Lionel Messi wins Best FIFA Men's Player award

By Emre Asikci

ANKARA (AA) - Barcelona's Argentine forward Lionel Messi received The Best FIFA Men's Player 2019 award Monday.

During a ceremony at Teatro alla Scala, an opera house in Milan, Messi was deemed the number one footballer of the season, defeating Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo and Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk.

Messi also won the award in 2009.

UEFA Champions League champions Liverpool's manager Jurgen Klopp won The Best FIFA Men's Coach award while U.S. women's national football team coach Jill Ellis bagged The Best FIFA Women's Coach award.

"Lionel Messi and Jurgen Klopp took home the leading honours for The Best FIFA Men’s Player and Men’s Coach respectively, after their outstanding 2018/19 campaigns which saw both scoop silverware and individual accolades galore," FIFA said in a statement.

Hungarian team Debrecen’s forward Daniel Zsori was awarded the FIFA Puskas Award for the best goal of the year while U.S. international midfielder Megan Rapinoe received The Best FIFA Women's Player award.

Liverpool's Brazilian player Alisson Becker was crowned The Best FIFA Men’s Goalkeeper while Atletico Madrid's Dutch player Sari Van Veenendaal was named The Best FIFA Women’s Goalkeeper.

In Monday's ceremony, Marcelo Bielsa and his Leeds United squad were awarded the FIFA Fair Play Award

"The FIFA Fair Play Award was taken home by Marcelo Bielsa and the Leeds United squad after the Argentinean coach and his team ultimately sacrificed promotion for his team to uphold the values of fair play – instructing his Leeds United team to allow an equaliser after his side had gone 1-0 up with an opposition player down injured," FIFA said in a statement.

In addition, Silvia Grecco, who is from Brazil, received the FIFA Fan Award for her efforts to support her son Nikollas Grecco, who is blind.

FIFA also announced the FIFA FIFPro Men’s and Women’s World 11:

Men’s World 11: Alisson; Matthijs de Ligt, Marcelo, Sergio Ramos, Virgil van Dijk; Frenkie de Jong, Eden Hazard, Luka Modric; Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi

Women’s World 11: Sari van Veenendaal; Lucy Bronze, Nilla Fischer, Kelley O’Hara, Wendie Renard; Julie Ertz, Amandine Henry, Rose Lavelle; Marta, Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe.