Many think Lionel Messi will win his record fourth Ballon d'Or on Jan. 7, but there is one major candidate that can shock the world and take it away from.
Many that argue against Messi's individual achievement usually state that without two players the Argentine would not be the player he is today for Barcelona. One of those players is Andres Iniesta (the other is Xavi Hernandez Creus) and there are a number of reasons why he deserves to be recognized as the Best Player of 2012.
Iniesta does not score as many goals as his Barcelona teammate, but his absence from the club early in 2012 coincided with Barcelona losing the La Liga title. He returned just in time for the 2012 Euro Cup with Spain and helped his country become the first national squad ever to win three straight major tournaments. He was also crowned as the Best Player in the tournament. A few months later UEFA honored him with the award for the best player in Europe over Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. His great year continued all the way to the end as he started off the 2012-13 season in tremendous form for Barcelona with one goal 10 assists in 16 games.
Why should he win? While Iniesta is not the flashy player Ronaldo and Messi may be, he is the brain behind the operation. He and Xavi have constructed the best midfield in the world for both Barcelona and Spain and the absence of either one has a negative effect on each squad. Those arguing that Messi is nothing without Iniesta may not be completely right, but there is certainly some credit due to that argument. Iniesta helps set up most plays and has been lauded as the most creative force in Barcelona's midfield. More important of all however is that he has won team trophies this year while Messi has won none. Ronaldo won the Spanish league championship, but Iniesta was considered the top player at the 2012 Euro and the best player in Europe (he was picked over Ronaldo in both cases). Additionally, he has the support of major figures in the soccer world to win this award including Luis Fernandez, Vicente del Bosque, and even Messi himself.
Many could argue that the award is for individual effort and success and not team success, but Iniesta has achieved both. By virtue of winning the two aforementioned awards, he is being recognized as being a major motor in his team's success and that is something that neither of his two combatants have been able to achieve on the same level.