Raissa's Blog - Best of Sports, Culture, and Entertainment

Sadio Mane has had a remarkable year for both club and country but finished fourth in the 2019 Ballon d'Or vote, which Messi terms "a shame". The 27-year-old Senegal and Liverpool forward spearheaded the Reds to their first UEFA Champions League title since 2005 and finished runner-up with Senegal in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations. He was also the Premier League's joint Golden Boot winner. Barcelona legend Lionel Messi won the Ballon d'Or for a record sixth time. He revealed Mane was his top choice for The Best FIFA Men's Player earlier in September. "It’s a shame to see Mane finish in fourth place. "But I think there have been a lot of great players this year. That's why it was difficult to choose a particular player. But I chose Sadio Mane because he's a player that I like. "Mane achieved a great year that was exceptional for the entire Liverpool team. That's why I chose him. I repeat, there were a lot of very great play

Lionel Messi was honored yesterday night at Milan with football's most prestigious individual award - The Best FIFA Men's Player of the Year Award. He beat rivals Virgilvan Dijk and Cristiano Ronaldo to the gong. Messi had 46% of the votes, the Liverpool center-back had 38%, and Ronaldo, 36 %. Here's whom the three finalists voted for: Messi voted Sadio Mane, the biggest shock of the finalists' votes.  Ronaldo voted for former Ajax defender and current Juventus team-mate Matthijs de Ligt.  Van Dijk voted Messi. Those who participated in the voting process were the world's international captains and their managers, and a selected journalist from each country. Each voter had to select three candidates, with their first receiving five points, their second three points, and their third, a point. Messi - the Argentina captain voted Sadio Mane first, Cristiano Ronaldo second, and Frenkie de Jong third.  Virgil van Dijk - the Netherlands captain,

UEFA's three-man shortlists for each of the 2018/19  Champions League positional awards have been revealed. Liverpool who won the Champions League dominate the shortlists, with five of their players being nominated. Two of the Reds' defenders - Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk, goalkeeper Alisson Becker, captain Johan Henderson and forward Sadio Mané were shortlisted. The shortlisted players per category are: Goalkeepers : Alisson Becker (Liverpool), Hugo Lloris (Tottenham), Marc-André ter Stegen (Barcelona) Defenders : Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Matthijs de Ligt (Ajax, now Juventus), Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool) Midfielders : Frenkie de Jong (Ajax, now Barcelona), Christian Eriksen (Tottenham), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool) Forwards : Sadio Mané (Liverpool), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus) The winners will be announced during the draw for the 2019/20 Champions League Group Stage on August 29, 2019. .