Football’s governing body has come out with its annual 23 man shortlist for the Ballon d’Or, and it makes for interesting reading. Lionel Messi will again be the favourite, and is in line to win for an unbelievable fifth year in a row. However, the 26 year old will be challenged hard by the likes of his perennial rival Cristiano Ronaldo, Champions League winners Frank Ribery and Arjen Robben, as well as big money mover Radamel Falcao. The award will be presented in Zurich in January.
The UK has not come off well in the list of the supposed 23 best players in the world. There are no English players and Gareth Bale is Britain’s only representative. The Premier League is also more poorly represented than in previous years. Only five of the names, less than a quarter, call the Prem home. Comparatively, France’s Ligue 1 has four, La Liga has five and the Bundesliga leads the way with seven.
Interestingly, midfielders and attackers comprise almost all of the shortlist. Manuel Neuer is the only goalkeeper present, and Thiago Silva and Philip Lahm are the sole defenders. Only having three defensive players is a gross under-appreciation on FIFA’s part. Even last year they had three goalkeepers on the list.
Nationality wise, the 23 are very diverse. Fifteen countries are represented, most of which are done so by a single player. Bale for Wales, Lewandowski for Poland, Ibrahimovic for Sweden, Falcao for Colombia, Hazard for Belgium, Pirlo for Italy and Messi for Argentina will all be flying their respective countries’ flags in Zurich. Yaya Toure will be doing the same for Ivory Coast, and is the only African player on the list, as well as the only player not from Europe or South America.
The best represented nation is Germany, which is not surprising given last year’s Champions League was competed for by Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. Philip Lahm, Mesut Ozil, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Thomas Muller and Manuel Neuer all have a chance of being named the world’s best; and given the recent success of both Bayern Munich and the national team, don’t be surprised if one or two of these names give Messi a run for his money.
That said, the little Argentinian is still the clear favourite for the award. Cristiano Ronaldo again had a prolific season with Real Madrid, but given that he’s been overlooked four years in a row, it is difficult to see why he would suddenly be preferred over Messi.
One man who should also do well in voting is Radamel Falcao. The Colombian scored 28 league goals for Atletico Madrid last season, as well as being the crucial factor in their Copa del Rey victory over rivals Real. He already has eight league goals for new club Monaco, and netted an impressive nine times in Colombia’s successful World Cup qualifying campaign.
Bayern Munich’s two wingers, Frank Ribery and Arjen Robben should also finish with high percentages of the vote. The two flanks are in many ways the driving force of European champions Bayern, and their club’s consistent continental success in the last few seasons will factor favourably in the eyes of the voters.
Those voters are a selection of players and coaches from international teams, along with prominent football journalists. Given that it is largely the same voters each year, Messi will once again be the clear favourite. That said, he may well receive his lowest percentage in victory this year, and should be challenged by more than one other player.
The 23 man shortlist also gives football fans an interesting talking point. The rise of Germans, the lack of defenders, the lack of Brits, and the Euro-centric pattern are all noteworthy factors for a list of supposedly the 23 best footballers in the world. According to FIFA’s own rankings, seven of the top ten countries in the world have either none or just one player on the list. So let the debate begin. Who’s been hard done by? Should the likes of Silva, Kompany, Pedro, Ramos, Pique, Chelleini, Vidal, Cazorla, Alonso, Buffon and Rooney be included? Do Hazard, Cavani, Suarez and Neymar deserve to make the cut? And perhaps most importantly, should Lionel Messi be crowned king for a fifth year running?
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