Lionel Messi's status as the planet's finest footballer was further cemented as he won Fifa's Ballon d'Or for an unprecedented fourth successive time. It is to the eternal misfortune of his closest competitor, Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, that he plays in the time of the great Argentine otherwise he would surely have claimed the coveted crown more than once.

Ronaldo and Messi's Barcelona team-mate Andres Iniesta - a Euro 2012 winner with Spain - were the other contenders and would be fitting and worthy winners in any era. This, however, is not any era - it is the Lionel Messi era.

Messi's brilliance is backed up by a blizzard of compelling statistics, not least his recent feat of breaking German striker Gerd Mueller's 40-year-old record by ending the calendar year with 91 goals for club and country. The manner in which Messi has individually dominated the game's recent years is only emphasised by the fact that he has effectively made its highest individual honour his personal property.

And at the relatively tender age of 25, and with a recently agreed deal to keep him at the Nou Camp until 2018, he has power and talent to add to his unique collection of Ballon d'Or honours.