Following the highly-anticipated yet slightly controversial 2019 Women’s Ballon d’Or, the Guardian have gone out and named their top 100 female footballers in the world for 2019.
Megan Rapinoe was the recipient of France Football’s prize, becoming only the second female player to win this trophy following her The Best FIFA Women’s Player win. However, this decision received tons of criticism due to the fact that she failed to score or assist a single goal for her club this year and netted half of her six goals at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup from penalties.
The Guardian appeared to be from this school of thought, placing the USWNT icon in third. However, even this list wasn’t free of controversial decisions, with Vivianne Miedema failing to make the top five.
This is despite the 22 goals in 13 starts this season for Arsenal and her winning the PFA Player of the Season, Golden Boot, and the league title in 2018/19. She also guided her nation to the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup final, scoring three times en route to a runners-up finish. The Dutch ace finished fifth in the Ballon d’Or but in the Guardian’s list, she came in at sixth.
In fifth is Amandine Henry. The French midfielder played a key role in her club Lyon winning the treble last season before guiding her nation to the quarter-finals during the summer tournament.
In fourth is her Lyon team-mate Ada Hegerberg. She was the recipient of the first-ever Women’s Ballon d’Or last season but missed out on individual accolade due to her absence from the World Cup – she refused a call-up due to discrimination. Nonetheless, the fact that she registered 20 goals in 14 appearances for Lyon by the end of November was enough to land her a spot in the top five.
In third is Rapinoe, who scored six goals to win second successive World Cup title, scoring six goals and landing the Golden Boot and Golden Ball along the way. However, her disappointing year with Reign FC saw her miss out.
In second is Lucy Bronze, the England full-back who was touted for the Ballon d’Or until losing to USA in the semi-finals and then Sweden in the third-place match. She was a key member of Lyon’s all-conquering side and is regarded as the best in her position and was bestowed with the UEFA Player of the Year prize.
And the number one player in the Guardian’s list of top 100 female footballers in 2019 is – cue the drumrolls – Sam Kerr. The Chelsea bound striker might have missed out on both the NWSL Shield and NWSL Championship, but the Australian striker was head and shoulders above the rest in the National Women’s Soccer League. She beat the previous record for most goals in a single season, which she set at 16, by scoring 18 goals. Then there was her super hat-trick against Jamaica in the World Cup, proving she is a striker to be feared.
