IFFHS names Messi player of the past decade ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo

Leo Messi was named this Sunday player of the past decade by IFFHS ahead of arch rival Cristiano Ronaldo and Andres Iniesta. The IFFHS admitted that the vote to decide between Messi and CR7 was very tight and there were just a few votes in it. 

The prize is given to the Barca man for being the best player between 2011 and 2020. He won two Champions Leagues, reached the semis three times and the quarters five times. 

Cristiano Ronaldo, loser on this occasion and second best player of the decade, won three consecutive Champions Leagues for Real Madrid although he was less consistent in other competitions.

Third in the list was Andres Iniesta. Despite the fact he left Barca some years back, he was considered to be the third best player of the decade between 2011 and 2020. 

Neymar and Sergio Ramos also appear in the top 10 while Manuel Neuer, Robert Lewandowski, GianluigI Buffon, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Luka Modric are the rest in the top 10. 

Messi won four of his six Ballon d'Ors in the decade as well as The Best and Laureus Prize and was included in FIFA's XI in every year. He also lifted the Golden Ball in 2014 which saw his team end runners-up and he won six Pichichis in La Liga. 

In the years between 2011 and 2020, Messi won six of his nine league titles, five of his six Copa del Reys, five of his eight Supercopas, two of his three UEFA Super Cups and two of his three Club World Cups.