Will Barcelona's Lionel Messi or Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo take the top spot?

(L-R) Eden Hazard, Anthony Martial, Marco Reus and James Rodriguez – the Fifa 17 ambassadors (EA)

The latest entry in EA's insanely popular football game series is only a few weeks away, with Fifa 17 set to launch worldwide on 29 September for Xbox One, PS4 and PC. As the anticipation grows fevered among footy fans, EA Sports has begun its yearly countdown of the top 50 players in the game based on their individual ratings.

Fifa 17 is set to feature significant changes from previous entries, with set pieces, a real-time physics engine and overall AI improvements all earmarked as key, alongside the headline-grabbing introduction of an RPG-lite story mode called The Journey.

Additions aside, die-hard Fifa fans on the lookout for the very best players to dominate the online arena in Fifa 17's Ultimate Team mode need look no longer. Based on real-life player performances over the last 365 days in league and cup competitions, EA Sports has released the first batch of player ratings, with the rest following ahead of the game's release.

Below, we've put together a list of all the player ratings revealed so far – which currently spans from 50-31 – and will update it as more are added. Who has made the cut from your favourite team, and which player will take the coveted top spot?

50. Blaise Matuidi - Paris Saint-Germain

Overall rating: 86

Position: CDM

49. Marcelo - Real Madrid

Overall rating: 86

Position: LB

48. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - Borussia Dortmund

Overall rating: 86

Position: Striker

47. Dimitri Payet - West Ham United

Overall rating: 86

Position: LM

46. Arjen Robben - Bayern Munich

Overall rating: 87

Position: RM

45. James Rodríguez - Real Madrid

Overall rating: 87

Position: CAM

44. David Silva - Manchester City

Overall rating: 87

Position: CAM

43. Karim Benzema - Real Madrid

Overall rating: 87

Position: Striker

42. Arturo Vidal - Bayern Munich

Overall rating: 87

Position: CM

41. Sergio Busquets - Barcelona

Overall rating: 87

Position: CDM

40. Samir Handanović - Inter Milan

Overall rating: 87

Position: Goalkeeper

39. Mats Hummels - Bayern Munich

Overall rating: 87

Position: CB

38. Thomas Müller - Bayern Munich

Overall rating: 87

Position: CF

37. Ángel Di María - Paris Saint-Germain

Overall rating: 87

Position: RW

36. Alexis Sánchez - Arsenal

Overall rating: 87

Position: LW

35. Ivan Rakitić - Barcelona

Overall rating: 87

Position: CM

34. Jan Oblak - Atletico Madrid

Overall rating: 87

Position: Goalkeeper

33. Leonardo Bonnuci - Juventus

Overall rating: 87

Position: CB

32. David Alaba - Bayern Munich

Overall rating: 87

Position: LB

31. Hugo Lloris - Tottenham

Overall rating: 88

Position: Goalkeeper

An early look at more-detailed stats for Fifa 17's top 50 players can be found on EA Sports' official website.

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