World football governing body FIFA has released the final 12 man shortlist for the Best award, which is the award for the best player in the world and will take place later this year, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.
The qualification period for the Best FIFA Football Awards 2023 runs from 19 December 2022 to 20 August 2023 (it does NOT include the World Cup 2022, according to an explanation by FIFA.
In the list, only one African in Victor Osimhen made the shortlist of 12 after helping Napoli to their first league title in 33 years. The nomination placed him as the best player in the African continent.
However in the goalkeeper’s category the duo of Yassine Bounou (Sevilla) and Andre Onana (Inter Milan) of Morocco and Cameroon respectively. They were both inspirational for their teams in Europe last season.
While Bounou helped Sevilla to the Europa League title, Onana was key in Inter Milan reaching the UEFA Champions League final, where they lost 0-1 to Manchester City.
The final 12 nominees:
🇦🇷 Julián Alvarez
🇧🇪 Kevin De Bruyne
🇭🇷 Marcelo Brozović
🇩🇪 İlkay Gündoğan
🇳🇴 Erling Haaland
🇪🇸 Rodri
🇬🇪 Kvaratskhelia
🇫🇷 Kylian Mbappé
🇦🇷 Lionel Messi
🇳🇬 Victor Osimhen
🏴 Declan Rice
🇵🇹 Bernardo Silva
