Ribery happy to be in Ballon d'Or running

The French winger, who is on the shortlist along with Barcelona's Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid, is being tipped to take the crown by some after a stellar year which has seen him win the UEFA Champions League, as well as being named the UEFA Best Player in Europe.

But Ribery admits he is happy to have made the top three and will be satisfied whatever the outcome.

"Whether I win or not I will still be happy," he said. "To me it is a pleasure to be on the shortlist of candidates with Cristiano and Messi.

"This year I have won everything with Bayern and I think I helped a lot.

"I'll see what happens January 13. The important thing is to keep coming with this run of success."

Speaking about the atmosphere at Bayern, Ribery added: "The key is that we enjoy playing. We're like one big family. Bayern I think is the strongest club in the world.

"German football is like a train that will not stop and we're so proud of it."

Bayern currently sit seven points clear of Bayer Leverkusen at the top of the Bundesliga - which is in the midst of a mid-season break.