Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil has been omitted from the 30-man shortlist for this year’s Ballon d’Or award.
The German has been in sparkling form for the Gunners, but he was left off the list of players in the running for the gong which crowns the best player in the world.
Ozil has started the season in fine fettle, netting three times in the Premier League to help Arsenal to joint top of the table and enjoyed a productive second half to the last campaign.
The 28-year-old hit a hat-trick as Arsenal hammered Ludogorets 6-0 in their last Champions League outing.
Despite his and teammate Alexis Sanchez’s omission, there are eight Premier League players to make the shortlist, including Leicester and England striker Jamie Vardy, who is the sole English representative.
Manchester City duo Sergio Aguero and Kevin De Bruyne are on the list, as is Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Vardy’s Leicester teammate Riyad Mahrez joins him on the shortlist, with Tottenham keeper Hugo Lloris also in the running.
The world’s most expensive player Paul Pogba is the other United star on the list, with David De Gea surprisingly missing out. West Ham’s Dimitri Payet completes the Premier League representation.
30-man Ballon d’Or shortlist
Sergio Aguero (Manchester City)
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund)
Gareth Bale (Real Madrid)
Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
Paulo Dybala (Juventus)
Diego Godin (Atlético Madrid)
Antoine Griezmann (Atlético Madrid)
Gonzalo Higuain (Napoli/Juventus)
Zlatan Ibrahimovic (PSG/Manchester United)
Andrés Iniesta (Barcelona)
Koke (Atletico Madrid)
Toni Kroos (Real Madrid)
Robert Lewandowski (Bayern)
Hugo Lloris (Tottenham Hotspur)
Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City)
Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)
Luka Modric (Real Madrid)
Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich)
Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich)
Neymar (Barcelona)
Dimitri Payet (West Ham United)
Pepe (Real Madrid)
Paul Pogba (Manchester United)
Rui Patricio (Sporting Portugal)
Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid)
Luis Suarez (Barcelona)
Jamie Vardy (Leicester City)
Arturo Vidal (Bayern Munich)
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