Top 5 candidates for the Ballon d'Or 2017

#1 - Cristiano Ronaldo

Time for the 5th Ballon d'Or?

Even when it comes to individual awards, football is before anything a team-game. The greatest individuals are the ones who can guide their teams to major trophies, which certainly applies on Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi - who have both demonstrated it better than anyone has, in recent times.

There is little doubt that Cristiano Ronaldo deserves to claim his fifth Ballon d'Or this year - which he most probably will. His start to the new season may not have been the best, mainly due to his 4-game ban, but we all know that in seasons that exclude the World Cup, the award is always handed to the best performer of the Champions League, usually determined by early June.

The Portuguese star stepped up in crucial moments, with a hat-trick against Bayern Munich in the quarter-final, followed by another one against Atlético Madrid in the semis, before topping it with a brace against Juventus in the final, in Cardiff. Ronaldo's decisive 12 goals over the course of the tournament meant that Real Madrid would become the first club in history to win back-to-back Champions League titles since the new edition was launched.

In addition to that, the 32-year old's presence was felt, when Portugal needed him in order to book a spot in the FIFA World Cup.