FIFA 20: 5 players who could be on the cover

FIFA 20 is set to hit stores later this year and fans will be hoping that EA dishes out something a little less underwhelming than what they came up with last year, with many avid gamers feeling that FIFA 19 was an unmitigated disaster.

As always, in the lead up to the release of the game, all the attention will be on who EA decides to put on the cover of the game.

Fan voting is already in progress, with many of the world's top players receiving votes by the dozen.

Last year's cover star was Cristiano Ronaldo but he was replaced midway through by Neymar, Kevin de Bruyne and Paulo Dybala after making the headlines for all the wrong reasons.

He is expected to be out of the running this time around, although he does feature heavily in the voting system.

Who are the candidates most likely to take the throne vacated by Ronaldo? Let's take a look at five of them:

#5 Son Heung-min

Tottenham Hotspur v Crystal Palace - Premier League

A rather surprising candidate to be on the cover of EA's next FIFA game, but Son Heung-min is currently leading a poll conducted on fifplay.com which allows fans to vote for the player they want to be on the cover.

Son has garnered a whopping 17% of the votes, adding up to 191,860 votes in total. He has thus far pipped even the likes of Ronaldo and Messi, who have 190,876 and 184,637 votes respectively, to the top spot.

Son has had a brilliant season thus far, leading Tottenham to the quarterfinals of the Champions League and also potentially a top-four finish in the Premier League.

Having Son on the cover would also grow EA's fanbase in Asia, where there remains a largely untapped market.

#4 Mohamed Salah

Southampton FC v Liverpool FC - Premier League

While many expected Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah's form to tail off this year after a sensational 2017/18 campaign, he has continued to lead the Reds' title charge.

Salah has scored 18 goals this season in the Premier League and is just one goal behind Sergio Aguero in the race for the Golden Boot.

If Salah were to make it onto the cover of FIFA 20, he would be the first African player to do so.

#3 Neymar

Rio Carnival 2019 - Day 2

Many of you may have noticed that EA replaced Ronaldo with Neymar and a couple of others on the cover of FIFA 19 in the aftermath of the Portuguese's tax evasion scandal and other controversies.

They might just decide to stick with the Brazilian in the upcoming edition of the game as well.

Neymar might not have had the best of seasons with PSG, but he remains one of the most talented and marketable players and it would make a ton of sense for him to be on the cover of FIFA 20.

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#2 Kylian Mbappe

Manchester United v Paris Saint-Germain - UEFA Champions League Round of 16: First Leg

Kylian Mbappe's meteoric rise has seen him become one of the most highly sought-after talents in Europe at the moment and also a favourite among FIFA players.

Mbappe won the Kopa Trophy for the best young player in the world, which has further enhanced his reputation as the one to take over the world of football once Messi and Ronaldo call time on their respective careers.

On the back of another spectacular season, it would make sense for EA to put the Frenchman on the cover, especially since it would signal a changing of the guard as well.

#1 Lionel Messi

FC Barcelona v Club Atletico de Madrid - La Liga

Lionel Messi has already featured as the cover star on four different editions of FIFA and he could be set to make a return this time around.

The Barcelona superstar was on the cover of FIFA in four consecutive editions of the game - FIFA 13, FIFA 14, FIFA 15 and FIFA 16. However, he hasn't featured on the cover ever since Barcelona's deal with KONAMI became official in 2016.

EA are definitely set to move on from Ronaldo and legal complications aside, it could be Messi who takes his spot on the FIFA 20 cover.