LIONEL MESSI and Cristiano Ronaldo have missed out on the shortlist for the Uefa Men’s Player Of The Year crown for the first time in its history.
On Wednesday, the three finalists were confirmed with Kevin de Bruyne joining Bayern Munich stars Robert Lewandowski and Manuel Neuer.
Cristiano Ronaldo only finished tenth in voting despite another league title for JuventusCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Lionel Messi paid the price for his trophyless campaign with fourth place in the longlistCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Polish forward Lewandowski is the hot favourite for the award, smashing 55 goals in all competitions from 47 appearances.
Those goals helped Bayern to a stunning treble despite having to sack coach Niko Kovac in November.
Vying for the honour with the Bavarian pair is de Bruyne, who won the PFA’s Premier League Player of the Year gong for 2019-20.
But the absence of either Ronaldo or Messi from the announcement was a first for the competition, which was created in 2011.
No player has won the Uefa trophy more than Ronaldo, honoured for 2013-14, 2015-16 and 2016-17 with nominations in six other years.
Messi, meanwhile, claimed the 2010-11 and 2014-15 crowns alongside his six Ballon d’Or wins.
Both men won the Uefa Club Footballer of the Year award that preceded this prize on one occasion.
Although Barcelona failed to win a trophy last season, the Argentine was on the verge of a nomination with the fourth-most votes.
Votes were cast by the 80 coaches in charge of Champions League and Europa League group stage sides, along with 55 top journalists representing each nation.
Level with Messi in fourth was Champions League finalist Neymar, who entered the top ten for only the second time.
Robert Lewandowski is expected to pick up the prize for his amazing goalscoring exploitsCredit: Reuters
Premier League award winner Kevin de Bruyne will hope to put up a fight for the crownCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Bayern dominated the top ten with Thomas Muller, Thiago Alcantara and Joshua Kimmich accruing a decent number of votes.
Kylian Mbappe took seventh with 39 votes, leaving Ronaldo in tenth after leading Juventus to another Scudetto.
Uefa’s award will be handed out on October 1, during the Champions League group stage draw.
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
