Pep Guardiola up for FIFA Best awards for top bosses

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola are among the contenders shortlisted for the FIFA Best awards.

Guardiola, who led City to a fourth Premier League title in five years last season, is joined on the men’s coaching shortlist by Argentina’s World Cup-winning manager Lionel Scaloni and Carlo Ancelotti, who guided Real Madrid to a Champions League and LaLiga double.

Guardiola is the only previous winner of the award among the shortlist having been named FIFA’s best men’s coach in 2011 after winning his second and still most-recent Champions League title with Barcelona.

On the women’s side, Wiegman is shortlisted after leading England to the country’s first major title since 1966 when winning the Women’s European Championship. She is now up against former U.S. women’s national team coach Pia Sundhage, after the Swede led Brazil to the Copa America Femenina, and Lyon’s French League and Women’s Champions League-winning boss Sonia Bompastor.

Wiegman, who previously coached the Netherlands to the Euro 2017 title and the final of the 2019 Women’s World Cup, previously won the FIFA award in 2017 and 2020.

On Wednesday, FIFA also announced the shortlist for the men’s and women’s goalkeeper awards.

Last year’s women’s winner Christiane Endler is again among the nominees after a fine debut season with Lyon. Endler is joined by England’s Mary Earps, who conceded just two goals in last year’s Euros win, and Ann-Katrin Berger, who helped Germany reach the final of the Euros and Chelsea to win the Women’s Super League and FA Cup double for the second consecutive season.

Real Madrid’s Thibaut Courtois is among the men’s finalists after making a string of crucial saves in Real Madrid’s dramatic route to Champions League glory. Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez is rewarded for his heroics, including a penalty save in final shootout, in Argentina’s first World Cup win since 1986.

That duo will face off with Morocco and Sevilla stopper Yassine Bounou, who impressed in helping the Atlas Lions become the first African nation to reach the World Cup semifinals.

The awards will be decided by a vote from national team coaches and captains as well as journalists and fans and be revealed during a ceremony in Paris on Feb. 27.