Virgil van Dijk should have beaten Lionel Messi to the men's player award at the Best FIFA Football ceremony on Monday, says Celtic manager Neil Lennon.
He said: "Messi is Messi and, if you look at the numbers, we probably take it for granted what he does because he just does it so well on a regular basis.
"But I thought Virgil was the outstanding player in domestic and European football this year and he deserved to win it. I'm disappointed for him."
Asked if being a defender holds Van Dijk back when it comes to individual awards, Lennon said: "Probably.
"We're in an era of (Cristiano) Ronaldo and Messi. We're lucky to have them and we should enjoy them. Remarkable is an understatement when it comes to those two.
"But I felt that as a centre-half he's just been outstanding in every aspect of his game."