Why Manuel Neuer Should Be the Runaway Winner of the Ballon d'Or

The Ballon d'Or ceremony is upon us once again, as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Manuel Neuer face off to see who will be crowned the winner for 2014. All three had brilliant years, but one stood apart. No, it wasn't Ronaldo. It was Neuer.

The German had an unbelievable year, and as good as his competitors were, he deserves to win the title.

Messi and Ronaldo are easier choices for the Ballon d'Or. During the voting period for the award—November 30, 2013, to November 21, 2014—Messi netted 59 times for club and country, while Ronaldo edged ahead with 60, per Opta (h/t Goal). Not to mention their assists—21 and 18, respectively.

Indeed, both were typically brilliant for the majority of the year. However, both disappointed at times, and this is where Neuer succeeded.

Messi, in spite of his goal tally, was unable to help Barcelona win a single piece of silverware last year.

On top of that, the Argentinian's World Cup performances were almost universally met with a resounding "meh." To his credit he scored four goals, but these all came in the group stage against lowly opposition.

The 27-year-old's ineffectual efforts in the knockout stages in Brazil culminated in the following miss, failing to score from a chance he could normally tuck away in his sleep:

For a player who will be remembered as one of, if not the best to ever grace a football pitch, this was a definite let down. 

As good as Messi was overall, if he wasn't able to help his teams win anything, can he really have been the best in the world?

Ronaldo had more success than Messi, but still falls short of Neuer.

Real Madrid won two major trophies in the form of the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League—the latter ending the club's lengthy pursuit of La Decima.

However, Ronaldo was crucial to neither final. The 29-year-old was absent from the Copa del Rey win through injury, and his last-minute penalty against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League was the fourth in a 4-1 win.

"CR7" was also a complete disappointment on the biggest stage of all. The Madeira-born forward captained Portugal to a group stage exit, scoring just once in Brazil.

Neuer, meanwhile, was critical to both Bayern Munich and Germany last year. In 56 games during the aforementioned voting period, the 28-year-old kept 28 clean sheets, a phenomenal record.

The 'keeper was awarded the Golden Glove for helping his side lift the World Cup, and maintained a save rate of 86.2 percent throughout the tournament, conceding just four.

Germany manager Joachim Low argues that Neuer was responsible for their triumph, per this tweet from Paul Hayward of The Telegraph:

Neuer also won the Bundesliga and German Cup double with Bayern, making innumerable saves along the way. Thanks in large part to his efforts, Bayern conceded just 23 in 34 league games last season and only four in 17 this season.

Much has been made of Neuer's "revolutionising" of goalkeeping and how we think of 'keepers, due to his tendency to operate as a "Sweeper Keeper," such as Paddy Vipond's analysis for the Guardian. Indeed, the stopper demonstrated these feats time and again in 2014 (1:09 and 3:08, below).

While "revolutionising" may be a bit strong—after all, we've seen 'keepers do this sort of thing before—the fact that he can pull off such a risky manoeuvre so consistently and with such well-placed confidence shows that he is truly a special talent.

Aside from just his presence between the sticks (or 30 yards out), Neuer's distribution helps his teams considerably. 

As you can see above (4:20), the German is phenomenal at finding team-mates. He even boasts a pass completion of 85 percent in the league this season, per Squawka. To put this in perspective, Thibaut Courtois' pass completion is 54 percent.

Michael Probst/Associated Press

This not only allows Bayern and Germany to retain possession more effectively, but also allows them to launch rapid counter-attacks that can prove deadly thanks to their remarkable front players.

Ultimately, the Ballon d'Or is an individual award, and no player on a pitch is more of an individual than a goalkeeper.

Whereas Messi and Ronaldo have world-class team-mates supplying them with chance after chance, Neuer is at the mercy of the opposition's attack.

Obviously Bayern and Germany both have outstanding defenders to protect Neuer, but when they allow an attacker past them it's down to him and him alone to stop them.

Neuer is unequivocally the best goalkeeper in the world, and proved it throughout the whole year. He's bidding to be the first 'keeper to win the Ballon d'Or since Lev Yashin in 1963, and if any 'keeper ever deserved it, he does.

Ronaldo and Messi scored their usual shed full of goals and admittedly dazzled with some of their performances.

But Neuer was at his best all year long and was fundamental to his club and country's successes. If ever he is to win a Ballon d'Or, it has to be now. More importantly, it should be.