Lionel Messi will discover who his rivals are for this year’s Ballon d’Or today when FIFA and France Football announce the three finalists for the award in Sao Paulo.

Messi appears the overwhelming favourite for the honour and should he be crowned, he would become the first player to win the award four times.

In normal circumstances, Cristiano Ronaldo’s haul of 46 goals in La Liga last season – only surpassed by Messi’s astonishing 50 – would likely have placed him in pole position, but Messi’s record-breaking feats have left the Portuguese talisman in his shadow.

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