The statement is an opinion told in the style of being a universal truth/saying or a quote; hence Present Indefinite tense is used. Also the use of Present tense in second clause<em> (is what counts)</em> requires the use of present tense in first clause. So, options A and F are incorrect (because they use Past tense).
In Present indefinite tense, we add <em>s/es</em> after verbs when the subject of the verb (man) is singular, so option B is incorrect.
Moreover the sentence structure requires use of a verb after the subject (man), hence options C, D, and E are incorrect (they have nouns).
