Cape Town - The 55-man shortlist for the FIFA FIFPro World XI was revealed on Monday after votes from 25 000 footballers in 65 countries.
The likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Mohamed Salah and Luka Modric are among the big names on the list, but there were also some surprises.
Karim Benzema made the cut after scoring just five La Liga goals in the 2017/18 season, while Mauro Icardi missed out on the shortlist despite netting 29 times in Serie A.
One goalkeeper, four defenders, three midfielders and three attackers will make up the final World XI, which will be announced at the Best FIFA Football Awards in London on 24 September.
The list is intended to honour contributions by individual players throughout the 2017/18 season.
THE 55 MOST VOTED PLAYERS ARE:
Name - country, previous team/current team
Goalkeepers (5)
Gianluigi Buffon - Italy, Juventus/Paris
Saint-GermainThibaut Courtois – Belgium, Chelsea/Real
Madrid CF
David De Gea – Spain, Manchester United FC
Keylor Navas – Costa Rica, Real Madrid CF
Marc-Andre ter Stegen – Germany, FC
Barcelona
Defenders (20)
Jordi Alba – Spain, FC Barcelona
Dani Alves – Brazil, Paris Saint-Germain
Daniel Carvajal – Spain, Real Madrid CF
Giorgio Chiellini – Italy, Juventus FC
Virgil van Dijk – The Netherlands, Southampton/Liverpool
Diego Godin – Uruguay, Atletico Madrid
Mats Hummels – Germany, FC Bayern Munchen
Joshua Kimmich – Germany, FC Bayern Munchen
Dejan Lovren – Croatia, Liverpool FC
Marcelo – Brazil, Real Madrid CF
Yerry Mina – Colombia, FC Barcelona/Everton
FC
Benjamin Pavard – France, VfB Stuttgart
Gerard Pique – Spain, FC Barcelona
Sergio Ramos – Spain, Real Madrid CF
Thiago Silva – Brazil, Paris Saint-Germain
Kieran Trippier – England, Tottenham
Hotspur
Samuel Umtiti – France, FC Barcelona
Raphaël Varane – France, Real Madrid CF
Sime Vrsaljko – Croatia, Atletico
Madrid/Inter
Kyle Walker – England, Manchester City FC
Midfielders (15)
Sergio Busquets – Spain, FC Barcelona
Casemiro – Brazil, Real Madrid CF
Philippe Coutinho – Brazil, Liverpool/FC
Barcelona
Kevin De Bruyne – Belgium, Manchester City
FC
Eden Hazard – Belgium, Chelsea FC
Andres Iniesta – Spain, FC Barcelona/Vissel
Kobe
Isco – Spain, Real Madrid CF
N'Golo Kante – France, Chelsea FC
Toni Kroos – Germany, Real Madrid CF
Nemanja Matic – Serbia, Manchester United
FC
Luka Modric – Croatia, Real Madrid CF
Paul Pogba – France, Manchester United FC
Ivan Rakitic – Croatia, FC Barcelona
David Silva – Spain, Manchester City FC
Arturo Vidal – Chile, FC Bayern Munchen/FC
Barcelona
Forwards (15)
Karim Benzema – France, Real Madrid CF
Edinson Cavani – Uruguay, Paris
Saint-Germain
Paulo Dybala – Juventus FC, Argentina
Antoine Griezmann – France, Atletico Madrid
Harry Kane – England, Tottenham Hotspur
Robert Lewandowski – Poland, FC Bayern
Munchen
Romelu Lukaku – Belgium, Manchester United
FC
Mario Mandzukic – Croatia, Juventus FC
Sadio Mane – Senegal, Liverpool FC
Kylian Mbappe – France, Paris Saint-Germain
Lionel Messi – Argentina, FC Barcelona
Neymar Junior – Brazil, Paris Saint-Germain
Cristiano Ronaldo – Portugal, Real Madrid
CF/Juventus FC
Mohammed Salah – Egypt, Liverpool FC
Luis Suarez – Uruguay, FC Barcelona