Today at 19:00 Lithuanian time in Zurich (Switzerland) will begin the prestigious FIFA Best Awards Ceremony for the year 2016. The main focus of this ceremony will be on the main award - the recognition of the best player of the year. Three forwards competing for the best player of the year award while playing in Spain are Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and Antoine Griezmann. The latter is not the main favorite for these elections, so it is almost clear that the Frenchman will take the third position. The biggest intrigue is between C. Ronaldo and L. Messi. The star of Madrid's "Real" club impressed in 2016 with not only the most important trophies with the club and the national team but also managed to win the most important individual awards - UEFA Player of the Year trophies and the "Ballon d'Or." The 31-year-old Portuguese is considered a favorite to win the FIFA Best Player of the Year award. Statistically, in 2016, the forward was slightly weaker than the star of the "Barcelona" club, who has recently carried the struggling Catalan team on his shoulders. C. Ronaldo triumphed in the UEFA Champions League last season with "Real" club and with the Portuguese national team - in the European Championship. In this season, the star of the "white" club managed to win two more titles - UEFA Super and FIFA Club World Cup trophies. "2016 was the best year of my career. I won two very important titles with the club and the national team, so I couldn't be happier," - repeated the captain of the historic Portuguese national team victories in more than one of his interviews. The selection of the best player is not yet fully understood - the award is given for individual performances or trophies won with both the national team and the club. There were times when C. Ronaldo won the "Ballon d'Or" without fighting for a major title with the club and national team, but he had exceptional statistics. Many would agree that L. Messi was significantly better individually than his opponent from Portugal last year, although there is not much difference between the scored goals. L. Messi played 62 matches with the club and national team during the calendar year, scored 59 goals, and made 31 assists. Meanwhile, C. Ronaldo recorded 57 matches, 55 goals, and significantly fewer assists - 17 in his personal statistics. Even blindly ignoring the statistics, many objectively watching the game of both players could say that last year L. Messi clearly surpassed C. Ronaldo, although the latter managed to reach the most important tournament finals with both the national team and the club. C. Ronaldo believes that he can play football for another 10 years. No one should doubt about that, but the Portuguese would like to spend all those years with the "Real" club. Passionate fans of the Portuguese and the "white" team rejoice at these words, but there are fans of this club who perfectly understand that C. Ronaldo is no longer the player he was three or more seasons ago. In the game of the 31-year-old Portuguese, there is no longer creativity that he demonstrated on his favorite left flank. C. Ronaldo is a "machine" that scores goals and helps his team win. Many could say that this is enough, but what more do you need? The answer is simple - you need a player who can not only convert chances created by teammates but also contribute to their creation. L. Messi is exactly the type of player who should not leave anyone indifferent with his football intellect. The head coach of the "Real" club, Zinedine Zidane, understands perfectly that C. Ronaldo no longer has the data to continue playing successfully on the left flank, so the Portuguese spends the entire last and this season in the central striker position and only returns to a formally existing position during some attacks. We can notice a lack of conditioning in C. Ronaldo's game - the forward's speed has not disappeared, but his movements have become more restricted. Portugal does not always win duels with the ball against opponents, and the biggest job with the ball is usually done by Luka Modric or Gareth Bale. Obviously, L. Messi should have a very significant advantage over C. Ronaldo in this aspect. This, rather than scoring goals, shows individual abilities. The FIFA Best Player trophy should be awarded to the player who plays the best individually. The concept of individualism in football should not be understood solely as goals and assists statistics - it is the player's demonstrated game, mastery. Of course, in these awards, part of the influence should also be the trophies won with the team, but L. Messi conquered them - triumph with "Barcelona" in the Spanish League and the Copa del Rey. Predicting the winner of the individual awards for 2016 was not difficult, so it is almost clear that C. Ronaldo will win the FIFA established trophies in these awards. However, even after this year, objectively watching fans of football will understand that L. Messi currently has no equal in terms of gameplay. C. Ronaldo is a true football "machine" that will delight the "Real" club fans with his goals for many more years, but L. Messi is a manifestation of football genius.
Aivaras Katutis, eurofootball.lt
