Ballon d'Or 2012 Count Down

It’s now 20 days count down towards Ballon d'Or 2012. FIFA will be announcing the winner of the 2012 Ballon d'Or accolade on the 07 January 2012.

They say statistics never lie, and although they aren't the be-all and end-all of determining the prestigious winner of the Ballon d'Or, I think we can learn a lot from taking an in-depth look at the achievement  of each of the three La Liga nominees in the year 2012.

Whilst I cannot guarantee a definitive answer to who will prevail come the FIFA Ballon d’Or Gala at the Kongresshaus in Zurich on 7 January 2013, I can guarantee you will be blown away by some of the accolades achieved by each of the final three.

1. Lionel Messi, Barcelona and Argentina

Accolades

1. European Golden Shoe, 2012 (Overall top goalscorer in Europe)

2. La Liga best forward, 2012 (Best striker in the Spanish La Liga)

3. La Liga player of the year,

2012

4. UEFA Champions League Golden Boot, 2012 (14 Goals)

5.  Pichichi Trophy, 2012 (La Liga top goalscorer, 50 goals)

6.  La Liga Ibero-American Player of the Year, 2012

7. European Sports Media Team of the Year 2011–12

8. Currently La Liga top goalscorer with 25 goals which are 11 goals ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo with 14 goals

Records

1. On 11 November, Messi surpassed the Pelé's milestone of 75 goals (1958) in a calendar year

2. On 9 December, Messi surpassed the Gerald Muller 85 goals in a calendar year. He has 90 goals now

3. On 7 March, Messi became the first player to score five goals in an UEFA Champions League match since the tournament's re-establishment in 1992

4. Joint EUFA Championship overall top goalscorer with tie José Altafini's (14 goals in a season)

5. World highest goalscorer in season with 90 goals.

2. Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid and Portugal

Accolades

1. Amongst Euro 2012 leading goalscorer with 5 other players (Fernando Torres awarded the Golden Boot for playing fewer minutes to the rest of goalscorer

2. La Liga, 2012

3. Copa De la Rey, 2012

4.  UEFA Euro Team of the Tournament2012

5. European Sports Media Team of the Year 2011–12

6. Ibero-American Community Trophy, 2012

Records

1. The first player ever to score against every team in a single season in La Liga

2. The first player ever to score in six consecutive Clásicos

3. Andrés Iniesta, Barcelona and Spain

Accolades

1. UEFA European Football Championship: 2012

2. UEFA Euro Team of the Tournament: 2012

3. La Liga's Best Attacking Midfielder: 2012

4. UEFA Champions League Best Player: 2011–2012

5. UEFA Euro Player of the Tournament: 2012

6.  UEFA Best Player in Europe Award: 2012

7. 2012 European Sports Media Team of the Year

Be the judge, who will the 2012 Fifa Ballon d'Or?

By Owen Mundalamo