Geneva –
Real Madrid defender David Alaba was racially abused on social media after voting for Lionel Messi, Croatia coach Zlatko Dalici said Tuesday in the aftermath from the football body’s annual awards ceremony. He accused FIFA of being disrespectful.
Messi was named the best male player on Monday after leading Argentina to last year’s World Cup title in Qatar. Finished 3rd after an outstanding season that contributed to the
The awards were determined by a vote of the national team captains and coaches, selected media and fans voting online from a list of nominees determined by a panel of experts appointed by FIFA.
Alaba’s vote to captain the Austrian national team was among the results announced by FIFA after the ceremony in Paris, with Messi first, Madrid team-mate Benzema second and Kylian Mbappe third. .
The choice sparked outrage from Madrid fans and others as Alaba, who is black, voted for Messi, who spent 17 seasons with Real Madrid’s biggest rival Barcelona.
“The Austrian national team votes for this award as a team, not just me,” Alaba wrote on his social media account. .
“Everyone knows how much I admire him and his performances, especially Karim,” said Alaba, who joined Madrid last season after spending more than a decade at Bayern Munich. added. “I used to say he was the best striker in the world for me and he still is, no doubt about it.”
Dalys on Tuesday refused to vote in protest at the perceived lack of respect for himself and his team, having eliminated Brazil before losing to Argentina in the World Cup semi-finals.
“We are disappointed with FIFA’s attitude towards the Croatian national team. Given all that we have achieved as a national team, we deserve more respect than we have ever received from the governing bodies of world football. We strongly insist that it will,” said a statement issued by the Croatian Football Federation.
Croatia captain Luka Modric, another Real Madrid player, was fourth in the voting. Modric won the FIFA award in 2018 when the team reached the World Cup final and lost to France.
Dalis, who finished third in 2018’s Best Coach Award voting, said Tuesday that he himself was left off the five-man shortlist this time around and that his players have been overlooked by other awards, including the All-Star Team in player voting. pointed out that
“Despite winning the FIFA Club World Cup (with Chelsea) and playing a great World Cup in Qatar, was there really no place for Mateokobaich on that list? Where is Joico Gbaldiol’s name? asked the Dalichi. “And did Dominik Rybakovic, after all he did in Qatar, not qualify to be one of his five finalists for the FIFA Best Men’s Goalkeeper?”
Dalis also pointed out that Morocco coach Walid Legragi was a candidate despite Croatia beating Scaroni in the World Cup third-place play-off and drawing in the group stage in Qatar.
“Having considered all of the above, I have decided not to participate in the voting process for this year’s award,” Dalici said, aiming to further criticize FIFA. I felt that there was a lack of respect for the Croatian team, especially in the semi-final match.”
FIFA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
