Chronology of the surprise (“Best Messi”) that undermines the authority of FIFA

Lionel Messi’s “best” was the biggest surprise in history. recent football awards. No one is more “messianic” than yours truly, but a minimum of intellectual honesty leads us to call this award a “surprise.”

This surprise had been brewing throughout the day. Here we tell you how the case turned into a “Best of” that seriously undermines the credibility of FIFA, big loser last night. Clear lack of trust because, seeing the titles of Leo and Haaland, the winner becomes clear only from FIFA’s NO explanation to its voters (captains, coaches, journalists and fans) of the voting object. (December 19, 2022 – August 20, 2023), which removed the Qatar World Cup from the equation. I suspect that the captain of Luxembourg, to give a random example, did NOT know what exactly he was voting for.

One thing is clear: FIFA cannot allow any of the three candidates. (Messi, Haaland and Mbappe) showed up in London. But here’s how it happened. In that The Ballon d’Or went to Vinicius, Bellingham, Messi, Haaland, Mbappe…

Here’s how the surprise was created yesterday from our point of view:

– 09.00 am. We’re in London. Holland becomes the clear favorite. His treble, his Super Cup, his Golden Boot… could not compare with Ligue 1 and the Leo League Cup. Here’s how we published it: “Haaland was the clear favorite…”.

11.00 am. They give us a hint: Erling won’t come. From Manchester, as confirmed by another source, we are warned that the Norwegian will not go to London. Ugh! Strange. We consulted with Madrid bosses and decided to tell MARCA.com and Radio MARCA (with Vicente Ortega) what we know: that Haaland may not come… and this is fueling rumors about the winner.

16.00. We confirm that Leo will not come either, and we support the Haaland option. The US confirms that Leo will not be coming to London either, so it looks like Haaland’s option remains. No one expected Messi to win then, not even the few Argentine journalists who came to London. We were actually at the JW Marryot Hotel, where there were guests and FIFA, and the FIFA delegates themselves were boasting about the secrecy surrounding the winner. FIFA did everything right on this one. .

19:35. We go to the Eventime Apollo Theater, the venue of the event. None of the three candidates will appear on the green carpet… and back to speculation. Erling, Leo and Kilian do NOT walk the mandatory green carpet. A funny thing for FIFA, which again gave rise to speculation. In any case, since none of the three came, Haaland’s option remained the most realistic.

20.50. The bomb is coming. Messi is a winner. His name is heard in the hall, and silence falls in the Theater. Nobody knew how to react. They look at each other… until the first applause breaks out. No one from Leo’s entourage comes to pick him up, and the event’s host, Thierry Henry, jokes about taking him home.

21:30. No one in the mixed zone could believe it. We went down to the mixed zone and few people dared to give an honest opinion about the surprise. Most allude to Leo’s historical greatness – which is not discussed and of which this journalist is a champion – but this was not the topic of discussion, since “Best” rewards within a specific time frame, not for historical merit. Let’s remember that the 2022 World Championship was already rated as the “Best” of 2022… which Leo won fair and square.

22:30. The mixed zone ends, and journalist Gianni Infantino does not appear.. Unlike what happened in other years, the FIFA President was not seen in front of reporters or on stage at any awards ceremony. Suspicious. Was he also unhappy with the ridicule his body had just exposed?

Full stop. Congratulations to Messi, who doesn’t need this “Best” to be one of the (three, two, one?) greatest all the time.