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It's been habitual now to complete the above sentence with Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi. Of course, how can't it be? Since 2008, this award has only been won by one of these two men.
Arguably two of the best footballers that the game has ever witnessed, Ronaldo and Messi have established a duopoly that has lasted for a decade.
Their dominance is such that every other player might just dream of the third place as the first two were always booked by the Portuguese and the Argentine, shuffling the places between them. With 5 Ballons d'Or each, they have set a record which probably won't be beaten anytime in the future.
But there's an end to everything, isn't it? So even this two-horse race for the Ballon d'Or would come to an end.
There has been something different about the 2017-18 season, many other stars are putting up great individual performances and these players will want to have a say in where the most coveted individual accolade in world football ends up in 2018.
Some older names had threatened to challenge before; Wesley Sneijder, Manuel Neuer, Franck Ribery, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Arjen Robben, Thomas Muller, and many more are among those who have come close but have faded a bit as the consistency of Ronaldo and Messi is something that none could replicate.
On that note, let us take a look at 5 such talents who could be good enough to dethrone Ronaldo and Messi:
#5 Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain, France)
Mbappé is currently one of the most talented youngsters. Arsenal's coach Arsene Wenger once stated that Mbappe has similarities to former French star Thierry Henry.
The 19-year-old has already got everybody astonished with his performances on and off the ball.
He was instrumental in helping his former club, AS Monaco win the Ligue 1 title, surpassing Paris Saint-Germain by a fair margin in the previous season.
For the very same reason, PSG pushed the envelope to get the starlet into their side on loan to strengthen their attack. At present, Mbappé is running riot alongside Edinson Cavani and Neymar and the trio is quickly becoming one of Europe's deadliest attacking combinations.
The prodigy is an integral part of manager Unai Emery's plans for obvious reasons. This season, in Ligue one, the French star has 9 goals and 8 assists already under his name, to add to his 4 goals in 6 appearances in the UEFA Champions League.
Kylian Mbappé has risen to fame within a very short period and given his age, he still has ample of time to establish himself. If he can consistently carry forward his current form just like his idol, Cristiano Ronaldo, did, maybe he too can grab the Golden Ball down the line.
#4 Eden Hazard (Chelsea, Belgium)
It's a fact that the current form of the Belgian attacker is not convincing enough for him to make it into the potential Ballon d'Or winners' list. Right now, yes, not many would vote for him to be the next Ballon d'Or. However, there's absolutely no denying the sheer talent that this man possesses.
He was the talk of the town a few seasons ago to join the regular names like Messi and Cristiano in the top echelons of football, but injury was what held him back and of course, his comeback wasn't that influential.
Nonetheless, The Blues' attacking midfielder is back into business and can be seen progressing with his game already. He looks determined to start off from where he had left earlier.
Eden Hazard has been compared to both Messi and Ronaldo in regards to his playing style by his coaches. His club side being Chelsea, and national side being Belgium, show that Eden surely has great chances to win trophies.
Due to his performance in the 2013-14 season, Hazard was a part of the 23-man shortlist of players nominated for the prestigious FIFA Ballon d'Or. Later, in 2015 he ended up as the 8th best men's footballer in the world with 1.33% of votes in his favour from around the world.
Now, all he has to do is work on his consistency, which he will, such is his calibre.
#3 Mohamed Salah (Liverpool, Egypt)
Mo Salah! The Egyptian King as called by his fans, or the Egyptian Messi, as called by the media, has been a prominent figure for Liverpool this season. The former Roma and Chelsea forward has been consistent this season with his club and also has a huge hand (or leg to be precise) in their victories so far.
With 18 goals and 6 assists, he is the club's top scorer and the one with most assists so far in the domestic competition. Salah is also the second top scorer in the Premier League right now (2 goals behind Harry Kane).
Liverpool's number 11 is recognized as a fast-paced and tactical footballer who perfectly uses his speed and set of skills to beat the defenders. After leaving the Serie A side to play in the Premier League, not many expected Salah to establish himself like this in, arguably, the most challenging league in the world.
The current CAF African Footballer of the Year possesses every element on an individual level to win the Ballon d'Or if he continues to fire just like he is right now. However, a major hurdle in his path is the silverware (lack thereof, rather) in Liverpool's trophy cabinet.
#2 Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur, England)
Harry Kane would be the fan-favourite name when it comes to potential Ballon d'Or winners. The Spurs striker is a marauder and an epitome of consistency in front of goals, and has been for a few seasons.
If it hadn't been for the lack of trophies, one can easily bet that Kane would have already made it into the Ballon d'Or gala along with Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. For now, aspects like form, consistency, and goals are all under check, but trophies? Alas! Those are the only things that separate him from Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi.
Kane seems to be having the best season of his career so far in terms of individual display in both Premier League and the Champions League.
It seems like it's just a matter of time until Pochettino's men win the league title (or Kane moves elsewhere and wins a league title) and Harry Kane will, in all probability, eventually lift the Golden Ball, claiming the award for the Best Footballer on the planet to himself.
#1 Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain, Brazil)
The treble winner with Barcelona has missed out on the Ballon d'Or award twice, after having finished third on both the occasions. In 2015, when the award was collaborated with FIFA and was known as the FIFA Ballon d'Or award, Neymar finished 3rd with 7.86% of the total votes.
In 2017, with 361 points, the Brazilian again finished third, only behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Neymar has everything that Messi and Ronaldo have got, at times in fact, even a bit more than what the duo has when it comes to International trophies.
The Paris Saint-Germain forward is said to have left Barcelona to get out of Lionel Messi's shadow. After his switch to the French side, Neymar has earned more freedom to play as per his natural style which includes skill sets and dribbles, and boy! He is looking even more dangerous now!
It's only been his first season at the Parc des Princes and everything seems to be falling in place for him already. Maybe time is the only factor that Neymar needs now to lift the Ballon d'Or in any of the upcoming galas.
He is playing a pivotal role in PSG's strong run so far in Ligue 1 and the UEFA Champions League. Neymar is one of the fewest players, at the moment, to be equally good in both, converting and creating the chances (Of course, he is the world's most expensive footballer for a reason).
The reasons stated above makes him the absolute most favourite in my list of prospective Ballon d'Or winners to dethrone Messi or Ronaldo in the near future, to end the decade-long two-horse race.
