Four Bayern Munich stars were nominated in a 10-man list by Uefa on Tuesday to decide the top player plying his trade in Europe.
The award will be handed out on August 29 in Monaco, the day of the Champions League group stage draw and day before the European Super Cup.
Franck Ribery, Thomas Mueller, Arjen Robben and Bastian Schweinsteiger made the list alongside Barcelona’s World Player of the Year Lionel Messi and Tottenham’s English Premier League Player of the Year Gareth Bale.
Messi was one of only two Spain-based players alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, the man he deposed as World Player of the Year.
English champions Manchester United’s Robin van Persie is the only other Premier League based player while Zlatan Ibrahimovic represents Paris Saint-Germain and France with Borussia Dortmund’s Robert Lewandowski ensuring Germany provided half the nominees, hardly surprising as Bayern and Dortmund contested May’s Champions League final, won by the Bavarians.
It will be the third edition of the award won by Messi in 2011 and Andres Iniesta last year.
A short-list of three finalists will be announced on August 6, after which the winner will be voted for by journalists from Uefa’s 53 member nations.
List of nominees
Gareth Bale (WAL/Tottenham), Cristiano Ronaldo (POR/Real Madrid), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (SWE/Paris Saint-Germain), Robert Lewandowski (POL/Borussia Dortmund), Lionel Messi (ARG/Barcelona), Thomas Mueller (GER/Bayern Munich), Franck Ribery (FRA/Bayern Munich), Arjen Robben (NED/Bayern Munich), Bastian Schweinsteiger (GER/Bayern Munich), Robin van Persie (NED/Manchester United).