Andres Iniesta is regarded by several fans to be one of, if not the greatest footballer to never be officially recognised as the best player in the world.

He has spent his entire career thus far at Barcelona, making over 600 appearances, winning 28 trophies, doing unimaginable things with the ball at his feet and playing a key role in some of the most technically gifted teams the game has ever seen.

The closest the 32-year-old ever came to being crowned as the world's very best was back in 2010, when he was pipped to the Ballon d'Or by his good friend Lionel Messi.

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The Argentinian picked up 22.65% of the votes, compared to 17.36% for second-place Iniesta and 16.48% for Xavi in third - however many at the time felt that it was the current Barca captain who deserved to win the award.

Enter Simao, who was Iniesta's teammate at the Nou Camp between 1999 and 2001. He is one of those people who thought the Spaniard should have won the individual trophy, so he decided to make it happen.

Iniesta gets his Ballon d'Or

For a programme called Amigos de Simao (Friends of Simao) on Sport TV in Portugal, the retired winger interrupted his interview with Iniesta to give him a special surprise present.

As you can see in the video below, after making it clear that the Spanish midfield maestro would have been his first-choice, Simao handed him a replica Ballon d'Or and said, per Sport-English: "I decided to make justice."

After unwrapping the gift, Iniesta sees the Ballon d'Or and thanks Simao, before joking, with a beaming smile on his face: "Now I have it."

The 2010 ceremony was a unique occasion, with then-Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola announcing the winner and all three nominees coming from the same club.

On the gala with Xavi and Messi, who also produced stunning performances throughout that year, Iniesta said: "It was something unrepeatable which I don't think we'll see again."

Iniesta has won La Liga, the Champions League, the Euros, the World Cup, but now he finally has his hands on the honour which we all know he is more than worthy of winning.

Do YOU agree and think that Iniesta has been deserving of the Ballon d'Or over the course of his career? Leave YOUR opinion in the comments box below!