FC Barcelona's Messi and Suárez, and Real Madrid's Ronaldo are finalists for 2014/15 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award

The trio are the nominees for the award to be announced on 27 August in Monaco

UEFA has formally announced the three finalists for the 2014/15 UEFA Best Player Award. FC Barcelona strikers Leo Messi and Luis Suárez, and Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo are the nominees for the award. The winner will be announced on 27 August at a gala in Monaco that will also feature this year's draw for the UEFA Champions League group stage.

Making the preliminary top ten but missing out on the top three were Barça striker Neymar, Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon and teammates Andrea Pirlo, Paul Pogba, Carlos Tévez and Arturo Vidal, as well as Eden Hazard of Chelsea. Neymar actually finished fifth in the voting with 23 points, one point behind Buffon.

The award, which is voted on by journalists from 54 different countries, has been won by an FC Barcelona player twice before. Messi took the prize in 2011 and Andres Iniesta was the winner in 201. Bayern Munich forward Franck Ribéry won in 2013 before Cristiano Ronaldo took home the award in 2014. This year is the fifth edition of the award.

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