A major football tournament taking place while the voting for the Fans’ Footballer of the Year is going on? It looked like an open goal for the six nominees who were taking part with their national sides.
A good tournament might just sway the vote in their favour. After all, Beth Mead’s inclusion in the nine-player shortlist was almost entirely on the back of her player of the tournament award at the Women’s Euros. It certainly appeared to put Erling Haaland and Mohamed Salah at a disadvantage, with the two forced to watch from home following their countries' failures to secure a spot in the finals.
But, despite the six players going into the tournament off stellar years with their clubs, only Bukayo Saka truly shone on the world stage. Here, we look at how all six nominees fared at the World Cup.
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Kevin De Bruyne
De Bruyne made headlines at the World Cup but it was for behind-the-scenes fallouts rather than what he achieved on the pitch - which was very little. De Bruyne failed to supply a goal or an assist as Belgium crashed out in the group stage.
While the Manchester City midfielder successfully predicted Belgium’s “ageing” squad wouldn’t win the World Cup, even he couldn’t have predicted such a tame effort.
Bruno Guimaraes
Guimaraes has only just forced his way into the Brazil reckoning, so it was perhaps expecting a lot of him to play a starring role in Qatar. He appeared off the bench in all three of Brazil’s group games but was not seen in the knockout stages.
He would have fancied himself in the penalty shootout against Croatia, though. His shootout miss in November’s Carabao Cup win over Crystal Palace was his first-ever failure from 12 yards. "I've never missed a penalty, even in the youth teams," he had proudly boasted beforehand.
Harry Kane
Kane ended the tournament with two goals and three assists to his name. He also held his nerve to equalise from the spot against France following an interminable wait.
Without VAR, we’d have delighted in moaning about the sheer injustice of England’s exit and plotting what would have happened had Gareth Southgate’s side been awarded a penalty for the foul on Mason Mount (Kane scores, England go on to beat France, Morocco and then Argentina, Kane wins the Golden Boot).
James Maddison
It makes you wonder whether all the fuss in the run-up to the tournament was really worth it (it wasn’t). Maddison got injured before England’s first game and when he did return to fitness, he was an unused substitute against Wales, Senegal and France.
With Jack Grealish so underused by Gareth Southgate, Maddison didn’t stand a chance.
Bukayo Saka
Saka came of age at the World Cup with three goals in four appearances. He saved his best until last with a devastating performance against world champions France that drew a rash of fouls - some given, some not - and led to Harry Kane ’s equalising penalty.
That some fans thought his withdrawal in the 79th minute was Gareth Southgate’s biggest mistake of the tournament speaks volumes for his impact. A superb end to a superb year for the 21-year-old.
Son Heung-min
Son did well to even make the World Cup following an orbital fracture suffered in early November. His presence gave South Korea undoubted star quality and a focal point for their excitable fans but aside from an assist in the dramatic group win over Portugal, he flattered to deceive.
Even the mask couldn’t prevent him being anonymous in the 4-1 last-16 defeat by Brazil.
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