NIGERIA'S SUNDAY MBA NAMED 24TH BEST PLAYER IN THE WORLD. SEE FULL LIST

Luckily, the 25 year-old midfielder happens to be the only Nigerian to grace the prestigious Goal 50 list. I guess we all know why his name popped up. Needless to say Sunday Mba's contribution to Nigeria's victory at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations was immense and remarkable. It couldn't have gone unnoticed.

The list is annually compiled by world's biggest online football brand, Goal.com. Voting takes place at the end of domestic and international seasons for most countries.

GOAL 50: FULL LIST

(1) Lionel Messi - Barcelona
(2) Franck Ribery - Bayern Munich
(3) Cristiano Ronaldo - Real Madrid
(4) Thomas Muller - Bayern Munich
(5) Arjen Robben - Bayern Munich
(6) Gareth Bale - Tottenham Hotspur
(7) Philipp Lahm - Bayern Munich
(8) Thiago Silva - Paris Saint-Germain
(9) Arturo Vidal - Juventus
(10) Robin Van Persie- Manchester United
(11) Bastian Schweinsteiger - Bayern Munich
(12) Paulinho - Tottenham Hotspur
(13) Fred - Fluminense
(14) Neymar - Barcelona
(15) Robert Lewandowski - Borussia Dortmund
(16) Edinson Cavani- Paris Saint-Germain
(17) Radamel Falcao - AS Monaco
(18) Dante - Bayern Munich
(19) Andres Iniesta - Barcelona
20Burak YilmazGalatasaray
21Ignacio ScoccoInternacional
22Mario MandzukicBayern Munich
(23) Javi Martinez - Bayern Munich
(24) Sunday Mba - Enugu Rangers
(25) Zlatan Ibrahimovic- Paris Saint-Germain
(26) Mario Gotze - Bayern Munich
(27) Manuel Neuer - Bayern Munich
(28) Thibaut Courtois - Atlético Madrid
(29) Mohamed Aboutrika - Al Ahly SC
(30) Igor Akinfeev - CSKA Moscow
(31) Luis Suarez - Liverpool
(32) Juan Mata - Chelsea
(33) Jackson Martinez - FC Porto
(34) Paolo Guerrero - Corinthians
(35) Ilkay Gundogan - Borussia Dortmund
(36) Isco - Real Madrid
(37) Raphael Varane - Real Madrid
(38) Willian- Anzhi Makhachkala
(39) Omar Abdul Rahman Al AmoodiAl-Ain
(40) James Rodriguez-AS Monaco
(41) Roman Weidenfeller - Borussia Dortmund
(42) Andrea Pirlo - Juventus
(43) Henrik Mkhitaryan - Borussia Dortmund
(44) Victor Wanyama - Southampton
(45) Itumeleng Khune- Kaizer Chiefs
(46) Fernandinho - Manchester City
(47) Hisato Sato - Sanfrecce Hiroshima
(48) Robbie Keane - LA Galaxy
(49) Lee Keun- HoSangju Sangmu
(50) Frank Lampard - Chelsea