Leo Messi and Lieke Martens, shortlisted for UEFA Player of the Year

Leo Messi and Lieke Martens have been shortlisted for the UEFA Player of the Year award in their respective caegories. Messi will fight against Cristiano Ronaldo and Gianluigi Buffon, while Martens is up against the Wolfsburg’s Danish player Pernille Harder and Olympique Lyonnais’ German player Dzsenifer Marozsán. It is the first time in the history of the award that a Club has had a finalist in both the male and female categories.

Both the Argentinian star and Barça Women’s new striker have been chosen by the jury based on their performances in all competitions for club and country. Moreover, Leo Messi has also been nominated in the best forward category alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala.

The jury for the men’s award is made up of the eighty coaches who coached teams in UEFA competitions and 55 sports journalists. The women’s jury includes the 16 national coaches who took part in the Women’s European Championship and the managers who coached teams who reached the quarter finals of the Women Champions League. They decided Martens deserved a place among the top three.

The result will be announced on 24 August during the draw for the Champions’ League group stages hosted at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. The winners will collect their award on the night.