UEFA Men's player of the year winners since 2011-12 season

The UEFA Men's Player of the Year award is given to an individual who produces extraordinary performance in a single season in Europe. Many great players have won the award for their charismatic performances for both their club and national team. This article will look into the list of players who won the award in the last 10 years.

UEFA Men's Player of the Year winners (2011/12- 2020/21)

Andres Iniesta (2011-12)

Andres Iniesta played a pivotal role for Barcelona and Spain in 2011-12. He scored 8 goals in 46 appearances and provided 12 assists in all competitions 46 for Barcelona that season. Iniesta also made a huge contribution to Spain's Euro Cup triumph.

Also Read: Andres Iniesta: Who has won the most trophies for FC Barcelona?

Franck Ribery (2012-13)

Franck Ribery was the stand-out performer in the 2012-13 season. He scored 11 goals and provided 23 assists in all competitions for Bayern Munich. Most importantly, he went on to win the treble that year which made him the favourites to win the trophy.

Cristiano Ronaldo (2013/14, 2015/16, 2016/17)

Cristiano Ronaldo has won the UEFA Men's Player of the Year 3 times which is more than any other player in history.

2013-14 - He scored a mammoth 51 goals and provided 17 assists for Real Madrid in all competitions and also went on to win the Champions League.
2015-16 - Ronaldo scored 51 goals and provided 15 assists combined in UCL and Laliga. He won this award for the second time for his stunning performance with Real Madrid in UCL.
2016-17 - He scored 42 goals and had 12 assists for Real Madrid in all competitions. He also helped the club in winning both UCL and Laliga that season.

Also Read: Cristiano Ronaldo Records for Manchester United

Lionel Messi (2014/15)

Lionel Messi has won the award two times in his career. The first came in 2010/11 and the second in 2014/15. He scored a humongous 58 goals for Barcelona that season and also provided 31 assists in all competitions. Leo bagged his 4th UCL that season and also completed a treble; winning the Laliga, Copa-Del-Rey and the UCL.

Also Read: Top 10 players with most goals in football scored by the age of 21

Luka Modric (2017-18)

Luka Modric was awarded the UEFA Men's Player of the Year for his stunning performances with Real Madrid and Croatia. He helped Real Madrid complete a 3 peat of UCL and also guided Croatia to the World Cup finals. He also won the World Cup golden ball for his performance with Croatia in the World Cup.

Virgil Van Dijk (2018-19)

Virgil Van Dijk made history by being the first defender to win the award. His impact on the Liverpool team was incomparable. Van Dijk played a very crucial role for Liverpool in their 6th Champions League triumph.

Robert Lewandowski (2019-20)

Robert Lewandowski was by far the best player in Europe in the 2019-20 season. He scored 55 goals and provided 10 assists for Bayern Munich in all competitions. He won the treble with Bayern Munich that season and completed a sextuple later.

Also Read: UEFA awards 2021: everything you need to know

Jorginho (2020-21)

Jorginho won the award in the 2020-21 season. He had an unbelievable season both with Chelsea and Italy. He won the ever-precious UCL with Chelsea providing them firm control in the midfield, and months later he went on to win the Euro with Italy which made him a strong contender to win it this year. Jorginho went past his teammates Kante and Kevin De Bruyne to this award.

Karim Benzema (2021-22)

Karim Benzema won the UEFA Men's Player of the Year award for a stunning season in 2021-22, where he helped Real Madrid win their 14th UEFA Champions League title. Benzema with an incredible 523 points defeated Kevin De Bruyne, who only had 122 points. Beznema that season scored 15 goals in the Champions League of which 10 were in the knockout phase.

Erling Haaland (2022-23)

Erling Haaland, the Manchester City goal machine won the latest UEFA Men's Player of the Year award for a record-breaking season for the treble winners in the 2022-23 season. Haaland with 352 points defeated Lionel Messi with 227 points to clinch his first-ever UEFA Player of the Year award. The Norweigan scored 12 goals in 11 UCL games along with a record-breaking 36 goals in 35 Premier League games for Manchester City that season.