New Delhi :
The governing body of world football, FIFA, presented the 2017 FIFA Best Football awards in a glittering ceremony at the Palladium stadium in London on Sunday.Â
Portugal and Real Madrid striker Cristiano Ronaldo won the Men's Best player of the year award for the second time in succession. Ronaldo beat Argentina's Lionel Messi and Brazil's Neymar for the coveted title.Â
Amazing feeling to have won this award again. Want to dedicate to my family, my friends, my teammates and coaches from both Real Madrid and Portuguese NT and everyone who supported me. pic.twitter.com/umpYMo1JZg
— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) October 23, 2017
The award ceremony was held at the London Palladium theater and was attended by runner-up Messi and third-placed Neymar. A second successive honor for Ronaldo was expected after a season in which the Portuguese eclipsed his award counterparts in the trophy stakes.
Ronaldo's coach at Madrid, Zinedine Zidane, was crowned coach of the year. FIFA has shifted its award ceremony from its usual January slot to October so players are judged across a season based on the typical European schedule rather than the calendar year.
Juventus' Gianluggi Buffon wins Best Goalkeeper of the year award. The women's award honored the Netherlands' success at the European Championship in August.
Lieke Martens, who scored in the final win over Denmark, won the player's award and Sarina Wiegman collected the coaching accolade. The Puskas Award for best goal went to Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud for a scorpion-style kick.
The Puskas Award-winning goal from an overhead back-heeled strike came on New Year's Day in Arsenal's 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace in the English Premier League.Â
(With PTI inputs)
