Ricardo Kaka - 5 iconic moments in the career of the Real Madrid and AC Milan great

#1 Being the last player to win the Ballon d'Or since the Messi-Ronaldo era began

Kaka won the award ahead of Ronaldo and Messi in 2007

In recent years, the prestigious Ballon d'Or trophy which is given to the best player in Europe, has been a two-horse race between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. In fact, the La Liga duo have shared the spoils for the award for the last nine seasons. The last player, other than Ronaldo and Messi to win it, was Kaka, when he was named Europe's finest in 2007.

The Ballon d'Or accomplishment came in the aftermath of a fantastic season with Milan. As mentioned earlier, Kaka played a key role in their Champions League triumph by ending up as the tournament's leading goal scorer.

The Brazilian accrued a stellar 444 votes that saw him finish in first place. Ronaldo ended up second with 277 and Messi finished a close third with 255. While Ronaldo and Messi were slowly establishing their world-class credentials in Europe, Kaka had already taken the continent by storm and was considered a footballing icon around the world.

In many ways, the year 2007 was the year of Ricardo Kaka. Not only did he win the Champions League and Ballon d'Or, but he also was voted the 2007 IFFHS World's Best Playmaker and was named by UEFA as both the top forward of the 2006–07 Champions League season and UEFA Club Footballer of the Year.