the award was merged with the Ballon d'Or for 6 years. From 2016, FIFA revamped the awards and named it the Best FIFA Men's Player.
At the start of June, there no doubt that this is a season of Premier League dominance in European football. Both the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League finals were contested between Premier League sides. Chelsea won the Europa League, whereas Liverpool were crowned the Champions League winners.
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The effects have been felt in our assessment too, and as many as 4 Premier League players make it into our top 5 rankings at the start of June. But who is the top contender for the award at the start of the month? Read on to find out more.
#5 Eden Hazard (Belgium, Chelsea)
Eden Hazard might be on his way to the Santiago Bernabeu, but he presented his current club Chelsea with the perfect parting gift at the end of May. Hazard sizzled one last time in the colours of Chelsea in the UEFA Europa League final, scoring two goals and putting in a man of the match performance. Chelsea went on to win 4-1 against Arsenal, and became the Europa League Champions. He was also crucial in the Blues' 3rd place finish in the Premier League and helped turn Maurizio Sarri's inaugural season into a success.
The Belgian scored 2 goals and picked up 3 assists in May, which propelled him into 5th position in our list. Hazard ended the season with 21 goals and 17 assists from 51 games in all competitions for Chelsea. It is not a wonder that even Real Madrid President Florentino Perez has openly stated his desire to add Hazard to Real Madrid team. The Belgian has been one of the best players in Europe this season and one can only wonder how much better he will get in Spain, once he completes his impending move.
#4 Sadio Mane (Senegal, Liverpool)
Sadio Mane was a revelation this season for Liverpool and is 4th among the top contenders for the award. The Senegalese international was in outstanding form as Liverpool chased Manchester City right to the last day of the Premier League, but finished second. However, all those disappointments were washed away when Liverpool won the 2018/19 Champions League on 1st June.
Mane finished the season with 26 goals and 2 assists from 49 games. He was a vital player for Jurgen Klopp in a season where Salah and Firmino didn't play as per their lofty standards. He shared the goal scoring responsibilities with the Egyptian, with both men ending the season with 22 goals and thus winning the Premier League Golden Boot, along with Arsenal's Aubameyang.
The Senegalese showed a massive improvement in his gameplay from last season, using his speed and skills to perfection and has developed into one of the most lethal attackers in Europe this season.
#3 Raheem Sterling (England, Manchester City)
Raheem Sterling ended the season with three trophies – the Premier League, the FA Cup and the League Cup. However, it was the Englishman's eye-catching performances throughout the entire season that sees him break into the top 3 at the start of June. There are very few players in the world better than Sterling in his position right now and he ended the season with a bang, by continuing his good form into May.
The Englishman failed to score in the last 2 games in the Premier League in the month but made up for it by scoring a brace and picking up an assist in the spectacular 6-0 win over Watford in the FA Cup final. Sterling ended the season with 25 goals and 12 assists from 48 games in all competitions for City this season. He was an ever-present part of Pep Guardiola's attack, seaming effortlessly across the front three. His flexibility and versatility make him a threat to even the best defence in the world right now and Sterling certainly makes a strong case for himself in the race to the Best FIFA Men's Player of 2019.
#2 Virgil van Dijk (Netherland, Liverpool)
Virgil van Dijk has been rock solid at the back for Liverpool this season and is one of the favourites for the Best FIFA Men's Player award this year. The Dutchman was crucial to the Liverpool side who rallying up until the last day of the season, competing with Manchester City for the Premier League title. It was heartbreak in the end, but Jurgen Klopp certainly had a lot of positives in his season. The biggest among those has to be Van Dijk.
The Dutchman has developed into the best centre back in the world this season and was an omnipresent feature of a Liverpool defence that just let in just 22 goals in the league this season, even lower than Champions City who let in 23. However, his significance was further proven in the final of the UEFA Champions League, where the Dutchman handled the Tottenham attack with ease and ensured that Harry Kane had a quiet night. Van Dijk helped Klopp lift the Champions League trophy, after failing in the finals last season and turned Liverpool's season into success.
Klopp has to be praised for believing in the player so much that he bought Van Dijk for a world record fee for a defender in January of last year. That money has been repaid a thousand times and the Dutchman is going neck to neck with the top contender for the Best FIFA Men's Player award right now. As of now, Van Dijk is still 2nd in our list, but certainly has momentum on his side.
#1 Lionel Messi (Argentina, Barcelona)
May was a month of a disappointment for Lionel Messi. Barcelona crashed out of the Champions League semi-finals under unbelievable circumstances and then also lost the Copa del Rey final to Valencia. Lionel Messi's first season as a Barcelona captain could be written off as a disappointment, as the Catalans finished only with the La Liga title. However, when it comes to the Best FIFA Men's Player award, the Barcelona Skipper is still firmly the favourite right now.
The Argentinean scored 5 goals from 5 games in the month and ended the season with 51 goals and 16 assists from 50 games in all competitions. Unbelievable once again! He won his 6th La Liga Golden Boot and also finished as the top assist provider in the league. Despite the fact that he bowed out of the Champions League in the semi-finals, Messi still ended up as the top scorer of the tournament, scoring 12 goals from 10 appearances. He also won a record 6th European Golden Boot this season, the first time that a player had won the award three times in a row!
Messi is currently preparing for the Copa America and a strong performance in the tournament will only further improve his chances of getting his hands on a record 6th FIFA Award. At the start of June though, there's no player in the world who deserves the Best FIFA Men's Player of 2019 more than Lionel Messi.
Join us again next month as we assess the contenders for the 2019 Best FIFA Men's Player
