Super Eagles Head Coach, Sunday Oliseh, and skipper, Ahmed Musa, did vote for newly crowned FIFA Ballon d’Or winner, Lionel Messi, FIFA has revealed.
Messi clinched a record fifth FIFA World Player of the Year award at the expense of Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar at the annual award ceremony in Switzerland on Monday evening.
The award which is voted for by a panel of journalists, international coaches and captains, witnessed a slightly different voting pattern this year.
And according to a list released by the world soccer governing body, the Nigerian pair preferred the Argentine to his two rivals.
Oliseh selected Messi’s Barcelona teammates, Neymar and Luis Suarez, as first and second runner-up.
While Musa went for Ronaldo and four-time African Footballer of the Year, Yaya Toure, behind the 28-year-old.
Meanwhile, only Neymar out of the three finalists voted another finalist for the prestigious award.
The trio who are also national team captains of Argentina, Portugal and Brazil respectively had the opportunity to vote just like others.
Messi, who eventually emerged victorious with 41.33 per cent of the votes, gave his top vote to Barcelona teammate Luis Suarez, ahead of Neymar and Andres Iniesta.
Ronaldo, meanwhile, who had to settle for 27.76 per cent of the votes, picked three Real Madrid teammates as well, going with Karim Benzema ahead of James Rodriguez and Gareth Bale.
Neymar, who completed the podium with 7.86 per cent of the votes, backed Messi, ahead of Suarez and Ivan Rakitic.
Furthermore, Germany captain, Bastian Schweinsteiger, left out both Messi and Ronaldo from this top three, going with Manuel Neuer, Thomas Muller and Neymar instead.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Arjen Robben both snubbed the Madrid star as well, naming the trio of Messi, Neymar and Suarez instead.
England skipper Wayne Rooney, gave Messi his vote, ahead of Muller and Ronaldo.
