theScore's Top 20 footballers of 2015: No. 10-6

With 2015 coming to an end, theScore is reflecting on the year that was by counting down the top 20 players in world football over the past 12 months.

The rankings have been compiled after tallying votes from theScore's contingent of footy editors: Armen Bedakian, Gord Brunt, Carlo Campo, Michael J. Chandler, Anthony Lopopolo, Daniel Rouse, and Gianluca Nesci. Each was asked to produce their own top-20 list for the calendar year, with a point system used to create the cumulative rankings. Players were awarded 20 points for a first-place vote, 19 for second place, all the way down to a solitary point for being ranked 20th. In the event of a tie on points, the player with more total votes was awarded the higher ranking.

Top 20 footballers of 2015: The Countdown

• No. 20 - 16
• No. 15 - 11

Borussia Dortmund's scoring machine kicks off our top 10 ...

10. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund)

Quick, who has the most goals in the Bundesliga this season? If you said Robert Lewandowski, you are mistaken. The Polish striker has received much of the plaudits - particularly for scoring five goals in nine minutes back in September - but all the while, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has not only gone stride-for-stride with the Bayern star, he has actually been setting the pace. The lightning-quick Gabon international, a hot commodity who Borussia Dortmund will need to fight desperately to keep hold of as clubs throughout Europe come calling, has been in astonishing form this season, scoring 27 goals in 26 matches across all competitions. Marco Reus has long been the star at the Westfalenstadion, but the German has played Robin to Aubameyang's Batman this season.

9. Andres Iniesta (Barcelona)

Remember when some thought the midfield magician was in decline? Ah, how foolish we were. The conductor of Barcelona's marvelous machine, Andres Iniesta continues to prove he is still one of the world's most creative, incisive playmakers. His ability to manipulate the ball into doing things that shouldn't be possible, combined with his deft passing touch that's rivaled by few others, the tiny Spaniard is about as universally beloved as there is in the sport - even getting an ovation from Real Madrid supporters when he left the pitch in November's edition of El Clasico. He deserved every second of it.

8. Mesut Ozil (Arsenal)

No player is more synonymous with the sumptuous, often breathtaking football played by Arsenal than Mesut Ozil. Beset by constant criticism from pundits who claimed the German wilted in big matches and didn't display the necessary passion and work-rate to be one of the world's best, Ozil, about as classic a No. 10 as you'll find in the game today, has forced said pundits to run away with their tails between their legs and their (wrong) opinions in tow. Handing out assists at a rate nobody has seen before, Ozil now needs just four more helpers to equal the single-season Premier League record (20). It's December. That's how dominant the playmaker, formerly derided but now celebrated, has been.

7. Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal)

It's fitting that Alexis Sanchez slots in right alongside his teammate, as the Chilean offers the perfect compliment to the calm, modest brilliance of Ozil. While the German drifts about the pitch and picks out stunning passes at will - making it look as though he doesn't need to try all that hard to do so - the former Barcelona man is covering each and every blade of grass, always going a mile a minute; the Energizer Bunny wishes he had this kind of motor. That effort, while admirable, would mean little without skill, however, and Sanchez has that in abundance. His pace and power, combined with his trickery and finishing ability, make him one of the most complete forwards on the planet. And after leading the Gunners to an FA Cup title in his first season - scoring a spectacular goal in the final - the versatile attacker will undoubtedly be hoping for Premier League glory in 2016.

6. Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich)

Is there a less-celebrated superstar in the game today than Thomas Muller? Midfielders, particularly those who play a more defensive role, can fly under the radar, their brilliance going largely unnoticed. The same certainly goes for central defenders. But an attacker who has hit double-digit scoring tallies in each of his last three Bundesliga seasons, and has already set a new personal best (14) in just 17 league matches this year? That's not supposed to happen. Bayern Munich's gangly star isn't flashy. You won't see him embark on mind-bending runs past multiple defenders that cause the Internet to lose its mind. What you will see, however, is simple: production. At only 26, the quietly spectacular German is going to continue popping up on lists like this for many years to come, even if nobody notices.