2021 Best FIFA Football Awards: Robert Lewandowski named men’s best player

Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski has been named the Best Men’s Player at the 2021 Best FIFA Football Awards.

Paris St. Germain’s Lionel Messi and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah were among the nominees, but Lewandowski was named the winner in view of his prolific season with the German giants.

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“Receiving The FIFA Best Men’s Player award tonight is a massive honor for me. It is an incredible feeling,” said the Pole in a statement on Instagram.

“As players we have a responsibility to represent the values of the game – fair play, respect, and sportsmanship,” wrote Lewandowski, adding, “I want to thank all of my supporters. Without fans there is no football. We work to play our best, entertain, and make football the world’s greatest show.”

Lewandowski broke two Bundesliga records by scoring 41 goals for Bayern in its title-winning 2020-21 season and 43 in the calendar year of 2021. Both marks were held since 1972 by another Bayern great, Gerd Müller.

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The Polish ace scored a whopping 69 goals across all competitions in 2021, averaging a goal a game, equalling Portuguese legend Cristiano Ronaldo‘s record from 2013. Lewandowski’s 69 goals in 2021 were far ahead of his closest competitors: PSG’s Kylian Mbappe managed 51 goals, while Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Haaland had 49.

In terms of goals per minutes, Lewandowski did not even require a full game to score: the 33-year-old netted every 71 minutes in 2021, and notched 13 assists over the course of the season, taking his goal contributions to 1.18 per game.

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Although Bayern Munich did not win the Champions League and was knocked out at the quarter-final stage by PSG, no one scored as many Champions League goals as Lewandowski (11) in the calendar year.

Lewandowski also scored an astounding five hattricks in 2021, the most by any player in the calendar year.

[With AP inputs]