Chelsea defender Thiago Silva has branded the FIFA Awards “a joke” after Manchester City striker Julian Alvarez finished seventh in the voting for the Best Men’s Player prize.

A Brazilian Instagram account questioned why Alvarez were so high up on the list by saying:

“Voted seventh best in the world, is always on the bench for Man City, is not an absolute starter of his national team and was at River Plate most of the time of the period! Spectacular! Am I CLEAR???”

Silva reportedly replied to the post by saying “it’s a joke”. The defender is clearly frustrated by the voting process, and the fact that the highest Brazilian on the list (Neymar) was only ninth may have something to do with it.

Alvarez’s position is very much down to his performance at the World Cup, where he made a massive impact after being introduced into the starting lineup during the group stages.

The 23-year-old scored four goals and contributed one assist in the five matches he started in Qatar, helping his country to win the tournament. For that reason, Silva’s criticism is unwarranted, although there are justifiable criticisms about the FIFA awards and how rankings are weighted.