The finalists for the FIFA Ballon d'Or are already known, with Manuel Neuer, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi leading the charge. On Thursday, the perception of one campaign suffered a blow, with Angel Di Maria being named Argentina's foreign-based Player of the Year for 2014.
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Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero were also nominated for the prize. It was the first time Messi failed to win the Olimpia de Plata since 2006, this despite enjoying a 56-goal season for both club and country.
Di Maria played a key role in Argentina's run during the 2014 World Cup. An injury (thigh) kept the 26-year-old from participating in the final against Germany. The Albiceleste suffered as a result, playing stagnant on the world's biggest stage. After propelling Real Madrid to a 10th Champions League title, Di Maria was sold to Manchester United for a record £59.7 million.
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The question is: What chance does Messi have of winning the Ballon d'Or after failing to capture the Olimpia de Plata?
In short, Thursday's news will have little impact. It's Cristiano Ronaldo's scoring form that will ultimately decide the award.
Not only does Ronaldo (25) have more league goals than Messi (13), but the 29-year-old boasts more than Messi, Neymar (11) and Luis Suarez (zero) combined. Across all competitions, CR7 posted a staggering 32 goals in the last half of 2014.
His final opportunity to add to that total, along with his trophy case, will come in the FIFA Club World Cup final against San Lorenzo on Sunday.
Note: Credit all statistics to officially licensed data from Opta Sports (via WhoScored).
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