What Chance Does Man Utd's Angel Di Maria Stand of Winning the Ballon D'Or?

Manchester United's £60 million signing of Angel Di Maria was symbolic of the club's newly revised transfer strategy. Once a bastion of youth development and shrewd investment, the Old Trafford side is now targeting the best players in the game. And the best players win the Ballon d'Or.

In fact, according to Jason Burt of The Telegraph, Di Maria will receive a £4 million bonus payment from United should he win the most prestigious individual prize in football.

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In an era dominated by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, the 2014 race for the Ballon d'Or will be the most open in years. Both players have suffered through injury, leaving the door ajar for the first new winner since 2007.

So who will challenge Messi and Ronaldo for this year's accolade, and does Di Maria stand a chance? Will United have to stump up £4 million sooner rather than later?

Di Maria has certainly enjoyed a stellar 2014. His switch into the centre of midfield under Carlo Ancelotti at Real Madrid was a significant factor in the club claiming its famed 10th European Cup—La Decima.

His surge past three Atletico Madrid players and into the box resulted in Gareth Bale's winning goal in Lisbon, giving Real the energy and thrust they needed against such a well-organised outfit.

The winger-turned-central midfielder was also integral to Argentina's run to the World Cup final, almost carrying Alejandro Sabella's side alongside his Barcelona rival Messi.

But as impressive as Di Maria has been over the past nine months or so, he will not be considered one of the front-runners for the 2014 Ballon d'Or, although he deserves an honourable mention.

Thomas Muller will make the lists of many for the award, given his astonishing contribution to Germany's World Cup glory. The attacker may have only made the semi-finals of the Champions League, but his five goals in Brazil made him just the second player in history to do so twice.

But was Muller even Germany's best player? It could be argued that Philipp Lahm was just as important to Joachim Low's side as his Bayern Munich team-mate.

Could a goalkeeper win the Ballon d'Or for the first time since Lev Yashin in 1963? Manuel Neuer stands as good a chance as Oliver Kahn—the last great German 'keeper—did, even after the 2002 World Cup. Over the past year, Neuer has emerged as the best No. 1 in Europe, and in goalkeeping terms, he is just as dominant and imposing as either Messi or Ronaldo.

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What about Arjen Robben? Every so often, the winger finds a groove in his game that makes him almost unplayable, and at the World Cup, he found that kind of form for the Netherlands.

While Louis van Gaal's side fell short of making the Maracana final, it wasn't through any fault of Robben, who was arguably the best player at the tournament alongside James Rodriguez.

And what chance does the World Cup's top scorer stand of adding the Ballon d'Or to the mantelpiece displaying his Golden Boot award? Realistically little, but it's worth recalling the clamour for Wesley Sneijder to collect the prize back in 2010 on the back of a hugely successful World Cup. Why wouldn't Rodriguez warrant such a campaign?

Neymar will likely make the short list for the Ballon d'Or, but his inclusion will draw regret and thoughts over what might have been. As the poster boy of the Brazilian World Cup, Neymar made the shift from "one to watch" to global superstar, essentially carrying an entire country's hopes on his still young shoulders.

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Injury abruptly cut short his tournament, but his impact on the World Cup had already been felt. Perhaps Neymar will court the sympathy vote for the Ballon d'Or because, as things turned out, it feels as if he and Brazil were robbed of a career-defining moment.

Messi and Ronaldo are still the leading candidates to scoop the most famous golden ball in sport, but it is true that the gap between them and the rest has narrowed. And that could increase the likelihood of someone like Di Maria breaking the duopoly.