Argentina coach Tata Martino has championed Lionel Messi to win the Ballon d'Or.
Messi, who won the Golden Ball at the summer's World Cup, comes up against 2013 World Player of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo when Argentina face Portugal at Old Trafford on Tuesday.
But although the two will be strong competitors for the Ballon d'Or, Martino believes Messi, whom he also managed at Barcelona, deserves to be named the best player on the planet for a fifth time.
He told a news conference: "You can't take out of the deciding process that I am Argentinian and my heart lies with Messi.
"I cannot separate sentiment from my objective decision. Whatever season Messi had, I would still vote for him on footballing grounds."
Messi scored 41 goals for Barcelona last season, his lowest total since 2008-09, and was criticised for his form in the knockout stages of the World Cup, when he failed to find the net.
But Martino insisted he would still be deserving of support, adding: "I would vote for him on footballing terms. You can't separate what he is like as a human from what he is as a player."
Former Paraguay manager Martino has shifted Messi to a new position out on the right for his country and said: "I don't see any change with Messi. He is still the marvellous player he always has been.
"In respect of the position, I tried him in one game for Barca on the right and it didn't work out, but it did in the two games he played for us against Brazil and Croatia.
"He played on the right for the 25 minutes against Brazil, which was the best spell in our game, and against Croatia he was the best player for 90 minutes.
"He fits in the role very naturally, it allows him to get a lot of time on the ball. That position is a starting point, it allows him to cope in, find space and make runs."
Martino said Argentina would not change their plans because of Ronaldo or man-mark him, but stressed it was crucial that they stopped the Real Madrid top scorer.
He explained: "It is not a case of having special individual attention, but when you come up against a world-class player you pay attention as a team.
"If we close the space down, that is good. When he has the ball at his feet and it is about to dribble, it is important we don't leave in space for him to dribble into."