The Dutchman has acknowledged the forward's displays towards the end of the campaign but feels the Italian has been more consistent

Juventus' Gianluigi Buffon is more deserving of the Ballon d'Or than Lionel Messi, according to Johan Cruyff.

Cruyff, himself a three-time winner of the prize, believes the Italian has had a more consistent year, despite losing to Messi's Barcelona in the Champions League final.

"Messi is playing very well, but what counts when it comes to winning the Ballon d'Or is the whole year and Buffon is definitely a possibility for the prize in 2015," the 68-year-old shared to Tuttosport.

"He's been a great goalkeeper for years now. But Juventus have so many great players. I'm also thinking of Pirlo, [Arturo] Vidal, [Paul] Pogba and [Alvaro] Morata. I especially appreciate the organisation the club boasts.

"Replacing Pirlo will be hard, because his game is so unique. They'll need to find someone entirely similar. [Toni] Kroos has excelled in that position, but he belongs to Real Madrid.

"If they can't find a direct replacement, they'll have to evolve their style. The important thing is not to look back."

Still, Cruyff believes the Bianconeri have the strength in depth to start over once their iconic midfielder leaves and fully expects them to replicate their European feats of last season sooner rather than later.

"Juventus played as they should have [in Saturday's 3-1 final defeat to Barcelona] with personality and organisation, and managed a goal, though Barcelona are also very strong and showed it again.

"They [Juventus] will have more chances to win it again. They got to the final this year, after several years of playing good football. It's something that is positive for all of Italian football."