Top 10 Football Players of 2012

10.Robin van Persie born 6 August 1983) is a Dutch footballer who plays as a striker for Arsenal and the Dutch national team. Having joined Arsenal in 2004, Van Persie became the club captain on 16 August 2011. His playing style and ability have made him able to be considered among the top 10.

9.Mario Barwuah Balotelli born 12 August 1990) is an Italian footballer who plays as a striker for Manchester City and the Italy national team. He started his professional football career at Lumezzane and played for the first team twice before having an unsuccessful trial at FC Barcelona, and subsequently joining Internazionale in 2007.His passion and strength has made him able to be considered among the top 10.

8.Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior born 5 February 1992), commonly known as Neymar, is a Brazilian footballer who plays in theBrasileirão Série A for Santos and the Brazilian national football team, mainly at                forward position. At the age of 19, Neymar won the 2011 South American Footballer of the Year award, by a record margin, after previous coming third in 2010.Neymar received nominations for the FIFA Ballon d'Or and FIFA Puskás Award in 2011, where he came 10th for the 2011 FIFA Ballon d'Or award and won the 2011 FIFA Puskás Award.

7.Fernando José Torres Sanz born 20 March 1984), nicknamed El Niño is a Spanish footballerwho plays for Chelsea and the Spain national team as a striker.He has since participated in five major tournaments, UEFA Euro 2004, the 2006 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2008, the2010 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2012. Torres did not score at Euro 2004, but netted three at the 2006 World Cup. He scored twice at UEFA Euro 2008, including the winning goal for Spain in their 1–0 win over Germany in the Final. He went on to win the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012 with Spain, scoring no goals in the former, and scoring three goals in the latter to win the Golden Boot, as part of the historic Spain side which won three consecutive major tournaments.

6.Andrés Iniesta Luján born 11 May 1984) is a Spanish footballer who plays as a central midfielder for La Ligaclub FC Barcelona, and the Spanish national team.He was selected for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, playing one game, as Spain went out in the second round. He helped Spain qualify for Euro 2008, and played an important role in the side as they went on to win the competition, playing every game and being selected in the UEFA Team of the Tournament. Iniesta was selected for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and was a key member of the victorious Spanish side; he scored the winning goal in the final against the Netherlands, also being named Man of the Match, and was selected in the tournament's All-Star Team. He was also the Man of the Match for two other World Cup games. Following Spain's victory in theUEFA Euro 2012, Iniesta was selected by the UEFApanel as Player of the Tournament.

5.Mario Gómez García born 10 July 1985) is a German footballer who plays as a striker for Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga and the German national team. Gómez joined Bayern after six years in Stuttgart. The fee was a record for a player transferred in the Bundesliga, estimated to be €30–35 million. When Stuttgart became champions in 2006–07, Gómez contributed 14 goals and 7 assists at the age of 21 and was selectedGerman footballer of the year.

4.David Villa Sánchez, born 3 December 1981), nicknamed El GuajeAsturian: The Kid), is a Spanish footballer who currently plays as a striker for FC Barcelona and the Spanish national football team. He can also operate as a winger.He joined Valencia CF in 2005 for a transfer fee of €12 million and was part of the Valencia team that won the Copa del Rey in the 2007–08 season. In 2010 he moved to FC Barcelona for €40 million where he won his first La Liga and UEFA Champions League titles Villa made his international début in 2005. He has since participated in three major tournaments, becoming an integral member of the Spain teams that won Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup. He scored three goals at the 2006 World Cup, was the top scorer at Euro 2008 and earned the Silver Boot at the 2010 World Cup. He is the first Spanish player to ever reach 50 international goals and is Spain's all-time top goalscorer, having has also scored more World Cup goals than any other player in Spain's history in the process.

.

.3.Xavier "Xavi" Hernández i Creus born 25 January 1980), is a Spanish footballer who plays as acentral midfielder for La Liga club FC Barcelona, and theSpanish national team.Xavi came through La Masia, the Barcelona youth academy, at the age of 11. He made his first-team debut in 18 August 1998. Since then he has played 680 matches, scored 77 goals and made more than 160 assists for above 50 players. He was an integral part of the sextuple-winning Barcelona side in 2009, the only time which a club has achieved six titles in a yearSince making his international debut in 2000, he has been capped 115 times for the Spanish national team, with whom he won UEFA Euro 2008, 2010 World Cup and the UEFA Euro 2012. He was named Player of the Tournament by UEFA at UEFA Euro 2008

2.Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro (born 5 February 1985), commonly known as Cristiano Ronaldo, is a Portuguese footballe rwho plays as a winger or striker for Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid and is the captain of the Portuguese national team. Ronaldo became the most expensive footballer in history after moving from Manchester United to Real Madrid in atransfer worth £80 million (€93.9 million/$131.6 million). In addition, his contract with Real Madrid, in which he is paid €12 million per year, makes him one of the highest-paid footballers in the world, and his buyout clause is valued at €1 billion as per his contract.Ronaldo was the first player to win all four main PFA and FWA awards, doing so in 2007. In 2008, Ronaldo won the Ballon d'Or.He placed second in the Ballon d'Or in 2007, 2009, and 2011. He was awarded the European Golden Shoe in both 2008 and 2011. In 2008, he won three of the four main PFA and FWA trophies and was named theFIFPro Player of the Year, World Soccer Player of the Year, Onze d'Or, and the FIFA World Player of the Year. In 2007 and 2008, Ronaldo was named FWA Footballer of the Year. Ronaldo was the inaugural winner of the FIFA Puskás Award in 2009.

1.Lionel Andrés Messi, born 24 June 1987) is an Argentine footballer who plays for La Liga club FC Barcelona and is the current captain of the Argentina national team, playing mainly as a forward. He is currently Barcelona's all-time top scorer in all official club competitions, excluding friendlies.By the age of 21, Messi had received Ballon d'Or andFIFA World Player of the Year nominations. The following year in 2009 he won both the Ballon d'Or^[3]and FIFA World Player of the Year, and won the inaugural FIFA Ballon d'Or in 2010 and 2011.^[4] He also won the 2010–11 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award. Messi is the fourth football player to win three Ballons d'Or, after Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini and Marco van Basten and the second player to win three consecutive Ballons d'Or, after Michel Platini. His playing style and small stature have drawn comparisons to Diego Maradona, who himself declared Messi as his "successor".Messi has won five La Liga titles and three Champions League titles. In 2012, Messi made UEFA Champions League history by becoming the first player to score five goals in one match, in a 7–1 win against Bayer Leverkusen. With two goals in the next round against Milan, he matched José Altafini's record of 14 goals in a single Champions League season He also became the first player to top-score in four successive Champions League campaigns. He set the world record for most goals scored in a season during the 2011–12 season, with 73 goals. In thesame season, he set the current goalscoring record in a single La Liga Season, scoring 50 goals. Messi was the top scorer of the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship with six goals. In 2006, he became the youngest Argentine to play in the FIFA World Cup and he won a runners-up medal at the Copa América tournament the following year, in which he was elected young player of the tournament.^[16] In2008, he won his first international honour, an Olympic gold medal, with the Argentina Olympic football team.Sportspro has rated Lionel Messi as the 3rd most marketable athlete in the world.

                                                                             Gallery