The UEFA Champions League, Europe's elite club competition, enters its first decisive phase this week. With two group stage matchdays remaining, almost all the continent's biggest names are well-placed to progress after presenting convincing evidence of their credentials as potential winners of the trophy.

Once again, it looks as though the race for Europe's most prestigious club crown will be decided by individual class and cold-blooded ruthlessness in front of goal, exactly the reasons why Barcelona, Arsenal, Manchester United and Inter Milan will fancy their chances of going all the way this time. Clubs boasting the likes of Lionel Messi, Cesc Fabregas, Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney or Zlatan Ibrahimovic, all of whom have struck at least three times on the European stage this term, must be considered genuine contenders for the trophy.

The five aforementioned superstars certainly rank among the very best the UEFA Champions League currently has to offer, but FIFA.com users have cast their votes and named Messi the best player of the competition so far. We asked you which of the star quintet had turned in the most impressive performances to date, and Barcelona's gifted Argentine topped the poll with a total of 32.59 per cent of the votes cast.

The 20-year-old led the way on all of FIFA.com's different language channels, naturally taking top spot overall as a result. Manchester United and Portugal winger Cristiano Ronaldo finished second with 26.12 per cent of the votes, ahead of Arsenal and Spain midfielder Cesc Fabregas on 22.38 per cent, Inter's Swedish marksman Zlatan Ibrahimovic on 13.48 per cent, and Cristiano Ronaldo's club-mate Wayne Rooney with 5.44 per cent.

Vote again in our new poll
Our new poll focuses on last Sunday's Preliminary Draw for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ in Durban. We want to know which is the most exciting match-up to come out of the draw. Join in and cast your vote the next time FIFA.com sets out to uncover the latest opinions and trends.