Alaba racially abused by his own fans following Messi vote at The Best FIFA Football Awards

David Alaba has received racist abuse from some Real Madrid supporters after it was revealed he voted for Lionel Messi for the men's footballer of the year at last night's The Best FIFA awards ceremony.

Alaba, as Austria's captain, was required to submit a vote on who he thinks are the top three footballers in world football.

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Real Madrid fans were angered by the fact he voted for Messi ahead of club teammate Karim Benzema and Paris Saint-Germain's Kylian Mbappe.

But Alaba, 30, has since taken to Twitter to say Austria's national team submitted the vote collectively rather than individually, allowing the captain to decide the standings.

Alaba wrote on Twitter:

"Regarding FIFA The Best Award: The Austrian national team voted for this award as a team, not me alone. Everyone in the team council is able to vote, and that's how it's decided.

"Everyone knows, especially Karim, how much I admire him and his performances and I have often said that for me, he is the best striker in the world, and that is still the case. Without a doubt."

Alaba, who joined the Spanish champions in July 2021, was targeted on social media, with Real Madrid fans posting monkey and gorilla emojis on his most recent Instagram post.

Real Madrid fans also wrote 'Alaba Out' as they revealed their disdain at his apparent selections.