Current world footballer of the year Cristiano Ronaldo tops this year's list of Ballon d'Or nominees.
Cristiano Ronaldo leads a list of 30 nominees for this year's Ballon d'Or that does not include a single player from the current world champions Italy.
Real Madrid's Ronaldo, 24, won the prestigious award last year and will be one of the favourite for this year's title after his stunning start to his career at the Bernabéu. The Portuguese striker has scored nine goals in seven games since joining the Spanish giants for a world record £80m from Manchester United in the summer.
Ronaldo, who is currently sidelined by an ankle injury, headed Madrid's significant summer spending which also saw them sign Kaká and Karim Benzema – who were both also included in the list. There was, however, no room for any Italy players. Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon and Luca Toni were the Azzurri's only nominees last year.
The European champions Spain are the best represented nation with six players listed, while the Primera Liga boasts the most players from a single league with 12. The Premier League is next best with 10 players while Serie A has just four.
The Champions League and La Liga winners Barcelona top the list in terms of club representation with six players – Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thierry Henry, Andrés Iniesta, Lionel Messi, Yaya Touré and Xavi. Chelsea and Manchester United both had three players selected on the list. The Blues' nominees are the England captain John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba while United's selection affords another accolade to the 35-year-old midfielder Ryan Giggs, as well as Wayne Rooney and Nemanja Vidic.
The Ballon d'Or is awarded to the world footballer of the year, and is voted for by journalists and organised by France Football magazine. The winner will be announced on 1 December.
Ballon d'Or nominees: Andrey Arshavin (Arsenal), Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Diego (Juventus), Didier Drogba (Chelsea), Edin Dzeko (Wolfsburg), Samuel Eto'o (Internazionale), Cesc Fàbregas (Arsenal), Fernando Torres (Liverpool), Diego Forlán (Atletico Madrid), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Ryan Giggs (Manchester United), Yoann Gourcuff (Bordeaux), Thierry Henry (Barcelona), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Barcelona), Andrés Iniesta (Barcelona), Júlio César (Internazionale), Kaká (Real Madrid), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), Maicon (Internazionale), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Luís Fabiano (Seville), Franck Ribéry (Bayern Munich), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), John Terry (Chelsea), Nemanja Vidic (Manchester United), David Villa (Valencia), Xavi (Barcelona), Yaya Touré (Barcelona).
