Football's summer period is drawing to a close, and the time for awards is on its way. The prelude to the Ballon d'Or is around the corner, UEFA's Best Player in Europe Award. The three finalists (officially announced on Tuesday) for the second edition of this competition are already known. The nominees are Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Iniesta.
In 2011, Barça's Argentine player won the prize that he hopes to win again this year, for his role as a clinical assassin in the penalty boxes of Spain's Primera División. His claim to the prize is a 50-goal haul last time around. He'll be up against Cristiano "The Killer" Ronaldo, the leading actor in another tale with 46 goals, who starts with the advantage of having won the league with Madrid and reached the semi-finals of Euro 2012 with Portugal.
Amongst the 32 candidates there were seven Madrid players compared to Barcelona's four. Players missing out on the podium include other favourites such as Drogba, who won the Champions League, and some of Spain's successful team at Euro 2012. Torres and Silva were also on the initial list of 32, as was Raul, who now plays for Qatar's Al-Sadd.
This vote is reliable for predicting the candidates for the coming Ballon d'Or. Last year Messi, Xavi and Ronaldo, in this order, climbed the podium for UEFA's Best Player in Europe Award. Months later, Messi, Ronaldo and Xavi finished first, second and third in the Ballon d'Or. The prize is awarded by journalists from the 53 federations that are members of UEFA. The journalists will select the winner on 30th August in Monaco.
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