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#3 Thierry Henry
Thierry Henry was denied the chance to win the Ballon d’Or twice at perhaps a time when he was the best forward in the world.
Henry’s pace, strength, footballing brain and skill made him a complete forward as he powered Arsenal to the 2003-04 Premier League title. The Gunners went that entire season unbeaten.
Henry scored an incredible 30 goals in 37 games in the 2003-04 Premier League campaign, and had continued to find the scoring touch the season later with 25 goals.
The forward was also a key player for the France national team, and won the European Championship and World Cup with Les Blues.
Henry finished second behind Pavel Nedved in the race for the Ballon d’Or in 2003 and third behind Fabio Cannavaro and Gianluigi Buffon in 2006.
#2 Neymar
The Brazilian is perhaps the biggest loser in the Messi-Ronaldo era of Ballon d’Or domination, having finished behind both players twice.
Neymar left Barcelona to join Paris Saint-Germain to move out of Lionel Messi’s shadow, but it hasn’t been all rosy in Ligue 1 for the Brazilian.
One of the most skilful players in the world, Neymar is someone who can not only tear defenses apart with his ability but also score a lot of goals.
The 2015-16 La Liga campaign was Neymar’s personal best as he scored 24 goals in 34 games, but the season before, he played a key role for the Blaugrana as they won the treble.
Like Lewandowski on this list, Neymar is still hoping to lift the Ballon d’Or sometime in the future as he is still only 29 and is in the peak years of his career.
#1 Ferenc Puskas
A four-time top-scorer in La Liga, Ferenc Puskas was perhaps the greatest ever forward of the previous century and of his generation to never win the Ballon d’Or award.
Most football fans will never know how good the Hungarian forward was. Real Madrid were lucky to have his innate goal-scoring ability after he emigrated to Spain following the Hungarian revolution.
Puskas was not only prolific for all the clubs he played for. His incredible 84 goals in 85 games for the Hungarian national team is a record that not many players will be able to match.
The Hungarian was unfortunate not to win the 1954 FIFA World Cup with a team fondly remembered as the Mighty Magyars.
Puskas finished second in the race for the Ballon d’Or in 1960 behind Barcelona legend Luis Suarez.
