The 23 man list for FIFA’s Ballon d’Or was released and here’s a run-down of which teams have the most nominees for player of the year.
The Lone Wolves
Third place: Manchester City (3 players nominated)
Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero, Kevin De Bruyne and Yaya Toure all have made the list. Aguero has been other worldly for the citizens in his recent form, doubling teammate Kevin De Bruyne’s three goals thus far.
Second Place: TIE Real Madrid & Bayern Munich (5 nominees ea.)
Both Real Madrid and Bayern Munich have five players that made the list for player of the year which isn’t surprising given that both clubs are powerhouses in their respective leagues.
Real Madrid has ever-present Cristiano Ronaldo as well as Gareth Bale, Toni Kroos, Karim Benzema, and James Rodriguez. Cristiano is of course considered to be one of the favorites in the running with one Ballon D’or to his name as well as taking runner up the last three years in a row.
Bayern Munich host a bevy of top nominees as well: Robert Lewandowski, Thomas Muller, Manuel Neuer, Arjen Robben, and Arturo Vidal all are being considered. Lewandowski is a stand-out for his recent five goal extravaganza, but Manuel Neuer has had some unbelievable performances in net as well.
First Place: FC Barcelona (6 nominations)
With the four time Ballon d’Or winner (and baby-faced assassin) Lionel Messi on the squad as well as Neymar Jr. and Luis Suarez it was obvious that Barcelona would be on the list, but six?
Past the team’s offensive trio Javier Mascherano, Andrés Iniesta, and Ivan Rakitic all were given nods for the player of the year award. It’s surprising that one club is able to house so many egos and world-class talents.
Stay tuned because FIFA will cut the list down from 23 to just 3 finalists on November 30th with the final ceremony in January.
