GOAL50 men's category: Seventh heaven for Lionel Messi as World Cup winner edges out Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham

Sofyan Amrabrat played every single minute of Morocco's magnificent World Cup campaign, which tells you everything you need to know about the 27-year-old’s importance to the African nation's historic fourth-place finish. Amrabat proved himself one of the game's very best defensive midfielders in Qatar - his performances against Spain and Portugal were particularly impressive - before going on to help Fiorentina reach the Europa Conference League final. A deserved move to Manchester United followed.

A star was well and truly born at the 2022 World Cup. After being sensationally selected to start up front for Portugal in place of national icon Cristiano Ronaldo, Goncalo Ramos responded by hitting a hat-trick in a stunning rout of Switzerland. The 22-year-old striker also struck 27 times in all competitions as Benfica won the Primeira Liga, while at the same time reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League, with his fine form earning him a summer move to Paris Saint-Germain.

The enigmatic Adrien Rabiot copped quite a bit of flak during his early years at Juventus, with many supporters and pundits wondering exactly what exactly he brought to the side. However, Rabiot silenced his critics last season. The midfielder was arguably Juve’s only world-class performance during a desperately trying campaign, finally adding goals to his game, while he was also outstanding at the World Cup for runners-up France.

What a story! Just six years ago, Giovanni Di Lorenzo was playing third-their football in Italy. Now, he is the captain of the Serie A title winners. The defender was key to Napoli’s historic success too, an inspirational leader who also weighed in with five goals and six assists from right-back. Di Lorenzo’s new contract could not be more deserved.

Sandro Tonali became the most expensive Italian player of all time after being signed by Newcastle this summer for a reported £60m ($77m) and it's easy to understand why. After a trying first season at AC Milan following his 2021 loan move from Brescia, Tonali shone after the transfer was made permanent last summer, impressing with his mix of technique and tenacity during the Rossoneri’s run to the last four of the Champions League. Sadly, Tonali's 10-month ban in October after a plea bargain with Italian prosecutors - where he admitted to betting on matches he played in and agreed to eight months of rehab for his gambling addiction - will see him sidelined for the rest of the 2023-24 season.

Written off by the likes of Jamie Carragher as too small for the Premier League after Manchester United's disastrous defeat at Brentford last August, Lisandro Martinez responded in fine fashion by locking down a starting spot in Erik ten Hag's starting line-up, as well as becoming a firm fan favourite with his incredible commitment to the cause. The former Ajax man also played his part in Argentina's triumphant World Cup campaign in Qatar, featuring in five games.

Is there a more intimidating goalkeeper for a penalty-taker to face than Yassine Bounou? The 32-year-old has made attributes but he is now universally regarded as one of the game's great shootout specialists after his heroics last season. Bono, who kept three clean sheets in Qatar, saved two Spanish penalties during Morocco's historic run to the semi-finals of the World Cup, and repeated the feat in Sevilla's Europa League final triumph over Roma just over six months later. His performances secured him a Saudi Pro League transfer to join Neymar at Al-Hilal.

Former Barcelona youth-team star Xavi Simons finally got the chance to illustrate why there has been so much hype around him since he was a kid by leaving Paris Saint-Germain for PSV last summer. Simons ran riot in his native Netherlands, firing PSV to the Eredivisie title with 19 goals - a hugely impressive haul that also earned the attacking midfielder a share of the league's top-scorer award. Unsurprisingly, PSG availed of their option to buy Simons back for just €6m before immediately sending him to RB Leipzig for a season.

Barcelona had to partake in some serious book-balancing just to sign the former Sevilla defender – let alone register him – but Jules Kounde proved excellent value for money. Whether deployed at centre-back or full-back, the Frenchman was the best defender within the best back-line in La Liga last season. He was involved in 18 clean sheets - more than anyone else in the entire Primera Division - while he also won possession more than any other fellow member of the Barcelona back-line.

Kim Min-jae achieved something quite extraordinary last summer by seamlessly replacing Napoli legend Kalidou Koulibaly at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. Indeed, Inter icon Beppe Bergomi even argued that the South Korean proved something of an upgrade on the Senegalese centre-back, given the almost effortless way in which he both snuffed out and started attacks during the Partenopei’s Serie A title win. As a result, it wasn’t the least bit surprising to see Bayern Munich sign the 26-year-old for a bargain €50m (£43m/$55m) this summer.

A fixture in the Newcastle United line-up last season - and probably every single Fantasy Premier League team. Kieran Trippier was a key member of a defence that proved crucial to Champions League qualification for the first time in 20 years. However, the versatile full-back was also crucial to Eddie Howe's offensive game plan, with his excellent deliveries from out wide and set pieces, with Trippier totting up seven assists in total.

The subject of constant transfer talk and it’s not hard to understand why Europe’s elite would dearly love to sign all-action Inter ace Nicolo Barella. With nine goals and nine assists in all competitions, as the Nerazzurri reached the Champions League final for the first time since 2020, Barella showed why he’s probably the first name on Simone Inzaghi’s team sheet – and was unsurprisingly named Serie A midfielder of the season.

William Saliba signed for Arsenal in the summer of 2019 but only made his first appearance for the club last August. The classy centre-back proved well worth the wait, turning in an immaculate debut display that set the tone for a fantastic campaign that may well have ended in Premier League title glory for the Gunners had Saliba not suffered a season-ending injury in March. His importance to Mikel Arteta's team made painfully clear, Arsenal handed a new, improved contract in July.

An undoubted risk-taker, attack-minded left-back Theo Hernandez is always prone to getting caught out of position, but his awesome attacking ability more than makes up for any defensive deficiencies. As well as helping Milan reach the semi-finals of the Champions League – and qualify for next season’s tournament via a fourth-placed finish – Theo also starred for France in Qatar, contributing a goal and two assists after coming into the starting line-up in place of his injured brother Lucas.

A hugely influential figure off the field and one hell of a player on it, Marcus Rashford took his game to a whole new level in 2022-23, scoring a career-high 30 goals in all competitions for Manchester United, including six in his club's victorious EFL Cup campaign. Rashford also caught the eye at the World Cup, scoring three times during England's run to the last eight.

John Stones has long been renowned as a ball-playing centre-back but perhaps only Pep Guardiola thought him quite good enough to play in midfield. However, last season's daring positional change proved yet another masterstroke by the Catalan coach, with the England international proving one of the driving forces behind Manchester City's treble triumph.

Real Madrid don't let too many players leave at the wrong time but they arguably should have kept the Brazilian for one more year. Casemiro had a transformative effect on Erik ten Hag's Manchester United last season, playing a key role in the Old Trafford outfit winning the League Cup and securing a return to the Champions League.

A young man once described as "the talent of the century" by Jurgen Klopp certainly showed last season. Gabriel Martinelli, who was also included in Brazil’s squad for the 2022 World Cup, added a new level of efficacy to his game, scoring 15 goals (one more than Bukayo Saka) during Arsenal’s thrilling Premier League title tilt. Unsurprisingly, the Gunners tied the winger down to a bumper new contract that will run until 2027 amid interest from Barcelona during the January transfer window.

Bruno Fernandes may be a combustible character but he was the obvious choice as Manchester United's new captain. The Portuguese was involved in 27 goals in all competitions last season, finishing as the team's second top scorer, with 14. The attacking midfielder also usurped Cristiano Ronaldo as Portugal's most important player - and true leader - at the World Cup in Qatar, with his leadership, industry and key contributions, which included two goals and three assists.

A controversial character but there is absolutely no denying Emiliano Martinez’s quality, which was crucial to Aston Villa’s dramatic change in fortunes last season under Unai Emery. No matter what happens in the rest of his career, though, Martinez will be forever associated with Qatar 2022. The best goalkeeper at the tournament, the 30-year-old kept three clean sheets, proved decisive in two shootouts and also made arguably the greatest save in World Cup history by denying France forward Randal Kolo Muani with an outstretched left boot in the dying seconds of the final.

Truth be told, Manchester City goalkeeper Ederson doesn’t always have that many saves to make but his distribution is absolutely integral to the way in which Pep Guardiola’s side play the game. Furthermore, when called upon, the Brazilian so often steps up to the mark – as he so memorably underlined by making a couple of decisive late stops in the Champions League final win over Inter!

Liverpool landing Alexis Mac Allister looked like one of the signings of the summer, given the multi-purpose midfielder was involved in two of the stories of last season. The 24-year-old top-scored for Brighton as Roberto De Zerbi's scintillating side qualified for continental competition for the first time in the club's history, while he also helped transform Lionel Scaloni's midfield in Qatar, coming into the starting line-up after Argentina's shock loss to Saudi Arabia in their World Cup opener and contributing a goal and assist to their eventual tournament triumph.

Marc-Andre ter Stegen is often criminally overlooked when it comes to discussing the best goalkeepers in the world today, which is weird given he has been performing miracles at Camp Nou for years now. The German also finally had a decent defence in front of him last season and the net result was Ter Stegen conceding just 18 goals in La Liga and keeping a whopping 28 clean sheets – more than any other shot-stopper across Europe’s ‘Big 5’ leagues.

One of the few success stories from the ‘greatest transfer window in football history’ back in 2021, Achraf Hakimi has firmly established himself as the best right-back in the game over the past 12 months. As well as helping Paris Saint-Germain win another Ligue 1 title, Hakimi was also one of the stars of the show as Morocco made history in Qatar by becoming the first African nation to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup.

The signing of last season? Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was a virtual unknown when he joined Napoli from Dinamo Batumi for just over €10m but the Georgian is now regarded as one of the most exciting wingers after helping the club ended a 33-year Italian title drought - and reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the first time ever - with 14 goals and as many assists. Indeed, the fans now call him 'Kvaradona' - the ultimate tribute in Naples.

A thrilling sight in full flight, Rafael Leao produced arguably the assist of the season in AC Milan's decisive Champions League quarter-final draw with Napoli at the Maradona - just a couple of weeks after tearing the runaway Serie A leaders to shreds at the same venue. Leao, who was also on target twice for Portugal at the World Cup despite being bizarrely deployed as an impact sub, was unsurprisingly rewarded with a bumper new contract by the Rossoneri at the end of a campaign that yielded 16 goals and 11 assists in total.

A frankly ridiculous talent, Pedri is still only 20 and yet is coming off a campaign that saw him named in the Liga Team of the Season for the second consecutive year thanks to his contribution to Barcelona’s title win. He also started all four games for Spain at the 2022 World Cup, with Luis Enrique labelling Pedri ‘Harry Potter’ for his magical displays in midfield.

Rodrygo may still be a little overshadowed by his compatriot and club-mate Vinicius Junior but the Brazilian established himself as an important Real Madrid player in his own right last season, scoring a career-high 19 goals in all competitions. He also emerged as a big-game player, sealing his side's place in the Champions League quarter-finals with a brace against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge before striking twice again to win the Copa del Rey for Madrid in May courtesy of a 2-1 victory over Osasuna.

Is Ruben Dias the best centre-back in the world? The Portuguese just never seems to make a mistake – or get caught out of position. He had an immediate transformative effect on Manchester City after joining from Benfica in 2020 but last season was arguably his best yet, with Dias proving the foundation on which his side’s treble was constructed.

Karim Benzema may not have hit the same heights as his 2021-22 campaign, primarily because he was hindered by fitness problems, with a thigh injury also ruling him out of the World Cup. However, the striker still hit 31 goals in just 43 games for Real Madrid, including a historic hat-trick at Camp Nou as los Blancos came from behind on aggregate to beat Barcelona in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey. It came as no surprise, then, to see Al-Ittihad offer him a fortune to move to Saudi Arabia during the summer.

Bayern Munich were nowhere near their best last season and yet they still won the Bundesliga. Borussia Dortmund's final-day collapse certainly helped in that regard but attacking midfielder Jamal Musiala was the man that got the Bavarians over the line, scoring the late winner at Koln that decided the title race. It was the 20-year-old's 16th goal of the 2022-23 campaign in all competitions and perfectly illustrated why Lothar Matthaus believes Musiala, who also made 13 assists, can become "the next Messi".

The World Cup most definitely didn't go as the striker hoped, with Lautaro Martinez quickly losing his starting spot to Julian Alvarez. However, he showed impressive mettle to score the decisive spot-kick in Argentina's epic quarter-final win over Netherlands before then going on to underline his class by firing Inter to the Champions League final, with his winner in the second leg of the semi against AC Milan cementing his status as a Milan derby legend.

A season that began with several question marks over Antoine Griezmann's France future ended with him confirmed as one of the very best, and most intelligent, footballers in the game today. The 32-year-old was outstanding for Atletico Madrid, directly involved in 32 goals in all competitions, but it was his form in Qatar that really caught the eye, with Didier Deschamps' decision to employ Griezmann as the link between his midfield and attack proving an absolute masterstroke.

One really can't help but wonder what Real Madrid were thinking by letting Martin Odegaard go - and for just £30m ($38m). Last season, the Norwegian showed beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is one of the best No.10s in the world, the Arsenal captain leading by example as he contributed 15 goals and seven assists to his club's surprise Premier League title challenge.

Kyle Walker says his Manchester City team-mate, Ilkay Gundogan, turns into "prime Zinedine Zidane" at the business end of every season - and the England international has a point. Gundogan arguably became Pep Guardiola's most important player during the Premier League title run-in, scoring hugely important doubles against Leeds and Everton, before scoring twice again in the FA Cup final win over Manchester United. No wonder Barca were so keen to sign the German!

Victor Osimhen had plenty of ups and downs following his transfer from Lille to Napoli in 2020, initially struggling to justify his €70m price tag. However, the scintillating Nigeria striker is now worth more than double that fee after a sensational 2022-23 season that ended with the striker becoming the first African to be crowned Serie A's capocannoniere, after scoring 26 times in just 32 games as Napoli win their first scudetto since 1990.

Erling Haaland's arrival at the Etihad last summer dominated the headlines but, as it transpired, Manchester City had actually signed two outstanding attackers, as Julian Alvarez underlined with 21 goal involvements in his treble-winning debut season in England. It was in Qatar, though, where the striker really proved his class, taking Lautaro Martinez's place in Lionel Scaloni's starting XI and going on to score four goals as Argentina lifted the World Cup.

Arsenal's 2022-23 campaign may have ended in agony, with Mikel Arteta's side overtaken by Man City during the Premier League title run-in, but they wouldn't have even been in contention had it not been for the fine form of Bukayo Saka. The winger was involved in 25 goals for the Gunners, while he also shone for England at the World Cup, netting three times in total.

Pep Guardiola erred badly when he left Rodri out of his starting line-up for the 2020 Champions League final against Chelsea - but there was no chance of the Manchester City manager making the same mistake in this season's tournament-decider in Istanbul. The Spain international had long since proven himself the best defensive midfielder player in the world before capping an immaculate campaign before scoring the winner against Inter.

Robert Lewandowski has set such ridiculously high standards for himself that the prolific Pole came in for some criticism during his first season in Spain after last summer's acrimonious move from Bayern Munich to Barcelona - particularly because of his struggles in the Clasico. However, the Catalans simply would not have won a first Liga title in four years without Lewandowski, who won the Pichichi award with 32 goals in 34 games.

Is there a better wide attacker in world football right now than Bernardo Silva? The Portuguese is the perfect Pep Guardiola player, as intelligent as he is industrious, a player capable of both scoring and creating goals, but also applying colossal amounts of pressure to opponents. Silva was one of the main reasons why Manchester City won the treble and his stunning performance in the Champions League second-leg demolition if Real Madrid will live long in the memory.

The little maestro signed a contract extension with Real Madrid in June – and why not? Even at 37 years of age, Luka Modric is pulling off passes that other players can’t even envisage. The Croatian midfielder was also still covering a ridiculous amount of ground as his country finished third at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, only adding to his legacy as one of the finest midfielders of all time.

Hard to believe now but there was a time at the start of Vinicius Junior's Real Madrid career when he used to frustrate fans - and team-mates - with his finishing and final ball. Not anymore, though. Vinicius is now as effective as he is exciting, proving himself as one of the very best players on the planet with 42 goal involvements last season. At times, in fact, the Brazilian was borderline unplayable.

Liverpool's form may have dipped dramatically last season but Mohamed Salah's most certainly did not. Only Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe were involved in more goals across Europe's 'Big Five' leagues than the Egyptian sensation, who scored 30 times in all competitions, as well as racking up 16 assists. Fair to say that Liverpool wouldn't have gotten anywhere near to qualifying for the Europa League without their electrifying No.11.

England’s World Cup bid ended in agony for Harry Kane, who missed a penalty in his country’s unfortunate loss to France, but it’s worth remembering that only Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi (10 apiece) were involved in more goals in Qatar (5). Furthermore, it takes a special kind of centre-forward to score 32 goals for a team as dysfunctional as Tottenham were – but that’s exactly what Kane is, one of that special breed of attackers capable of doing nearly everything on his own, which is why Bayern felt compelled to sign him during the summer for more than €100m (£85m/$109m).

It looked like Kevin De Bruyne might suffer more Champions League heartbreak when he was forced off in last season's final against Inter, which would have been very tough for the Belgian to take given the calamitous nature of his - and his country's - World Cup campaign. But Manchester City just about managed to get the job done without their talismanic attacking midfielder, who had created a staggering 28 goals in all competition beforehand, as well as chipping in with 10 himself - including one sweet strike in the semi-final clash with Real Madrid.

Still no Champions League medal for the wonderful winger but that was hardly his fault, with Kylian Mbappe scoring 41 goals in all competitions for a still-horribly unbalanced Paris Saint-Germain side. The 24-year-old was also desperately unfortunate not to win a second consecutive World Cup. Mbappe became only the second man after Geoff Hurst to score a hat-trick in the final, taking his overall tally to a Golden Boot-winning eight goals, but France suffered penalty-shootout heartbreak in Qatar.

Borussia Dortmund would surely have won the German title had Jude Bellingham been fit for their final-day meeting with Mainz. The midfielder was the best player in the Bundesliga last season, registering eight goals and four assists, while the 20-year-old's staggeringly mature performances at Qatar 2022 also played a part in Real Madrid's decision to sign him this summer for €103 million (£88m/$112m) - which is already looking like a bargain.

Erling Haaland ran out of steam in the final month of the campaign but one could hardly criticise him for that, given what had gone before. The Norwegian phenomenon smashed the Premier League's all-time single-season goalscoring record by netting 36 times in just 35 games, while he also finished as top scorer in the Champions League, with 12 goals. And the scary thing is, the striker is still only 23 - he's going to get even better!

Despite more than a decade of unrivalled sustained excellence at the very highest level, there were those that questioned Lionel Messi’s status as the greatest of all time. Not anymore, though. The Argentine’s second season at PSG may not have gone according to plan at all (even though only four players managed more goal involvements) but he produced the best individual performance the World Cup has seen since Diego Maradona by leading his country to glory with seven goals, three assists and one man of the match-winning performance after another. Can now be found tearing it up in MLS with Inter Miami.