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The announcement of the 62nd Ballon d'Or is less than 36 hours away and the tension is mounting as we inch closer to what could be a pivotal moment in a rivalry which has gone on to define a generation.
If Cristiano Ronaldo wins the golden beauty, it will be the 5th time he would have done it - helping him draw level with arch-rival Lionel Messi. However, if it is the Argentine who comes out on top then he will widen the gap between himself and the Portuguese.
With football being a team sport, giving so much importance to an individual award is harmful to the sport in general. However, the Ballon d'Or's prominence, popularity and importance grew in the eyes of the fans ever since it has been used as a benchmark to determine which out of Ronaldo or Messi is the better footballer.
Anyways, the existence of the Ballon d'Or and the significance of the award is a debate for another day and one we shall touch upon in the near future.
However, now is not the time to discuss all that, instead, let's take a look at the 5 leading contenders to win Ballon d'Or 2017:
#5 Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus, Italy)
Everything was set for Gianluigi Buffon to put an end to the Cristiano Ronaldo-Lionel Messi duopoly in the Ballon d'Or, by becoming the first goalkeeper since the legendary Lev Yashin, and only the second shot-stopper ever, to be awarded the Ballon d'Or.
All the Italian shot-stopper had to do was ensure that Juventus beat Real Madrid in the final of the UEFA Champions League, thereby helping Buffon win his first UCL title too.
However, in the 90 minutes of football played between the two European giants on 3rd June at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, all hopes of the legendary Italian custodian were dashed, as Cristiano Ronaldo and company completed a well-deserved 4-1 rout of the Old Lady.
Things have not gone according to plan since for the 39-year-old, who also announced his retirement from international football after Italy failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Buffon's career may not be complete without the UEFA Champions League and the Ballon d'Or. But it is only the former which he would truly regret having missed out on. For it was the Ballon d'Or's loss that it was never awarded to one of the greatest of all times - as has been the case with a few others.
#4 Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City, Belgium)
Pep Guardiola's Manchester City are one of the most in-form teams in Europe. Not only are they one of the few teams in the world which are unbeaten this season, they have managed to brush aside teams with relative ease, be it Liverpool or Napoli.
However, the key cog in Guardiola's well-oiled juggernaut is none other than Kevin De Bruyne. The Belgian playmaker is often ignored when the best players in the world are discussed, mostly due to his not-so-flamboyant and effortless style of play.
De Bruyne has been on fire this season too, contributing with several assists and goals so far in the season. Many are touting the Citizens to be the favourites to win the UEFA Champions League this season, and whether the Etihad outfit are able to make it to the finals of the competition for the first time in their history or not, depends, in part, on the genius of De Bruyne.
He may not have contributed with a gazillion goals and assists, but De Bruyne is, without doubt, one of the best players in the world and warrants a top 5 finish in the Ballon d'Or.
#3 Neymar (Barcelona/Paris Saint-Germain, Brazil)
For all the praise and flak that Neymar has received for his world record €222m move to Paris Saint-Germain, he must be credited for one thing - having the cojones to tread a path, not many have until now.
Moving to the French league at the peak of his powers is a huge gamble taken by Neymar. A decision he was forced to take in his quest to establish himself as the best in the world, and subsequently win the Ballon d'Or.
The Brazilian has brought some charm and audience to Ligue 1 with him, and despite coming up with some memorable performances during the course of the year, Neymar is still some way off from the two - who have dominated world football and Ballon d'Or for close to a decade now.
#2 Lionel Messi (Barcelona, Argentina)
Lionel Messi may have enjoyed quite simply one of the most outstanding years of his career, individually at least, but unfortunately for him, his heroics failed to help the team win enough silverware.
The Argentine has dragged Barcelona through some turbulent times and extremely difficult situations. This year, he even went forward and did something that many had questioned him for before - not performing for Argentina.
Did he perform and how?
With La Albiceleste needing a win in the final game against Ecuador to qualify for World Cup, the focus was on Messi and if he would be able to carry Argentina to the premier showcase in Russia next year.
To his surprise, his teammates failed him, once again, as Argentine conceded within the first minute of the game.
Messi, then - for the first time in his career, according to some - rose to the occasion for his national team as he netted an unbelievable hat-trick to ensure that he gets the chance to seal his legacy with the approval of a World Cup in 2018.
However, despite his heroics, despite his goals, despite his moments of magic, Messi manages to only come 2nd in the final Ballon d'Or Power Rankings of 2017.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid, Portugal)
A few reputed journalists have claimed that indeed, it is the Portuguese, who is set to be crowned as the winner of the Ballon d'Or for the 5th time in his career. Some reports even claim that he will be presented with the award atop the Eiffel Tower.
The 33-year-old played an extremely pivotal part in Real Madrid's historic double last season. Ronaldo was firing on all cylinders towards the business end of the season and it was his goals, plenty of them to be honest, which helped Zinedine Zidane's side script history by becoming the first ever team to win back-to-back UEFA Champions League titles.
The road since, has not been the easiest for the Santiago Bernabeu outfit or Ronaldo, with both struggling, especially in La Liga.
The Portuguese is in the midst of a goal drought of sorts as long as the Spanish league is concerned, having scored a paltry 2 goals in 10 appearances.
While it may have looked at one point of time that it was going to be a cakewalk for Ronaldo to win the Ballon d'Or this year, credit must go to Lionel Messi, who made the race interesting by producing some out-of-the-world performances in this calendar year. Especially, that hat-trick against Ecuador to helo Argentina qualify for the World Cup.
However, having helped his team script history, Ronaldo was always going to be in the driver's seat. Come Thursday night, the Portuguese is expected to tie Messi as the two players to have won the most number of Ballon d'Or awards in history.
Despite being 33, he is showing no signs of ageing and looks up for at least one or two more of these beauties.
