Messi keeps the nr 1 position on Castrol Edge Rankings

In what proved to be an exceptional year for Lionel Messi, the Barcelona star finishes 2012 as the top ranked player in latest edition of the Castrol EDGE Rankings – a position that he has held for the entire duration of year.

Messi has stretched his lead over second-placed Cristiano Ronaldo to 205 points after the action in December, with all four of the Argentine’s four starts in the month earning him over 1200 Castrol EDGE Performance points. It was a vintage year for Messi, with the 25-year-old netting a World record 92 goals in all competitions for club and country during 2012.

Bayern Munich star Arjen Robben has moved in to third place in the Rankings, rising for the third successive month. He overtakes teammate Mario Gómez (4^th) after a frustrating start to the 2012-13 season for the German striker. Following an ankle injury suffered on the eve of the campaign, Gómez has played only 249 of a possible 2070 minutes in Bundesliga and Champions League football this season; a run of misfortune that has contributed towards his drop in the Rankings.

The Premier League’s top goalscorer in 2012; Robin van Persie, moves up to fifth in the latest edition of the Rankings. The Dutchman netted 27 goals in 39 league appearances last year and ended 2012 on a high, with five goals in six appearances in December.

Another Premier League forward has entered the Castrol EDGE Rankings Top 10 following a great run of form – Liverpool’s Luis Suárez. The Uruguayan striker has reached his highest-ever position in the Rankings (9^th) thanks to a great start to the 2012-13 season, in which he’s netted 13 goals in 19 Premier League appearances and attempted more shots than any other player (87).
He’s joined in the top 10 by the enigmatic Zlatan Ibrahimovic (10^th), who’s began life at PSG with aplomb; netting 20 goals in his 22 Ligue 1 and Champions League appearances for the club in 2012.

Spurs’ made a very shrewd acquisition in the form of Belgian defender Jan Vertonghen from Ajax this summer, and the 25-year-old has made the biggest leap in the Castrol EDGE rankings this month; moving up 639 places from 1147^th to 508^th. Should he continue his impressive performances for the Lilywhites, Vertonghen should be expected to rise in the Rankings quite rapidly in the coming months.

Despite dropping two places in the Castrol EDGE Rankings this month, Tottenham Hotspur star Gareth Bale (19^th) managed an exceptional display for the Lilywhites during their Boxing Day demolition of Aston Villa to win the Castrol EDGE Performance of the Month award for December. The Welsh wing wizard netted his first-ever Premier League hat-trick during Spurs’ 4-0 win at Villa Park and was rewarded with 2525 points – the highest Castrol EDGE performance score accrued in 2012-13 so far.