Ranking the Best La Liga Players in 2017 Not on Ballon d'Or List
The Ballon d'Or, in its different guises and ownerships, has been pretty much permanently lodged in Spain over the last decade.
While Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo fight it out for ultimate dominance on a year-to-year basis, much of the remaining contenders are also La Liga-based.
Since 2007 when Kaka won the award, only the aforementioned duo have since laid claim to being the world's best, Ronaldo winning one year while still at Manchester United and a further three times since moving to Real Madrid, while each of Messi's five triumphs have naturally come with him playing for Barcelona.
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More than that; since 2009, of the 24 names to finish in the top three of the Ballon d'Or, just two have come from outside La Liga.
Spain's top flight remains a stronghold of world-football talent, and this year's shortlist is no different. 11 of the 30 names are La Liga-based, while an additional one—Neymar, now of Paris Saint-Germain—spent the majority of 2017 in the league.
But who else deserves recognition for a fine year? There were more than a dozen impressive performers in La Liga throughout the past 10 months or so, and some have picked up in 2017/18 where they left off in May.
Criteria
To be included on our list, players have to have been playing in La Liga throughout 2017, so no summer arrivals or departures, or returning from loan spells, from overseas. Likewise, no promoted or relegated clubs have had both halves of the year in the top flight.
Other than that, we're ranking by overall performance for club and country where applicable throughout the calendar year, not 2016/17 season, so displays thus far in the new campaign also count toward players' standings.
Similarly, if players performed well toward the end of last season but haven't been in the team this year, they're unlikely to feature highly, if at all.
The players listed aren't necessarily suggested that they should have been included on the Ballon d'Or list; rather the best of the rest who weren't named.
As a reminder, the 11 who were nominated for the Ballon d'Or shortlist are: Karim Benzema, Antoine Griezmann, Isco, Toni Kroos, Marcelo, Lionel Messi, Luka Modric, Jan Oblak, Sergio Ramos, Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Suarez.
Honourable mentions, surprising omissions
A whole troop could have been included here after a fine year, so a few highlights first who don't quite make the cut:
Mateo Kovacic, Real Madrid
Diego Godin, Atletico Madrid
Pablo Fornals, Malaga and Villarreal
Kepa, Athletic Club
Aaron Martin, Espanyol
Aritz Aduriz, Athletic Club
Gerard Moreno, Espanyol
Iago Aspas, Celta Vigo
Diego Llorente, Malaga and Real Sociedad
Cedric Bakambu, Villarreal
And a handful who in the natural scheme of things are among the top talents in La Liga but didn't have the best calendar year for various reasons (quite possibly outside their control):
Andres Iniesta, Barcelona
Gareth Bale, Real Madrid
Augusto Fernandez, Atletico Madrid
Daniel Carrico, Sevilla
Yeray Alvarez, Athletic Club
15 to 10
15. Sergio Busquets, Barcelona
Barcelona's holding midfielder wasn't at his best all year long, partly due to tactical tinkering leaving him exposed, but he still put in more than enough performances to justify his standing as one of the world's best holding midfielders.
14. Carlos Soler, Valencia
Soler broke into Los Che's team partway through the year and has never looked like giving up a spot since. Technically excellent, creative, aggressive in getting forward and capable of scoring goals, he can play across the midfield line and is a key part of the new-look Valencia team.
13. Alvaro Odriozola, Real Sociedad
La Real's right-back has quickly won admirers with his superb defensive work and willingness to attack down the flank. He quickly became an undisputed starter last term and is one of La Liga's most impressive all-round full-backs already.
12. Raphael Varane, Real Madrid
As always, only injury interrupts the usually excellent form of Varane and prevents him being higher—he missed about two months with an Achilles issue last term. At the end of the campaign, he returned impressively, though, and this season he has been monstrous.
11. Stefan Savic, Atletico Madrid
It's difficult enough to break into Atletico's first XI, but perhaps more so at centre-back than anywhere else. Savic has displaced Josema Gimenez and is keeping his place with consistent, aggressive, diligent defensive displays.
The Top 10
10. Keylor Navas, Real Madrid
Into the top 10, starting with a title-winner.
Navas' real sticky patch of form came in the first half of 2016/17, when injury hampered him early on and mistakes were made soon after returning.
But since the turn of the year, he's barely put a foot, or glove, wrong. Still fantastic with his reflexes, still as mentality strong as he is needed to be in the possibility of transfer rumours over his position, and still in the top three stoppers in La Liga.
9. Asier Illarramendi, Real Sociedad
It's not all about the biggest two sides in the top 10; though, nobody will be surprised to see a few names mentioned from both Real and Barca.
Illarra produced a real claim last term to be the best Spanish player outside the Champions League sides, with a series of near-perfect displays as La Real's holding midfielder.
His aggressive defensive work, an ability to pass from deep or drive on in possession and, most notably of all, a non-stop engine make him an all-round centre of the park general who is hard to bypass. A big part of the reason that La Real are back near the top of the table once again.
8. Nacho Fernandez, Real Madrid
For long spells of last season, Nacho was Real Madrid's best defender—it's that simple.
Still seen as a third-choice by many, Nacho came up not just with big performances when his team needed him, but an incredible consistency irrespective of who he partnered or where he played.
It has been the same again this season, playing both centrally and at full-back, and Nacho is growing in influence on a back line that is all too often disrupted by unavailability to others—yet there Nacho remains, ready to perform and never letting his team down.
7. Filipe Luis, Atletico Madrid
Atletico fell short in the title race last term and may well do so again this year, but they still have smatterings of absolute quality throughout the side.
Left-back Filipe Luis is one of them.
The Brazilian just does everything with calmness, composure and—most of all—great execution, whether it's defending his channel, supporting the attack or leading a counter. If Diego Simeone could wind back the clock on just one of his squad, it's a fair bet Filipe Luis would be a big consideration.
6. Saul Niguez, Atletico Madrid
No need to wind back the clock on Saul, who continues to grow in stature and experience by the season and now, at only 22, is one of Europe's best central midfielders.
The term "complete midfielder" could have been coined for Saul; he has played both as a centre-back and a supporting striker, as well as a wide man in a four-man midfield line, and brings traits from each of those positions to his regular role in the middle.
Tough to win the ball off, equally capable winning back possession or being a threat on goal, Saul is showing more and more often that he's set to be one of the biggest parts of Spain's future on the international scene.
5. Marco Asensio, Real Madrid
Speaking of importance to the Spanish national team future, Marco Asensio has already pretty much written himself into that same side for years to come.
The attacking midfielder hasn't been pigeonholed into any particular role yet, playing both in the middle and as part of a three-man attacking line, but it doesn't seem to matter too much where he plays.
With great pace and acceleration, control of the ball in the dribble and a penchant for spectacular shots in the biggest of games, nothing seems to faze Asensio, and he's destined to make an almighty impact year-on-year once he nails down a regular spot in Madrid's XI.
For now, he's a man for every occasion, in any role that's needed, and is learning all the time—and performing astonishingly well, too.
4. Steve N'Zonzi, Sevilla
For most, the best player in La Liga outside the big three teams; for some, one of the best players in La Liga, period.
N'Zonzi has patrolled Sevilla's midfield zone for years without taking the headlines and highlights, but he does it superbly well—a defensive protector who is also regularly seen striding forward to force his team to take the initiative.
Whether the sitter or in more of a roving role to win possession higher upfield, N'Zonzi dominates games like few can. He's been a massive success once again in 2017.
3. Samuel Umtiti, Barcelona
A fan favourite at the Camp Nou, and it's no real wonder.
Umtiti's debut campaign went well, making him an island of success amid a sea of mediocrity in the transfer market. That's not the only reason Barca supporters have taken to him so quickly, though.
His aggressive stance in defence, his recovery pace, aerial ability and utter coolness on the ball, even under pressure, all make him the perfect modern centre-back and clearly a player the team can rely on for years to come.
Barcelona's best defender in 2017.
2. Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Barcelona
Behind Umtiti, the German colossus.
Ter Stegen took two years to become the undisputed first choice for Barcelona, and that time spent battling Claudio Bravo has clearly left a mark: He doesn't want to miss a single game now that he doesn't have to, and knows his performances will dictate whether that's the case or not.
From an error-strewn stopper with good feet to a genuinely elite all-rounder, Ter Stegen can feel hard done by not to have been included on the actual shortlist for the Ballon d'Or—his performances for Barcelona have been that good.
He's still tremendous in possession and distribution, but his shot-stopping is unrivalled; he's brave, big and always on hand to help out his defence. In short, Ter Stegen has found the consistency he always needed to be spoken about as one of the game's best in his position.
1. Casemiro, Real Madrid
If Ter Stegen can feel hard done by, Casemiro can consider it ridiculous that he wasn't on the 30-man shortlist, considering at least a small handful of others who were included.
After the turn of the year, Casemiro missed three matches in La Liga and none at all in the Champions League, as Real Madrid marched toward success in both competitions.
There's a reason he's always on the pitch: He's the fulcrum of the team, the balancing act between the offensive superstars and a defence that is sometimes patchwork and sometimes out of shape due to the attacking nature of the side.
He covers, he challenges, he fills in, and he even initiates attacks and scores screamers himself—just ask Napoli.
A goal in the Champions League final itself is enough for some forwards to be nominated, but not, it seems, for a man who deserved to be in the final conversation even without that memorable strike. Casemiro: La Liga's best in 2017 who wasn't on the Ballon d'Or shortlist.
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