Ballon d'Or 2015: Lionel Messi and Neymar want Barcelona team-mate Luis Suarez on shortlist instead of Cristiano Ronaldo
The Barcelona pair have been named alongside the defending holder of the Ballon d'Or in Ronaldo, meaning that Suarez has been overlooked for the three-man shortlist
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Your support makes all the difference.Lionel Messi and Neymar believe that their Barcelona team-mate, Luis Suarez, deserved to join them on the Ballon d’Or shortlist in place of Real Madrid rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
Messi is the bookmakers’ favourite to reclaim the title after Ronaldo won the world footballer of the year award in both 2013 and 2014, in which Real’s La Decima Champions League success and Ronaldo’s own incredible goal-scoring record secured him the award.
On Monday afternoon, Fifa named the trio as the final three for this year’s award, which will be announced at the Ballon d’Or Gala on 11 January.
However, both Messi and Neymar were on stage at last night’s La Liga awards ceremony as Barcelona picked up five of the nine trophies up for grabs, and they were quick to stress that the third member of Barcelona’s talented ‘MSN’ triumvirate should have joined them on the Ballon d’Or shortlist – meaning no place for three-time winner Ronaldo despite the Portuguese scoring more goals than them this calendar year.
"I'd have liked to be on [the] Ballon d'Or podium with Neymar and Luis,” said Messi, having picked up the awards for La Liga’s best player and best forward of the year.
"Luis deserved it, but Cristiano also did well. We'll have a good time."
Neymar, who took the gong for the best American player in La Liga, added: "Being nominated for Ballon d'Or means a lot.
"Suarez should have been there too, but Messi is favourite, he's the number one for me."
Ronaldo has a tough ask to stop the Barcelona pair from conquering him in the race to win the 2015 Ballon d’Or, with Real missing out on silverware last season and making a poor start to this campaign in comparison to their great Spanish rivals.
Last month’s 4-0 El Clasico demolition saw Real plunged into a mini-crisis, with fans calling for head coach Rafa Benitez to be sacked and many others turning on club president Florentino Perez – who publicly backed the former Liverpool manager just two days after the defeat.
Taking into consideration their performances for club and country this year, Ronaldo has scored more goals than his Barcelona adversaries, with his tally of 48 goals beating Messi’s 44, Neymar’s 42 and Suarez’s 43 in 2015.
However, with the latter trio all plying their trade at the Nou Camp, Barcelona can boast the most lethal attacking line-up in the world, and Neymar went on to reveal why they work together on the pitch with devastating consequences.
“Secret of MSN? Friendship and modesty,” Neymar added. “Leo and Luis are great friends, I hope to play with them for a long time, there are no egos.”
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