Beth Mead: England star on three-player shortlist for FIFA’s The Best Award with Alex Morgan and Alexia Putellas

Beth Mead has been named on a three-player shortlist for The Best FIFA Women’s Player of the Year for 2022.

Mead has been named alongside USA international Alex Morgan and Spain’s Alexia Putellas on the final shortlist after it was reduced from 14 players.

The winner of the prize will be announced at an awards ceremony in Paris on February 27.

The England international scored 11 goals in the 2021-22 WSL season and was the Euro 2022 Golden Boot winner after scoring six goals.

Her productive season falls into the FIFA’s ‘The Best’ award eligibility as it takes into accounts games played between August 7, 2021 to July 31, 2022.

The award nominees are selected by captains, managers and assigned journalists from each country across the world.

The 27-year-old has not played a competitive game since November after rupturing her ACL one week after earning her 50th cap for England. The forward has also lost her mother to cancer on January 7.

England boss Sarina Wiegman told reporters on Tuesday that it is too soon to know if Mead will be able to feature for the Lionesses at the World Cup this summer.

Wiegman has already won the individual award twice in her career. The Three Lions are unbeaten under Wiegman’s 26-game stewardship.

Morgan joins Mead on the list after winning the 2022 CONCACAF W Championship final with USA – a competition where she also finished joint-top scorer and player of the tournament – and finished top of the scoring charts in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL). Morgan scored 15 goals in just 17 appearances in her debut season for San Diego Wave.

Meanwhile Putellas finished top scorer in the 2021-22 Women’s Champions League with 11 goals and helped Barcelona win all 30 matches of their domestic season.

The midfielder scored a total of 34 goals in all competitions in the 2021-22 season before missing out on Euro 2022 due to an ACL injury.