Brilliant Bonmati’s awards clean sweep highlights remarkable year

BARCELONA: Aitana Bonmati completed a clean sweep of the main individual accolades in women´s football by being crowned by FIFA as the best female player in 2023 at a London gala on Monday.

The Spain and Barcelona playmaker had a momentous year, lifting the Spanish league title, the Champions League and then inspiring her country to Women´s World Cup glory in Australia and New Zealand.

The 25-year-old won the Golden Ball for player of the tournament, UEFA´s player of the year award in August and the Ballon d´Or in October. Bonmati is in the form of her life, vital for both club and country, as she follows in the footsteps of compatriot and double Ballon d´Or winner Alexia Putellas.

Injury left Putellas sidelined for the majority of last season and unable to find her best form at the World Cup, where Bonmati ran the show for Spain, who beat England in the final in Sydney.

Bonmati scored three times at the tournament and laid on two assists as La Roja won the competition for the first time. Although subsequent events at the medal ceremony involving disgraced former Spanish football federation chief Luis Rubiales hogged headlines, Bonmati´s brilliance lives long in the memory.

It followed a near perfect season at club level where she stepped up in Putellas´ absence to become the creative pulse of a dominant Barcelona side which dazzled at home and on the continent.

Playing in a more advanced role, Bonmati scored five times in the Champions League and set up eight more goals to finish as the top assister by some distance. Technically gifted, Bonmati is essential for Barcelona to play their brand of attractive possession football, but also has an eye for goal.

She arrives in the box with perfect timing and can turn on a dime to leave opposition defenders scrambling and find room to get away a typically lethal shot. Current Barca men´s coach Xavi described Bonmati is “a real perfectionist”, while his mentor and Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola compared her to another former Barcelona great Andres Iniesta. Coming through Barcelona´s celebrated youth system after joining at 13 years old, she led the reserve team to a first ever second division title before earning her place in the first team squad in 2016.