Cristiano Ronaldo to stay in Italy rather than attend FIFA awards

Cristiano Ronaldo will not be attending tonight's FIFA Best Awards in London, despite being the favourite to win Player of the Year.

The Portuguese forward played and scored during Juventus' win over Frosinone on Sunday night and is expected to start against Bologna on Wednesday.

Ronaldo will compete with Mohamed Salah and Luka Modric for the top FIFA award

And it is understood Ronaldo has decided to stay in Italy to focus on his club games, rather than attend the awards - live on Sky - where he could potentially win his sixth World Player of the Year honour.

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah and Real Madrid's Luka Modric, Ronaldo's challengers for the award, are expected to attend the ceremony at Royal Festival Hall.

Ronaldo was sent off in the Champions League last week

Ronaldo has enjoyed another very successful year, helping Real Madrid to Champions League glory for the third year in a row, before joining Serie A champions Juventus in the summer.

But he faces stiff competition from Modric, who was named Player of the Tournament after helping Croatia reach the final, and Salah, who won the Premier League Golden Boot after a remarkable campaign with Liverpool.

Who will win? Watch the FIFA Best Awards build-up from 7pm on Sky Sports Main Event and watch the awards ceremony - featuring Gary Neville and Kelly Cates - from 7.30pm.