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Winning the Ballon d'Or is the individual pinnacle of any footballer's career and it is an achievement that has been attained by only 44 men throughout history.
Every year since 1956, one player has been selected as the premier footballer in the world, with his performance over the preceding year adjudged to have been better than every other player.
Some of the most legendary names in history have won this most prized accolade and every year features intense discussions and debates about the merits and demerits of the Ballon d'Or winner.
With a few months until the end of 2019, anticipation is heightened over who will be named the winner of the 64th Ballon d'Or.
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In this piece, we shall be having a rundown of the top five contenders for the 2019 Ballon d'Or at the start of October.
#5 Alisson Becker (Liverpool/Brazil)
Liverpool have transformed into one of Europe's premier teams in the last year, and a lot of that has been down to the arrival of Alisson Becker from AS Roma in the summer of 2018.
Before his signing, Liverpool had made steady progress under Jurgen Klopp, only to see their work undone at the crucial stages, with Lorius Karius' howlers in the 2018 Champions League final being the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back.
A few weeks later, Klopp sanctioned the purchase of Alisson for a sum of £67m and the Brazilian international has proved to be worth every single penny.
Last season, he was the custodian of a mean Liverpool defence which conceded just 22 goals in the Premier League, while his 21 clean sheets were also enough to win him the Golden Glove ahead of Ederson.
Furthermore, he also won the Golden Glove in the Champions League and Copa America, becoming the first goalkeeper in history to achieve this unique feat and he was unsurprisingly named the 2019 FIFA and UEFA Goalkeeper of the Year as well as voted into the FIFPro XI.
The 27-year-old is currently sidelined with a calf injury, but there are indications that he is nearing a return which would come as welcome news to fans of the club.
#4 Sadio Mane (Liverpool/Senegal)
Over the last four seasons, Sadio Mane has played his way into becoming an integral part of Jurgen Klopp's revolution at Anfield.
Following the arrival of Mohamed Salah in the summer of 2017, the Senegalese international combined with the Egyptian and Roberto Firmino to form what can arguably be considered to be the most lethal frontline in world football.
Between them, the trio have torn apart defences, and their efficiency came to the fore in Liverpool's record-breaking campaign last season.
Mane starred with 26 goals and five assists from 50 matches in all competitions, with his goal involvement ratio second to only that of Salah in the Liverpool squad.
Four of those goals came in the Champions League, with the 27-year-old scoring a brace in the 3-1 victory over Bayern Munich in the Round of 16 to eliminate the Bavarians on their perch, while he also won the first-minute penalty that set Liverpool on their way to victory over Tottenham Hotspur in the final.
Domestically, Mane was also one of the standout performers and he scored 22 goals to finish joint-top of the scorers' chart, although Liverpool missed out on the league title by the narrowest of margins.
Following his successful individual campaign at club level, Mane returned to the international stage with his country Senegal and scored three goals as the Teranga Lions made it to the final of the Africa Nations Cup in Egypt where they lost to Algeria.
This season, the former Salzburg man has continued from where he left off and scored a brace in a man-of-the-match performance in the UEFA Super Cup victory over Chelsea.
He is also playing a starring role as Liverpool seek a first-ever Premier League title, and has scored four times and assisted once to help Liverpool maintain their 100% start to the campaign.
#3 Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus/Portugal)
Cristiano Ronaldo is no stranger to winning the Ballon d'Or, having done so on five occasions in his decorated career.
After nine stellar seasons with Real Madrid, the Portuguese international departed Spain for Turin, signing with Juventus for a club-record fee in July 2018.
In his first season with the Bianconeri, Ronaldo performed at levels below what we have become accustomed to, but he still managed to score 28 times and assist 10 goals in all competitions.
There were also some notable moments in his debut season with Juventus, including the memorable hat-trick against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League, while he also became the first man to score 400 league goals in Europe's top five leagues.
After the conclusion of club action, Ronaldo went on to captain his country to the inaugural edition of the UEFA Nations League, scoring a hat-trick in the semifinal against Switzerland, and has shown no signs of slowing down this term.
This season, he has scored three goals from six matches in all competitions for Juventus and has also starred on the international scene with Portugal.
During the last international break, Ronaldo scored five goals from just two matches to help Portugal record successive victories over Serbia and Lithuania.
In the latter match, the Madeira native scored four goals to take his record in Euro qualification to 25 (breaking the previous record of 23 set by Robbie Keane) while he also set the record of scoring against his 40th different country.
#2 Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool/Netherlands)
Virgil van Dijk's impact on Liverpool has been immense and nowhere was this more evident than last season where the towering Dutchman was an integral part of a Liverpool defence that conceded just 22 goals in 38 matches.
The Dutch international had very remarkable numbers last season at the heart of The Reds' defence, finishing as the player with the second-most passes (3,037) behind only Jorginho, while he also attempted 38 tackles with a 74% success rate.
He won 244 of the 322 duels he competed, while also making 199 clearances and also showed his usefulness in the attacking third with four goals and two assists to help Liverpool to a second-place finish in the league.
He was deservedly named the PFA Player of the Year, while he also captained the Netherlands to the Nations League final and helped Jurgen Klopp's men to the Champions League trophy last season.
For his displays last season, the 28-year-old was voted as the best defender of the Champions League and also became the first defender to be named the UEFA Men's Player of the Year.
This season, Liverpool's defence has been less solid, but van Dijk has still starred with one goal from seven fixtures in the league, while he has also made 10 interceptions, 34 clearances, 38 recoveries and won 48 duels.
He was the favourite to clinch the FIFA Men's Player of the Year award but was thumped to it by Lionel Messi. Nevertheless, van Dijk would get back to playing an integral role as Liverpool continue their quest for an elusive Premier League title.
#1 Lionel Messi (Barcelona/Argentina)
Lionel Messi was by far the most potent attacking player in the world last season and won a record-extending sixth European Golden Shoe having scored 34 goals to help Barcelona win LaLiga at a canter.
In total, he scored 51 goals and registered 22 assists from just 50 matches in all competitions but rather, unfortunately, he could not inspire Barcelona to either the Champions League or the Copa del Rey trophy.
Further disappointment followed on the international scene, as Messi's international drought with Argentina continued after they came up short in the Copa America once again.
It was a disappointing campaign for Messi on an individual level, as he could only manage one goal from six matches and ended the tournament with a red card.
A calf injury sustained during pre-season saw Messi's return delayed, although he did make an assist for Antoine Griezmann in the game against Villareal before another injury niggle saw him substituted at half-time.
He won his first major individual award since 2015 when he was named s the Best FIFA Men's Player in September and would be looking to add to his fie Ballon d'Or triumphs when the next winner is announced.
