The three finalists for The Best FIFA Men’s Coach award have been announced as Carlo Ancelotti, Pep Guardiola, and Lionel Scaloni.

Last year’s winner was Thomas Tuchel, who ended Jurgen Klopp’s two-year reign with the trophy by finishing on top of a podium which also included Italy’s Roberto Mancini in second and Guardiola in third.

The manager of Manchester City, Pep Guardiola, is back for another chance at winning the award, competing against Carlo Ancelotti of Real Madrid and Scaloni of Argentina.

Didier Deschamps of France and Walid Regragui of Morocco were both on the original five-person shortlist; however, the final three were chosen by an international panel made up of men’s national team coaches, captains, football journalists, and fans.

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The award, which recognizes a coach’s accomplishments from August 8, 2021, to December 18, 2022, will be presented on February 27 in Paris.

None of Ancelotti, Guardiola or Scaloni have ever won the award before. Indeed, Guardiola is the only one of the trio to make the final three, coming third last year and second in 2019.

After leading his team to Premier League victory, the City manager will be hoping to surpass that feat this time around. However, he will face opposition from the winners of two other significant titles.

Real Madrid won La Liga and the Champions League under Ancelotti, while Scaloni’s breakthrough came on the international stage when he guided Argentina to World Cup glory in Qatar.

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FIFA have revealed a five-man shortlist for The Best Men’s Coach award for 2022.

The Awards for this year will be determined based on performances from August 2021 until the end of the World Cup in December 2022.

Lionel Scaloni, the head coach of Argentina, has been nominated for the honour following their thrilling victory in Qatar. In addition, he led La Albiceleste to a 43-game winning streak, with their lone setback coming in the World Cup opener against Saudi Arabia.

The manager Scaloni defeated in the final, France’s Didier Deschamps, is also up for the award. The former defensive midfielder took home the award in 2018 following Les Bleus’ World Cup glory, while he has steered his country to three finals in their last four major tournaments. France also won the 2021 Nations League.

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Walid Regragui of Morocco is the other international manager on the shortlist. Before the Atlas Lions became the first side from the continent to get to the semifinals, he became the first African coach to reach a World Cup quarterfinal.

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti is up for the award after winning a Champions League and La Liga double last season, becoming the first coach in history to claim the league title in all of Europe’s top five leagues.

Pep Guardiola of Manchester City completes the shortlist after leading his team to consecutive Premier League titles.

Voting will take place from January 12 until February 3. On the FIFA website, polls are currently up for voting. Fans, national captains, national coaches, and media representatives will each receive 25% of the vote.

The Best Men’s Coach 2022 shortlist

• Lionel Scaloni
• Didier Deschamps
• Walid Regragui
• Carlo Ancelotti
• Pep Guardiola

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Morocco has finally returned to Rabat after their fantastic campaign at the 2022 World Cup which was ended in the semi-finals by France.

The Atlas Lions, who made history by being the first country from Africa to play in the semifinals in the Gulf country, were a surprise entry in the international tournament.

The last match at Al Bayt Stadium saw France defeat Morocco 2-0, putting a stop to Morocco’s fantastical journey. They faced Croatia in the third-place playoff match, but they fell short 2-1.

Tens of thousands of Moroccans flocked to the capital to welcome the North Africans back on Tuesday, giving them a hero’s welcome. Later, King Mohammed VI arranged a luncheon for the team managed by Walid Regragui.

The Atlas Lions of Morocco 🇲🇦 on an open bus parade cheered on by fans in Rabat after a heroic and historic fourth place finish at the World Cup in Qatar. pic.twitter.com/81oUU1TsNP

— Usher Komugisha (@UsherKomugisha) December 20, 2022

The parade in Rabat has sparked debate on social media with other fans claiming it was much better than Argentia’s trophy parade.

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“Morocco heroes welcome looks far much better than Argentina’s trophy parade. But I know you are not ready for this issue. So I will leave it for today,” said Junior Levy Driver, and his sentiments were echoed by Onwuka Onyedikachi Ogubunka, who said: “More glorious than Argentina own that look like a local carnival.”

Obong M E Essien said: “Wow Wow wow!!! This is real love indeed. Africa is rising to the top. Well done Morocco,” while Am-omubo Victor Godwin opined: “Next World Cup to come Africa will be on top.”

Watch Video:

https://twitter.com/JazzAntics/status/1605409312196763648?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1605409312196763648%7Ctwgr%5Eeaaafe3f2bfe76484cc140200bb068cf3abc1227%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.goal.com%2Fen-ng%2Fnews%2Fwatch-morocco-receive-heroic-welcome-in-rabat-after-making-world-cup-history%2Fblt92e3a7c175d5f3bd

Morocco’s national team, ranked 4th in #Qatar2022 !! Open bus Parade in the Capital of Morocco, Rabat today.#FIFAWorldCup @FIFAcom @CAF_Online pic.twitter.com/zu67jAGQwd

— Chaymae Khebouiz (@CKhebouiz) December 20, 2022

This view of Morocco open team bus parade in Rabat 🔥 pic.twitter.com/fPAB2qP5Os

— FT90Extra (@FT90Extra) December 20, 2022

The Atlas Lions received an unforgettable homecoming on an open bus parade cheered on by fans in Rabat. Amazing to witness this part of history. Just crazy #FIFAWorldCup #AtlasLions #dimmaghrib #rabat #Morocco pic.twitter.com/J4tpScHLgg

— Ahmed Larouz (@larouz) December 21, 2022

The Atlas Lions, who won all of their group-stage games and then defeated Spain and Portugal, will now turn their attention to the upcoming African Nations Championships in Algeria in January.

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Morocco boss Walid Regragui has praised his team’s historic performance in Qatar and stated his preference for the winner of the Argentina vs. France World Cup final.

The Atlas Lions, the first country from Africa to play in a World Cup semifinal, had an amazing run cut short on Wednesday night by the defending champions France.

A semi-final clash with World Cup holders France always looked like a tough task but Morocco created several openings after Theo Hernandez’s early goal at the Al Bayt Stadium.

Before France scored the game-winning goal through the substitution Randal Kolo Muani, Jawad El Yamiq’s spectacular overhead kick struck the post, Abderrazak Hamdallah went on a charging run but was unable to get his shot off, and the game remained scoreless.

Although Morocco’s World Cup campaign is ended, they can be extremely proud of their incredible run to the semifinals and depart Qatar as one of the tournament’s high points.

After their World Cup departure, head coach Regragui expressed his satisfaction with his team and disclosed who he will be rooting for on Sunday when Argentina plays France in the title game.

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‘We gave the maximum, that’s the most important thing,’ he said. ‘We have shown the world that football exists in Morocco and that we have great supporters.

‘We had some injuries, we lost Aguerd in the warm-up, Saiss, Mazraoui… but there are no excuses.

‘We paid for the slightest mistake. We didn’t get into the game well, we had too much technical waste in the first half, and the second goal kills us, but that doesn’t take away everything we did before in the tournament.

‘This was one step too far. We had too many players at 60-70% fitness. My players gave everything. They have gone as far as they could. We will support France now.’

Following Brazil’s triumphs in 1958 and 1962, France will become the first team to regain the World Cup if they prevail in Sunday’s championship game at the Lusail Stadium.

But they have to contend with an Argentina team that is trying to win the World Cup for the third time and give Lionel Messi the opportunity to lift the trophy in his final competition.

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Walid Regragui, the manager of Morocco, has acknowledged that despite his team falling short against France in the World Cup semifinal, their accomplishments in this tournament should not be diminished.

Regragui became the first African coach to get as far as the quarterfinals, and the Atlas Lions became the first African team to reach the World Cup’s last four after defeating two heavyweights in Spain and Portugal in the knockout rounds.

However, their hopes of competing in the final on Sunday were shattered by the defending champions France, who defeated them 2-0 with goals from Theo Hernandez and Randal Kolo Muani at each end of the game.

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In his post-game interview with the media, Regragui cited many injury setbacks as the reason Morocco wasn’t at their best against France. Still, he also urged people to keep in mind the path they undertook to reach this late stage of the tournament.

“We gave our maximum, that’s the most important thing,” he began. “We had a few injuries, we lost [Nayef] Aguerd in the warm-up, [Romain] Saiss, [Noussair] Mazraoui at half-time…but I have nothing to say, the slightest mistake is paid for in cash.

“We didn’t get into the game well, we were too wasteful technically in the first half, and the second goal killed us, but that doesn’t take away everything we did before.”

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