MONACO - Andres Iniesta of Barcelona beat off a strong challenge from club mate Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid to be named on Thursday as UEFA's Best Player in Europe last season.
Iniesta, 28, won the live poll, conducted by journalists from each of UEFA's 53 member countries during the Champions League draw ceremony, to take the award that Messi won in its inaugural season last year.
The midfielder was also named as the Player of the Tournament following Spain's victory in Euro 2012.
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Argentina's Lionel Messi (L) congratulates FC Barcelona's Andres Inesta (R) of Spain after being awarded Best Player UEFA 2012 while Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo (C) looks on during the draw ceremony for the 2012/2013 Europa League Cup soccer competition at Monaco's Grimaldi Forum in Monte Carlo, Aug 30, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]
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FC Barcelona's Andres Iniesta of Spain holds his Best Player UEFA 2012 Award after being awarded during the draw ceremony for the 2012/2013 Champions League Cup soccer competition at Monaco's Grimaldi Forum in Monte Carlo, Aug 30, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]
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