Neither Cristiano Ronaldo nor Lionel Messi will be in attendance at FIFA’s The Best awards on Monday night, say reports.
Ronaldo is on a three-man shortlist for the men’s Player of 2018 award alongside former Real Madrid teammate Luka Modric and Liverpool's Mo Salah, while Messi was surprisingly excluded.
A panel selected by FIFA, including Fabio Capello, Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard, will decide upon a winner which will be announced at the ceremony in London.
Ronaldo will reportedly not attend due to his participation in Juventus’s 2-0 victory at Frosinone on Sunday evening, in which he scored, while he will face Bologna on Wednesday.
Reports in Cadena Cope and El Mundo Deportivo now say Messi, who is shortlisted for the Puskas Award for the best goal due to his strike against Nigeria in the World Cup, will not attend due to family reasons.
