- Lionel Messi appears to be the bookmakers' favourite to win 2019 Ballon d'Or award
- The Barcelona star faces tough competition from Juve star Ronaldo and Liverpool ace van Dijk
- The Argentine is however in line to clinch the prestigious gong for sixth time record
Barcelona ace, Lionel Messi, appears likely to win this year's edition of Ballon d'Or award for a record sixth time.
Messi made the shortlist for the award alongside Juventus superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and Liverpool's Van Dijk.
According to Giveme sport, the Argentine is now current favourite with the bookmakers to win the coveted prize ahead of Ronaldo and Van Dijk.
Messi, 32, will go head-to-head with the Portuguese and Dutchman alongside other nominees in the 30-man list line-up for the individual prize.
But the Barcelona forward is set to clinch the gong after his stellar performance that saw the Catalans coast to domestic win, according to report from Spain.
Messi, who is believed to be the finest player of his generation, won the coveted award in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2015.
The 32-year-old had earlier claimed the FIFA The Best award ahead of his close challengers Ronaldo and the Liverpool centre-back in September.
With attention focused on the gala of the Ballon d'Or award, a ‘leaked’ screenshot has emerged on social media which showed the top 10 players for this year’s Ballon d’Or, coupled with the number of points they each accumulated from the votes.
And surprisingly, the Argentine led the list with 446 points, meaning he is set for another glory.
Liverpool star van Dijk came second on the list with 382 while Mo Salah and Ronaldo completed the top four spot with 179 and 133 points respectively.
