The three finalists for the prestigious Ballon D’or award were announced earlier today. The candidates, who were the expected trio to a large extent, include Barcelona star Lionel Messi, Real Madrid maestro Cristiano Ronaldo and Bayern Munich winger Franck Ribery.
Ribery – who is now 30 years old – is possibly the most likely potential winner, thanks to his exceptional contributions to what has been a big year for the German giants; they have seen success in several competitions, including winning both the Bundesliga and Champions League. Ribery’s side are currently on an 18-match unbeaten home run in all competitions – making somewhat of a fortress of their home, the Allianz Arena.
Bayern have also managed to accumulate a series of 40 unbeaten Bundesliga matches since losing against Bayer Leverkusen in October 2012. The latest German team to fall victim at the hands of the Bavarian giants was Werder Bremen at the weekend, after they the league-leaders put seven goals past them, without conceding a single goal themselves. The match ended with Guardiola stating that he was “honoured” by his team's performance. There is no doubt that he was also proud of Ribery’s performance too, as he showed that he’s back to his best after returning from a rib injury with 2 goals and 2s assists in an outstanding display.
Ribery himself has amassed an impressive 31 goals in 77 appearances for club and country in the past two campaigns, whilst also turning provider for a further 34 goals for teammates. After already being selected as UEFA's Best Player in Europe, the Frenchman has been tipped for further recognition by his team’s president - Uli Hoeness - who stated that Ribery is an “unbelievable player” and that “there is no other player in the world” who deserves the Ballon D’Or more.
Looking to the possibly more preferred options, we have the two La Liga stars Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. The former – a product of the phenomenal youth setup at Barcelona – won the accolade the three consecutive years of 2010, 2011 and 2012. However, despite his remarkable record of 91 goals and 23 assists in 77 games, the Argentine has been ruled out until at least the New Year with a hamstring injury.On 18 September 2013, Messi scored his twenty-fourth career hat-trick in Barca’s win against Ajax in the Champions League. With this hat-trick, Messi became the first player to score four hat tricks in the Champions League. However, in response to his injury, bookies have drifted his price out to 8/1.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid and Portugal forward has been thriving at Messi’s Spanish rivals, netting 100 goals in his last 97 appearances, assisting 21 goals during this time. The former-Manchester United star has netted 60 goals in 2013 alone, whilst in January 2013, Ronaldo scored his 300th club goal. Hence,the Portuguese international is the hot favourite to scoop his second Ballon D’Or – having previously won in 2008, and seeing himself second-best in 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2012. Odds on Ronaldo winning have dropped massively from 6/4 to 4/9, replacing Franck Ribery as favourite.
