EA downgrades Cristiano Ronaldo to joint third-best player in the world for FIFA 22 Eurogamer.net If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. EA downgrades Cristiano Ronaldo to joint third-best player in the world for FIFA 22 Maybe he'll Siiiiuu. News by Wesley Yin-Poole Deputy Editorial Director Updated on 13 Sep 2021 47 comments It's that time of the year again: EA has announced the ratings for the top 22 players in FIFA 22. And as usual they've sparked a vociferous debate. There are a few eyebrow raisers in here, but let's start at the top and with Cristiano Ronaldo, who has been downgraded one point in overall score. Watch on YouTube Ronaldo was rated 92 overall in last year's game, and second only to Lionel Messi's 93. For FIFA 22, however, Ronaldo has a 91 overall rating, and is booted into joint third alongside the likes of Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne, Kylian Mbappé and Neymar of Paris Saint-Germain, and Atletico de Madrid keeper Jan Oblak. That means Ronaldo is out of the top two best players in the world according to FIFA for what feels like a lifetime. Replacing him, some will argue deservedly so, is Bayern goal machine Robert Lewandowski, who has an overall 92 rating having had a 91 last year. Messi is still the best player in the world, according to FIFA, with a 93. Is the Ronaldo downgrade justified? The 36-year-old isn't getting any younger, of course, but anyone who watched his second debut for Manchester United at the weekend will know he can still play at a high level. Perhaps a more controversial downgrade is that suffered by Liverpool's Mohamed Salah, who sees a single point overall rating reduction from 90 to 89. I've seen fans already left scratching their head at this one - Salah was arguably Liverpool's best player last season, almost single-handedly dragging the club into the top four of the Premier League. And he's started this season wonderfully. Is he worse, now, than he was? As a Chelsea fan, I'm delighted to see the irrepressible N'Golo Kanté in the top 22 with a 90 rating, up from last year's 88. Well deserved for a player who was man of the match in the Champions League semi-final second leg and final. I'd have loved to have seen Romelu Lukaku make the cut after his title-winning season for Inter and his ongoing exploits for his country and new club. Is he worse than Real Madrid's Karim Benzema? I think he's better, but then I would. The only English player in the top 22 is Spurs and England captain Harry Kane, who jumps from 88 to 90. Here's the top 22: Messi - 93 Lewandowski - 92 Ronaldo - 91 De Bruyne - 91 Mbappé - 91 Neymar - 91 Oblak - 91 Kane - 90 Kanté - 90 Neuer - 90 Ter Stegen - 90 Salah - 89 Donnarumma - 89 Benzema - 89 Van Dijk - 89 Kimmich - 89 Son - 89 Alisson - 89 Courtois - 89 Casemiro - 89 Ederson - 89 Mané - 89 Become a Eurogamer subscriber and get your first month for £1 Get your first month for £1 (normally £3.99) when you buy a Standard Eurogamer subscription. Enjoy ad-free browsing, merch discounts, our monthly letter from the editor, and show your support with a supporter-exclusive comment flair! Support us View supporter archive More News Google announces cloud gaming Chromebooks less than a fortnight after Stadia shutdown GeForce Now preinstalled. 4 Atari will hold RollerCoaster Tycoon rights for another decade Ups and downs. 7 Lady Dimitrescu will be a tad smaller in Resident Evil Village's Mercenaries DLC Level the playing field. 1 Overwatch 2 suffers another DDoS attack and character roster bugs Mei Mei. 13 Latest Articles Digital Foundry Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090: a new level in graphics performance The Digital Foundry video review - and how the new GPU champion delivers for 4K 120fps gaming. Google announces cloud gaming Chromebooks less than a fortnight after Stadia shutdown GeForce Now preinstalled. 4 Feature Evercore Heroes wants to wind people up the right way "There's less rage at them, because they didn't end your fun." Genshin Impact Path of Gleaming Jade dates, login event rewards Including other anniversary rewards and how to claim them. Supporters Only Premium only Off Topic: Take a minute to appreciate Cookin' with Coolio's incredible scallops recipe. What a great book. Premium only Off Topic: Reading City of Glass in comic form "Where exactly am I going?" Premium only Off Topic: Il Buco is a transporting film about a really big hole Underlands. Off-Topic Netflix handled Sandman brilliantly It was Dreamy. 9 Buy things with globes on them And other lovely Eurogamer merch in our official store! Explore our store