Lionel Messi was voted Thursday the inaugural winner of the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award. Barcelona’s Argentina striker beat club teammate Xavi Hernandez and Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo in a poll of 53 sports journalists representing each of the UEFA member associations.
“I’d like to thank all the people that voted for me, and all my teammates,” Messi said at the awards ceremony in Monaco. “I keep all these awards at home and I still have some space for more. It’s an honour to be so successful and to come up with the goods at the right time. Thanks to my teammates for helping me achieve this.”
Messi named UEFA best player
