Move over Messi!

Today, Lionel Messi was inevitably crowned as Fifa World Player of the Year.

Messi may as well have been playing with the crown on his head for the first half of this season, as his exploits during Barcelona's record breaking successes last year all but guaranteed him earning the accolade.

He was unrivalled over the course of last season, leading the mighty Barcelona to an unprecedented treble of the La Liga title, Copa Del Rey, and Champions League trophies, scoring the winner in the final.

This year, he led Barcelona to the Uefa Super Cup title. Most recently, he scored the winner in the World Club Championships for Barcelona in Dubai on Saturday.

He topped the Champions League scoring charts, and amassed 38 goals and 18 assists in only 51 games last season and was undeniably the best player in the world in 2009.

2010 could be much of the same. Messi and Barcelona have won everything there is to win in 2009, but this seasons World Cup is an ideal opportunity for a new star to rise and take the crown away from Messi when next years awards are handed out.

Fabio Cannavaro was an unlikely winner after leading Italy to World Cup glory last time around and his success proves that team success on the biggest stage of them all goes a long way towards stars achieving personal glory.

So, which players have the opportunity and ability to have a year like Ronaldo in 2008 and Messi in 2009 and take the biggest award of them all?

Didier Drogba

The Chelsea hit man has started this season like a house on fire, scoring nearly twenty goals before the turn of the year that have contributed massively to Chelsea sitting on top of the Premier League.

In January, he will lead the line for Ivory Coast in the African Cup of Nations, hoping to provide the goals which could fire his nation to their second ever African crown.

In the second half of the season, Chelsea look set to mount a huge charge for the Premiership title. Their rivals are floundering, and barring a massive turn around in form, Chelsea look set to be crowned Champions in May.

Along side that, Chelsea will be relying on Drogba to score the goals which could take them one step further in the Champions League and earn the first ever victory in that tournament.

If successes in all those competitions are not enough for his fellow professionals, Drogba could also carry his country further than they have ever been in the biggest tournament of them all.

They have been drawn with Brazil and Portugal, but if Drogba can take his side into the latter stages, he will surely be a strong contender when the awards are given out next December.

Wayne Rooney

Prior to the start of the season, Cristiano Ronaldo’s exit from Manchester United piled the pressure on Wayne Rooney to rise up and take over the reigns as his clubs talisman.

So far he has taken to the challenge in typically bullish fashion. 13 goals for his club come on the back of the England ace being in blistering form in the World Cup qualifying campaign where he was the leading scorer in Europe.

In June, he has the hopes of an expectant nation at his feet, being England’s only world class striker and one who will be relied on to score the goals to bring the trophy back home.

The tournament also provides an opportunity for Rooney to eradicate disastrous memories from 2006, where his petulant stamp on Ricardo Carvalho caused him to see red and with it, end any hope of England progressing deep into the competition.

Rooney today is a different player. Now much mature, he has led the line for United admirably and looks set to do the same for England.

And if he can lead both to glory this season, he will be the name on everyone’s lip’s come next December.


Kaka

For a few days this summer, 2007 World Player of the year Kaka was the most expensive footballer in history.

Real Madrid took the plunge and stumped up the 70 million euros demanded by AC Milan for his signature and began building the second wave of galacticos.

They look set to make go close in every tournament they enter this season, already pushing Barcelona in pursuit of top spot in Spain and qualifying comfortably for the latter stages of the Champions League.

Kaka has been a somewhat peripheral figure so far in Spain, but once he settles in he is sure to replicate his successes with the national side at club level

Brazil manager Dunga is an obvious admirer of the 27 year old, building his new look Brazil team around the Real Madrid playmaker. In the 3 year period with Kaka as the focal point, the Selecao have won everything in their path.

Should that culminate in their 6th victory in South Africa this year, playmaker Kaka will be in for world wide acclaim once again.