Goal.com’s KS Leong looks at whether Barca’s Three Musketeers are worthy to be crowned the best players of 2010.

Ballon D'or Award

It was announced on Monday that Barcelona trio Andres Iniesta, Lionel Messi and Xavi have been nominated as the top three candidates for the FIFA Ballon d’Or, as voted by coaches and captains of national teams and a panel of global journalists.

Although this is the first year that FIFA’s World Player of the Award award has merged with France Football’s Ballon d’Or, it is the third time that three players from the same club will finish as the best three footballers of the year after the great Milan side of the late 80’s completely dominated proceedings in the 1988 and 1989 editions of the Ballon d’Or.

But as always, there will be debates and contentious arguments regarding the finalists. Many believe that Inter and Netherlands playmaker Wesley Sneijder should have been in the top three at the very least, and even perhaps a worthy winner.

Diego Forlan single-handedly carried Atletico Madrid to Europa League glory last season, and he did likewise with Uruguay in South Africa 2010, leading his country to a respectable fourth-place finish at the World Cup with some spectacular goals.

Then there’s Iker Casillas and Julio Cesar, two goalkeepers who performed miracles for club and country throughout 2010. But should any of those four, or any of the others for that matter, in the initial 23-man shortlist who deserve to be in the final three more than Iniesta, Messi and Xavi?

Iniesta’s inclusion will perhaps draw the most mixed reception. The attacking midfielder spent the first half of 2010 nursing a niggling injury and as a result, his performances were below his usual high standards. But the extra rests that he picked up along the way turned out to be a blessing in disguise as he has become the only star player who featured in the final of the World Cup to carry his form into the new league season.

Lionel Messi failed to carry Argentina far into the World Cup, but his form for Barcelona has been simply sublime in the whole of the calendar year: 54 goals in 47 club games in 2010 up until the final three shortlist was announced, including six hat-tricks. If the Ballon d’Or is part recognition and reward for consistency, then Little Leo deserves to retain the gong he won last year.

Since finishing second in the 2008 edition, Messi’s level has not dropped one bit. If anything, he has been steadily improving, not just in his goal ratio, but his all-round performance. And that doesn’t include the mesmerizing exhibitions and masterclasses that he puts on every time he steps onto the pitch.

There is hardly a more consistent player in world football at the moment. But if there is a challenger, then it has to be Xavi.

The midfield maestro is a real critics’ and players’ favorite. Not always as dazzling on eye as Messi and Iniesta, he is a footballer that you have to truly analyze and dig up some numbers to appreciate and admire his craft.

He didn’t score at the World Cup, he doesn’t bag hat-tricks, he doesn’t dribble past walls of defenders every week. He is a player who consistently strings close to 100 passes together match after match, he covers well over 10 kilometers per game, and his vision and passing range is incomparable.

The Ballon d’Or and FIFA World Player of the Year accolades have always stirred up debates amongst fans in the past. Don’t expect it to be any different this year now that the awards have merged.

If you’re still craving more Spanish omelet, the top three coaches who are vying for the managerial equivalent of the award are all currently in Spanish football: World Cup winner Vicente del Bosque, Barca’s master conductor Pep Guardiola, and Inter’s treble winner and now property of Real Madrid, Jose Mourinho.

(source: by KS Leong, www.goal.com)

Cristiano Ronaldo - Most Expensive Player in Football History

Full name: Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro

Birthday: February 5, 1985 (age 24)

Birthplace: Funchal, Madeira, Portugal

Height: 1.84 m

Weight: 75kg

Nickname: Ronnie, CR, Rocket Ronaldo, CR7, C. Ronaldo

Position: Right/Left Winger

Current club: Real Madrid

Ronaldo is the most expensive player in football history after moving Manchester United to Real Madrid in a transfer deal worth £80 million (€94m, US$132m). Besides, his contract with Real Madrid, in which he is to be paid £11 million per year over the following six years, makes him the highest-paid football player in the world.

Early Life

Cristiano Ronaldo was born in Portugal and grew up with a brother and two sisters. His second name (Ronaldo) is relatively rare in Portugal. His parents named him after former US president Ronald Reagan because he was his father's favourite actor, and not for political reasons. 

He began kicking a football when he was three, and when he started primary school at age six, his passion for the sport was obvious.   By 1995, at just ten years of age, Cristiano Ronaldo's reputation was growing in Portugal. Madeira's top two teams, CS Marítimo and CD Nacional were both interested in signing him. Marítimo, the bigger team, missed a crucial meeting with Rui Santos manager of Andorinha, and as a result Ronaldo signed for Nacional. After a title-winning campaign at Nacional, Ronaldo went on a three day trial with Sporting who subsequently signed him for an undisclosed sum.

First Clubs in Portugal

Ronaldo joined Sporting's other youth players who trained at the Alcochete, the club's "football factory," where he received first-class instruction. He also featured for Portugal in the UEFA Under 17 Championships.

His performances at the UEFA Under 17 championship drew him to the attention of the wider football world. He came to the attention of Sir Alex Ferguson in the summer of 2003, when Sporting Clube de Portugal beat Manchester United 3–1 in the inauguration of the Alvalade XXI stadium in Lisbon. After the match, United's players spoke enthusiastically of the young talent that they had just played against, saying they would rather have him in their team than play against him in the future.[citation needed]

Christiano Ronaldo at Manchester United 2003–2006

Ferguson decided that he wanted the youngster for his team, who were in the market for a right-sided midfielder with the departure of David Beckham to Real Madrid; Cristiano was signed for a fee of £12.24 million.

Ronaldo requested the number 28 (his number at Sporting), as he did not want the pressure of living up to the expectation linked to the number 7 shirt, which had previously been worn by players such as George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona, and David Beckham. "After I joined, the manager asked me what number I'd like. I said 28. But Ferguson said 'No, you're going to have No. 7,' and the famous shirt was an extra source of motivation. I was forced to live up to such an honour.”

2006-2009

The 2006-2007 season proved to be the breakout year for Ronaldo, as he broke the 20 goal barrier for the first time and picked up his first league title with Manchester United.

In November and December 2006, Ronaldo received consecutive Barclays Player of the Month honours, becoming only the third player in Premier League history to do so after Dennis Bergkamp in 1997 and Robbie Fowler in 1996.  He was voted into his second consecutive FIFPro Special Young Player of the Year award at the end of the year.

He finished as the runner-up to Kaká for the 2007 Ballon d'Or and was 3rd in the running for the FIFA World Player of the Year award, behind Kaká and Lionel Messi.

On 11 June, Manchester United accepted an unconditional offer of £80 million from Real Madrid for Ronaldo after it was revealed that he again had expressed his desire to leave the club.  It was confirmed by a representative of the Glazer family that the sale was fully condoned by Ferguson.

Real Madrid

Ronaldo was presented to the world media as a Real Madrid player on 6 July 2009, where he was handed the number 9 jersey. Ronaldo was welcomed by 80,000 fans at his presentation at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, surpassing Diego Maradona's record of 75,000 fans when he was presented in Italy, after he was transferred from Barcelona to Napoli in 1984.

With the departure of Raúl in the summer of 2010, Ronaldo was handed the number 7 jersey.

Drogba - one of best centre forwards

Name: Didier Yves Drogba Tébily

Club: Chelsea (Eng)

Position: Striker

Nationality: Ivory Coast

Date of Birth: March 11, 1978

Height: 188 cm

Strengths: Aerial prowess and power; there are few players in the world as strong.

Weaknesses: Temperament, propensity to dive and over-exaggerate tackles and confrontations.

 Style: Robust, bustling centre forward who harasses his markers. But he is excellent with the ball on the deck and a strong finisher with the ability to use both feet.

Club Career

1998-2002 : Le Mans

Undoubtedly one of the best centre forwards in the world, Drogba still manages to polarise opinion with his theatrical and temperamental style of play taking the shine off the powerful striker's incredible talent. Drogba moved from his native Ivory Coast to France in 1988, living with his uncle in order to pursue a career in football. He started his career at Dunkirk before moving to Abbeville, Levallois and Le Mans.

2002-2003 : En Avant Guingamp

But it was after a move to Guingamp that he really began to catch the attention, netting 17 goals in their 2002-03 Ligue 1 campaign before signing for Marseille.

2003-2004 : Olympique de Marseille

It was 2003 and Didier Drogba emerged rather late on the first scene of top European soccer, at age 25. Still, his appetite for goal wouldn't allow him to lay low, even though he reached a comfortable level for any footballer, Marseille being a team that would battle each year for the league and cup, as well as on the European front, in the UEFA Champions League.

The main passion for Drogba, goals, remained his primary target and he managed to score 19 times in 35 matches for Marseille, of which 5 in the UEFA Champions League group stages and another 6 in the following UEFA Cup run.

2004- Present: Chelsea

Age 26, it was the perfect setup for him to step in the light, as he got a contract offer from what is still the most important club in the career of Drogba, Chelsea London.  Chelsea and Jose Mourinho then came knocking and smashed the British transfer record for a striker, paying £24 million for his services in 2004.  

Although being helped by a tremendous performance by Drogba, Chelsea didn't manage to win the Champions League trophy, stopping in the finals, they are considered amongst the favorites each year and many, believe that only time separate Chelsea and Drogba from being crowned the kings of Europe.

Spain dominate shortlist for new FIFA Ballon d'Or

Seven members of Spain's World Cup-winning squad have made it onto the shortlist for the first ever FIFA Ballon d'Or award, with Ghana striker Asamoah Gyan the surprise name on the 23-man list.

Xavi, David Villa, Xabi Alonso, Iker Casillas, Carles Puyol, Andres Iniesta and Cesc Fabregas were the Spaniards who made the list, but there was no place for an Englishman, Frenchman or Italian after their poor performances in South Africa.

The winner will be revealed at a ceremony in Zurich on January 10, 2011, with the players chosen by football experts from the FIFA's Football Committee, the Technical and Development Committee and the Committee for Women's Football and the FIFA Women's World Cup, as well as by a group of experts from France Football magazine.

The new award is a combination of the FIFA World Player of the Year award and the France Football Ballon d'Or and on December 6, 2010, FIFA and France Football will announce the names of the three men who have received the most votes.

Shortlist for the FIFA Ballon d'Or 2010:

Xabi Alonso (Spain), Daniel Alves (Brazil), Iker Casillas (Spain), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), Didier Drogba (Côte d'Ivoire), Samuel Eto'o (Cameroon), Cesc Fabregas (Spain), Diego Forlan (Uruguay), Asamoah Gyan (Ghana), Andres Iniesta (Spain), Julio Cesar (Brazil), Miroslav Klose (Germany), Philipp Lahm (Germany), Maicon (Brazil), Lionel Messi (Argentina), Thomas Muller (Germany), Mesut Ozil (Germany), Carles Puyol (Spain), Arjen Robben (Netherlands), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany), Wesley Sneijder (Netherlands), David Villa (Spain) and Xavi (Spain).

World Coach of the Year nominees: 

Carlo Ancelotti (Chelsea), Vicente del Bosque (Spain), Sir Alex Ferguson (Manchester United), Pep Guardiola (FC Barcelona), Joachim Low (Germany), Jose Mourinho (Inter Milan/Real Madrid), Oscar Tabarez (Uruguay), Louis van Gaal (Bayern Munich), Bert van Marwijk (Holland) and Arsene Wenger (Arsenal).

source: ESPN (www.soccernet.com)

Jose not planning any Real deals

Jose Mourinho has all but ruled out the possibility of new signings at Real Madrid in January.

ollowing the return of Florentino Perez to the presidency in 2009, Madrid have spent huge sums on the squad, with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Xabi Alonso, Karim Benzema, Angel Di Maria, Mesut Ozil and Sami Khedira among those to have arrived.

Despite the spending, Mourinho had complained of a lack of options in attack, with only Gonzalo Higuain and Benzema as established strikers, and there have been rumours of a move for Athletic Bilbao forward Fernando Llorente.

However, Mourinho has now said that, barring "something unusual", he is not expecting any additions to his squad before the end of the campaign.

"It's normal there's talk of players," he said on the club's official website. "Madrid is Madrid and there's always talk of players. Mainly it's great players because, if you talk of mediocre players, people won't believe it.

"It seems normal to me, but as coach I have to say not only what I think but what the club thinks and that is that this is the squad until the end of the season. These are the players which we have faith in.
"Real Madrid have made the investment that they had to do in previous years and this summer. We don't have the perfect squad, because the perfect squad doesn't exist. We have an excellent squad with players who give me a lot of confidence and I don't want any players in the winter market.

"It seems premature to me and unrealistic when there is talk of signings in January when the coach, and surely the director general (Jorge Valdano) and the president, will say that the market now and in January for Real Madrid is closed if nothing unusual happens."

source: ESPN

Juve deny Buffon rumours

Juventus general director Giuseppe Marotta has dismissed reports Manchester United are working on a deal to sign Gianluigi Buffon.

United are currently in the process of identifying a successor to Edwin van der Sar, who turns 40 this month, and have recently spent time scouting Atletico Madrid youngster David De Gea and Anders Lindegaard of Aalesunds.

Reports have suggested that Sir Alex Ferguson may have made a move for Italy goalkeeper Buffon, 32, but Marotta insists no talks have taken place over a deal.

"I deny any negotiation with United. Buffon is a Juventus player," he told Tuttosport.

Buffon's agent, Silvano Martina, added: "These transfer rumours make no sense. Buffon has been sidelined for three months so who would want an injured player? Moreover, it seems to me that the best player at United so far has been Van der Sar."

Buffon will be out of action for the rest of the year after suffering a back problem during the World Cup.

source: ESPN

Ooops, I Didi it again. Arsene!

DIDIER DROGBA admits his amazing scoring record against Arsenal has him baffled.

His latest strike, as Chelsea went four points clear at the top, made it 13 goals in 13 clashes with Arsene Wenger's Gunners.
He said: "I don't know how to explain my record against Arsenal. Maybe it is just a question of being in the right place at the right time.

"It is good to go into the break now with a gap at the top, good to know we are four points ahead."
The Stamford Bridge goal-machine put the Blues in front before defender Alex scored from a stunning free-kick.
Yet Arsenal should have found the net themselves early on and Drogba admitted he complained to boss Carlo Ancelotti about the team's defending.

He added: "We were not defending well. We were not getting into the right positions. We didn't do what we were supposed to.

"In the second half we were much, much better. We showed more power, stayed in position better and played the ball out to Ashley Cole."

Arsenal have managed just one point, at Sunderland, from their last three Premier League matches.
Wenger admitted: "It was disappointing. We had the chances to win the game."

Source: thesun.co.uk