NEWS
18 November 2022
Lionel Messi is most feared player at 2022 World Cup, bet365 survey says
By Peter Lynch

The bet365 Fan Nation Survey questioned thousands of football supporters from around the world to figure out the most feared players at the tournament, with Argentina star Messi coming out on top with 48% of the vote.

Finishing in second place with 44% was Portugal legend Cristiano Ronaldo, with Brazil forward Neymar coming third with 41% of the vote.

Completing the top five was France duo Kylian Mbappe and Karim Benzema with 40% and 31% respectively.

England captain Harry Kane was the only Three Lions representative in the top 10 with 20% of the vote.

England fans meanwhile revealed which players they are fearing the most in the world-famous tournament, with the top five list almost the same as the aforementioned list, the only difference being Luis Suarez replacing Benzema in fifth place.

Operator bet365 also revealed the results of the fans’ choice to clinch this year’s Golden Glove, awarded to the best goalkeeper.

Belgium shot-stopper Thibaut Courtois is the favourite to take home the prize, gaining 16.15% of votes on average across all fan bases. He was followed by Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer with 15.50%.

Completing the top five were three Premier League goalkeepers; Alisson (14.26%), Jordan Pickford (12.49%) and Hugo Lloris (6.10%).

Also up for discussion was the World Cup Golden Boot, awarded to the highest goalscorer in the competition, with Messi once again coming out on top with 24.05% of the vote.

Ronaldo came in second place with 15.83% of the poll results, followed by Benzema with 11.68%. The same names popped up once more, with Mbappe and Neymar completing the top five with 10.02% and 9.99% of the poll results respectively.