Alaba received the cup before the international match in Linz “soccer player of the year”

The Real Madrid professional accepted the award from APA editor-in-chief Johannes Bruckenberger on Friday before the first international match of the year in Linz against Azerbaijan. Alaba won the 2022 election organized by the APA – Austria Press Agency for the third time in a row. With a total of nine awards, the 30-year-old Viennese is the superior record winner.

In addition to Alaba, only Ivica Vastic (4) and Herbert Prohaska (3) have won more than two trophies in the election, which has been held among the coaches of the domestic Bundesliga since 1984. Alaba has received the award six times in a row from 2011 to 2016 and continuously since 2020. At the start of the European Championship qualification against Azerbaijan, the ÖFB captain was not in the squad. Alaba only started team training on Wednesday after a muscle injury in his thigh.