Why Bayern Munich Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer Will Win FIFA Ballon D'Or Soon

Well, another year has passed, and once again, Cristiano Ronaldo has picked up the FIFA Ballon d'Or trophy at an exclusive event in downtown Zurich. Monday's award now means that the Portuguese international has won the prestigious trophy three times, including twice in a row, putting him just one behind Lionel Messi, who won the four that preceded him. 

Yet as we gush our hearts out over these two goliaths of world football, it's worth taking a second to wonder whether anyone else will ever win the trophy or if we should just flip a coin between the two from here on in. 

Fortunately, there is one man with high hopes of breaking this duopoly of superstar recognition. His name is Manuel Neuer, and one day, he will win the Ballon d'Or. 

First things first: Neuer will quite simply be around for much longer at the top of European football than either Ronaldo or Messi. The Real Madrid star and current Ballon d'Or holder will be 30 years old next month while his Argentinian nemesis will be turning 28 in the summer.

Both are now rapidly approaching—if not already at—their peaks in terms of physical ability and could well find themselves on a downward spiral with regards to form and performances. They're two of the best players of this current generation, undoubtedly, but just how many career-defining seasons do each of them have left? 

Martin Meissner/Associated Press

Neuer, on the other hand, will be turning 29 in March but can look forward to at least another eight years at the top of European football and the most likely scenario among goalkeepers of not reaching his peak until his late 30s. 

Although it may seem like a cop-out at this point, Neuer will almost certainly be in contention for future Ballon d'Or awards long after Ronaldo and Messi have given up chasing their dreams at Madrid and Barca, respectively. 

In fact, when we look into the near future, the prospects of Neuer pipping the other two to future awards seems much more likely. 

What Neuer primarily had in his back pocket last year that Messi and Ronaldo will never have is a strong national team to fall back on throughout his career. As we saw last summer, the goalkeeper from Gelsenkirchen took on the world at the World Cup, and it became abundantly clear that such a phenomenon would now be a routine feature of international football every two years. 

Messi may win more league titles with Barcelona, and Ronaldo may even pick up another Champions League or two before he retires, but Neuer will have at least another four international tournaments with Germany in which he can walk away with much bigger prizes than anything the other two already lay claim to. 

What's perhaps just as important is the fact that this German side only look like they're going to get better and better. Thomas Muller (25), Mario Gotze (22) and Marco Reus (25) all have much more to offer their national team, and as Die Mannschaft go hunting for more international trophies, so too will Neuer in his quest for world domination. 

Although unlike Spain, which Germany will undoubtedly hope to emulate after their first World Cup trophy in 24 years, Joachim Low's side have a stand-alone star in Neuer in the manner in which he conducts himself on the pitch and stands above all others in such a position. 

However, rather than simply maintaining an outstanding level of quality in a consistent manner, Neuer has duly took to improving what he can do as a goalkeeper and went above redefining what it is that a quality shot-stopper can do on the pitch. 

Daniel Ochoa de Olza/Associated Press

Although praise for the German goalkeeper's ability to sweep up floating poachers of the ball has long been documented, the legacy of what he actually managed to do in Brazil last summer and has since perfected under Pep Guardiola will only grow as that style of play becomes more prevalent. 

At this moment in time, he stands alone. Sure, he's still the best keeper in the world, but the rushing out is something that offers too much contrast to rivals such as David de Gea and Thibaut Courtois. We won't be able to appreciate what he does now until others start copying him in the future. 

Then, when he's most likely picking up more awards for club and country and finally hitting his peak, will the world fully appreciate what Neuer has done for the role of goalkeeper within the sport. It may be next year, the year after or even the year after that, but before too long, this shot-stopper of a generation will pick up the Ballon d'Or he rightfully deserves. 

@sbienkowski