Manchester City have the most nominees for the UEFA player and manager awards, with Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne, and Pep Guardiola all in the running.
After a remarkable year that saw them win the Treble, Haaland and De Bruyne have been selected alongside World Cup champion Lionel Messi in the players’ category.
Messi eventually got his hands on a World Cup, scoring two goals in a dramatic final against France, as well as winning Ligue 1 with PSG after rediscovering his form in Paris.
Meanwhile, in his record-breaking first season in Manchester, Haaland scored 52 goals in 53 games for City. De Bruyne also topped the Premier League and Champions League assist standings, with 16 and 7 assists respectively.
UEFA Men’s Player of the Year nominees 🌟 pic.twitter.com/xwY9XAuVku
— B/R Football (@brfootball) August 17, 2023
In the managerial category, Guardiola faces competition from Italian pairing Luciano Spalletti and Simone Inzaghi.
Manchester City’s boss guided them to a third consecutive Premier League title, an FA Cup, and their first-ever Champions League trophy, all while playing beautiful and innovative football.
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Spalletti led Napoli to their first Serie A title in 33 years with 90 points and nurtured stars such as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Victor Osimhen, and Kim Min-jae into some of Europe’s best.
Inzaghi steered Inter Milan to the Champions League final, where they lost to City, while winning the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana. Inter came third in Serie A behind Napoli and Lazio.
The winners will be announced on August 31 at the UEFA Champions League group stage draw.
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