United shot stopper David de Gea, Romelu Lukaku and Anthony Martial are the surprise misses from the list.

Napoli has also one player by the names of Kalidou Koulibaly making the shotlist.

Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Roma, Marseille and Tottenham have two players shortlisted.

Barcelona has seven nominees shortlisted. Among these include; Messi, Ivan Rakitic and others.

Liverpool has seven players; Alisson, Virgil van Dijk, James Milner, Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino.

GOALKEEPERS

Alisson, Hugo Lloris, Keylor Navas, Jan Oblak, Marc-Andre Ter Stegen

DEFENDERS

Virgil van Dijk, Raphael, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo, Diego Godin, Giorgio Chiellini, Samuel Umtiti, Jordi Alba, Kalidou Koulibaly, Kostas Manolas, Lucas Hernandez, Jose Maria Gimenez, Gerard Pique, Joshua Kimmich, John Stones

MIDFIELDERS

Luka Modric, N’Golo Kante, Kevin De Bruyne, James Milner, Casemiro, Isco, Toni Kroos, Paul Pogba, Ivan Rakitic, David Silva, Miralem Pjanic, Saul Níguez, Eden Hazard, Dimitri Payet, Florian Thauvin

FORWARDS 

Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mane, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, Antoine Griezmann, Harry Kane, Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Edin Dzeko, Robert Lewandowski, Paulo Dybala, Luis Suarez, Edinson Cavani, Gareth Bale

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The prestigious Golden Ball will be handed out by France Football on 3 December, and many believe there could be a new winner for the first time in 10 years, with Luka Modric having already picked up the UEFA Player of the Year and FIFA’s The Best Men’s Player awards this year.

Ronaldo and Messi have shared the Ballon d’Or between them since 2008, each winning it five times, and while the Portuguese forward dreams of beating Messi to lift his sixth Golden Ball, he does not count the Argentine among this year’s favourites.

Ronaldo and Messi have shared the Ballon d’Or between them since 2008 each winning it five times

“The same as usual, even if I don’t know if Messi will be on the podium this time,” he told France Football when asked about his favourites.

“So, let’s say Mohamed Salah, Luka Modric, Antoine Griezmann, Raphael Varane, Kylian Mbappe – the French in general because they are world champions.”

However, despite not choosing Messi as a favourite for this year’s Golden Ball, Ronaldo did praise the Argentine for reigning alongside him at the top of the game over the past 10 years, and questioned whether the current crop can be at the top as long.

“But I will wait and see if all these players are still at the top in 10 years, like Messi and I have done, and like we continue to do,” he added.

“Still there, on the podium, since more than 10 years.”

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According to Santos, Cristiano Ronaldo should have been crowned UEFA’s 2017-18 Player of the Year

Ronaldo scored 15 goals to lead Real Madrid to a third successive Champions League crown last season but the five-time Ballon d’Or winner lost out to former team-mate Modric.

Modric won the most votes from coaches and journalists as Ronaldo – who left Madrid for Italian champions Juventus in the off-season – opted to skip the Monaco ceremony last month.

Asked about the decision to overlook Portugal captain Ronaldo, Santos told reporters: “The vote for the best of FIFA is not mine. If it was mine, Ronaldo was the champion.

Modric won the most votes from coaches and journalists to take the award

“Ronaldo is the champion for me. And in second place, I’d put Modric. But the rest of votes come from the public, journalists, other coaches, there are many people, so the decision will be announced at the right date.

“There’s a previous list, as I’ve already said, Modric is a fantastic player, that’s why I’ve put him in second. But in this previous election, I think Cristiano should’ve been the winner for all he did at that period of time and specially at the Champions League.”

Ronaldo scored 15 goals to lead Real Madrid to a third successive Champions League crown last season but the five-time Ballon d’Or winner lost out to former team-mate Modric

Santos will be without Ronaldo – who is yet to open his Juventus account – for Portugal’s Nations League match against Italy on September 10. It is Portugal’s first appearance since the World Cup, where the European champions suffered a last-16 exit to Uruguay in Sochi.

“Portugal is a national squad with Cristiano Ronaldo. He’s European champion, the best player in the world. So, Cristiano Ronaldo, such as Joao Moutinho and all the others, Andre Gomes etc, I won’t name them all, they are all very important in this team,” Santos added.

“They achieved an extraordinary triumph for Portugal, they made history. A group of players that have played here and only lost twice, so there’s no with or without Ronaldo. And Ronaldo will be in conditions to play with us for a long time.”

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The Italian giants have been quietly working on a deal to sign the best player at the 2018 World Cup since the start of the summer, especially with it intimated to them that the former Tottenham Hotspur playmaker wouldn’t be averse to leaving Madrid.

Luka Modric is a target for Inter Milan after helping Real Madrid win the Champions League

Florentino Perez has been strong in his assertions that Modric wouldn’t leave the club for a euro less than his 750 million euro buy-out clause, but the situation is a difficult one.

Cristiano Ronaldo‘s buy-out clause was lowered from 1 billion euros to 100 million euros as part of a gentleman’s agreement with the president.

Modric is said to be keen on a move but Florentino Perez is ready to offer him a new deal

It’s unclear as to whether or not a similar situation exists where the Croatian is concerned, but Internazionale have certainly been led to believe that a deal is worth pursuing.

Unlike Ronaldo, Modric isn’t expected to depart the Estadio Santiago Bernabeuand will likely put pen to paper on a new contract, one which will see his salary rise from eight million euros per season, something that is important when you consider this will be the 32-year-old’s last huge contract.

Modric starred at the World Cup for Croatia, helping them reach the final against France

Relations between the club and player aren’t at breaking point, nor are they strained, but there is a degree of bemusement amongst those in power at Valdebebas as to why Modric has allowed the speculation to carry on without a word of denial or commitment to his current employers.

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Los Blancos believe they provided him with the platform to become the very best midfielder in world football, and a little respect wouldn’t have gone amiss in this situation.

Links with Inter have been problematic as it has panicked supporters, something which is not at all welcome after Ronaldo’s sale.

There hasn’t been a truly monumental arrival at Real Madrid in the current transfer window either, and it simply cannot be contemplated that Perez will allow the squad to be weakened even further.

Wednesday will prove crucial with regards to Modric’s future with a meeting with the president planned.

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