Lionel Messi: Luis Suarez deserved Ballon d’Or nomination

There was no place for Suarez in the whittled down shortlist of three, with Cristiano Ronaldo taking the other spot.

[BALLON D'OR 2015 - ]

Messi does not begrudge Ronaldo his place, only wishing there was an extra spot to allow the Uruguayan on stage too.

“I’d have liked to be on Ballon d'Or podium with Ney and Luis,” Messi said at the La Liga awards ceremony on Monday night.

“Luis deserved it, but Cristiano did aswell - we'll have a good time [at the Fifa gala].”

Barcelona’s attacking trio have scored 125 goals in 2015, with Suarez notching 40 of them. The Catalan giants secured the treble last season, while Real finished the season trophyless.

Neymar also failed to hide his disappointment at Suarez’s snub.

“Being nominated for the Ballon d'Or means a lot,” the Brazilian said.

“Suarez should have been there as well, though - but Messi is the favourite, he's the number one for me.”

Four outstanding candidates… three spaces. Even Robert Lewandowski can feel aggrieved to miss out. Ronaldo enjoyed a memorable year, purely on an individual level, but Suarez outshone the Real Madrid forward with team contributions – and it’s not like he was goal-shy either.

It all depends on the judging criteria: is one man’s relentless, successful pursuit of goalscoring records superior to a more selfless player keen on winning medals?