Monday afternoon saw UEFA release the ten man shortlist for the 2015/16 Best Player in Europe Award.
Journalists from the 55 member nations were asked to submit a list of their top five players from the past season and the first pick received five points, the second four and so on.
The ten players with the most points at the end of the initial vote went to a second phase and that will determine the top three finalists to be named on August 5.
The overall winner of the Award will then be named during the 2016/17 Champions League Group Stage draw in Monaco on August 25 following a vote on the day.
The top ten are.
Gareth Bale (Real Madrid & Wales)
Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus & Italy)
Antoine Griezmann (Atlético Madrid & France)
Toni Kroos (Real Madrid & Germany)
Lionel Messi (Barcelona & Argentina)
Thomas Müller (Bayern München & Germany)
Manuel Neuer (Bayern München & Germany)
Pepe (Real Madrid & Portugal)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid & Portugal)
Luis Suárez (Barcelona & Uruguay)
The overall 37 man shortlist that was created in the initial vote also included some very familiar names – listed in order of their final placing and it’s no real surprise to see Leicester duo Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy backed up by West Ham’s Dimitri Payet given the years they had.
11 Riyad Mahrez (Leicester & Algeria)
12 Jamie Vardy (Leicester & England)
13 Dimitri Payet (West Ham & France)
14 Jérôme Boateng (Bayern München & Germany)
15 Arturo Vidal (Bayern München & Chile)
16 Luka Modrić (Real Madrid & Croatia)
17 N’Golo Kanté (Leicester & France)
18 Zlatan Ibrahimović (Paris Saint-Germain/Manchester United & Sweden)
19 Eden Hazard (Chelsea & Belgium)
19 Andrés Iniesta (Barcelona & Spain)
19 Neymar (Barcelona & Brazil)
19 Renato Sanches (Benfica/Bayern München & Portugal)
23 Robert Lewandowski (Bayern München & Poland)
24 Gonzalo Higuaín (Napoli & Argentina)
25 Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus & Italy)
25 Diego Godin (Atlético Madrid & Uruguay)
25 Will Grigg (Wigan & Northern Ireland)
25 Hugo Lloris (Tottenham & France)
25 Paul Pogba (Juventus & France)
30 Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham & Belgium)
30 Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund & Gabon)
30 Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City & Belgium)
30 Kevin Gameiro (Sevilla & France)
30 Grzegorz Krychowiak (Sevilla/Paris Saint-Germain & Poland)
30 Blaise Matuidi (Paris Saint-Germain & France)
30 Georges-Kévin N’Koudou (Marseille & France)
30 Jan Oblak (Atlético Madrid & Slovenia)
Plenty of fans would no doubt argue with the final positions some achieved, but as only one man can win the trophy, acknowledgement alone for many would be enough.
