Real Madrid centre-back David Alaba has been voted the 2021 player of the year by the CIES Football Observatory. While the likes of Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski have been at the top of the pile for individual awards, CIES’ unique take puts them completely out of the equation.
How is the CIES player of the year completely different from other rankings?
The factors considered in deciding the footballer of the year in this case are the playing time of footballers and the sporting level of the teams for which they played, or the competitions they participated in.
The analysts at the Swiss observatory have used these numbers to create an overall score and ranking.
Of all the players in Europe’s top leagues, Alaba is the man that comes out on top. Ruben Dias ranks second while Milan Skriniar of Inter Milan completes the top three. The Ballon d’Or top two of Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski is 24th and 17th respectively in the CIES list.
What has David Alaba’s 2021 looked like?
David Alaba helped Bayern Munich win the Bundesliga shield for a ninth consecutive time at the end of the 20/21 campaign. In the offseason, he made a free transfer switch to his dream club, Real Madrid, and has fitted in perfectly.
He is extremely versatile and can play centre-back, left-back and midfield positions. While he doesn’t grab headlines every week, he is vital to the success of the team. The defensive performances of the 29-year-old have proved to be vital not only for Bayern Munich but also for Real Madrid in the few months he has been with them.
