Man City striker Erling Haaland has exposed truth even Lionel Messi must accept

Inter Miami captain Lionel Messi was not in attendance on Monday night as he won his third and final 'The Best FIFA Men's Player of the Year' award.

Perhaps the Argentine great had other arrangements but you would think he'd attend if he could to celebrate the end of his era. Those voting on the award included club captains, national team head coaches, 'expert' journalists and supporters from across the globe.

Presumably, none of them thought to read the qualifying criteria for the accolade, though. The award was meant to be handed to the player who has performed the best between the dates of December 19, 2022 and August 20, 2023.

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Messi's heroics in THAT World Cup final came a day prior, on December 18, but this did not stop the panel from tying the Ligue 1 and Leagues Cup champion with a Treble winner. While the Ballon d'Or came as a surprise, this latest miscarriage of justice offered hope.

This time next year the voting panel will find it impossible to shoehorn Messi into the ceremony in anything more than a legends capacity. The 36-year-old will be starting his first full season in the MLS and without a World Cup, we shall finally see his stranglehold on the awards season end.

From the Ballon d'Or onwards, a new era of footballers shall come to the fore with Erling Haaland one of those leading the charge. Third-place Kylian Mbappe could well have left PSG by the next major ceremony and will be on the road to making his own story while Jude Bellingham is already becoming difficult to ignore at Real Madrid.

Messi signifies the final pillar of the old guard and if his era had ended when he left Barcelona in