![Luis Suarez: Third best in world, according to statistics]()
Luis Suarez: Third best in world, according to statistics
Luis Suarez is the world's third best player according to WhoScored, followed by Marco Reus, Sergio Agüero, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Eden Hazard.
Quite why those who compile the Ballon d'Or shortlist even bother to add 21 names to a list starting with Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi isn't entirely clear. Talk that Manuel Neuer might be in with an outside chance of snatching the award this year is rather refreshing, if also a little misguided.
There is an obvious chasm in quality between the two best players in the world and the best of the rest - Messi and Ronaldo are relentless goal machines in their own right.
The race for third place is incredibly hotly contested, however. Neuer, Thomas Müller, Neymar, Luis Suarez, Ángel Di María, Sergio Agüero, Philipp Lahm, Arjen Robben and Gareth Bale all spring to mind.
That list omits a player whose manager has stated the need and potential for him to step up and join the game's elite. His fans maintain he is amongst the best in the world.
So where exactly does Eden Hazard currently rank? Is he anywhere near - or close to approaching - the level of Ronaldo or Messi?
While Ronaldo's current goalscoring exploits are unrivalled (he has scored 18 goals in ten La Liga appearances this season), Messi has seven goals but also adds seven assists too (compared to Ronaldo's five).
Both players return the top two WhoScored.com ratings in Europe's top five leagues, both this season and over the course of the whole of 2014. By WhoScored rating, Hazard comes out as the seventh best player this year, accurately reflecting his current standing.
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Averaging 7.87, Hazard has successfully dribbled past an opponent 122 times this calendar year, second only to Messi in Europe's top five leagues. His turning circle and change of pace whilst in possession are exceptional, drawing fouls from those incapable of otherwise halting him.
However, there is a stark difference in his return in front of goal compared to Messi and Ronaldo. Last season Hazard scored 14 goals and assisted seven, while this term he has just three goals and one assist to his name in 11 Premier League appearances. He is playing in the best-performing and highest-scoring team in England.
Hazard is without question still behind the top two, but also some others, as well.
Luis Suarez, for all his misgivings, is unplayable on his day, and while he dribbles almost as much as Hazard (he was second to the Belgian for dribbles per game in the Premier League last season), his ability in front of goal sets him apart.
His rating in league games over the course of 2014 (8.12) is the third best in Europe, and gives further credence to the argument that Suarez is next in line, even if FIFA overlooked him for the Ballon d'Or for his World Cup naughtiness.
Also ahead of Hazard in the rankings is Marco Reus, who would have only added to the relative ease with which Germany won the World Cup this summer had he been fit.
He has overcome that disappointment with a fantastic year for Borussia Dortmund. Reus has directly contributed to 20 Bundesliga goals this year, averaging 4.3 shots and three key passes per game this season.
His return would surely soar in a team that weren't performing as poorly as Dortmund. There are few finer counter-attacking players around than Reus.
Sergio Agüero and Zlatan Ibrahimovic are two of the other closest challengers for the crown of the world's 'third best', but the Argentine's injury problems continue to hold him back. He has stayed fit so far this season, and is second only to Ronaldo in Europe's goalscoring charts (12) as a result.
Ibrahimovic, meanwhile, remains one of the most brilliantly unpredictable players around, and with five goals in as many Ligue 1 starts he is also still one of the most prolific goalscorers. It is criminal that he has never even featured in the Ballon d'Or or World Player of the Year top three.
Eden Hazard's quest for greatness continues, but there is still some way to go before he can truly claim to be amongst the very best on the planet. Right now, it is Luis Suarez that can claim to be the closest to Messi and Ronaldo, the runaway top two.
By Ali Tweedale, who you can follow on Twitter @alitweedale.
All statistics courtesy of WhoScored.com, where you can find yet more stats, including live in-game data and unique player and team ratings.
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