Vote for me to beat Messi: Agyemang Badu urges fans

Ghana international, Emmanuel Agyemang Badu is delighted to be nominated alongside among them Lionel Messi, Neymar and Falcao for FIFA’s goal of the year award and is urging his fans to vote for him to claim the top accolade even if he admits the competition is enormous.

The U-20 World Cup winner’s sweetly struck effort from outside the penalty box against Guinea at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations has been nominated alongside nine other strikes in the top ten goals of the year. Now football fans across the world can vote for their best of these ten goals beginning November 14 in the race to see who wins the FIFA Puskas Award 2012.

To vote, log on to http://www.fifa.com/ballondor/puskasaward/index.html where videos of the ten goals, as well as the list of scorers and the voting tool. Users of FIFA.com and francefootball.fr will be able to choose from ten goals until 29 November, when the three goals with the most votes will be disclosed during a press conference in São Paulo, Brazil.

Immediately after the announcement on 29 November, FIFA.com and francefootball.fr users will be able to vote again for their favourite from the three remaining goals. The winner will be revealed on the day of the FIFA Ballon d’Or Gala on 7 January 2013.

“The good work that I’ve been doing is paying now. I thank God and I’m grateful for this nomination. It’s a surprise, I didn’t expect it. This definitely will motivate me for the rest of my career,” Agyemang Badu said.

He went on to assess his own chances: “All depends on God. I’ve watched Neymar’s goal, I’ve watched Falcao’s goal and the others, it’s going to be difficult but everything is possible. So I’m praying for everybody who can vote to vote for me.”