Messi Player of the Year, Ronaldinho Player of the Decade

AC Milan’s Ronaldinho has been named World Player of the Decade by prestigious British magazine World Soccer.

The same magazine picked Barcelona’s Lionel Messi as their Player of the Year.

Former winners of the Player of the Year award, which has been active since 1982, are: Cristiano Ronaldo,Kaka, Fabio Cannavaro, Ronaldinho, Pavel Nedved, Ronaldo, Michael Owen, Luis Figo, Rivaldo, Zineddine Zidane, Gianluca Vialli, Paolo Maldini, Roberto Baggio, Marco van Basten, Jean-Pierre Papin, Lothar Matthaus, Ruud Gullit, Diego Maradona, Michel Platini, Zico and Paolo Rossi.

Ronaldinho won World Player of the Decade ahead of Messi and Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo.

Meanwhile Barcelona won the Team of the Year Award while Messi won the World Player award.

Messi, winner of the 2009 Ballon d’Or, is the first Argentine to win World Soccer’s World Player award since Diego Maradona in 1986.

Messi won the award ahead of his Barcelona teammates Xavi and Andres Iniesta.

After just one season in charge of Barcelona, Pep Guardiola received the award for Manager of the Year while former Wolfsburg manager Felix Magath came in second place and Manchester United’s Alex Ferguson came in third.