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#3 Matthias Sammer - 1996 Ballon d'Or winner
In modern-day football, not many defensive players or defenders win the Ballon d’Or award. Fabio Cannavaro was the last centre-back to win the elusive award in 2006, but Matthias Sammer is the last player to have won the Ballon d'Or award (1996) while playing as the libero.
Just describing the libero role isn’t good enough, as it was more than just orchestrating play from the back. As a libero, Sammer was scary good in building up play from the back but was equally adept in snuffing out danger and doing the dirty work at the back.
At his peak, the 1996 Ballon d'Or winner ran the show for Borussia Dortmund from his own half, helping them win back-to-back Bundesliga titles in 1995 and 1996. BvB's one and only Champions League title triumph in 1997 was also massive for the club, as it cemented Sammer's place in the history books as one of the best liberos in the game.
#2 Igor Belanov – 1986 Ballon d'Or winner
In a decade dominated by Michel Platini and some legendary Dutch players, Igor Belanov’s name as a Ballon d'Or winner does spring a surprise. But Belanov’s talent and output on the pitch perhaps deserved him the Ballon d’Or accolade.
Playing for the erstwhile Soviet Union in the 1986 FIFA World Cup, Belanov scored four goals in as many games. It was perhaps a surprise that the Soviet Union did not make it past Belgium in the pre-quarterfinal, but Belanov certainly caught the eye with his performances.
That year, Belanov helped Dynamo Kyiv win the Soviet League and the Cup Winners Cup. Under the meticulous Valeriy Lobanovskyi, Kyiv played some entertaining football, with Belanov at the heart of it all.
He did not have the playboy looks of someone like Michel Platini or perhaps wasn’t as stylish as Ruud Gullit, but boy Belanov did leave a mark on the pitch! With his pace and ability to glide past defenders, Belanov was pretty easy on the eye.
He was perhaps not popular enough because he spent a large part of his career playing for Dynamo Kyiv. Although he had a brief spell in the Bundesliga, the 1986 Ballon d'Or winner was well past his peak.
#1 Oleg Blokhin – 1975 Ballon d'Or winner
Oleg Blokhin was another player who was part of the exciting Dynamo Kyiv and Soviet Union teams of the late 1970s and 1980s. He won the Ballon d'Or award in 1975
The mercurial forward scored 42 times in 112 appearances for the Soviet Union and a record 266 goals for Dynamo Kyiv. It’s unlikely these marks will be eclipsed any time soon.
Like Belanov, Blokhin was blessed with electric pace and was a deadly finisher. He was a pretty skilful forward too, and with someone like Lobanovskyi coaching him, goals were always going to be the outcome.
Blokhin's goal in the first leg of the European Super Cup against Bayern Munich in 1975 perhaps best epitomised the qualities he possessed as a player.
He used his speed to ease past Georg Schwarzenbeck, an accomplished, versatile defender.
Just when it looked like Bayern had regrouped to avert the danger, Blokhin used his quick feet and incredible burst of pace to leave Franz Beckenbauer for dead, which was no easy feat. And the finish, to beat Sepp Maier, one of the best goalkeepers at the time, was top notch too.
Blokhin never really tried his luck in some of the more popular foreign leagues. That is perhaps one of the reasons why he isn’t as popular as some of the other legends to have won the Ballon d’Or award in the 1970s.
