Lewandowski 'very proud' to win Fifa award, pays tribute to Muller

PARIS • Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski on Monday retained his Fifa The Best Men's Player award as Barcelona captain Alexia Putellas collected the women's equivalent.

The 33-year-old, who set a Bundesliga goal record of 41 strikes last season, won the trophy for the second time, edging out Argentina skipper Lionel Messi of Paris Saint-Germain and Egypt forward Mohamed Salah of Liverpool.

"I'm happy and honoured to win this award, and I feel very proud," said Lewandowski at The Best Of 2021 ceremony.

It was some consolation for the Poland international, who controversially lost out to Messi for the Ballon d'Or in November.

Lewandowski broke Germany great Gerd Muller's 49-year record of 40 goals in a single Bundesliga campaign and he paid tribute to the Bayern great, who died last year.

"If you asked me a few years ago, I would have said it is impossible to break that record and score that many goals in the Bundesliga," he said.

"But now he (Muller) is not with us any more and I also say thank you to him because this record would not be possible without him. He set so many - and for the next generation of players, it was to try and beat it."

Poland Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki hailed the national icon, saying: "Robert is someone special. He is the greatest footballer in the history of our country. The best Polish ambassador and a role model for young people, not only those playing football."

For Putellas, it marked an awards double as the Spanish midfielder triumphed over Barcelona teammate Jennifer Hermoso and Chelsea's Australian striker Sam Kerr, just as she did for the Ballon d'Or.

The 27-year-old enjoyed an exceptional 2020-2021 season when she led the Catalans to the Spanish league and Cup double as well as the Champions League.

"This trophy is for everyone in the team," Putellas said.

"The trophy will be an inspiration for us all."

Cristiano Ronaldo also won a special award for setting a record of most international goals scored for his country, beating Ali Daei's mark of 109 with Iran.

The 36-year-old, who now has 115 goals from 184 games with Portugal, said: "I never expected to beat this record, and I thank my teammates from these past 20 years."

Chelsea's Edouard Mendy and Christiane Endler of Lyon won the goalkeeping awards, while the Blues picked up both coaching awards through Thomas Tuchel and Emma Hayes.

Erik Lamela, now at Sevilla, won the best goal award for his "rabona" shot for Tottenham against Arsenal in the north London derby last season.

The medical staff and players of Denmark, who had to deal with Christian Eriksen's collapse on the field at Euro 2020, won the fair play award.

REUTERS