Barcelona pair Lionel Messi and Xavi and Real Madrid attacker Cristiano Ronaldo make up the three man shortlist for this year’s Ballon d’Or award.
A long list of candidates was initially announced, but it comes as no surprise that the La Liga trio will contest the award of the individual accolade.
Messi is the current holder, and has won the award in 2009 and 2010; if the Argentina international is successful this year again he will join the likes of Michel Platini, Johan Cruyff and Marco van Basten in winning the honour three times in a row.
Ronaldo won the accolade back in 2008, and his form for Real Madrid has been nothing short of exception over the last 12 months.
The Portuguese forward topped La Liga’s scoring charts last season, and has fired the Santiago Bernabeu outfit to the summit of Spanish football this term.
Xavi is widely acknowledged as the driving force behind Pep Guardiola’s men’s possession football, and along with Andres Iniesta is a tireless midfielder for the European champions and Spain.
The decision will be made in a ceremony on January 9th in Zurich.
Meanwhile, Wayne Rooney’s overhead kick against Manchester City is up for goal of the year, along with Messi’s strike against Arsenal in the Champions League and an individual effort by Neymar for Santos against Flamengo.
The coach of the year is also up for grabs, as Sir Alex Ferguson does battle with Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola.
By Gareth McKnight
[ad_pod id=’writer-1′ align=’right’]
