6 players denied worthy Ballon d'Or wins by Messi and Ronaldo dominance

Never in history have two players dominated the individual awards like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

The pair have won 11 of the last 12 Ballon d'Ors with Luka Modric the only man to break up the duopoly following his victory in 2019.

Michel Platini and Marco Van Basten have both enjoyed periods where they dominated the award, claiming three each, but never before have two players gone back and forth.

Whilst Messi and Ronaldo have been worthy winners, plenty of players who would've claimed at least one Ballon d'Or in other generations have missed out.

Spain's international dominance between 2008 and 2012 didn't result in a single winner. Bayern Munich, twice Champions League winners in the past decade, haven't had a recipient. Not a single Premier League star has earned the award.

For some players it has been a case of right place, wrong time, when it comes to winning the individual gongs.

Messi and Ronaldo have taken the game to new heights and will be remembered as two of the greatest ever, but some players, on occasion their own teammates, have been overlooked as a result.

We take a look at six players worthy of a Ballon d'Or, who remain absent from the list.

Xavi

One of Messi's main supporting acts - perhaps that's why he missed out..

The central midfielder was crucial for Pep Guardiola's dominant Barcelona team, conducting things from the middle of the park with a phenomenal range of passing.

Xavi was largely ever present until he left the Catalans in 2015.

With Spain he was equally as important, playing in all three of their major tournament finals.

The closest he got to the award was third - a position he got in 2009, 2010 and 2011.

Virgil van Dijk

Defenders winning the award is rare - Fabio Cannavaro is the only man in more than two decades to do so.

But Van Dijk's displays for Liverpool in 2019 were impossible to ignore. Rarely had a centre-half made such a seismic difference to a top side.

He arrived from Southampton but helped the Reds challenge for the title and win the Champions League in his first full season.

Often winning Europe's top prize has been a huge factor in winning the Ballon d'Or. In fact, he was the first man since 2013 to win the Champions League and not win the Ballon d'Or.

Andres Iniesta

One of the finest players never to claim the Golden Ball and arguably the best in the Ronaldo-Messi era not to do so.

Similar to Xavi, he played in Messi's shadow, finishing second in the race for the award in 2010.

That year he scored the winner in the World Cup final with Spain and then, two years later, he was named the Player of the Tournament as his country retained the Euros.

He was unable to overcome his competitors however.

Eventually he left Barcelona in 2018 without claiming football's most coveted individual prize.

Manuel Neuer

Goalkeepers winning the Ballon d'Or is even more rare than defenders.

Dino Zoff, Iker Casillas and Gianluigi Buffon have all tried and failed despite their stellar careers.

Neuer has also fallen foul of the curse with his 2014 World Cup triumph not enough to see off Ronaldo as he finished third behind the Portugal star and Messi.

The German has become known as the modern day sweeper keeper and claimed two Champions League medals with a dominant Bayern side.

Recognised as the best player in the Bundesliga twice, he was unable to be recognised globally.

Lev Yashin remains the only goalkeeper to win the Ballon d'Or, way back in 1963.

Franck Ribery

The Frenchman thought he had a legitimate shot at the Ballon d'Or in 2013.

He was a leading light for a Bayern Munich side that had won the treble, claiming the Champions League at Wembley.

It wasn't to be though as he was beaten to it by Ronaldo - a man who won nothing that season and Ribery's feelings were clear.

He told German paper Bild: "I learned a lot during last year's Ballon d'Or gala. As soon as I got there, I told my wife that I would lose. I saw how Sepp Blatter was hugging Ronaldo and how his entire family was there.

"I'm not stupid. It was clear that he had to win it. He wouldn't have brought his entire family with him otherwise."

Vote: Who is the true heir to Messi and Ronaldo?

Neymar

Few covet the Golden Ball like Neymar - so his third place finishes in 2015 and 2017 will hurt.

His move to PSG in 2017 was seen by many as him leaving Messi's side so that he could claim the Ballon d'Or.

It has continued to elude him however despite him winning with regularity in France. He also claimed plenty of honours at Barcelona.

Success with Brazil has been hard to come by, which could be held against him.

Neymar has seen four of his compatriots claim the award in his lifetime - but he may struggle to emulate them with his 30th birthday soon approaching and time running out.