( CNN ) -- Despite the obvious claims of younger rivals Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi , few can really argue with the 96 football journalists who voted Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite as the 2007 World Footballer of the Year . Brazilian genius Kaka fully deserves winning the 2007 World Footballer of the Year award . The prestigious Ballon d'Or award is widely regarded as the most prestigious individual prize in football and Kaka 's inclusion on its coveted roll of honor is a testament to the 25-year-old Brazilian 's current standing in world football . When AC Milan defeated Liverpool in the Champions League final in Athens , avenging their heartbreaking loss to the same team in Istanbul two years previously , it enabled Kaka to fulfill his dream of holding aloft Europe 's premier trophy -- a winner 's medal he fully deserved after a sublime 90-minute performance . Kaka 's stock for both club and country has risen steadily since his move to the San Siro from Sao Paulo for a fee of just $ 8.5 million in the summer of 2003 . Unlike many a Brazilian sporting genius , Kaka did not hone his skills on the beach or the streets of a favela shanty town . He was born into a comfortable middle class Brasilia family , where football was not the only hope of a bright future . However , it soon became clear that this particular boy had a very special skill and he was signed by Sao Paulo , after his family had moved there , at just eight years of age -- making his first team debut as an 18-year-old . Kaka 's progress was soon picked up by his national team coach and Felipe Scolari named the graceful midfielder in his 23-man squad for the 2002 World Cup finals , earning him a winners ' medal despite playing only 19 minutes of the tournament in a group match against Costa Rica . A year later , and Kaka was on his way to Milan . Within a month he had made the starting line-up and his 10 goals helped the Rossoneri lift the Scudetto and the European Super Cup . Throughout his career , Kaka has always possessed the innate ability to score goals -- his record for both club and country sees him average roughly a goal every three games . Yet to describe Kaka merely as a goalscoring midfielder would be doing him a massive injustice . Tall , elegant and blessed with astonishing skill , Milan and Brazil utilize Kaka 's ability superbly . Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti soon recognized Kaka 's genius , changing his team 's system to a 4-4-1-1 , playing the Brazilian behind a main target man . With Andrea Pirlo and Gennaro Gattuso holding the central midfield area , Kaka has a license to roam in behind the lone striker , be it Filippo Inzaghi , Ronaldo or Alberto Gilardino . And Kaka does this with devastating effect , running at the opposition with pace and power , finding defense-splitting passes or shooting from range with deadly accuracy be it from a dead-ball situation or open play . The fly in the ointment for Milan comes in the shape of their poor form this season . Although they have already reached the last 16 of the Champions League , the club are floundering in Serie A and face the unthinkable prospect of not qualifying for next season 's competition unless they win the trophy . Real Madrid have coveted Kaka for the last two years -- expect the world transfer record to be smashed if Milan do n't secure a place among Europe 's elite . E-mail to a friend .
Kaka deservedly named AC Milan the Year for the first time in his career . The Brazilian beats Cristiano Ronaldo and Cristiano Ronaldo in the journalists ' vote . The 25-year-old averages one goal in three games for both AC Milan and Milan .