“I’m still in shock. I believe this is a blessing for my children.

“I would like to thank my fans and voters. I hope they keep it coming,” the Kedah-born midfielder told FMT.

Faiz, however, said that whatever the outcome, being among the top three finalists was already a very meaningful achievement.

His goal was among the ones nominated from games played all around the world.

The goals were selected from all levels of the game, as long as it was scored during an officially sanctioned tournament, with video footage to support the claim.

His fellow nominees include Argentina’s Lionel Messi for a goal against the United States and Brazil’s Neymar for his goal in Barcelona’s match against Villareal.

Faiz took the football world by storm after his free kick, which was said to have been struck in a “knuckleball” manner, fooled Pahang goalie Mohd Nasril Nourdin before ending in the top-right corner.

A knuckleball is when a player kicks the ball in such a way that it initially goes in one direction before swerving the other way and bamboozles the goalkeeper.

Among the players known to score such amazing goals are Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale.

The video clip of Faiz’s goal went viral and has currently been viewed more than 2.8 million times. This is expected to increase after Faiz’s nomination.

Meanwhile, the Professional Footballers Association of Malaysia (PFAM) patron Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim awarded RM15,000 to Faiz as an incentive after his free kick made it to the top three spots.

“This is to show our appreciation as he has put Malaysia on the map,” Tunku Ismail, who is also the crown prince of Johor, wrote on the Johor Southern Tigers Facebook page.

He said the money had nothing to do with speculation that Faiz would join Johor Darul Takzim (JDT) next season.

Prior to the RM15,000 reward, the Penang government had awarded Faiz RM10,000.

The Puskas award is named after legendary Hungarian player Ferenc Puskas, who won three European Cups with Real Madrid between 1959 and 1966.