Following the reveal of the three finalists for the best men’s and women’s goalkeeper award, Chelsea goalkeepers Édouard Mendy and Ann-Katrin Berger made the final list in their respective categories, while both Thomas Tuchel and Emma Hayes have also been named in the top three World Best men’s and women’s coach by FIFA.
Thomas Tuchel who replaced Frank Lampard as Chelsea FC coach is up against Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola and Italy manager Roberto Mancini. He won the Blues’ second UEFA Champions League title, defeating Guardiola’s Manchester City 1-0 in the final.
Guardiola tutored Manchester City to the English Premier League title last season, while Roberto Mancini led the Italian national team to Euro 2020 glory and set a new world-record for the longest unbeaten run in international football (37 games).
Emma Hayes is up against Lluis Cortés who’s been leading the awesome and all-conquering Barcelona to greater and greater heights, including the 4-0 trouncing of Chelsea in the Women’s Champions League final.
It was announced by football’s world governing body on Wednesday afternoon that Senegal’s Édouard Mendy, a Champions League winner with Chelsea is among the three finalists in the vote for The Best FIFA Men’s Goalkeeper. In addition to Mendy, Italian European champion Gianluigi Donnarumma of Paris Saint-Germain and current holder Manuel Neuer of FC Bayern complete the top three.
Ann-Katrin Berger of Germany and Chelsea FC Women has also been announced as one of the three finalists for The Best FIFA Women’s Goalkeeper in 2021, along with Canadian Stephanie Labbe –who led the Canadian women to the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics– and Christiane Endler of Chile and Paris Saint-Germain / Olympique Lyonnais.
The winners of The Best FIFA Football Awards will be announced on January 17 in Zurich. In addition to an international jury comprised of the current coaches and captains of all men’s national teams, as well as trade journalists, football fans worldwide were also eligible to vote, and had until 10 December to cast their ballots
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