The International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) has released a ranking of the top 10 football players in 2023. Notably, the list does not include the presence of Cristiano Ronaldo .
The Al Nassr star scored 53 goals in 2023 but it seems that is not enough for IFFHS critics. The rankings have Erling Haaland at the top, Kylian Mbappe in second place and Lionel Messi, who played half the year with PSG and the other half with Inter Miami, finished third.
Unsatisfied with the rankings, Ronaldo commented on the article of A Bola – a Portuguese sports website – with 3 teary-laughing emoticons and a picture of a monkey covering his eyes.
CR7 may think that IFFHS’s list of top 10 best players of 2023 is a joke. At the age of 38, the former Real Madrid star is still the number one goalscorer in the Saudi Pro League (SPL). After 18 SPL rounds, Al Nassr is ranked 2nd on the rankings, 7 points behind leading team Al Hilal.
The rankings also caused other controversy. Lionel Messi coming in third place is doubtful. The Argentina international did not play in the final two months of the MLS season due to injury despite his initial success and good form with Inter Miami.
