Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah may have missed out on the FIFA Best Men’s Player Award to Luka Modric, but the Egyptian did secure the FIFA Puskas Award for his strike against Merseyside rivals Everton in the Premier League.
Most pundits and fans were of the opinion that Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale’s spectacular bicycle kicks, both for Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League, were front-runners yet Salah managed to nip in ahead of them for once.
And Liverpool released a video on Tuesday, showcasing the goal from every conceivable angle, to commemorate Salah’s individual feat:
ICYMI, @MoSalah is a #Puskás award winner! #FIFAFootballAwards
👇THAT sensational derby day goal👇 pic.twitter.com/ulA1jSP6sl
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) September 25, 2018
Shrugging of the challenge of one Everton player, Salah then proceeds to weave past another defender before quickly unleashing an impossible curler into the top corner from an acute angle past the despairing dive of Jordan Pickford.
A great goal undoubtedly, but was it really worthy of the Puskas Award?
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Opinion, even among Reds fans, is divided still and now Liverpool midfielder James Milner has waded into the raging debate with a cheeky post:
Congrats @MoSalah on your 7th best goal from last season winning goal of the year 😜 #Baller#Topbin#oneofmanyworldies https://t.co/OkNMlIsNLb
— James Milner (@JamesMilner) September 24, 2018
Salah made the three-man shortlist for the FIFA Best Men’s Player of the Year but strangely enough, didn’t feature in the FIFA FIFPro World XI 2018.
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Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo (another player to feature in the aforementioned shortlist) got the nod in attack ahead of the Egyptian winger.