With Messi at the top and the presence of 10 other Argentine soccer players, The Guardian chose the 100 best of 2022

The rankings and distinctions in soccer are very arbitrary.

They also respond to commercial or marketing issues, it is known.

However, they are still a sign of how well or how badly things are being done, and this is shown by the election published by The Guardian, the renowned English outlet, which from the cradle of the most popular sport in the world put together its Own list with the 100 best footballers of 2022. And there is Argentine dominance.

Lionel Messi, champion and decisive figure of the World Cup in Qatar appears in first place, surpassing Kylian Mbappé, Karim Benzema, Erling Haaland and Luka Modric, in that order, according to the consideration of the 206 voters.

"After a low-key 2021-22 season, his first at PSG, nobody knew what to expect from Messi in this campaign interrupted by the World Cup. However, he came back firing on all cylinders," describes The Guardian.

He adds: "He scored goals or assists in all but four Ligue 1 games he played before the World Cup, and in Qatar he led Argentina to glory for the first time since 1986."

All the voters chose him in the top 100, of course, and 156 of the 206 put him in the first step.

Messi had last been voted number 1 in 2019, and in the last two editions he came second behind Robert Lewandowski.

The top 10 international figures are completed by Kevin De Bruyne, the aforementioned Lewandowski, Vinicius Jr, Thibaut Courtois and Mohamed Salah.

To find the next Argentine on the list, you have to move 10 more places down, where Emiliano Dibu Martínez appears at location 20.

Sadio Mané, Neymar, Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, Casemiro, Achraf Hakimi, Antoine Griezmann, Federico Valverde and Pedri precede Dibu, responsible for one of the most important saves in World Cup history and chosen by FIFA as the best goalkeeper of the contest.

About Dibu they wrote: "By emulating Fillol and Pumpido as the winning goalkeepers of a World Cup with Argentina, Martínez became a legend. None of his predecessors was forced to be the decisive actor in the penalty shootout, and Martínez was against Netherlands and in the final. His prowess in playing pressure situations earned him cult status."

They also remembered his stoppage against Kolo Muani, when 123 minutes of the defining match against the Gauls were played.

"He made a crucial contribution when Kolo Muani looked ready to score in the last minute of extra time."

Enzo Fernández (21), Julián Álvarez (32), Ángel Di María (38), Alexis Mac Allister (47) and Rodrigo De Paul (48) made it into the first half of a list with particularities, such as the location of Cristiano Ronaldo in the 51st place, far from the 8th place he obtained in the survey carried out a year ago by the same medium.

Lautaro Martínez (70), Cristian Cuti Romero (72), Lisandro Martínez (81) and Nicolás Otamendi (100) complete the ranking, which takes into account not only their work in the National Team but also the work they do Sunday after Sunday in their respective teams. of Europe.

There are 11 Argentines, all of them members and protagonists of Lionel Scaloni's team in Qatar.

However, it is not the country with the most representatives in the ranking.

There are 13 Brazilians and 12 French ones, with names like Alisson, Ederson, Richarlison, Olivier Giroud, Christopher Nkunku and Aurélien Tchouaméni among the best rated.

Below Argentina, there are 9 Englishmen included in the ranking.

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