Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric and Mohamed Salah have been revealed as UEFA’s Player of the Year nominees, while Lionel Messi misses out.
The trio were chosen as the final nominees by the 80 managers who took part in last season’s Champions League and Europa League, as well as 55 journalists from UEFA’s member associations.
Salah earned a spot in the final three after scoring 44 goals in all competitions in his debut season at Liverpool. He also helped the Reds reach the Champions League final, which they lost to Real Madrid.
Ronaldo and Modric were instrumental in Real’s third consecutive Champions League title win last season. Ronaldo has won the last two UEFA Player of the Year gongs and stands a good chance once again after finishing as the top scorer in Europe’s most prestigious club competition.
Aside from his performances for Los Blancos, Modric also grabbed the attention of the voters with his heroics at the 2018 World Cup, where he helped Croatia reach the final in Russia.
The Player of the Year winner will be announced on August 30 at the Champions League group-stage draw.
