Fans fume as Lionel Messi is nominated ahead of Rodri for UEFA Men’s POTY award

UEFA have released their nominees for the Men's Player of the Year award and fans are questioning Lionel Messi being selected over Rodri.

The Argentine icon is nominated for the award alongside Manchester City's treble-winning heroes Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne. The duo played a huge role in helping Pep Guardiola's side win their first UEFA Champions League trophy.

However, Rodri was the star of the show at the Ataturk Stadium in the final against Inter Milan. His winner sent City on their way to a 1-0 victory and their first European title.

The Spanish midfielder stood out for Guardiola's Cityzens throughout the 2022-23 campaign. He featured 56 times across competitions, scoring four goals and providing seven assists.

Many are backing Rodri as the best defensive midfielder in world football and with good reason. His displays for City last season were heroic and he was even a threat going forward.

However, UEFA have instead nominated Lionel Messi for the award after yet another superb season for the legendary forward. The 36-year-old bagged 30 goals and 21 assists in 47 matches across competitions for Paris Saint-Germain. 

He was part of the Parisians side that won the Ligue 1 title before heading out of Europe to join MLS side Inter Miami earlier this summer.

Messi's final season at the Parc des Princes was a topsy-turvy one despite his sensational performance. His PSG side crashed out of the Champions League in the Round of 16 to Bayern Munich.

Hence, some fans are questioning UEFA's decision not to acknowledge Rodri's European heroics last season. One fan is stunned Messi was chosen over the Spaniard:

"Rodri robbed once again. How tf did Messi make it over him?"

Here's how fans reacted on Instagram to Lionel Messi earning a spot in UEFA Men's Player of the Year nominations ahead of Rodri:

Fans are stunned Messi has been nominated ahead of Rodri.

The iconic Argentine may be up for yet another award in what has been an incredible career. However, he isn't too fussed about winning individual honors at this stage of his career.

Lionel Messi spoke humbly when asked about potentially winning this year's Ballon d'Or. He responded by downplaying its importance given he finally won the FIFA World Cup last year (via Albiceleste Talk):

"Does Ballon d’Or matter to me? No, at this stage in my life, it is no longer important to me. I’ve always said, the individual prizes are not what matters to me, but the collective ones are the most important to me. The most important prize at the moment is the World Cup. This is the greatest prize for me."

Lionel Messi is among the favorites to win the Ballon d'Or in October alongside Haaland and De Bruyne. His former PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe is also expected to be in the race as too is Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior.

The legendary attacker has seven Ballons d'Or to his name which is the all-time record. However, adding an eighth isn't too high on the Inter Miami forward's agenda.