{"id":2185,"date":"2022-12-28T12:58:16","date_gmt":"2022-12-28T12:58:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/?p=2185"},"modified":"2023-01-08T13:01:55","modified_gmt":"2023-01-08T13:01:55","slug":"2022-12-28-best-player-of-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/2022-12-28-best-player-of-2022","title":{"rendered":"365Scores the Best of 2022: Player of the Year"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>With 2022 coming to an end, <em>365Scores<\/em> looks at the best players from the past 12 months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We have narrowed it down to four players which had a better year than most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><script>(function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(d.getElementById(id))return;js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src='https:\/\/experience.ex.co\/sdk.js';fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}(document,'script','exco-sdk'));<\/script><\/p>\n<div class=\"exco\" data-id=\"5ebbca8b-09b8-44ea-af0f-ecc001cee78d\" data-show-share=\"false\" data-show-info=\"false\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>&#8211; Karim Benzema (Real Madrid, France)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Having turned 35 years-old last week, Karim Benzema endured what was undoubtedly the greatest year of his professional career. He played just 38 matches in 2022 \u2013 fewer than all of the other three players in question \u2013 though he mustered 31 goals and eight assists, averaging more than one direct goal involvement per game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The vast majority of Benzema&#8217;s outings this year came in Real Madrid colours, with just three for the French national team. He was (and continues to be) the most prominent goalscorer for his team, having registered 19 goals in 23 domestic games this calendar year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Benzema also featured 12 times in UEFA competitions (Champions League and Super Cup) and bagged 11 goals for <em>Los Blancos<\/em>. The French forward netted 10 goals in the knockout phase of the Champions League, including hat-tricks against Paris St-Germain (Round of 16) and Chelsea (quarter-finals) as well as a brace versus Manchester City in the semis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Benzema was integral as Real won a league and European double for only the second time since 1958. Real&#8217;s star striker was the top scorer in both the Spanish top flight (27 goals) and Europe&#8217;s primary club competition (15 goals) which propelled him to the <em>Ballon d&#8217;Or<\/em> award in October. Benzema is the second-oldest player to win the prestigious accolade.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Benzema-Ballon-dor-1-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2189\" width=\"360\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Benzema-Ballon-dor-1-scaled.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Benzema-Ballon-dor-1-300x187.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Benzema-Ballon-dor-1-1024x639.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Benzema-Ballon-dor-1-768x479.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Benzema-Ballon-dor-1-1536x958.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 360px) 100vw, 360px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Benzema claimed his maiden Ballon d&#8217;Or in 2022.<br>(Photo: AFP via Getty Images)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>In total, Real collected four trophies in 2022. Their La Liga\/Champions League double was supplemented by the <em>Supercopa de Espa\u00f1a<\/em>&nbsp;in January and the UEFA Super Cup in August.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For his efforts in the Champions League, Benzema also walked away with the prizes for UCL Player of the Season and UEFA Men&#8217;s Player of the Year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Benzema was named in France&#8217;s squad for Qatar 2022 though he did not appear at the tournament, marking the first time since 1978 that the <em>Ballon d&#8217;Or<\/em> holder didn&#8217;t feature at the World Cup finals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Karim Benzema\u2019s Ballon d\u2019Or year:<br><br>La Liga Top Scorer \u2705<br>La Liga Player of the Year \u2705<br>Champions League Top Scorer \u2705<br>UEFA Player of the Year \u2705<br><br>? UEFA Nations League<br>? Supercopa<br>? UEFA Supercup<br>? La Liga<br>? Champions League<br><br>Couldn\u2019t be anyone else. ? <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/pp71DHauNh\">pic.twitter.com\/pp71DHauNh<\/a><\/p>\n\u2014 Statman Dave (@StatmanDave) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/StatmanDave\/status\/1582100702175772672?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">October 17, 2022<\/a><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>&#8211; Kylian Mbapp\u00e9 (Paris St-Germain, France)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While Benzema was unavailable for France at the World Cup, countryman Kylian Mbapp\u00e9 was the main source of goals for <em>Les Bleus<\/em>. 11 years Benzema&#8217;s junior, Mbapp\u00e9 struck eight times at Qatar 2022 \u2013 the most at a World Cup since Ronaldo Naz\u00e1rio in 2002 \u2013 to scoop the Golden Boot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mbapp\u00e9&#8217;s is up to 12 goals in 14 games at the World Cup, an identical tally to three-time winner Pel\u00e9, and the 24-year-old is four goals shy of Miroslav Klose&#8217;s record 16 goals at the quadrennial event.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Mbappe-Golden-Boot-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2190\" width=\"360\" height=\"240\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Mbappe-Golden-Boot-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Mbappe-Golden-Boot-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Mbappe-Golden-Boot-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Mbappe-Golden-Boot-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Mbappe-Golden-Boot-scaled.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 360px) 100vw, 360px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Golden Boot winner Mbapp\u00e9 walks past the World Cup trophy.<br>(Photo: AMA\/Getty Images)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>From a pure goal-scoring perspective, Mbapp\u00e9 had a simply astonishing year with 55 goals and 19 assists in 55 matches (club and country combined). Domestically, he fired in 34 goals for PSG while also creating another 13.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The pacey attacker also scored nine times in eight Champions League ties in addition to 12 goals in 13 matches for France.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In terms of honours, Mbapp\u00e9 and PSG clinched the Ligue 1 title as well as the <em>Troph\u00e9e des Champions<\/em> (French Super Cup). On an individual scale, he ended as the top scorer (28 goals) and with the most assists (17) in the French top flight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">? Top scorers for club &amp; country in 2022: <br><br>\u26bd\ufe0f5\u20e35\u20e3 Kylian Mbapp\u00e9.??<br>\u26bd\ufe0f4\u20e33\u20e3 Erling Haaland ??<br>\u26bd\ufe0f4\u20e32\u20e3 Robert Lewandowski ??<br>\u26bd\ufe0f3\u20e37\u20e3 Christopher Nkunku ??<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/UCL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">#UCL<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/6kvH9e3Z27\">pic.twitter.com\/6kvH9e3Z27<\/a><\/p>\n\u2014 UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ChampionsLeague\/status\/1605928816857288704?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">December 22, 2022<\/a><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>&#8211; Lionel Messi (Paris St-Germain, Argentina)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Argentina&#8217;s man of the moment ended the year in spectacular fashion, capturing an elusive World Cup winner&#8217;s medal. During the tournament, Messi set multiple records such as the most matches and most minutes played at the World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Messi ended the tournament with seven goals (one shy of Mbapp\u00e9) and three assists, the joint-most. The Argentine scored more goals at Qatar 2022 than he did at the previous four World Cups combined (6).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He claimed the Golden Ball, becoming the only two-time winner of the award. The 35-year-old scored in every round at the recent World Cup and he is the first and only player to achieve this feat.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Messi-Final-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2186\" width=\"360\" height=\"240\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Messi-Final-scaled.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Messi-Final-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Messi-Final-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Messi-Final-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Messi-Final-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 360px) 100vw, 360px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Messi with the World Cup trophy and the Golden Ball.<br>(Photo: AMA\/Getty Images)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Throughout 2022, Messi played 51 matches, scoring 35 goals and producing 30 assists. He found the net 18 times in 14 games for Argentina, including a five-goal haul in a friendly versus Estonia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As mentioned, PSG secured a domestic double (Ligue 1 and <em>Troph\u00e9e des Champions<\/em>) though his greatest addition in 2022, without question, is the status of world champion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">One more trophy for Lionel Messi ! <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/ARGFRA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">#ARGFRA<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/ArgentinaVsFrance?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">#ArgentinaVsFrance<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/LpROfyN60a\">pic.twitter.com\/LpROfyN60a<\/a><\/p>\n\u2014 Ballon d&#8217;Or #ballondor (@francefootball) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/francefootball\/status\/1604539264716480514?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">December 18, 2022<\/a><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>&#8211; Luka Modri\u0107 (Real Madrid, Croatia)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The fourth and final nominee, Luka Modric, registered significantly fewer goal contributions than his fellow counterparts though his influence and importance have not gone unnoticed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Modri\u0107 has played a total of 61 matches this year, 45 for Real Madrid and 16 with Croatia, and he delivered 11 goals and 10 assists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The seasoned midfielder added several pieces of silverware to his growing collection, notably the La Liga and Champions League titles, and he is a five-time European champion with Real. Modri\u0107 and <em>Los Blancos<\/em> also celebrated successes in the UEFA Super Cup and <em>Supercopa&nbsp;de Espa\u00f1a<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Kroos-Case-Modric-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2205\" width=\"360\" height=\"240\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Kroos-Case-Modric-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Kroos-Case-Modric-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Kroos-Case-Modric-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Kroos-Case-Modric-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Kroos-Case-Modric-scaled.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 360px) 100vw, 360px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Toni Kroos, Casemiro, and Luka Modri\u0107 with the Champions League trophy.<br>(Photo: DeFodi Images via Getty Images)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>To cap off a splendid 2022, he earned a bronze medal at the World Cup with Croatia, and the 37-year-old was also named the third-best player at the event, behind Messi and Mbapp\u00e9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Modri\u0107 was on the pitch for all but 24 minutes of his nation&#8217;s seven matches in Qatar. He is the most-capped Croatian player of all-time (162) and he has served as national team captain since 2016.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite approaching his 38th year, there is a slim chance Modri\u0107 could put international retirement on hold for the time being as Croatia have also qualified for the UEFA Nations League finals due to take place next summer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">He&#8217;s won the most prestigious trophies in football but look at what a bronze medal at a World Cup means to him ??<br><br>Led Croatia to the &#8217;18 final as the best player in the tournament AND an epic 3rd place finish in 2022. Two consecutive podiums. MODRI\u0106 = WORLD CLASS FOOTBALL <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/Ew9YDnvwoa\">pic.twitter.com\/Ew9YDnvwoa<\/a><\/p>\n\u2014 Nico Cantor (@Nicocantor1) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Nicocantor1\/status\/1604231158669230080?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">December 17, 2022<\/a><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>With 2022 coming to an end, 365Scores looks at the best players from the past 12 months. We have narrowed it down to four players which had a better year than most. &nbsp; &#8211; Karim Benzema (Real Madrid, France) Having turned 35 years-old last week, Karim Benzema endured what was undoubtedly the greatest year of &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":2213,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_title":"","rank_math_description":"","rank_math_canonical_url":"","rank_math_focus_keyword":"","rank_math_facebook_image":"","rank_math_robots":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,893],"tags":[266,162,185,188,160,279,60,59,108,57],"content-tags":[],"article_type":[],"entity_type":[],"inspiration":[],"class_list":["post-2185","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-soccer","category-world-cup","tag-argentina","tag-fifa-world-cup","tag-karim-benzema","tag-kylian-mbappe","tag-la-liga","tag-luka-modric","tag-psg","tag-real-madrid","tag-soccer","tag-uefa-champions-league"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2185","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2185"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2185\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2213"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2185"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2185"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2185"},{"taxonomy":"content-tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content-tags?post=2185"},{"taxonomy":"article_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article_type?post=2185"},{"taxonomy":"entity_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/entity_type?post=2185"},{"taxonomy":"inspiration","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.365scores.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/inspiration?post=2185"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}