Messi, Ronaldo and Griezmann to battle it out for FIFA award

Barcelona star Lionel Messi, Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo and Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann are the remaining three nominees in the race for the inaugural The Best FIFA Men's Player Award.

High-profile names such as Gareth Bale, Luis Suarez, Neymar, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Robert Lewandowski all made the initial 23-men shortlist, but miss out on a podium place.

The original list of 23 names has been trimmed down to the LaLiga trio after voting by captains and coaches of national teams, select members of the media and fans voting on the official FIFA website.

Ronaldo enjoyed a hugely successful 2016 as he guided Madrid to Champions League glory, before capping a fine year by leading Portugal to their first major trophy at Euro 2016.

Messi, meanwhile, helped Barcelona defend their LaLiga title, while also leading Argentina to the final of the Copa America Centenario, where Chile proved to be too strong.

Griezmann made it to the Champions League final with Atletico Madrid, while also reaching the final of Euro 2016, only to end up on the losing side on both occasions.

The winner will be crowned at the annual FIFA gala on January 9 in Zurich.