UEFA Best Player in Europe Award contenders

Eight of the Spain squad which won EURO 2012 line up alongside the likes of inaugural winner Lionel Messi on a 32-player long list – to be cut to three next month – for the prestigious award.

Inaugural winner Lionel Messi is joined by the two men who he beat to last season's crown, Cristiano Ronaldo and Xavi Hernández, on a 32-player long list for the 2011/12 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award to be presented in Monaco on 30 August.

Born out of an initiative by UEFA President Michel Platini, the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award intends to revive the spirit of the old European Footballer of the Year honour. The trophy was handed out for the first time in Monaco last August as part of the draw ceremony for the UEFA Champions League group stage.

As was the case in 2011, a jury of journalists from each of UEFA's 53 member associations has provided a list of their best-ranked players. The players are ordered from one to five, with the first receiving five points, the second four points and so on.

On 14 August, UEFA.com will reveal the three players with the most points overall from the first round of voting. They will then proceed to the live vote in Monaco when the same journalists will use an electronic system to determine the winner from the three candidates.

Messi is one of four Barça players in contention. The other three – Xavi, Andrés Iniesta and Cesc Fàbregas – were all members of the Spain squad which won UEFA EURO 2012. Three of their international team-mates – Xabi Alonso, Iker Casillas and Sergio Ramos – are among seven Real Madrid CF players in the hunt.

English title winners Manchester City FC have a six-strong representation, two more than their Premier League rivals Chelsea FC, who claimed a first UEFA Champions League crown in Munich in May.

Twelve clubs are represented in total, including Club Atlético de Madrid, for whom Falcao makes the list after inspiring a second UEFA Europa League success in three seasons.

The 32-player long list is as follows (in alphabetical order):

Sergio Agüero (ARG) – Manchester City FC

Xabi Alonso (ESP) – Real Madrid CF

Mario Balotelli (ITA) – Manchester City FC

Jakub Błaszczykowski (POL) – Borussia Dortmund

Gianluigi Buffon (ITA) – Juventus

Iker Casillas (ESP) – Real Madrid CF

Petr Čech (CZE) – Chelsea FC

Fábio Coentrão (POR) – Real Madrid CF

Leslie Davies (WAL) – Bangor City FC

Didier Drogba (CIV) – Chelsea FC (now at Shanghai Shenhua FC)

Cesc Fàbregas (ESP) – FC Barcelona

Falcao (COL) – Club Atlético de Madrid

Joe Hart (ENG) – Manchester City FC

Zlatan Ibrahimović (SWE) – AC Milan

Andrés Iniesta (ESP) – FC Barcelona

Shinji Kagawa (JPN) – Borussia Dortmund (now at Manchester United FC)

Vincent Kompany (BEL) – Manchester City FC

Frank Lampard (ENG) – Chelsea FC

Lionel Messi (ARG) – FC Barcelona

Luka Modrić (CRO) – Tottenham Hotspur FC

Mesut Özil (GER) – Real Madrid CF

Pepe (POR) – Real Madrid CF

Andrea Pirlo (ITA) – Juventus

Sergio Ramos (ESP) – Real Madrid CF

Raúl González (ESP) – FC Schalke 04 (now at al-Sadd Sports Club)

Cristiano Ronaldo (POR) – Real Madrid CF

Wayne Rooney (ENG) – Manchester United FC

David Silva (ESP) – Manchester City FC

Fernando Torres (ESP) – Chelsea FC

Yaya Touré (CIV) – Manchester City FC

Robin van Persie (NED) – Arsenal FC

Xavi Hernández (ESP) – FC Barcelona