Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann has included Leicester City's Jamie Vardy in his selection of the three best players of 2016.
Vardy's goals helped the Foxes to the most unlikely of Premier League title triumphs and also earned him a place on the shortlist for FIFA's Ballon d'Or award.
Griezmann revealed that the England international would be alongside Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as his top three, and also selected Leicester boss Claudio Ranieri as one of his top three managers of the year.
"Cristiano Ronaldo, as he's won two titles, Lionel Messi because he's unique and after that maybe Jamie Vardy for winning the English title with Leicester," he told Goal.com.
"My two coaches: Diego Simeone and Didier Deschamps. After them, Claudio Ranieri for his work at Leicester.
"It was unexpected (Leicester becoming champions), especially against teams like Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal, Tottenham and Liverpool. It's something incredible that they won the championship."
Griezmann is also on the shortlist for the 2016 Ballon d'Or having helped Atletico to the Champions League final and France to the final of Euro 2016.
Barney Corkhill
