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The 30 man shortlist for the Ballon d’Or award was finally announced last night and although it included the familiar names like Lionel Messi, Antoine Griezmann, Luis Suarez and Cristiano Ronaldo, there were some surprising inclusions and exclusions in that list.
While all the 5 players on this list did have amazing years for their clubs and country, we believe that these players are slightly lucky to be on this list ahead of the other top players in Europe.
We take a look at 5 players who did not deserve to be on the 30 man Ballon d’Or shortlist:
Rui Patricio (Sporting CP/ Portugal)
Rui Patricio might have been one of the star performers in the Euro 2016 final, but barring that display, he did not exactly set the world on fire with his goalkeeping skills at Sporting CP.
The Portuguese shot-stopper was selected ahead of some much more deserving candidates like Jan Oblak or David De Gea thanks to his performances only in one tournament (Euro 2016). There is no denying the fact that Patricio is a very very good shot stopper, but this list is supposed to include the top 30 footballers in Europe for the year 2016 and Patricio with his performances throughout the year does not deserve to be on the 30 man shortlist.
Although it might be harsh, there is no denying the fact that there are many more deserving candidates who can be on the list ahead of the talented Portuguese shot-stopper.
Dimitri Payet (West Ham United/ France)
The standout player in West Ham United’s squad, Dimitri Payet had a dream 2016, but considering the top class footballers currently plying their trade in Europe, Payet’s inclusion ahead of the likes of stalwarts like Bonucci, Sanchez and Ozil does merit a few questions.
The Frenchman was absolutely sensational for West Ham this year, but in the end, they failed to qualify for the main draw of the Europa League and even France fell agonisingly short in the Euro 2016 final.
Although Payet sizzled in the opening rounds for France, his performance levels dropped in the knockout games and he failed to live up in the really big matches. Having said all that, Payet did have an excellent year personally, but there will be some players who will feel that they did more with their club and country than the mercurial Frenchman.
Arturo Vidal (Bayern Munich/ Chile)
The Bayern Munich midfielder is undoubtedly in the top 10 midfielders of the world right now, but the combative Chilean did not exactly have a breathtaking season for the Bundesliga giants.
The Chilean took some time to settle in the Bayern Munich side and struggled to hit the heights he is capable of under Pep Guardiola. Although Vidal did not have a bad season by any stretch of the imagination, the box-to-box midfielder was definitely capable of much more.
Although Vidal did win the Copa America Centenario with Chile this year, Alexis Sanchez was arguably the star of the show and midfielders like Kante and Ozil will feel hard-done by the fact that they were not included in the 30 man shortlist ahead of the Chilean.
Koke (Atletico Madrid/ Spain)
The talented Spanish midfielder had a stellar campaign with Atletico Madrid last year, but he failed to stand up when it mattered the most, putting in slightly sub-par performances in crucial games like the Champions League final.
Spain manager Vicente Del Bosque did not have the faith to play him in the Euros and chose Fabregas and Silva ahead of the 24-year-old midfielder. While there is no doubting the talent of Koke, the midfielder will need to stand up and be counted more in the big games to be really considered among the very best in the world.
The Rojiblancos star has long been considered to be a long-term heir to Xavi in Spain and if he keeps up his performances and consistency he might well achieve that although his nomination this year might just be one year too early.
Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich/Germany)
Widely considered to be one of the greatest goalkeepers of this generation, Manuel Neuer’s inclusion on this slider might prove to be a surprise for many people,but if someone runs the rule over Neuer’s performances in the Bundesliga this year, he will see that the German has made quite a lot of uncharacteristic errors this year.
Always considered to be solid and a pioneer of the ‘sweeper-keeper’ trend, Neuer was not at his best last year and once again, goalkeepers like David De Gea and Jan Oblak will consider themselves unlucky not to make the list ahead of the German.
Although he has pulled up his performance levels this season again, purely considering his displays in the calendar year so far, Neuer does not deserve to be in the 30 man Ballon d’Or shortlist.
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