Pepe believes it would be "a scandal" if Cristiano Ronaldo
does not win the Ballon d'Or. Xavi says the Portuguese
should not even be in the top three. Dino Zoff claims Manuel
Neuer deserves the accolade but has no chance of winning.
Jose Mourinho simply does not care about the trophy, saying
it's "bad for football".
When it comes to the Ballon d'Or, everyone in football has an
opinion - and an agenda. Consequently, when it comes to
such a subjective issue, it is often best to turn to numbers in
the search for truth.
Therefore, Goal has decided to lay out all of the facts and
figures relating to our three nominees for the duration of the
Ballon d'Or voting period (November 30, 2013 to November
21, 2014) in the hope of trying to establish the most worthy
recipient of the most prestigious individual honour in the
game.
As already noted, the closing date does Messi no favours
whatsoever, as he became the leading goalscorer in both the
Champions League and La Liga after the voting ceased.
However, as the statistics underline, Messi still had a
remarkable year with both Barcelona and Argentina.
But does the four-time winner deserve to reclaim the Ballon
d'Or from Ronaldo
, who, after a staggeringly prolific start to the season, now
boasts a Liga-record average of 1.13 goals per game?
And what of Neuer and his heroics during Germany's
triumphant World Cup campaign? Should he not be
recognised for the greatest demonstration to date of the way
in which this 'sweeper-keeper' has revolutionised the role?
Why not let the numbers help you decide?
Then again, it's worth remembering the words of Fatih Terim ,
who once said, "Statistics are like mini-skirts: they don't
reveal everything.
71 - Messi equalled Raul's all-time Champions League goal
record with a double at Ajax on November 5. The Barca ace
took outright possession of the record with a hat-trick against
APOEL in his next outing before taking his tally to 75 with a
goal against PSG on matchday 6.
54 - Ronaldo netted 54 times in just 60 appearances,
including international friendlies, for club and country between
November 30, 2013 and November 21, 2014.
34 - After his eight strikes in the knockout stage of the
2013-14 Champions League, Ronaldo has now scored more
goals in the tournament's elimination rounds than any other
player.
22 - Ronaldo equalled the record for Liga hat-tricks held by
Telmo Zarra and Alfredo Di Stefano with his treble against
Athletic Bilbao on October 5. The Portuguese subsequently
broke the record by bagging all of his club's goals in a 3-0
win over Celta on December 6.
21 - On March 23, Messi netted a hat-trick in Barcelona's 4-3
win at Real Madrid to become the all-time leading goalscorer
in El Clasico, with his treble taking his tally to 24, three more
than another Argentine legend, Di Stefano.
20 - Messi racked up a grand total of 21 assists for club and
country across the Ballon d'Or voting period - three more
than Ronaldo.
17 - Ronaldo smashed Messi's record for goals in a single
Champions League season (14) by striking 17 times during
Madrid's triumphant 2013-14 campaign.
17 - Ronaldo also struck 17 times during the opening 10
rounds of the current Liga season - a new record. Even more
impressively, the 29-year-old sat out one of those games.
Ronaldo reached 20 goals just two matchdays later, which
was also a Primera Division record.
15 - With his goal in Madrid's win at Copenhagen on
December 10, 2013, Ronaldo broke the record for most goals
scored by any player in the Champions League over a
calendar year.
14 - Messi's aforementioned hat-trick at the Santiago
Bernabeu in March also saw him draw level with Di Stefano
on Clasico goals scored exclusively in Liga encounters.
12 - Messi became the leading assist-maker in Clasico
history in March by setting up Andres Iniesta for the opening
goal.
10 - Ten of Ronaldo's 54 goals came from penalties, which
works out at 19 per cent. Some 15% of Messi's tally were
spot-kicks.
9 - Neuer kept nine clean sheets in the Bundesliga before the
closing date for Ballon d'Or votes. The 28-year-old racked up
another four before the winter break to set a new record for
the first half of a Bundesliga campaign. The German was
beaten just four times in total, which was also a new
milestone mark for the German top flight.
9 - Ronaldo's strike in Copenhagen in December of last year
also saw him claim the goals record for a solitary Champions
League group-stage campaign. However, his tally was this
season matched by Luiz Adriano of Shakhtar Donetsk.
9 - With his goal against Eibar on November 22, 2014,
Ronaldo became the first player to score against every single
side he has faced in La Liga.
8 - Messi has made the Ballon d'Or top three for an eighth
time. What's even more remarkable about this world-record
feat is that he has pulled it off in consecutive seasons, with
the Argentine having made the shortlist every year since 2007.
7 - Ronaldo and Messi have both featured in the FIFPro World
XI a record seven times in a row, dating back to 2007.
5 - Ronaldo and Messi became the first men to score 25
goals or more in five consecutive Liga seasons during the
2013-14 campaign.
4 - Neuer shipped just four goals during the second half of the
2013-14 Bundesliga season, which was a new record for the
German top flight.
3 - Ronaldo was awarded the LFP trophies for best goal, best
forward and best player at the end of the 2013-14 season - a
feat never before achieved by any player.
3 - Neuer claimed three winners' medals in 2014, winning the
Bundesliga and the DFB-Pokal in May with Bayern Munich
before lifting the biggest prize in football, the World Cup, with
Germany in July.
3 - Ronaldo also collected three trophies during the Ballon
d'Or 'year', claiming the Copa del Rey with Real Madrid in
April (though he did not play in the final), the Champions
League just over a month later and the Uefa Super Cup in
August.
3 - Ronaldo equalled Messi's record of three European Golden
Shoe wins by sharing this year's award with Barca striker
Luis Suarez. Both the Portuguese and the former Liverpool
striker hit 31 goals during the 2013-14 season.
3 - Ronaldo's 52nd-minute strike in Madrid's Champions
League last 16 second-leg win at Schalke in February saw
him become the first player to reach double figures in the
competition in three successive campaigns.
2 - With his last-gasp penalty in Madrid's 4-1 victory over
city rivals Atletico in the 2014 Champions League final,
Ronaldo became the first player to net in the tournament
decider for two European Cup-winning teams, having
previously scored in Manchester United's triumph over
Chelsea in 2008.
2 - Neuer conceded only twice in 2014-15 Bundesliga fixtures
at the Allianz Arena before the winter break - a record low for
the first half of a season.
2 - Messi's previously mentioned treble against Madrid in
March saw the Argentine become the first player to score two
Clasico hat-tricks. Interestingly, the No.10 also became the
first man to score three times in one game against a side
coached by Carlo Ancelotti.
1 - Neuer was awarded the Golden Glove after being voted the
best goalkeeper at the 2014 World Cup.
1 - The Gelsenkirchen native is the first goalkeeper to feature
in the Ballon d'Or top three since Gianluigi Buffon finished as
runner-up to Italy team-mate Fabio Cannavaro in 2006.
Sources http:// www.goal.com/en-ng/news/4082/editorial/2015/01/12/7886402/ronaldos-54-goals-messis-21-assists-neuers-28-clean-sheets

It's between Neuer and Ronaldo...
Head says Ronaldo...Heart says Neuer
Soccer should not be a two-horse race

Intresting buh na MESSI get am!!.
*forca_barca

Tar abegy..... Even mad man no go give Messi. Last year was his worsted, he was unlucky

Na ronaldo get the award........