Fifa’s annual Best awards were held in London on Monday and it is fair to say they have created much debate. I can see why and no more so, in my opinion, than in regards to the women’s prize. Marta is one of my favourite players, and one of the best players I’ve had the privilege of coming up against, so I say this with the greatest respect: there are other players who were in a much stronger position to be named the best female player of 2018.
Marta taking home the award for a sixth time has caused bafflement within the women’s game given the other more obvious candidates for the honour, such as Pernille Harder, who has had two very strong seasons, notably leading Denmark to the European Championship finals and scoring in the 2018 Champions League final for Wolfsburg. Harder was named Uefa’s women’s player of the year but didn’t even make the top three for Fifa’s award. Also Australia’s Sam Kerr, who finished as top scorer in the National Women’s Soccer League in the US for a second year running, a league widely regarded as one of the strongest in women’s football.
Then there is my old Chelsea teammate Fran Kirby, who is coming off the back of an outstanding season, winning multiple individual accolades, including the Football Writers’ player of the year, as well as helping Chelsea secure the double and scoring a crucial Champions League away goal at Bayern Munich. Yet, like Harder, Fran didn’t even make Fifa’s top 10.
What adds to the sense of confusion is the fact that voting for the award took place between August 2017 and May 2018; in other words, during the European season. So how could a European player not win it?
Why did Marta, a Brazilian, win? Probably because she has become a safe vote after many years of outstanding performances, but it’s a safe vote that does nothing to help raise the profile of women’s football. Greater accuracy of voting can be achieved by making sure the award is given to players who are in form and have made a big contribution to their respective teams, not only because doing so will give prominence to a greater number of female players but also because it will motivate them to strive for even more excellence.
If, say, a striker knows that scoring 30 goals in a season will lead to them winning a prestigious award then they will try that little bit harder because, regardless of what players may say, individual recognition on the world stage is important. On the flip side, if players are trying their hardest and posting great numbers but then see an individual prize given to someone who doesn’t deserve it, then it devalues all of that hard work.
Fifa must do more in this regard, specifically by ensuring that during the voting period as much content as possible, in terms of goals and footage of players from around the world, is seen by as wide an audience as possible. That way when people come to vote for the best female player they appreciate fully who the leading candidates are.
Doing so is not difficult, either. For instance, there is no reason why a montage of goals and assists of the top-10 candidates for the women’s award cannot be put together and rolled out across social media at a specific time in the year. In a world overloaded with information and content, there is simply no excuse for fans to be ill-informed about women’s football.
In regards to the men’s award, Luka Modric was a worthy recipient of the main prize. There is an obvious debate surrounding whether or not Cristiano Ronaldo should have won but Modric also claimed the Champions League with Real Madrid last season and was a key reason why Croatia finished second at the World Cup. For me, Modric leading Croatia to the silver medal in Russia is as great an achievement as Kylian Mbappé turning out exceptional performances for the champions, France, because of the relative size of Croatia as a nation. Let’s not forget that Modric was also named the best player at the World Cup, which on its own makes him a very strong contender for the Best award.
Like most people, I do have an issue with the winner of the Puskas Award. I said in last week’s column that I’m a huge fan of Mohamed Salah but that goal he scored against Everton was nowhere near the best one scored in the world this year. For me, the award should have gone to Ronaldo for the unbelievable bicycle kick he scored for Real Madrid against Juventus. It was a stunning display of on-pitch gymnastics and one of those strikes that gets better each time you watch it.
I remember watching it live, taking a video of the replay and being stunned at the sheer brilliance of Ronaldo. Given how Juventus fans who were inside the stadium that night reacted to the goal – with a standing ovation – it can also be argued that was the moment Cristiano’s love affair with Juve began, which in turn led to the most high-profile transfer of the summer.
Speaking of Juventus, all of us in the women’s squad are bitterly disappointed to be out of the Champions League following our 1-0 loss to Brondby on Wednesday. We started very well, created clear chances in the first 30 minutes and should have won the game early. But we didn’t and at that level you get punished for not being clinical. Brondby then scored against the run of play and it became a bigger mountain to climb given we had to score at least twice after the first leg in Turin had ended 2-2. We tried our hardest but ultimately it was not enough.
Without going over old ground too much, this is why the women’s Champions League needs to have a group stage. Yes, it’s up to us as players to get the job done but a straight knockout format means that the high levels of investment required to build European squads for clubs such as Juventus and Manchester City (who were also knocked out of the Champions League on Wednesday, by Atlético Madrid) is put at risk too early by a tough draw. If you guarantee six group games in the Champions League, that investment becomes more worthwhile and players build a much deeper European experience.
For us it’s now a case of using the disappointment and hurt of going out of the Champions League as motivation to win the Super Cup against Fiorentina, which is coming up soon, as well as retaining the league title. That’s certainly my ambition as well as the collective ambition of everyone at Juventus.
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