The talented Argentine forward, Lionel Messi, clinched another prestigious accolade in football, albeit by a narrow margin. Messi was recognized as the Player of the Year at the FIFA Best Awards, while Pep Guardiola, the head coach of Manchester City, received the Male Coach of the Year award in a ceremony held in London.

Messi, currently with Inter Miami, managed to surpass the prominent forward from Manchester City, Erling Haaland, who finished in second place. Paris St-Germain's striker, Kylian Mbappé, secured the third position.

The voting for these awards was based on a combination of votes from national team coaches and captains, journalists, and fans through the FIFA website, each carrying a 25% weight. Messi and Haaland tied in points, but Messi claimed the award by receiving more first-place votes from national team captains.

In this exciting turn of events, Messi could celebrate his well-deserved recognition as the best player in the world, thanking the national team captains for tipping the balance in his favor in this tightly contested tiebreaker.

The breakdown of the voting showed Messi and Haaland with 48 points each after the voting by a global panel of coaches and captains, selected journalists, and fans online. The tiebreaker was determined by whoever had more first-place votes or "5-point" scores from the votes of national team captains. In this category, Messi secured 107 points compared to Haaland's 64, the forward for Inter Miami.

Ederson, the goalkeeper for Manchester City, was honored with the Best Goalkeeper award, surpassing Thibaut Courtois from Real Madrid and Yassine Bounou from Al Hilal.

The success of Manchester City in the 2022-23 season, clinching the Premier League, Champions League, and FA Cup, was also reflected in these awards. However, the focus was on Messi's narrow victory.

Messi, at the age of 36, began 2023 with Paris St-Germain before moving to Major League Soccer (MLS) with Inter Miami in June. This recognition marks the third time Messi has won the Male Player of the Year award since its inception in 2016, previously achieving it in 2019 and 2022.

Despite Erling Haaland's impressive record of 36 goals in the Premier League last season, Messi showcased his exceptional performance by scoring nine goals in Ligue 1 with PSG and adding 10 goals in seven matches during Inter Miami's victory in the inaugural US League Cup.