The nominees for the Golden Ball, Golden Gloves, and Best Young Player awards of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil have been announced.
The Best Young Player candidates come in the shape of France national team duo Paul Pogba and Raphael Varane, and Netherlands' Memphis Depay.
The Hyundai Best Young Player Award nominees are @paulpogba, @Memphis & @raphaelvarane - http://t.co/dGCo6Jsfax pic.twitter.com/wa7FmXliR8
— FIFAWorldCup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 11, 2014
The Juventus and Real Madrid stars helped Les Blues reach the quarter-final stage of the World Cup before suffering elimination at the hands of Germany, whilst Memphis Depay's Dutch side were dumped out of the tournament on penalty shootout by Argentina in the semi-finals.
Costa Rica's Keylor Navas, Germany's Manuel Neuer, and Argentina's Sergio Romero all get a nod for the Golden Gloves nominations.
The Golden Glove nominees are @NavasKeylor, @Manuel_Neuer & Sergio Romero - http://t.co/bZPxVbHmmw pic.twitter.com/uxBDZ2kj3S
— FIFAWorldCup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 11, 2014
Navas, the Levant shot-stopper, was an integral part of the Costa Rica side that shocked the world, beating Uruguay, England, and Italy to the top group D, making it to the quarter-final, going toe-to-toe with Netherlands before losing out on penalties. The 27-year-old conceded 2 goals with only one coming from open play.
Navas was one of the star players from Costa Rica's unforgettable World Cup campaign
Neuer has always been recognized as one of the best goalkeepers in the world and his three clean sheets along the tournament has seen Die Mannschaft reach the final.
Another goalkeeper who has seen his country reach the final is Argentine custodian Sergio Romero. The 27-year-old has kept four clean sheets in the tournament and his spot kick heroics saw La Albiceleste get past Netherlands in the semi-final as he denied two penalties.
However, there was shock over the inclusion of the Sampdoria goalkeeper, who conceded four goals in the group stage alone, at the expense of Mexico and USA's Guillermo Ochoa and Tim Howard, who received rave reviews for their performance in Brazil.
Howard and Ochoa were surprise exclusions from the Golden Gloves nominations after impressing at the World Cup
The Golden Ball award bears little surprise with World Cup finalists Lionel Messi, Angel Di Maria, Javier Mascherano, Thomas Mueller, Toni Kroos, Philipp Lahm, and Mats Hummels all headlining the list.
The adidas #WorldCup Golden Ball nominees have been announced - http://t.co/y5j0qCYTBJ pic.twitter.com/Tr8yLvNJQe
— FIFAWorldCup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 11, 2014
Also in the chase for the Golden Ball are Netherlands ace Arjen Robben, Brazil superstar Neymar, and Golden Boot front-runner James Rodriguez who helped Colombia reach the quarter-finals.
The man who will officiate the World Cup final which will be played in the Maracana stadum will be Italian referee Nicola Rizzoli.
Nicola Rizzoli will be the 3rd Italian to referee a #WorldCup Final #GERARG - http://t.co/IE4zmvxIqz pic.twitter.com/MaxruUvfn6
— FIFAWorldCup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 11, 2014
