The 2023 Cyler d’Or Countdown: The best players in the world, Numbers 20-11

The Ballon d’Or has as of late shifted to a (much more suitable) format, now reviewing a season rather than a calendar year, and the Cyler d’Or, in parodic fashion, shall follow suit.

This week we put a full stop on this season’s awards with a final ceremony with a countdown starting from thirty. We have seen the top five leagues individually, but we have not seen them together. It’s time to award the 2023 Cyler d’Or. Not any regional variant, this is not just for Ligue 1, or Serie A, or any other league. Worldwide.

Of the thirty man shortlist, twenty-five will be the twenty-five players who received honours during the course of the 2023 Season Awards, giving us a clean split of five players from each of Europe’s top leagues. The remaining five will be handpicked from the players who missed out on the awards.

Let’s see how they stack up.

(You can get numbers 30-21 here)

20-11

Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

20. Randal Kolo Muani (Eintracht Frankfurt, France)
The French international had a breakout season for Frankfurt, helping them to a Europa Conference League finish in the league and a deep run in the DfB Pokal, as well as topping the Bundesliga chart for goals and assists (26).

19. Kieran Trippier (Newcastle United, England)
Trippier became the focal point of Newcastle’s play in a season where the Magpies made their return to the top of the table with a Champions League finish in the Premier League.

18. Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich, Germany)
The 20-year-old was simply unbelievable at times this season, supplying moments of brilliance time and time again to effectively put the entire Bayern and Germany attacks on his back in the lack of a striker and inconsistent performances from the players around him.

17. Rodri (Manchester City, Spain)
The Nations League and treble-winner with Manchester City was fantastic this season, forming the base of Pep Guardiola’s midfield box of four. The best pure defensive midfielder in the world, bar none.

16. Vinícius Júnior (Real Madrid, Brazil)
The Brazilian winger was a top performer for Real Madrid throughout the season, being the only player in Real’s attack who consistently started every week and contributed every week.

15. Bukayo Saka (Arsenal, England)
Saka was Arsenal’s ace in the hole whenever the game plan failed, as his individual brilliance and understanding of his teammates would single-handedly change games on a dime.

14. Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City, Belgium)
Lower than many may have expected, but De Bruyne in his new hybrid false striker/attacking midfielder role was still world class. While the Belgian may not have had his best season, it was still a fantastic one and cannot be underestimated in any way.

13. Martin Ødegaard (Arsenal, Norway)
The Norwegian midfielder was so good at orchestrating play both from deep and in the final third. He may not have had the trophies to match De Bruyne, but individually he was far more important for Arsenal’s title challenge than De Bruyne was for his team.

12. Robert Lewandowski (FC Barcelona, Poland)
Lewandowski continues to be a top striker, picking up the Pichichi trophy even in what has been described as an ‘off-season’ for the Pole. It remains to be seen if Lewandowski will return to his Bayern form but even at his current rate of performances he would be considered a success for the fee he was bought for.

11. Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur, England)
In a season where England failed to reach the Nations League final and Spurs failed to even qualify for Europe, Kane somehow scored 30 goals in the league, an unheard of feat since the record-breaking seasons of Mohamed Salah and Luis Suárez for Liverpool in the last decade. However the lack of any success or over-performance as a team knocks him down a few pegs.

Tune in tomorrow for the beginning of the top 10!

What do you think of my picks? Is there any order you would’ve changed? Let us know in the discussion below.