After Lionel Messi claimed the prestigious award for the fourth time on Monday,
takes a look at some of the greatest players in history that were never crowned the world's best
Franco Baresi
Between 1987 and 1992, AC Milan duo Ruud Gullit and Marco
van Basten shared four Golden Balls between them, but at least one of
these should have gone to their captain, Baresi. No defender has ever
reached a higher level than the Italian did during his peak. The Milan
defence at the turn of the 90s is widely regarded as the greatest back
four of all time, and Baresi was the captain, leader and brains behind
it.
Thierry Henry
Thierry Henry struck a record-breaking 226 goals and secured
two Premier League titles in his first spell at Arsenal, but his
efforts were not enough to win the France international the coveted
prize. 2004 should perhaps have been his year, as Arsenal's Invincibles
became English champions without losing a game, and an unplayable Henry
struck a staggering 39 goals in all competitions. However, Andriy
Shevchenko took the spoils in that particular contest.
Andres Iniesta
Had Andres Iniesta not played in the same era as Lionel
Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, it is almost certain that he would have
collected the award by now. The 28-year-old has been a mainstay of the
Barcelona team for the best part of a decade, helping the Blaugrana
to three Champions Leagues and five Liga titles. Beyond that, he has
arguably been the star of the all-conquering Spain side of the last four
years, scoring the winning goal in the 2010 World Cup final, and
scooping the award for the best player of Euro 2012.
Oliver Kahn
Oliver Kahn was in superhuman form in 2001 and 2002, and
could have won the Ballon d'Or in the first of those two seasons after
saving three spot-kicks as Bayern Munich beat Valencia on penalties in
the Champions League final. Kahn also captured the Bundesliga but was
eventually beaten into third place, with Liverpool's Michael Owen taking
the honour.
Paolo Maldini
Maldini's incredible career spanned almost a quarter of a
century at the top, and it seems inconceivable that the greatest
left-back of all time – a winner of seven Scudetti and five
European Cups among countless other accolades – never added this trophy
to his cabinet. His most prominent year was arguably 1994, when he
superbly marshalled an AC Milan backline minus Baresi and Alessandro
Costacurta to thrash Cruyff's Barcelona 4-0 in the Champions League
final. The prize that year, however, went to Hristo Stoichkov.
Bobby Moore
Historically defenders have struggled for recognition, with midfielders and forwards dominating the prestigious prize ahead of the likes of Moore, Franco Baresi and Paolo Maldini, whose outstanding efforts were also overlooked.
Gunter Netzer
Some 40 years ago there was little discussion as to who the
world's best midfielder was, with Germany playmaker Gunter Netzer the
outstanding player in his position. The Borussia Monchengladbach star
produced one of the best ever international performances at Wembley
during West Germany's 3-1 quarter-final first-leg triumph over England
in the 1972 European Championship and was the inspiration as they went
on to lift the cup. Netzer finished joint-second with team-mate Gerd
Muller as captain Beckenbauer collected the first of his two Golden
Balls.
Ferenc Puskas
More than 30 of the Ballon d'Or winners since 1956 have been
forwards, but some attacking legends have still been overlooked.
Despite Real Madrid's success in the fledgling years of the European
Cup, Ferenc Puskas astonishingly never picked up the prize and only
managed a second place in 1960 behind Luis Suarez. Had the Ballon d'Or
been created a few years earlier, when Hungary were revolutionising
international football and thrashing England 6-3 at Wembley, Puskas
would surely have succeeded.
Raul
Despite falling short for Spain, Raul's record of 323 goals,
six La Ligas, three European Cups, and numerous moments of magic for
Real Madrid makes him one of the most decorated players never to lift
the title. Second in 2001 was his best placing, a year when he won La
Liga with his highest ever tally of goals, but Michael Owen collected
the accolade.
Dino Zoff
Dino Zoff took second place in 1973 when embarking on a
record-breaking run of not conceding an international goal for 21
months. He was runner-up to Johan Cruyff, who was a deserved winner
after leading Ajax to a third European Cup on the bounce. The
Netherlands giants beat Zoff's Juventus 1-0 in the final, but had
Juventus won, Zoff may have pipped Cruyff to first place. He famously
lifted the World Cup at the age of 40 in 1982, and that year also won a
sixth Scudetto with the Bianconeri, but it was team-mate Paolo Rossi whose six goals in Spain turned the heads of the judges.
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