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Reports claimed that Ronaldo was not listed as the official captain of Portugal in the voting records, and that it was Man City star Bernardo Silva who had the privilege.
Cristiano Ronaldo. (AP)
The Best FIFA Football Awards 2024 took place earlier this week on Tuesday, December 17. Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior was voted ‘The Best’ male player in the world. Vinicius clinched the top spot ahead of Manchester City’s Rodri who won this year’s Ballon d’Or.
While Vinicius managed to win the prestigious award, there were quite a few surprising votes cast this year. It has now been learnt that Cristiano Ronaldo was absent from this year’s voting and results.
A report published by Diario AS claimed that the Portuguese legend was not listed as the official captain in the voting records. Ronaldo generally handles the captain’s duty on the international stage but he was not shown as the leader of the Portuguese side. As a result, Ronaldo had to abstain from casting a vote. Instead, Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva got to choose three names. Silva reportedly voted for his Manchester City teammates Rodri, Erling Haaland and Vinicius.
Ronaldo is currently plying his trade for Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr. Having left Manchester United, Ronaldo signed a two-year deal with Al-Nassr. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner won two Serie A titles and a Copa Italia trophy in three years at Juventus before returning to Manchester United for his second stint in the Premier League.
Vinicius Junior won the LaLiga, Champions League with Real Madrid. Despite his brilliance, the Brazilian was pipped to the French Football Award by Spanish midfielder Rodri, who had won the Premier League and the Euro 2024.
“I don’t even know where to begin. It was so far away that it seemed impossible to get here. I was a kid who only played football barefoot on the streets of São Gonçalo, close to poverty and crime,” Vinicius Junior said in Portuguese, as per AP.
“Getting here is something very important to me. I’m doing it for many children who think that everything is impossible and who think they can’t get here,” Vinicius added.
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti was named the Best coach of the year having won a record-extending 15th Champions League title last season for the Spanish giants. Ancelotti also succeeded in winning the LaLiga title with Real Madrid.
Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho won the FIFA Puskas Award for the best goal—a terrific overhead strike against Everton in November last year. Marta, on the other hand, won the award that was named after her — the inaugural FIFA Marta Award. Marta claimed the award having scored the goal for Brazil against Jamaica in June.