Francesco Totti has said that Cristiano Ronaldo deserves to win the Best FIFA Men’s Player award ahead of Barcelona's Lionel Messi and Paris Saint-Germain ace Neymar.
The Roma and Italy great described all three as “footballing aliens” but says that the Portuguese star, who is the reigning Ballon d’Or winner, should scoop the prize as the game’s outstanding player over the course of the last 12 months.
Totti says that the decisive factor was Ronaldo’s ability to lead Real Madrid to domestic and European glory.
“We are talking about three footballing aliens,” he told FIFA.com. “I think that, in the end, Ronaldo is ahead of the others. He had an amazing season and also accomplished all of his goals with the most prestigious of teams.”
Indeed, he has backed Zinedine Zidane to make it a Real Madrid double at the ceremony by lifting the prize for the Best FIFA Coach ahead of Antonio Conte and Massimiliano Allegri.
“I think Zidane is the favourite for the same reasons as Cristiano Ronaldo: he won everything the last season,” Totti explained, though he said that his compatriots had done “extraordinary jobs” at Chelsea and Juventus respectively.
Meanwhile, he sees the Best FIFA Goalkeeper award as being a shootout between Gianluigi Buffon and Keylor Navas, even if he believes his countryman deserves it.
“Goalkeepers have a huge impact on the game, although they aren’t recognised as they should be. Their impact in the final result for the team is always decisive,” he noted.
“I think Gianluigi Buffon has a very good chance of winning it. He’s been the best individually, but also his team reached the Champions League final – the same as Keylor Navas. In the end, I think the two of them will be competing for it.”
Manuel Neuer, who is currently nursing a foot injury, is the other shot-stopper in the running for the gong.
The awards will be presented on October 23 at the London Palladium.