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The Best FIFA Men's Player Award is right up there with the Ballon d'Or as one of the most prestigious individual prizes in football. The award is granted to honor the best performing player from across the globe in a calendar year.
This year's the Best FIFA Men's Player Award will be handed out at a ceremony which is scheduled to be held on January 17th.
The Best FIFA Men's Player Award has a unique voting system
One of the key differences between the Ballon d'Or and the Best FIFA Men's Player Award is the voting system. The Ballon d'Or winner is chosen on the basis of an aggregate of votes from journalists, national team captains and coaches.
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Meanwhile, the votes for the Best FIFA Men's Player Award are divided into four categories - national team captains, national team coaches, media representatives and fans. Each of the four categories get 25% of the vote share.
Things were rather straightforward in 2020 with Robert Lewandowski being the clear-cut favorite to go on and win the award. But it's very unpredictable this time around. Without further ado, let's take a look at the Best FIFA Men's Player Award Power Rankings for the month of December 2021.
#10 Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium/Manchester City)
Kevin De Bruyne didn't hit the heights of his 2019-20 season in the 2020-21 campaign. He was still extremely effective for Manchester City and his heroics helped propel Pep Guardiola's men to a third Premier League title in four years.
De Bruyne was also picked as the PFA Players' Player of the Year for a second season running. The Belgian international scored 10 goals and provided 18 assists in 40 appearances across all competitions for Manchester City last term.
He also gave a good account of himself at Euro 2020, scoring a goal and providing two assists in four appearances as Belgium crashed out in the quarter-final against Italy. De Bruyne is one of the 11 nominees for the Best FIFA Men's Player Award this time but he is extremely unlikely to win it.
#9 Erling Haaland (Norway/Borussia Dortmund)
Erling Haaland is arguably the most sought-after striker in the world right now. The 21-year-old is an absolute goalscoring machine who is as prolific a striker as any we've seen in recent times. The Norwegian international also won the DFB Pokal with Borussia Dortmund earlier this year.
Haaland scored 41 goals and provided 12 assists in 41 appearances across all competitions for Dortmund last term. Unfortunately for him, Norway failed to qualify for Euro 2020 and he spent the summer without footballing action.
Haaland is in great form this term as well, and has already scored 19 goals and provided five assists in just 16 appearances across all competitions for the Bundesliga outfit. However, it looks like he will need to wait before he gets his hands on the Best FIFA Men's Player Award.
#8 Kylian Mbappe (France/Paris Saint-Germain)
Kylian Mbappe had a very underwhelming outing at Euro 2020. It was a tournament he was expected to take by storm. But he conjured up just one assist in four appearances as Les Bleus crashed out in the Round of 16 against Switzerland.
But Mbappe made up for it by scoring in the semi-finals and final of France's UEFA Nations League triumph a couple of months back. The 22-year-old scored 42 goals and provided 11 assists in 47 appearances across all competitions for Paris Saint-Germain last term.
However, missing out on the Ligue 1 title has greatly affected Mbappe's chances of winning the Best FIFA Men's Player Award.
#7 N'Golo Kante (France/Chelsea)
N'Golo Kante was Chelsea's standout performer in the knockout stages of the 2020-21 UEFA Champions League. The French midfielder's exploits in midfield were crucial to Chelsea becoming European champions.
Kante's relentless running and incredible form in the summer was expected to give France a major push at Euro 2020. However, it was simply not to be. Kante was still recognized for his efforts as he was named UEFA's Best Midfielder of the Year.
The 30-year-old has faced some fitness issues in the new season and has not really been able to stamp his authority on games in the 2021-22 season so far.
#6 Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal/Manchester United)
Cristiano Ronaldo won the The Capocannoniere award for being the highest goalscorer in the 2020-21 Serie A campaign. He scored 29 goals in 33 league appearances and was one of the few bright spots in an extremely underwhelming season for the Bianconeri.
The Portuguese international then won the Golden Boot at Euro 2020, scoring five goals and providing an assist in four appearances in the competition. The 36-year-old has since joined Manchester United and has kicked on with his goalscoring exploits.
Ronaldo has already come up clutch on multiple occasions for the Red Devils and his goals have proven to be the difference in several games already. However, a lack of major trophies has proven to be a major impediment in his quest for the top individual honours in the world of football this year.
#5 Jorginho (Italy/Chelsea)
Jorginho was an important member of the Chelsea side that won the UEFA Champions League last term. He then replicated his heroics for the Italian national side as they won Euro 2020 in the summer.
The 30-year-old is the midfield metronome for both club and country. He is excellent at distributing the ball and at dispensing his defensive duties. Jorginho is one of the most intelligent holding midfielders in Europe right now.
He was also Chelsea's top scorer in the Premier League in the 2020-21 season with seven goals in 28 appearances. But due to the fact that his sides' triumphant runs in the Champions League and Euro 2020 cannot be chalked up to Jorginho's individual brilliance, fans may dither from voting for him.
#4 Mohamed Salah (Egypt/Liverpool)
If the Best FIFA Men's Player Award was given on current form, it would have been hard to take the prize off Mohamed Salah's hands. The Egyptian international has been simply sensational for the Merseysiders this term, scoring 22 goals and providing nine assists in 24 appearances across all competitions so far.
Salah has definitely improved his credentials in the race for the Best FIFA Men's Player Award with his performances in the 2021-22 season. Despite Liverpool's struggles in the 2020-21 season, the 29-year-old still managed to impress.
He scored 31 goals and provided six assists in 51 appearances across all competitions for Liverpool last term. However, Salah failed to win trophies and that is likely to stop him from finishing on the podium this time.
#3 Karim Benzema (France/Real Madrid)
Karim Benzema has been on a man on a mission this year. He was Real Madrid's leading light as they took the La Liga title race down to the wire last season. The 34-year-old scored 30 goals and provided nine assists across all competitions for Los Blancos last term.
This helped him earn a call-up to the French national side for Euro 2020. He justified the trust Didier Deschamps placed in him by scoring four goals in four appearances in the continental competition.
Benzema then became a savior for Les Bleus, scoring a goal each in the semi-finals and final of the UEFA Nations League as France won the title. He has also been in sublime form in the 2021-22 season.
The Real Madrid striker has scored 18 goals and provided eight assists in 22 appearances across all competitions so far this season.
#2 Lionel Messi (Argentina/Paris Saint-Germain)
Lionel Messi is a lot of people's favorite to go on and win the Best FIFA Men's Player Award this term. The Argentina international won a record seventh Ballon d'Or in November and could very well win this one too.
Messi single-handedly dragged Barcelona back into the 2020-21 La Liga title race. He was in irrepressible form for them since the turn of the year but the Catalans still managed to squander their title push in the final few weeks. Messi was their standout performer as they won the Copa Del Rey.
The 34-year-old won the Pichichi trophy for being the highest goalscorer in La Liga in the 2020-21 season. Last term, he scored 38 goals and provided 14 assists in 47 appearances across all competitions for Barcelona.
But his crowning achievement was winning the 2021 Copa America with Argentina. Messi was named the Best Player of the tournament and also won the Golden Boot. He scored four goals and provided five assists in seven appearances in the continental competition.
Messi has not had a very smooth start to life at PSG this season. But he seems to be kicking into gear of late. He has scored six goals and provided five assists in 15 appearances across all competitions so far this season.
#1 Robert Lewandowski (Poland/Bayern Munich)
Robert Lewandowski won the Best FIFA Men's Player Award in 2020. Lewandowski was in spectacular form during the 2020-21 season as well and was Bayern Munich's best player as they won the Bundesliga title.
The Polish international scored 41 goals in 29 Bundesliga appearances last term. In doing so, he broke Gerd Muller's long-standing record of most goals scored in a single Bundesliga season (40). Lewandowski then scored three goals in three appearances at Euro 2020 for Poland.
However, his heroics weren't enough to help Poland get past the group stage of the tournament. The Bayern Munich marksman has kicked on with his incredible rate of goalscoring this season as well.
He has scored 30 goals and provided three assists in just 25 appearances across all competitions for the Bavarians so far this term. After his Ballon d'Or snub, a majority of football fans are backing Lewandowski to go on and win the Best FIFA Men's Player Award for a second consecutive time.
