The candidates for the election of Best Player in the Champions League have been made world famous by UEFA. Three players per line have a chance to win the honourable prize. Kevin De Bruyne, Kylian Mbappé and Robert Lewandowski, among others, may hope for an election, according to the European Football Association’s list. Bayern Munich is particularly well represented. For the first time there is also an election at the Champions League in women’s football, with Arsenal striker Vivianne Miedema as one of the candidates. Europa League hero Luuk de Jong has not received a nomination.

The trainers of the 32 clubs that participated in the Champions League last season recently cast their vote. In addition, there were votes from journalists from the 55 UEFA member countries. It was possible to give five, three and one point to the players who played in the billiard ball in the year 2019/20. On the basis of the votes of the coaches and journalists, a shortlist compiled by UEFA. Among the women, the jury consisted of the eight coaches of the participating clubs and twenty journalists.

The shortlist for the men in the Champions League:

Goalkeepers: Keylor Navas (Paris Saint-Germain), Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Jan Oblak (Atlético Madrid)

Defenders: David Alaba (Bayern Munich), Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich); Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich)

Midfielders: Thiago Alcántara (Bayern Munich); Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Thomas Müller (Bayern Munich)

Attackers: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich); Kylian Mbappé (Paris Saint-Germain); Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain)

The shortlist in the women’s version of the Champions League:

Goalkeepers: Sarah Bouhaddi (Olympique Lyon), Christiane Endler (Paris Saint-Germain), Sandra Paños (Barcelona)

Defenders: Lucy Bronze (Olympique Lyon, now near Manchester City), Lena Goeßling (VfL Wolfsburg), Wendie Renard (Olympique Lyon)

Midfielders: Sara Björk Gunnarsdóttir (Olympique Lyon, previously at VfL Wolfsburg), Dzsenifer Marozsán (Olympique Lyon), Alexandra Popp (VfL Wolfsburg).

Attackers: Delphine Cascarino (Olympique Lyon), Pernille Harder (VfL Wolfsburg, now at Chelsea); Vivianne Miedema (Arsenal).

Also for the Europa League is a shortlist drawn up by UEFA, although not in this case on a per-line basis. There is no place for De Jong on the three-man list, despite the fact that the striker from Seville scored twice in the final against Internazionale (2-3). A team-mate of the Dutchman can still win. Also in this case, the coaches of all clubs, 48 in total, could vote. In addition, 55 journalists boasted about the players who stood out last season in the Europa League. During the draw of the group stage of the Champions League on 1 October, a Player of the Year will be elected among the men and women. A Trainer of the Year will also be elected in both categories. The nominees will be announced next week.

The shortlist of the Europa League:

Éver Banega (Seville, now with Al-Shabab FC), Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United) and Romelu Lukaku (Internazionale).