Cristiano Ronaldo's has become just the second player to win the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award, bringing his hopes of a fourth Ballon d'Or ever closer.

Ronaldo topped Antoine Griezmann and Gareth Bale for the accolade. Here are a few reasons why Ronaldo won the prize and is now the runaway favorite to host the bigger trophy in January.

Goals Goals Goals

Ronaldo was not the top scorer in the entire world in 2015-16; that was just the first time since 2012-13 that that actually happened. But few can overlook the fact that he put up a whopping 51 goals last season, many of them of the clutch variety in the second half of the year.

His direct competitors did not manage to individually top 40; in the case of Bale, not even 30 was feasible.

The Champions League

Ronaldo and Bale both won the Champions League over Antoine Griezmann, so that alone put the two above the Frenchman. And while Bale had a good final match, Ronaldo scored the decisive penalty and was far more effective throughout the tournament. He scored five goals in the knockout rounds, including an epic and iconic three-goal turnaround against Wolfsburg.

The Euro 2016

This is the big reason why Ronaldo is the man walking the stage to pick up the award. Bale was arguably more consistent throughout the tournament and Griezmann was better overall, scoring six goals. But when push came to shove, Ronaldo was key to lifting a mediocre Portugal team all the way to final and then coaching them along to victory in the final game. He scored key goals when they were needed, none more important than the thundering header against Bale and Wales to win the semifinal for Portugal.