2023 is about to end, Tuoi Tre Online reviews the highlights of world football in the past 365 days.
Man City completed a historic treble
In 2023 alone, Man City won the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, European Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.
They also became the fourth English team to win the FIFA Club World Cup, after Man United (2008), Liverpool (2019) and Chelsea (2021). However, the special thing is that the above three clubs have never been as successful as coach Pep Guardiola and his team.
Even Man United under Sir Alex Ferguson in 2008 only “won four” with the Premier League, Champions League, British Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup. Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to say that 2023 is the year Man City dominates world football.
Erling Haaland became the Best Player of 2023
The Norwegian striker was voted the Best Player of 2023 by many prestigious sports sites and newspapers. These include Goal , FourFourTwo magazine, The Guardian , and the Association for Football Historical Statistics (IFFHS). ).
This achievement is completely deserved because in the 2022 – 2023 season, Haaland scored a total of 52 goals in 53 matches in all competitions for Man City. In particular, he also won both the top scorer titles in the Premier League (36 goals) and Champions League (12 goals).
In 2023 alone, Haaland also reached the 50-goal mark and set a series of unprecedented records.
Messi won the Golden Ball for the 8th time
With the 2022 World Cup championship with Argentina, Messi excellently surpassed Haaland and Mbappe to win the Golden Ball for the 8th time in his career in the early morning of October 31.
When stepping onto the podium to receive the award, Messi thanked his family, teammates and everyone who voted for him. He wants to dedicate this gift to the late former football player Maradona and all Argentines.
Napoli won Serie A after 33 years
On May 5, Napoli drew 1-1 at Udinese in round 33 and was officially crowned Serie A 5 rounds early. This is the third Serie A championship in Napoli club history. Before that, the last time Napoli won the championship was in 1990 with legendary Diego Maradona (33 years ago).
FIFA and UEFA failed in the fight against Super League
On December 21, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that the Super League (ESL) can be held, while UEFA and FIFA’s action to ban clubs and players from participating in this tournament is a violation. violate EU law.
However, many clubs still announced they would not participate in this tournament. Therefore, ESL currently has only two clubs left, Real Madrid and Barcelona, remaining.
Spain wins the 2023 Women’s World Cup
On the evening of August 20, Spain defeated England 1-0 in the final to win the 2023 Women’s World Cup. After the match, 19-year-old striker Salma Paralluelo received the Best Young Player award. Meanwhile, midfielder Aitana Bonmati won the 2023 Women’s World Cup Golden Ball title.
The world joins hands to fight sexual harassment
In addition to the memorable events of 2023, fans were also shaken by the “forced marriage” scandal of Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) president Luis Rubiales.
Specifically, at the award ceremony for the Women’s World Cup winning team, Mr. Rubiales hugged and kissed 33-year-old midfielder Hermoso right on the honorary podium in front of the crowd.
Later, when asked by a reporter about this kiss, Hermoso admitted she did not like it, then accused Mr. Rubiales of harassing her. The incident caused fierce condemnation from the media and public opinion around the world.
Ultimately, Rubiales had to resign as RFEF president (September 2023) and was banned by FIFA from participating in all football activities for 3 years.