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Showing posts with label SOCCER. Show all posts

Showing posts with label SOCCER. Show all posts

JOAO MOUTINHO

Posted on Sunday, July 07, 2013 No Comments
Labels: MEN, PORTUGAL, SOCCER

João Filipe Iria Santos Moutinho (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈʒwɐ̃w fɨˈlip iˈɾi.ɐ ˈsɐ̃tuʒ mo(w)ˈtĩɲu]; born 8 September 1986) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays for AS Monaco FC in Ligue 1 and the Portuguese national team. Mainly a central midfielder he can also operate as a holding or attacking midfielder, and on either flank.

He started his professional career with Sporting, moving in 2010 to Porto and winning 12 major titles between the two clubs combined.

A Portuguese international since 2005, Moutinho represented the nation in two European Championships.

Moutinho was born in Portimão, Algarve. After showing great promise as a boy playing for hometown club Portimonense SC, he signed with Sporting Clube de Portugal when he turned 13 to continue his football education.

During the 2004–05 pre-season, at only 17 years old, Moutinho was called by manager José Peseiro to the main squad, where he played some games and displayed some talent early on. After that, however, he returned to the junior team coached by Paulo Bento and featuring players such as Miguel Veloso and Nani, helping it win the national title that season although he was also regularly training with the first side setup.

From Wikipedia

ROBERT LEWANDOWSKI

Posted on Friday, June 14, 2013 No Comments
Labels: MEN, POLAND, SOCCER

Robert Lewandowski (Polish pronunciation: [ˈrɔbɛrt lɛvanˈdɔfskʲi]; (born 21 August 1988) is a Polish footballer who plays for German Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund and the Poland national football team as a striker. Having previously played for Delta Warsaw, Legia Warsaw, Znicz Pruszków and Lech Poznań, he joined Dortmund in 2010.

Lewandowski started his career at Varsovia Warsaw, where as a teen he played for seven years. The following year he moved to Delta Warsaw where he finally managed to play in a first team scoring four goals.

In 2006–07, Lewandowski was the Polish third division's top goal scorer with 15 goals, helping Znicz Pruszków win promotion. The next season he was the top scorer in the Polish second division with 21 goals.

Lewandowski made three appearances for Poland's U21 team, in friendly matches against England, Belarus and Finland.

His debut for the senior national team came on 10 September 2008, three weeks after his 20th birthday, against San Marino where he came on as a sub and scored one goal. Only Włodzimierz Lubański, who is widely considered a "legend", scored a goal on his debut for the national team at a younger age than Lewandowski, having been 16 at the time.

Playing in Warsaw in the opening match of the UEFA Euro 2012 tournament against Greece, Lewandowski scored the first goal of the competition and was named Man of the Match. He played in all three games for Poland in the tournament, as the co-hosts crashed out of the group stage with two points earned.

From Wikipedia

EDEN HAZARD

Posted on Tuesday, September 11, 2012 comments (2)
Labels: BELGIAN, MEN, SOCCER

Eden Hazard (French pronunciation : [edɛn azɑʁ]; born 7 January 1991) is a Belgian international footballer who plays for English club Chelsea in the Premier League and the Belgium national team. He primarily plays as an attacking midfielder and a winger. Hazard is known for his creativity, speed, and technical ability and is described as a "fearless, explosive attacking midfielder who can change the game with a turn of pace or a dribble".

He has also been described as "a defender's nightmare" and has earned critical acclaim for his playing style, which has led to the media, coaches, and players drawing comparisons to FIFA World Player of the Year winners Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Hazard is the son of former Belgian footballers and began his football career in Belgium playing for local clubs Royal Stade Brainois and Tubize. In 2005, he moved to France joining first division club Lille. Hazard spent two years in the club's academy and, at the age of 16, made his professional debut in November 2007.

In his first full season as a starter, he won the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) Young Player of the Year award becoming the first non-French player to win the award. In the 2009–10 season, Hazard captured the award again becoming the first player to win the award twice.

He was also named to the league's Team of the Year. Since making his debut in 2007, Hazard has become an integral part of the club under manager Rudi Garcia racking up over 190 appearances.

In the 2010–11 season, he was a part of the Lille team that won the league and cup double and, as a result of his performances, was named the UNFP Ligue 1 Player of the Year becoming the youngest player to win the award. Hazard was also given the Bravo Award by Italian magazine Guerin Sportivo for his performances during the 2010–11 season. In June 2012, after over eight years at Lille, Hazard departed the club, amid much transfer speculation, to join English club Chelsea.

Hazard is a Belgium international, having represented his nation at under-17 and under-19 level. Prior to starring for the senior team, he played on the under-17 team that qualified for the 2007 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship and 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup. Hazard made his senior international debut in November 2008, at the age of 17 years and 316 days, in a friendly match against Luxembourg. Nearly three years after his debut, Hazard scored his first international goal against Kazakhstan in October 2011.

From Wikipedia

LEONARDO BONUCCI

Posted on Tuesday, July 03, 2012 No Comments
Labels: ITALY, MEN, SOCCER

Leonardo Bonucci (Italian pronunciation: [leoˈnardo boˈnuttʃi]; born 1 May 1987) is an Italian footballer who plays as a defender for Serie A club Juventus and the Italian national team.

Bonucci started his career at Viterbese but was loaned to Internazionale in the summer of 2005. He played a number of pre-season friendlies for Inter first team. He then became a member of Inter's Primavera Under-20 Team. Bonucci made his Serie A debut in the last match of 2005–06 season, against Cagliari Calcio.

At the end of the season, Inter bought Bonucci outright. He played his first Coppa Italia match against Messina on 9 November 2006 when he came off the bench for substitute Fabio Grosso in the 86th minute.

Bonucci featured in two more Coppa Italia games for Inter that season when he was brought on for the substituted Walter Samuel at half-time during the quarter final second leg match against Empoli and as a starter in the semi final second leg tie against Sampdoria.

In January 2007, 50% of Bonucci's registration rights were sold to Treviso by Inter along with 50% of the registration rights for fellow Primavera Team team-mate Daniel Maa Boumsong. At that time Bonucci was tagged for a peppercorn fee of €500.

Bonucci subsequently remained at Inter until 30 June 2007 while Maa Boumsong returned from Treviso where he spent the first half of the season on loan. During Bonucci's last season with Inter's U-20 Youth Team, he won the Italian "Primavera" U20 Youth League.

At youth level, he played for Under-21 Serie B representative team. He was call-up to the friendly against Renate on 6 November 2007, and against Under-20 Serie C representative team on 4 December 2007. He also capped for the team in an internal friendly, which split the Under-21 Serie B team into two on 9 October 2007, on 21 October 2008, on 25 November, and on 24 March 2009 as blue team captain.

He also received a call–up from Italy U20 team on 31 May 2007. He was an unused bench in the match that 0–1 lost to Serie D Best XI. Bonucci made his debut with Italy senior team on 3 March 2010, in a friendly match against Cameroon which took place in Monaco.

He was included by Marcello Lippi in the starting line-up along with national team regulars Fabio Cannavaro and Giorgio Chiellini to form the defense line in a 3–4–3 formation. Then he was included in the squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He scored his first goal on 3 June 2010, in a 1–2 friendly loss against Mexico. In the World Cup, he appeared as unused substitutes for all three matches played by Italy.

From Wikipedia

ROBERTO DI MATTEO

Posted on Friday, June 01, 2012 No Comments
Labels: ITALY, MEN, SOCCER

Roberto Robbie Di Matteo (Italian pronunciation: [roˈbɛrto di matˈtɛo]; born 29 May 1970) is an Italian former footballer and the interim manager of Chelsea for the remainder of the 2011–12 season. During his playing career as a midfielder, he played for Swiss clubs Schaffhausen, Zürich and Aarau before joining Lazio of Italy and Chelsea of England.

He was capped 34 times for Italy, scoring two goals, and played in Euro 1996 and the 1998 World Cup.

He retired as a player in February 2002 at the age of 31 following injury problems. He has since managed Milton Keynes Dons, West Bromwich Albion, and Chelsea. As manager of The Blues, he has won the 2012 FA Cup and the 2012 UEFA Champions League, becoming the first Chelsea manager to preside over the winning of the Champions League.

Club career Switzerland and Italy
Born in Switzerland to Italian parents from Paglieta, Chieti, Abruzzo, Di Matteo began his career with Swiss club Schaffhausen, before joining Aarau in 1991. He won the Swiss Nationalliga A with Aarau in 1993 and in the same season achieved Switzerland's Player of the Year award. He signed for Lazio in the summer of 1993 on a free transfer. Di Matteo became a regular in the Lazio side and made his debut for Italy during his three seasons with the Rome club. However, a falling out with coach Zdeněk Zeman over a defensive error which resulted in a loss to Internazionale, ended his career with the Lazio. As a result he was signed by Ruud Gullit for English side Chelsea for a then club record fee of £4.9 million.

Chelsea
Di Matteo scored the winner against Middlesbrough on his home debut for Chelsea. His passing ability and accurate long-distance shooting saw him become one of the driving forces of Chelsea's resurgence in the late 1990s. He contributed nine goals in his first season, including long-range efforts against both Tottenham Hotspur and Wimbledon. He helped the club finish 6th in the league, their highest placing since 1989–90, and reach the 1997 FA Cup Final at Wembley.

Within 42 seconds of the kick-off of the final against Middlesbrough, Di Matteo scored the opening goal from 30 yards and Chelsea won 2-0. Di Matteo's goal was the fastest in an FA Cup final until the record was broken by Louis Saha for Everton in 2009.

The following season Di Matteo again proved his worth to the team, chipping in with ten goals and numerous assists, as Chelsea went on to claim the Football League Cup and the Cup Winners' Cup, their first European honour since 1971.

In the League Cup final, again against Middlesbrough, Di Matteo scored the second goal in a 2–0 win. Di Matteo played in midfield next to Gustavo Poyet, Dennis Wise and Dan Petrescu in the 1998-99 season as Chelsea finished third.

During the 1999–2000 season Di Matteo was sidelined by injury but returned late in the season to score a handful of crucial goals, including his third Cup-winning goal at Wembley, once again in the FA Cup.

In a dour match, Di Matteo capitalised on an error by Aston Villa goalkeeper David James to score the winner in the 71st minute, handing Chelsea their fourth major trophy in three years. This lead Di Matteo to comment on the old Wembley Stadium saying "It's a shame they're tearing the old place down – it has been a very lucky ground for me."

Early into the 2000–01 season, Di Matteo sustained a triple leg fracture in a UEFA Cup tie against Swiss side St. Gallen and did not play for the next eighteen months. He gave up on hopes of returning from this injury in February 2002 and retired at the age of 31.

In "gratitude for the midfielder's contribution to the transformation of the club", then-manager Claudio Ranieri handed Di Matteo the honour of leading the Chelsea team out in the 2002 FA Cup Final, which Chelsea went on to lose 2–0 to London rivals Arsenal. Di Matteo was selected in a Chelsea greatest-ever XI. In his six years at Chelsea, he made 175 appearances and scored 26 goals. He never lost at Old Trafford.

From Wikipedia

ROBERTO MANCINI

Posted on Tuesday, May 15, 2012 No Comments
Labels: ITALY, MEN, SOCCER

Roberto Mancini (Italian pronunciation: [roˈbɛrto manˈtʃini]; born 27 November 1964) is an Italian football manager, formerly an international player and current manager of Premier League club Manchester City.

As a player Mancini was best known for his time at Sampdoria, where he played more than 550 matches, and helped them win the Serie A league title, four Coppa Italias and the Cup Winners Cup, whilst being capped 36 times by Italy. As a player, he gained a penchant for becoming a future manager and would often give team talks at half-time and ultimately became an assistant to Sven-Göran Eriksson at Lazio in the twilight of his playing career.

After his retirement, Mancini embarked on a successful managerial career. A cup specialist, Mancini had never failed to reach a semi-final of a major national cup competition, from 2002 to 2011. He also guided the Italian clubs he managed to a record 5 consecutive Coppa Italia finals from 2004 to 2008, with Lazio once in 2004 and with Inter in the following four seasons.

Mancini's first managerial role was at a cash stricken Fiorentina at only 35 years old and managed to win a Coppa Italia, but left with Fiorentina facing bankruptcy. Months later, he took over as manager at Lazio, where again he inherited financial constraints and was forced to lose a number of key players.

With limited resources during his two season tenure, he still managed to win another Coppa Italia, reach a UEFA Cup semi-final, and secure a lucrative Champions League place. In 2004, Mancini was given the chance to manage a major club, being offered the manager's job at Internazionale.

During his tenure at Inter, the club won three consecutive Serie A titles (an Inter club record) and a European record 17 consecutive league game victories stretching nearly half a season and became Inter's most successful manager in 30 years. Despite his domestic success, many pundits saw the repeated failure to win the coveted Champions League as the main reason for his sacking in 2008.

After being out of football for over a year, Mancini was appointed Manchester City manager in December 2009 and his team-building achievements at Lazio and Inter were a factor in his appointment. In the 2010–11 season, his first full season at Manchester City, Mancini guided the club to Champions League football and the FA Cup, and has moulded City into a sound defensive unit.

During the 2011–12 season, Mancini guided Manchester City to the Premier League title in an enthralling last day of the season. City won the league title on goal difference with the club winning its final game 3-2, with two injury time goals.

This was the clubs first league title for 44 years. He maintains a tradition of wearing a scarf of his club's colours, something which has been continued at Manchester City. He became the second Italian manager who won Premier League after Carlo Ancelotti's Chelsea in 2010. From Wikipedia

KARIM BENZEMA

Posted on Tuesday, November 15, 2011 No Comments
Labels: FRANCE, MEN, SOCCER

Karim Benzema (born 19 December 1987) is a French international footballer who currently plays for Real Madrid in the Spanish La Liga.

He primarily plays as a striker whose influence can extend out to the wings and is known for his technical ability, powerful style of play, and vast goal-scoring ability. He is described as an "immensely-talented striker" who is "strong and powerful" and "a potent finisher from inside the box".

Benzema was born in the city of Lyon beginning his football career with local club Bron Terraillon. In 1996, he joined the biggest club in the city Olympique Lyonnais and, subsequently, came through the club's youth academy.

Benzema made his professional debut in the 2004–05 season and appeared sporadically in his first three seasons as Lyon won three titles in that span. In the 2007–08 season, Benzema became a starter and had a breakthrough year scoring over 30 goals as Lyon won its seventh straight league title.

For his performances, he was named the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) Ligue 1 Player of the Year and named to the organization's Team of the Year. Benzema was also the league's top scorer and given the Bravo Award by Italian magazine Guerin Sportivo.

After another season at Lyon, in July 2009, Benzema signed a six-year contract with Spanish outfit Real Madrid. After struggling to establish himself in his debut season with the club, in the 2010–11 season, Benzema reached prominence scoring over 25 goals en-route to helping Real Madrid win the Copa del Rey.

Benzema is a former French youth international and has represented his nation from under-17 level onwards. Prior to playing for the senior team, he played on the under-17 team that won the 2004 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship. Benzema made his senior international debut in March 2007 in a friendly match against Austria.

On his debut, he scored his first international goal in a 1–0 win. Benzema has represented France at one major international tournament; UEFA Euro 2008. He made two appearances in the competition against Romania and Italy in the group stage.

Personal Life
Benzema was born in Lyon, to parents of Algerian descent. Benzema grew up with nine siblings and his father Hafid in the nearby town of Bron. His grandfather, Da Lakehal Benzema, lived in the village of Tighzert, located in the northern town of Beni Djellil in Algeria before migrating to Lyon, where he eventually settled in the 1950s.

On 18 April 2010, it was first reported by French television service M6 that four members of the French national team were being investigated for their roles as clients in a prostitute ring that was being operated inside of a Paris nightclub with some of the women possibly being underage.

The report also stated that two of the players were already questioned as witnesses by judge André Dando and a group of magistrates. The report described the two players as being one who "is a major player in a big foreign club" and that the other "plays in the championship of France Ligue 1". Later that day, the players were discovered to be Franck Ribéry and Sidney Govou.

The other two players were later discovered to be Benzema and Hatem Ben Arfa. Benzema was alleged to have had a sexual rendezvous with a prostitute when she was 16 years of age, an act Benzema has denied through his lawyer. On 29 April, the country's Secretary of State for Sports Rama Yade, after refusing to publicly comment on the case in its infancy, declared that any player placed under investigation should not represent the France national team.

The following day, a judicial source confirmed that Benzema would not be questioned, if at all, before the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. On 20 July, Benzema was questioned by Paris police and, following questioning, was indicted by judge Dando on the charge of "solicitation of a minor prostitute."

From Wikipedia

RYAN GIGGS

Posted on Wednesday, June 01, 2011 No Comments
Labels: MEN, SOCCER, WALES

Ryan Joseph Giggs OBE (born Ryan Joseph Wilson; 29 November 1973) is a Welsh professional footballer who plays for Manchester United. Giggs made his first appearance for the club during the 1990–91 season and has been a regular player since the 1991–92 season.

He established himself as a left winger during the 1990s, and continuing in this position well into the 2000s, though he has been increasingly used in a deeper playmaking role in his latter years. He holds the club record for competitive appearances.

Giggs is also the most decorated player in English football history. He has won 12 Premier League winner's medals, four FA Cup winner's medals, three League Cup winner's medals and two Champions League winner's medals.

He has runner-up medals from the Champions League, three FA Cup finals and two League Cup finals, as well as being part of five United teams to have finished second in the league. In recent years, Giggs has captained the team on numerous occasions, particularly in the 2007–08 season when regular captain Gary Neville was ruled out with various injuries.

Giggs has a number of personal achievements. He was the first player in history to win two consecutive PFA Young Player of the Year awards (1992 and 1993), though he did not win the PFA Player of the Year award until 2009.

He is the only player to have played and scored in every season of the Premier League and he also holds the longest run of successive scoring seasons in UEFA Champions League history. He has been elected into the PFA Team of the Century in 2007, the Premier League Team of the Decade, in 2003, as well as the FA Cup Team of the Century.

At international level, Giggs played for the Welsh national team prior to his retirement from international football on 2 June 2007, and was once the youngest player to ever represent his country.

In addition to the many honours Giggs has received within football such as being named in the Football League 100 Legends (the last active player in the list), he was appointed an OBE in the Queen's 2007 Birthday Honours List, and was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2005, for his services to English Football. He was named as BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 2009. On 31 January 2011, Giggs was named Manchester United's greatest ever player by a worldwide poll conducted by United's official magazine and website. Sir Alex Ferguson presented him with the award.

From Wikipedia

ANDRE VILLAS-BOAS

Posted on Wednesday, May 25, 2011 No Comments
Labels: MEN, PORTUGAL, SOCCER

Luís André de Pina Cabral e Villas-Boas (born 17 October 1977) is a Portuguese football manager currently managing FC Porto in the Portuguese Primeira Liga. He is regarded as unique in the sense that he has no football playing experience, became a coach of a major club with very little head coaching experience, and achieved this role at a very young age. He is currently the youngest football manager in the Portuguese league.

At the age of 16, Villas-Boas lived in the same apartment block as the English Bobby Robson, who was managing FC Porto at the time. Following a debate between the two, Robson appointed Villas-Boas to FC Porto's observation department.

Under the guidance of Robson, who was impressed with his fluent knowledge of the English language, he achieved his UEFA C coaching licence as a minor at the age of 17 in Scotland.

He then had a short stint as head coach of the British Virgin Islands national team at the age of 21, before he moved onto a career as an assistant under the management of José Mourinho at Porto, another protégé of Robson's. As Mourinho moved clubs to Chelsea and Internazionale, Villas-Boas followed suit.

At the start of the 2009–10 season, Villas-Boas abandoned Mourinho's staff to pursue a career as manager, and he soon found a job in the Primeira Liga with Académica de Coimbra, filling a vacancy created by Rogério Gonçalves' resignation in October 2009.

At the time of Villas-Boas' appointment, Académica were at the bottom of the league and still without wins, but their luck started to change as he introduced a new style, leading them to a safe 11th place, ten points clear of the relegation zone.

In addition to that, Académica also reached the 2009–10 Portuguese League Cup semi-finals, losing against FC Porto at the Estádio do Dragão with a late goal from Mariano González. His impact at Académica was immediate, not only because of solid results, but also because of the attractive football displayed by the team, which led to intense media speculation linking him with the vacant job at Sporting Clube de Portugal after the departure of Carlos Carvalhal in the summer of 2010.

When Jesualdo Ferreira left FC Porto, his name was also linked with the job at Estádio do Dragão, and Villas-Boas was finally announced as their new manager on 2 June 2010, having been presented on 4 June. On 7 August 2010, he won his first trophy when Porto beat Benfica 2–0 in the Portuguese Supercup.

From Wikipedia

JOSEP GUARDIOLA

Posted on Sunday, May 15, 2011 comments (1)
Labels: MEN, SOCCER, SPAIN

Josep "Pep" Guardiola i Sala (Catalan pronunciation: [ʒuˈzɛb ɡwəɾðiˈɔɫə]; born 18 January 1971 in Santpedor, Barcelona, Catalonia), is a Spanish football manager and former player. Guardiola played as a defensive midfielder and spent the majority of his playing career with FC Barcelona, whom he currently manages.

He was part of Johan Cruyff's dream team that won Barcelona's first European Cup. Guardiola also played for Brescia Calcio and A.S. Roma in Italy; Al-Ahli in Qatar; and for Dorados de Sinaloa in Mexico while attending managing school. While playing in Italy, he served a four-month ban for a positive drug test although he was cleared of wrongdoing on appeal by Michel Platini as President of UEFA. As an international, he played for Spain and Catalonia.

After retiring as a player, Guardiola became coach of FC Barcelona B. On 8 May 2008, Barcelona president Joan Laporta announced that Guardiola would succeed Frank Rijkaard as the first team manager. He signed his contract on 5 June 2008.

In his first season as manager, Barcelona won the treble of La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the Champions League. In doing so, Guardiola became the youngest UEFA Champions League winning manager ever.

The following season, Guardiola and Barcelona won the Supercopa de España against Athletic Club Bilbao, the UEFA Super Cup against Shakhtar Donetsk, and the FIFA Club World Cup against Estudiantes, bringing the manager's tally to the maximum of six trophies in six competitions in one year, thus completing the first ever sextuple. He is considered by some critics one of the world's best football managers.

From Wikipedia

JOSE MOURINHO

Posted on Saturday, May 07, 2011 No Comments
Labels: MEN, PORTUGAL, SOCCER

José Mário dos Santos Félix Mourinho (Portuguese pronunciation: [ʒuˈzɛ moˈɾiɲu]; born 26 January 1963 in Setúbal) is a Portuguese football manager and the current manager of Real Madrid in the Spanish La Liga. He has the nickname "The Special One", a self-proclaimed title which was later taken up by the British media. Mourinho is widely regarded among experts, players and coaches, as one of the greatest coaches in football history.

The son of Portuguese goalkeeper José Félix Mourinho, Mourinho started out as a player but he was unable to forge a meaningful career in the game and eventually switched to management. After spells working as an assistant manager and a youth team coach in the early 1990s, he became an interpreter for Sir Bobby Robson.

There, Mourinho learnt much from the veteran coach and worked with him at Sporting Clube de Portugal and Porto in Portugal, before following him to Spanish club Barcelona. He remained in the Catalonian club after Robson's departure and worked with the successor, Louis van Gaal.

He began focusing on coaching and impressed with brief but successful managerial periods at Benfica and União de Leiria. He returned to Porto in 2002, this time as head coach, and soon became a force to be reckoned with, achieving the treble, winning the Primeira Liga, Taça de Portugal, and UEFA Cup in 2003. Greater success followed in 2004 as Mourinho guided the team to the top of the league for a second time and won the highest honour in European club football, the UEFA Champions League.

Mourinho moved to Chelsea the following year and won two consecutive English Premier League titles in 2005 and 2006, among other domestic honours. He often courted controversy for his outspokenness, but his victories at Chelsea and Porto established him as one of the world's top football managers, well regarded by both his peers and the press. Additionally, he was named the world's best football manager by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS) for both the 2004–05 and 2005–06 seasons.

After an alleged fall-out with the Chelsea hierarchy, he moved to Italy's Serie A, signing a three-year contract with Internazionale in mid-2008. Within three months he had won his first Italian honour, the Supercoppa Italiana, and completed his first season in Italy by winning the Serie A league title. Mourinho followed on from that the next season by winning the first treble in Italian history, the Serie A league title, Coppa Italia, and the UEFA Champions League, thus becoming the third manager in football history to win two UEFA Champions League with two different teams, after Ernst Happel and Ottmar Hitzfeld. Due to these achievements he again won the IFFHS best football manager for the 2009–10 season and the first ever FIFA Ballon d'Or Best Coach Award in 2010.

On 28 May 2010, his appointment as head coach at Real Madrid was confirmed, signing a four-year contract. Mourinho is commonly noted by many as the best manager in world football today. In April 2010, while still at Internazionale, before their semi-final second-leg clash, Josep Guardiola of Barcelona said: "In terms of the world's best managers, when you compare José [Mourinho] to Sir Alex [Ferguson], Arsène [Wenger] and Fabio [Capello], he is still very young. But even at his age there is a very strong case for him being the best manager in the world. That's the truth."

The legendary multi-time World Champion and previous World No.1 former chess player, Grandmaster Garry Kasparov, has used the Portuguese coach as an example of strategy and leadership in a February 2011 press conference, and said: "Whoever shows such good results with several teams, as is the case of José Mourinho, has to be a great psychologist and strategist".

The famous North American sports magazine, Sports Illustrated, published a report in March 2011, conducted by Grant Wahl, in which Mourinho is considered one of the best coaches of all time in any sport. Sir Alex Ferguson has said: "He's at the top, there's no doubt about that, you have certain criteria in terms of top management, and that is longevity of success – which is very difficult today – and what you win. You have to regard his achievements as really first-class." In a 2011 interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport, Formula One driver Fernando Alonso commented, "Whenever he speaks, he is almost always right, even though some people don't like to hear it."

From Wikipedia

STEVEN GERRARD

Posted on Friday, April 15, 2011 No Comments
Labels: ENGLAND, MEN, SOCCER

Steven George Gerrard MBE (pronounced /ˈdʒɛrɑrd/; born 30 May 1980), is an English professional association football player who plays for and captains English Premier League club Liverpool and the England national team. He has played much of his career in a centre midfielder role; however, since the arrival of Fernando Torres at Liverpool in 2007, he has been used mainly as a second striker for his club team and as a winger for England since 2006. Gerrard is best known for his long shots and also has scored in numerous cup finals including the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final and the 2006 Fa Cup Final.

Gerrard, who has spent his entire career at Anfield, made his début in 1998 and cemented his place in the first team in the 2000–01 season, succeeding Sami Hyypiä as Liverpool team captain in 2003.

His honours include two FA Cup wins, two League Cup wins, a UEFA Cup win, and a UEFA Champions League win in 2005. In 2005, Gerrard came third in the voting for Ballon d'Or, given to the top player in Europe.

Gerrard made his international début in 2000, and represented England in the UEFA European Championships in 2000 and 2004 as well as the 2006 FIFA World Cup, where he was the team's top goalscorer with two goals. Gerrard is the current vice-captain of the England national football team. However, he captained his country at the 2010 World Cup in the absence of regular captain Rio Ferdinand who missed the tournament through injury. Gerrard came second in the 100 Players Who Shook The Kop, a Liverpool F.C. fan poll.

From Wikipedia

DAVID BECKHAM

Posted on Tuesday, April 12, 2011 No Comments
Labels: ENGLAND, MEN, SOCCER

David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE (born 2 May 1975) is an English footballer who currently plays in midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer. He is also an established member of the England national team.

Twice runner-up for FIFA World Player of the Year and in 2004 the world's highest-paid footballer when taking into account salary and advertising deals.Beckham was the first British footballer to play 100 Champions League matches. He was Google's most searched of all sports topics in both 2003 and 2004. With such global recognition he has become an elite advertising brand and a top fashion icon.

Beckham was captain of England from 15 November 2000 until the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals, during which he played 58 times. Since then he has continued to represent his country and earned his much-publicised hundredth cap for England against France on 26 March 2008. He is currently England's most-capped outfield player with 115 appearances.

Beckham's career began when he signed a professional contract with Manchester United, making his first-team debut in 1992 aged 17. During his time there, United won the Premier League title six times, the FA Cup twice, and the UEFA Champions League in 1999. He left Manchester United to sign for Real Madrid in 2003, where he remained for four seasons, clinching the La Liga championship in his final season with the club.

In January 2007, it was announced that Beckham would leave Real Madrid and sign a five-year contract with Major League Soccer club Los Angeles Galaxy. Beckham's contract with Los Angeles Galaxy became effective on 1 July 2007 and gave him the highest player salary in MLS history. His playing contract with Galaxy in 2007, 2008 and 2009 was worth $6.5m per year. He debuted for the team on 21 July 2007 in a friendly versus Chelsea at The Home Depot Center, and on 15 August, he had his first start with the team, scoring his first goal in the 2007 SuperLiga semi-final. His first league start then came on 18 August in front of a record crowd at Giants Stadium.

Beckham is married to former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham (née Adams). The couple have three sons and currently reside in Beverly Hills, California.

From Wikipedia

FRANK LAMPARD

Posted on Monday, April 11, 2011 No Comments
Labels: ENGLAND, MEN, SOCCER

Frank James Lampard, Jr. (born 20 June 1978) is an English footballer who plays as a midfielder for Chelsea and at international level for the England national team. He also holds the position of vice-captain for both his club side and national side. He plays most often as a box-to-box midfielder and has also enjoyed spells in a more advanced attacking midfield. He is considered to be one of the best footballers in the world.

Lampard began his career at West Ham United, his father's former club. He had secured a place in the first team by the 1997–98 season, and the following year helped the team finish 5th in the Premier League, their highest ever Premier League placing. In 2001, he moved to rival London club Chelsea for £11 million.

From his debut onwards he was ever-present in the Chelsea first team, setting a record 164 consecutive Premier League appearances. He established himself as a prolific scorer at the West London club and was a key part of the sides which won back-to-back Premier League titles in 2004–05 and 2005–06 and a domestic cup double in 2007. He signed a new contract in 2008, becoming the highest paid Premier League footballer at that time, and scored in his first Champions League Final that same year. He won the FA Cup for the second time in 2009, scoring the winning goal in the final. On 23 December 2009, he was named the Premier League's Player of the decade by official statistics. In the 2009-10 season Lampard won the Premier League title and FA Cup (domestic cup double) with Chelsea and had his best prolific season with Chelsea scoring 22 league goals and 17 league assists.

Lampard has won the Chelsea Player of the Year award three times and is Chelsea's 3rd all-time goalscorer with 157 goals in all competitions, including over 100 league goals, the most in the club's history for a midfielder. Lampard is the highest goalscoring midfielder in Premier League history with 129 league goals and he's 2nd in the Premier League's all-time assists table with 156 assists. Also Lampard completes over 1400 successful passes and has 10 or more assists every season. In 2005, Lampard was voted second place in both the 2005 FIFA World Player of the Year and the 2005 Ballon d'Or.

Internationally, Lampard has been capped 82 times by England since making his debut in October 1999, and has scored 20 goals. He was voted England player of the year for two consecutive years in 2004 and 2005. He played in Euro 2004, where he was named in the team of the tournament after scoring three goals in four games. He was top scorer for England in their successful 2006 World Cup qualifying campaign with five goals, and played in the 2006 World Cup. In the 2010 World Cup qualifiers he scored four goals, helping England qualify for the tournament proper in South Africa.

From Wikipedia

THEO WALCOTT

Posted on Monday, August 09, 2010 No Comments
Labels: ENGLAND, MEN, SOCCER

Theo James Walcott (born 16 March 1989) is an English footballer who plays for Arsenal and the England national team as a winger.

Walcott was born in Stanmore, England, but grew up near Newbury, where he played for A.F.C. Newbury and went to The Downs School secondary school. Walcott scored more than 100 goals in his one and only season for Newbury, before leaving there for Swindon Town. He only spent six months there before leaving for Southampton after he rejected a chance to join Chelsea. Nike agreed to a sponsorship deal with Walcott when he was fourteen years old.

Walcott was born to a British Jamaican father and an English mother. His family made a cameo appearance in the 2007 film Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Walcott himself was due to appear as well, but his commitments to Arsenal forced him to drop out.

Walcott and his father are both Liverpool fans. Walcott has never hidden the fact that he's a massive Liverpool supporter and even when Chelsea laid out the red carpet for him as a youngster, he used the opportunity to meet his real idols:

"I was playing in a tournament for Swindon when Southampton and Chelsea showed an interest. Chelsea invited me to be a ball-boy for a game against Liverpool and it was fantastic to meet my heroes Michael Owen and Robbie Fowler. I was a Liverpool fan simply because my dad followed them. Unfortunately I wasn't born when the team had their golden era, but I enjoyed watching the likes of Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler and Steve McManaman when I was growing up. When Liverpool won the Champions League last year,[46] I went mad. I was shouting so loud I think I woke up the entire village where I live!"

Walcott has been involved with the UK charities Build a School and Best Beginnings.

On 6 April 2008, Walcott was a torchbearer for the Olympic Flame for Beijing 2008 as it was paraded around London. He was the second last torchbearer just before Dame Kelly Holmes.

He is in a long-term relationship with Melanie Slade. The couple got together after meeting in 2006 at the WestQuay shopping centre in Southampton.

His cousin Jacob Walcott is a trainee at Reading and a member of the England national under-17 football team appearing in the 2009 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship.

From Wikipedia

FRANCESSO TOTTI

Posted on Friday, July 23, 2010 comments (1)
Labels: ITALY, MEN, SOCCER

Francesco Totti, Cavaliere Ufficiale OMRI, (born 27 September 1976 in Rome) is an Italian World Cup-winning footballer who is the current captain of Serie A club Roma.

His position is that of a striker or an attacking midfielder, though he is best known for playing as a second striker.

Totti has spent his entire career at Roma, is the number-one goalscorer and the most capped player in the club's history. "Er Pupone," as he is commonly nicknamed, is considered one of the greatest players in his generation and also one of Roma's greatest players ever.

Totti has won several awards in Italy during his career including a record five Italian Footballer of the Year awards and two Serie A Footballer of the Year awards. He was named by Pelé as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers in March 2004.

Totti was born and raised in Rome's Porta Metronia neighborhood. He idolized ex-Roma captain Giuseppe Giannini, and regularly played football with older boys. His mother refused a lucrative offer from AC Milan to remain in his hometown[12], and he joined the Roma youth squad in 1989.

Totti's wife, Ilary Blasi, is a former showgirl who currently works as commentator and host on several Mediaset TV programs. The couple had their first baby, named Cristian, on 6 November 2005. Their second child, a daughter named Chanel, was born on 13 May 2007. His brother Riccardo serves as his agent. Totti also runs a football school, "Number Ten," and owns a motorcycle racing team called "Totti Top Sport."

Totti became a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF in 2003, and the FIFA/SOS Children's Villages in January 2006. As a fundraiser for a children's charity, he published two bestselling, self-effacing joke books containing jokes the locals often told about him and his teammates. Some of the jokes were filmed in short sketches featuring himself with good friends and national teammates Alessandro Del Piero, Gianluigi Buffon, Christian Vieri, Antonio Cassano, Marco Delvecchio and Alessandro Nesta and former national team coach Giovanni Trapattoni in a short show called La sai l'ultima di Totti.

Totti is famous for his cucchiaio goalscoring technique, which inspired the title of his 2006 autobiography, Tutto Totti: Mo je faccio er cucchiaio (Romanesco for "I'll Chip Him").

Totti also collects jerseys from teams around the world. In 2003, after a Six Nations rugby match between Italy and Ireland, Irish players Brian O'Driscoll and Denis Hickie each received a Totti jersey in exchange for their own shirts.

Totti is featured on the cover of Pro Evolution Soccer 4, along with Thierry Henry and Italian referee Pierluigi Collina.

Totti is currently the top active Serie A goalscorer, and sixth all-time in league history with 192 goals.

THIERRY HENRY

Posted on Thursday, July 22, 2010 No Comments
Labels: FRANCE, MEN, SOCCER

Thierry Daniel Henry (French pronunciation: [tjɛʁi ɑ̃ʁi]; born 17 August 1977) is a French professional footballer who plays for the New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer.

Henry was born in Les Ulis, Essonne (a suburb of Paris) where he played for an array of local sides as a youngster and showed great promise as a goal-scorer.

He was spotted by AS Monaco in 1990 and signed instantly, making his professional debut in 1994. Good form led to an international call-up in 1998, after which he signed for the Serie A defending champions Juventus. He had a disappointing season playing on the wing, before joining Arsenal for £10.5 million in 1999.

It was at Arsenal that Henry made his name as a world-class footballer. Despite initially struggling in the Premier League, he emerged as Arsenal's top goal-scorer for almost every season of his tenure there. Under long-time mentor and coach Arsène Wenger, Henry became a prolific striker and Arsenal's all-time leading scorer with 226 goals in all competitions.

The Frenchman won two league titles and three FA Cups with the Gunners; he was nominated for the FIFA World Player of the Year twice, was named the PFA Players' Player of the Year twice, and the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year three times. Henry spent his final two seasons with Arsenal as club captain, leading them to the UEFA Champions League final in 2006.

In June 2007, after eight years with Arsenal, he transferred to Barcelona for a fee of €24 million. His first honours with the Catalan club came in 2009 when they won the league, cup and Champions League treble. He went on to achieve an unprecedented sextuple by also winning the Spanish Supercup, the UEFA Supercup and the Club World Cup. In total, Henry has been named in the UEFA Team of the Year five times. Soon after the 2010 World Cup, he joined New York Red Bulls.

Henry has enjoyed similar success with the French national squad, having won the 1998 World Cup, Euro 2000 and 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup. In October 2007, he surpassed Michel Platini's record to become France's top goal-scorer of all time. Off the pitch, as a result of his own experience, Henry is an active spokesperson against racism in football. He married English model Nicole Merry in 2003 and had a daughter with her, but they divorced in 2007. Henry was also one of the top commercially marketed footballers; he was ranked ninth in the world in 2006.

From Wikipedia

LIONEL MESSI

Posted on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 No Comments
Labels: ARGENTINA, MEN, SOCCER

Lionel Andrés Messi, born on 24 June 1987, is an Argentine footballer who currently plays for FC Barcelona and the Argentina national team.

Considered one of the best football players of his generation and frequently cited as the world's best contemporary player, Messi received several Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year nominations by the age of 21 and won both by the age of 22. His playing style and ability have drawn comparisons to Diego Maradona, who himself declared Messi his "successor".

Messi began playing football at a young age and his potential was quickly identified by Barcelona. He left Rosario-based Newell's Old Boys's youth team in 2000 and moved with his family to Europe, as Barcelona offered treatment for his growth hormone deficiency.

Making his debut in the 2004–05 season, he broke his team record for the youngest footballer to score a league goal. Major honours soon followed as Barcelona won La Liga in Messi's debut season, and won a double of the league and Champions League in 2006. His breakthrough season was in the 2006–07 season; he became a first team regular, scoring a hat-trick in El Clásico and finishing with 14 goals in 26 league games. Perhaps his most successful season was the 2008–09 season, in which Messi scored 38 goals to play an integral part in a treble-winning campaign. In the following 2009–10 campaign, Messi scored 47 goals in all competitions, equalling Ronaldo's record total for Barcelona.

Messi was the top scorer of the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship with six goals, including two in the final game. Shortly thereafter, he became an established member of Argentina's senior international team. In 2006, he became the youngest Argentine to play in the FIFA World Cup and he won a runners-up medal at the Copa América tournament the following year. In 2008, in Beijing, he won his first international honour, an Olympic gold medal, with the Argentina Olympic football team.

From Wikipedia

IKER CASILLAS

Posted on Tuesday, July 20, 2010 No Comments
Labels: MEN, SOCCER, SPAIN

Iker Casillas Fernández (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈiker kaˈsiʎas]; born 20 May 1981 in Móstoles, Madrid) is a World Cup-winning Spanish football goalkeeper who plays for the Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid and serves as captain for the Spanish national team. He is currently first-choice goalkeeper for both club and country, and serves as a vice captain for his club. As captain of the national side, he led a young Spanish team to their first European Championship in 44 years, his first senior international honour. In 2010, he captained the national team that won Spain's first ever FIFA World Cup.

Since bursting onto the scene as a teenager, Casillas has been recognised as one of the best goalkeepers in Europe, illustrated by the many awards he has received.

He was nominated for the European Footballer of the Year award twice, ranking fourth overall in 2008 and continuing to be the highest-ranked goalkeeper again in 2009. At the end of 2009 he was voted into the UEFA Team of the Year for the third consecutive time. As of July 2010 Casillas is one of a very select group of players who have won all major club and national championship titles.

In the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Casillas won the Golden Glove Award for the tournament's best goalkeeper.

From Wikipedia

DAVID VILLA

Posted on Monday, July 19, 2010 No Comments
Labels: MEN, SOCCER, SPAIN

David Villa Sánchez (Spanish pronunciation: [daˈβið ˈβiʎa]; born 3 December 1981), nicknamed El Guaje (The Kid in Asturian), is a Spanish footballer who currently plays as a striker for FC Barcelona and the Spanish national football team.

Despite sustaining a serious injury as a child, he started his professional career with Sporting de Gijón and made his debut in 2000 in Spain's Segunda División. He moved to Real Zaragoza after two seasons, after a total of 38 goals and 80 appearances for Gijón. He made his La Liga debut at Zaragoza and scored 31 goals in 73 appearances in the next two seasons, winning the Copa del Rey and Supercopa de España, his first senior honours. He joined Valencia CF in 2005 for a transfer fee of €12 million.

He was the second highest scorer in the 2005–06 season with 25 goals, and was part of the Valencia team that won the Copa del Rey for a seventh time in the 2007–08 season. In 2010 he moved to Barcelona for €40 million.

Villa made his international debut in 2005 against San Marino. He has since participated in three major tournaments, while he was an integral member of the Spain teams that won Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup. He scored three goals at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, was top scorer at Euro 2008 with four goals and earned Silver Boot (though he was tied for the most goals scored in the tournament) at the 2010 World Cup with five goals.

He has scored more World Cup goals than any other player in Spain's history and currently stands just one goal behind Raúl González in Spain's all-time top scorers' list. His goals per game ratio at World Cup matches is higher than the competition's all-time top scorer Ronaldo, while the goals per game ratio he has achieved for the national team has not been matched by any Spaniard since Alfredo Di Stefano, 50 years ago.

In 2009 he scored more goals than any other footballer, 43 goals in 54 games across all competitions for Spain and Valencia. The IFFHS listed him 4th in the "World's Top Goal Scorer 2009" rankings, while in 2010, he came 1st in their "2010's World Top Goalscorer at International Level" rankings. Villa has two children with his wife Patricia and often attends charity events supported by sports personalities.

From Wikipedia

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