Carli Lloyd wins second straight FIFA award for best women's player
Carli Lloyd can still be considered the best female player in the world of soccer, as the U.S. star took home her second consecutive FIFA award for best women's player at FIFA's "The Best" awards gala on Monday.
The award is something of a surprise for Lloyd, who was not expected to win after a strong 2016 from fellow finalists Melanie Behringer (Olympic gold medlist Germany) and Marta (Brazil).
"I honestly wasn't expecting this," Lloyd said after accepting the award.
But while Lloyd may not have enjoyed as much success as she did in 2015, but still performed well in 2016 despite the United States' elimination from the Olympics at the quarterfinal stage. Lloyd scored scored 17 international goals over the course of the year, including two at the Olympics, to go with five goals in just seven appearances with the Houston Dash of the NWSL.
Behringer captained her national team and scored a tournament-leading five goals as it won gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Her goals included winners in the quarterfinal against China and in the semifinal against Canada. The title was the last act in a long international career for Behringer, who retired from international soccer shortly after winning the gold. In her career with Germany, Behringer won the 2007 Women's World Cup and the 2009 and 2013 European Championship in addition to the 2016 Olympics. She also led Bayern Munich's women's team to the 2016 Bundesliga title.
Marta, meanwhile, led Brazil to a fourth-place finish at the Olympics, scoring two goals in the process.
