Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez finalists for UEFA Best Player Award

Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez have been recognized for their superb performances last season.

Both Barcelona strikers have been voted in the three-player shortlist as finalists for UEFA's Best Player Award, which is given to best performer in European football last season. Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo joins the two Blaugranes as a finalist.

Neymar Jr., joint top goalscorer of last season's Champions League alongside Messi and Ronaldo, fell short of the final, finishing fifth in the voting behind the three finalists and Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon. Four other Juve players (Andrea Pirlo, Carlos Tévez, Paul Pogba and Arturo Vidal) were voted, with Chelsea's Eden Hazard closing the Top 10.

54 journalists from UEFA's associate countries vote on the award, which is now on its fifth edition. Messi won the first silverware in 2011, with Andrés Iniesta also winning the award as a Blaugrana in 2012. In the last two season, Bayern Munich's Franck Ribéry and Ronaldo himself were recognized as best players in Europe.

The official announcement of the winner is on August 27th, immediately after the UEFA Champions League Group Stage draw.

Source: Renato Goncalves http://ift.tt/1f7WL4Z