News about your favourite footballers
ANd if u Want club details we have got it all
Man Utd
Chealse
Barcelone
Real Madrid
Christiano Ronaldo
.jpg)
This is a Portuguese name; the first family name is dos Santos and the second is Aveiro.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Personal information
Full name
Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro
Date of birth
5 February 1985 (1985-02-05) (age 23)
Place of birth
Funchal, Madeira, Portugal
Height
6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Playing position
Winger
Club information
Current club
Manchester United
Number
7
Youth clubs
1993–19951995–19971997–2001
CF AndorinhaCD NacionalSporting CP
Senior clubs1
Years
Club
App (Gls)*
2001–20032003–
Sporting CPManchester United
025 0(3)178 (74)
National team2
2002–20032003–
Portugal U-21Portugal
002 0(1)061 (21)
1 Senior club appearances and goalscounted for the domestic league only andcorrect as of 22:10, 29 December 2008 (UTC).2 National team caps and goals correctas of 18:32, 26 December 2008 (UTC).* Appearances (Goals)
Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro, OIH (IPA: [kɾɨʃˈtiɐnu ʁuˈnaɫdu]; born 5 February 1985)[1] is a Portuguese footballer who plays as a winger for English Premier League club Manchester United and the Portuguese national team.
Ronaldo began his career as a youth player at C.D. Nacional and his successes with the team led to a move to Sporting two seasons afterwards. Ronaldo's precocious talent caught the attention of Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and he signed the 18-year-old for £12.24 million in 2003. He earned his first cap for the Portuguese national team around the same time. He won his first club honour, the FA Cup, the following season and reached the final of the UEFA Euro 2004 with Portugal, scoring his first international goal in the process.
The next three years saw Ronaldo rising to global prominence, scoring frequently at both club and international level and receiving various awards for his accomplishments. The 2006–07 season brought him his first Premier League title. The following season at Manchester United, 2007–08, was his best yet as he retained the Premier League and won his first UEFA Champions League, the highest European club honour. Additionally, he was the Premier League's top scorer, won the European Golden Shoe, and was named the FIFPro World Player of the Year 2008. On 2 December, Ronaldo was awarded the 2008 Ballon d'Or.
Johan Cruijff said in an interview on 2 April 2008, "Ronaldo is better than George Best and Denis Law, who were two brilliant and great players in the history of United."
Contents
Early life
Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro was born on 5 February 1985 in Funchal, Madeira, the youngest child of Maria Dolores dos Santos Aveiro and José Dinis Aveiro. His second given name, "Ronaldo," was chosen after then-U.S. president Ronald Reagan, who was his father's favourite actor at the time. He has one older brother, Hugo, and two older sisters, Elma and Liliana Cátia.
Club career
Early career
Ronaldo's favourite boyhood team was S.L. Benfica. At the age of eight, he played for amateur team C.F. Andorinha, where his father was the kit man. In 1995, Ronaldo signed with local club CD Nacional, and after a title-winning campaign, he went on a three-day trial with Sporting CP, who subsequently signed him for an undisclosed sum.
Sporting Clube de Portugal
Ronaldo joined Sporting's other youth players who trained at the Alcochete, the club's football academy. He became the only player ever to play for Sporting's U-16, U-17, U-18, B-team, and first team, all within one season. He scored two goals in his Sporting debut against Moreirense, while featuring for Portugal in the UEFA Under 17 Championships.He was first spotted by then-Liverpool F.C. manager Gérard Houllier at sixteen, but Liverpool declined to take him on because they decided he was too young and needed some time to develop his skills. However, he came to the attention of Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson in the summer of 2003, when Sporting defeated United 3–1 in the inauguration of the Estádio José Alvalade in Lisbon. Ronaldo's performance impressed the Manchester United players, who urged Ferguson to sign him.
Manchester United
2002–2005
Ronaldo became Manchester United's first-ever Portuguese player when he signed for £12.24 million after the 2002–03 season. He 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."
Ronaldo with Manchester United
Ronaldo made his team debut as a 60th-minute substitute in a 4-0 home victory over Bolton Wanderers, and scored United's thousandth Premier League goal on 29 October 2005 in a 4-1 loss to Middlesbrough He scored ten goals in all competitions, and fans voted him to his first FIFPro Special Young Player of the Year awards in 2005.
2006–2007
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 scored his fiftieth career Manchester United goal against city rivals Manchester City F.C. as United claimed their first Premier League title in four years, and he was voted into his second consecutive FIFPro Special Young Player of the Year award at the end of the year.
Despite rumours circulating in March 2007 that Real Madrid were willing to pay an unprecedented €80 million (£54 million) for Ronaldo,[ he signed a five-year, £120,000-a-week (£31 million-a-year) extension with United on 13 April, making him the highest-paid player in team history.[
Ronaldo was involved in several diving incidents during the 2006-07 campaign. He was criticised by manager Gareth Southgate for diving in a December 2006 match against Middlesbrough. On 4 February 2007, Ronaldo was again accused of diving in a match against Tottenham Hotspur when he won a penalty kick despite little contact from Tottenham winger Steed Malbranque.Despite the controversies, Ronaldo nonetheless amassed a host of personal awards for the season. He won the PFA Players' Player of the Year and PFA Young Player of the Year awards, joining Andy Gray (in 1977) as the only players to receive this honour.[20] In April, he completed the treble by winning the PFA Fans' Player of the Year. Ronaldo was also one of seven Manchester United players named in the 2006–07 PFA Premier League Team of the Year.
2007–2008
Ronaldo's 2007–08 season began with a red card for an alleged headbutt of Portsmouth F.C. player Richard Hughes during United's second match of the season, for which he was punished with a three-match ban.[21] Ronaldo said he had "learned a lot" from the experience and would not let players "provoke" him in the future. After scoring the only goal in a Champions League road match against Sporting Lisbon, Ronaldo also scored the injury-time winner in the return fixture as Manchester United topped their CL group.
He finished as the runner-up to Kaká for the 2007 Ballon D'or,and was third in the running for the FIFA World Player of the Year award, behind Kaká and Lionel Messi.
Ronaldo scored his first hat trick for Manchester United in a 6–0 win against Newcastle United at Old Trafford on 12 January 2008, bringing Manchester United up to the top of the Premier League table.[26] He scored his twenty-third league goal of the season in a 2–0 win against Reading, equalling his entire total for the 2006–07 season.During a 1–1 Champions League first knockout round draw against Olympique Lyonnais on 20 February, an unidentified Lyon supporter continuously aimed a green laser at Ronaldo and United teammate Nani, prompting an investigation by UEFA.[28] One month later, Lyon were fined CHF5,000 (£2,427) for the incident.
On 19 March 2008, Ronaldo captained the United for the first time in his career in a home win over Bolton, scoring both goals in the 2–0 victory.[30] The second of the goals was his 33rd of the campaign, which set a new club single-season scoring record by a midfielder and thus topped George Best's forty-year-old total of 32 goals in the 1967–68 season. Ronaldo scored another brace in a 4–0 win over Aston Villa on 29 March, which at the time gave him 35 goals in 37 domestic and European matches as both a starter and substitute. Ronaldo's torrid scoring streak was rewarded with his becoming the first winger to win the 2007–08 European Golden Shoe, finishing eight points ahead of Mallorca's Dani Güiza.
In the 2007–08 Champions League final on 21 May against league rivals Chelsea, Ronaldo scored the opening goal after 26 minutes, which was negated by a Chelsea equalizer in the 45th minute as the match ended 1–1 after extra time. His misfire in the penalty shoot-out put Chelsea in position to win the trophy, but John Terry shot wide right after slipping on the pitch surface, and Manchester United emerged victorious 6–5 on penalties. Ronaldo was named the UEFA Fans' Man of the Match,[33] and wrapped up the campaign with a career-high 42 goals in all competitions, falling just four short of Denis Law's team-record mark of 46 in the 1963–64 season.
2008–present
On 5 June 2008, Sky Sports reported that Ronaldo had expressed an interest in moving to Real Madrid if they offered him the same amount of money the team had allegedly promised him earlier in the year.Manchester United filed a tampering complaint with FIFA on 9 June over Madrid's alleged pursuit of Ronaldo, but FIFA declined to take any action.
Speculation that a transfer would happen continued until 6 August, when Ronaldo confirmed that he would stay at Manchester for at least another year.
Ronaldo underwent ankle surgery at the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam on 7 July.[38] He returned to action on 17 September in United's UEFA Champions League goalless group-stage draw with Villarreal as a substitute for Park Ji-Sung and scored his first overall goal of the season in a 3–1 League Cup third round win over Middlesbrough on 30 August.
Ronaldo scored his 100th and 101st goals in all competitions for Manchester United in a 5–0 win over Stoke City on 15 November 2008, both from free kicks.
The goals also meant that Ronaldo had now scored against each of the other 19 teams in the Premier League at the time.[41]
On 2 December 2008, Ronaldo became Manchester United's first Ballon d'Or recipient since George Best in 1968. He finished with 446 points, 165 ahead of runner-up Lionel Messi.
International career
Ronaldo earned his first cap for Portugal in a 1-0 victory against Kazakhstan in August 2003. He was called up for Euro 2004, scoring in a 2-1 group stage loss to eventual champions Greece and in a 2-1 semifinal win over the Netherlands. He was named in the team of the tournament despite finishing with only two goals.[43] That same year, he also represented Portugal at the 2004 Summer Olympics.
2006 World Cup
He was the second-highest scorer in FIFA World Cup qualification in the European zone with seven goals, and scored his first and only World Cup goal against Iran with a penalty kick
During a quarter-final match against England on 8 July 2006, Ronaldo's United teammate Wayne Rooney was sent off for stomping on Portugal defender Ricardo Carvalho. The English media speculated that Ronaldo had influenced referee Horacio Elizondo's decision by aggressively complaining, after which he was seen in replays winking at the Portuguese bench following Rooney's dismissal. After the match, Ronaldo insisted that Rooney was a friend and that he was not pushing for Rooney to be sent off. On 4 July, Elizondo clarified that the red card was due to Rooney's infraction and not the fracas between Rooney and Ronaldo that followed.
The angry reaction from the English press caused Ronaldo to consider leaving United,[ and he allegedly told Spanish sports daily Marca that he wished to move to Real Madrid. In response to the speculation, Ferguson sent Portuguese assistant manager Carlos Queiroz to speak to Ronaldo in attempt to change his mind, a sentiment that was shared by Rooney. Ronaldo stayed, and signed his new five-year extension in April 2007. Ronaldo was booed during Portugal's semifinal defeat to France, and missed out on the competition's Best Young Player award due to a negative e-mail campaign from England fans. Though the online vote only affected the nomination process, FIFA's Technical Study Group awarded the honor to Germany's Lukas Podolski, citing Ronaldo's behaviour as a factor in the decision.
Post-World Cup
One day after his twenty-second birthday, Ronaldo captained Portugal for the first time in a friendly against Brazil on 6 February 2007. This move was in honour of Portuguese Football Federation president Carlos Silva, who had died two days earlier. Portugal coach Luiz Felipe Scolari explained, "Mr. Silva asked me to make [Ronaldo] captain as a gesture...[he] is too young to be captain, but Mr. Silva asked me, and now he is no longer with us."[54]
Ronaldo scored eight goals in Portugal's UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying campaign,[55] but finished with only one goal in the tournament as Portugal were eliminated in the quarter-finals.
Honours
Club
Manchester United
Premier League: 2006–07, 2007–08
FA Cup: 2003–04
League Cup: 2005–06
FA Community Shield: 2007
UEFA Champions League: 2007–08
FIFA Club World Cup: 2008
Individual
UEFA Euro 2004 Team of the Tournament
FIFPro Special Young Player of the Year: 2004–05, 2005–06
Portuguese Footballer of the Year: 2006–07
UEFA Team of the Year: 2003–2004, 2006–07
FIFPro World XI: 2006–07, 2007–08
PFA Young Player of the Year: 2006–07
PFA Players' Player of the Year: 2006–07, 2007–08
PFA Fans' Player of the Year: 2006–07, 2007–08
PFA Premier League Team of the Year: 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08
FWA Footballer of the Year: 2006–07, 2007–08
Barclays Player of the Season: 2006–07, 2007–08
Barclays Player of the Month: November–December 2006, January 2008, March 2008
Barclays Golden Boot: 2007–08
Barclays Merit Award: 2007–08
European Golden Shoe: 2007–08
UEFA Club Forward of the Year: 2007–08
UEFA Club Footballer of the Year: 2007–08
FIFPro World Player of the Year: 2007–08
Ballon d'Or: 2008
Orders
Officer of the Order of Infante D. Henrique
Medal of Merit, Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa (House of Braganza)[
KaKA
Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite born April 22, 1982 in Brasília), better known as Kaká, is a Brazilian midfielder who plays for Italian Serie A club A.C. Milan and the Brazilian national team. He was the recipient of both the Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year awards in 2007, and was named in the 2008 Time 100.
Early life
Kaká was born to Simone Cristina dos Santos Leite and Bosco Izecson Pereira Leite. His younger brother, Rodrigo (known as Digão), is also a professional footballer. When he was seven, his family moved to São Paulo. His school had arranged him in a local youth club called "Alphaville," who qualified to the final in a local tournament. There he was discovered by São Paulo FC who offered an assignment.
At the age of eighteen, Kaká suffered a career-threatening and possibly paralysis-inducing spinal fracture as a result of a swimming pool accident, but remarkably made a full recovery. He attributes his recovery to God and has since tithed his income to his church.
Club career
Kaká began his club career with São Paulo at the age of eight. He signed a contract at fifteen and led the SPFC youth squad to Copa de Juvenil glory. Kaká made his senior side debut in January 2001 and scored twelve goals in 27 appearances, in addition to leading São Paulo to its first and only Torneio Rio-São Paulo championship. He scored ten in 22 matches the following season, and by this time his performance was soon attracting attention from European clubs. Kaká made a total of 146 appearances for São Paulo, scoring 58 times
AC Milan, fresh from winning the 2003 Champions League, brought him aboard in 2003 for $8.5 million, a fee described in hindsight as "peanuts" by club owner Silvio Berlusconi. Within a month, he cracked the starting lineup, and his Serie A debut was in a 2–0 win over A.C. Ancona. He scored ten goals in thirty appearances that season, as Milan won the Scudetto and the European Super Cup.
Kaká was a part of the five-man midfield in the 2004–05 season, usually playing in a withdrawn role behind striker Andriy Shevchenko. He scored seven goals in 36 domestic appearances as Milan finished runner-up in the Scudetto race. Despite Milan losing the 2004–05 Champions League final to Liverpool F.C. on penalties, he was nonetheless voted the best midfielder of the tournament.
2005–06 saw Kaká score his first hat-tricks in domestic and European competition. On April 9, 2006, he scored his first Rossoneri hat-trick against Chievo Verona; all three goals were scored in the second half. Seven months later, he scored his first Champions League hat-trick in a 4–1 group stage win over RSC Anderlecht. The football world was beginning to take notice of a superstar in the making.
Shevchenko's departure to Chelsea FC for the 2006–07 season allowed Kaká to become the focal point of Milan's offense as he alternated between the midfield and striker positions. He finished as the top scorer in the 2006–07 CL campaign with ten goals. One of them helped the Rossoneri eliminate Celtic FC in the quarterfinals on a 1–0 aggregate, and three others proved fatal for Manchester United in the semifinals despite Milan losing the first leg. Following the convincing 3–0 second-leg defeat at the San Siro on May 2 that knocked out the English champions, Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson declared that Kaká was one of the two best players in the world, alongside his charge Cristiano Ronaldo.
Kaká added the Champions League title to his trophy case for the first time when Milan defeated Liverpool on May 23, 2007. Though he went scoreless, he won a free kick that led to the first of Filippo Inzaghi's two goals, and provided the assist for the second. For his stellar play throughout the competition, he was voted the Vodafone Fans' Player of the Season in a poll of over 100,000 UEFA.com visitors. On August 30, Kaká was named by UEFA as both the top forward of the 2006–07 CL season and Club Footballer of the Year.[9]
He played his 200th career match with Milan in a 1–1 home draw with Calcio Catania on September 30, and on October 5, he was named the 2006–07 FIFPro World Player of the Year. On December 2, 2007, Kaká became the eighth Milan player to win the Ballon D'or, as he finished with a decisive 444 votes, long ahead of runner-up Cristiano Ronaldo.[10] He signed a contract extension through 2013 with Milan on February 29, 2008.[11]
Due to his contributions on and off the pitch, Time magazine named Kaká in the Time 100, a list of the world's 100 most influential people, on May 2. On October 14, he cast his footprints into the Estádio do Maracanã's sidewalk of fame, in a section dedicated to the memory of the country's top players.
National team
Kaká made his debut for Brazil in January 2002 against Bolivia. He was part of the 2002 FIFA World Cup-winning squad, but played only 25 minutes, all of which were in the first round match against Costa Rica. During the final against Germany, coach Luiz Felipe Scolari was reportedly about to send Kaká on as a substitute, but he never made it into the game as the referee did not notice him waving on the sidelines to enter the pitch.
In 2003, Kaká was the captain for the CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament, where Brazil finished as runner-up as he scored three goals. He finished in joint tenth place in the voting for the 2004 FIFA World Player of the Year award, and finished two spots higher the following year. On June 29, 2005, he scored in a 4–1 defeat of Argentina in the 2005 Confederations Cup final.
Kaká started in his first FIFA World Cup finals in 2006, scoring his first and only goal in a 1–0 victory over Croatia in Brazil's opening match. He was unable to keep up the momentum for the remainder of the tournament, as Brazil was eliminated by France in the quarterfinals. On September 3, he received the ball off a deflection from an Argentina corner kick and taking the ball down three quarters of the field to score.
On May 12, 2007, citing an exhaustive schedule of Serie A, Champions League and national team play, Kaká openly bowed out of the 2007 Copa América, which Brazil won. He returned to play 70 minutes of Brazil's 1–1 friendly draw with England on June 1, but only 30 in a goalless draw with Turkey on June 5.
Personal life and religion
A devout evangelical Christian, Kaká became engrossed in religion at twelve: "I learnt that it is faith that decides whether something will happen or not." He removed his jersey to reveal an "I Belong to Jesus" T-shirt and openly engaged in prayer moments after the final whistle of Brazil's 2002 World Cup, and Milan's 2004 Scudetto and 2007 Champions League triumphs. He also had the same phrase, along with "God Is Faithful," stitched onto the tongues of his boots. During the postmatch celebration following Brazil's 4–1 win over Argentina in the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup final, he and several of his teammates wore T-shirts that read "Jesus Loves You" in various languages.
Kaká is a member of the organization Atletas de Cristo ("Athletes of Christ"). His goal celebration consists of him pointing to the sky as a gesture of thanks to God. Kaká's favourite music is gospel and his favorite book is the Bible. Since November 2004, he has served as an Ambassador Against Hunger for the United Nations' World Food Programme, the youngest to do so at the time of his appointment.
Kaká was sworn in as an Italian citizen on February 12, 2007. He features prominently in Adidas advertising and also has a modeling contract with Armani, but the latter prevented him from appearing in a photo collection alongside his Milan teammates that was published by Dolce & Gabbana in early 2007.
He married his childhood sweetheart Caroline Celico on December 23, 2005 at the evangelical Reborn in Christ Church in São Paulo. Their first child, Luca Celico Leite, was born in São Paulo on June 10, 2008.
Nickname
His nickname is pronounced as it is spelled, with stress on the second syllable, and is a common term of endearment of "Ricardo" in Brazil. In Kaká's case, it was born from younger brother Rodrigo calling him "Caca" due to his inability to pronounce "Ricardo" when they were young; it eventually evolved into Kaká. He is occasionally called "Ricky Kaká" by the European media.
Honours
São Paulo
Copa de Juvenil: 2000
Torneio Rio-São Paulo: 2001
Campeonato Paulista: 2002
A.C. Milan
Serie A: 2004
Italian Super Cup: 2004
UEFA Champions League: 2006–07
International
FIFA World Cup: 2002
CONCACAF Gold Cup
FIFA Confederations Cup: 2005
UEFA Super Cup: 2003, 2007
FIFA Club World Cup: 2007
Individual
Revista Placar Bola de Ouro: 2002
Campeonato Brasileiro Bola de Prata (best player by position): 2002
CONCACAF Gold Cup Best XI: 2003
Serie A Young Footballer of the Year: 2003
Serie A Foreign Footballer of the Year: 2004, 2006, 2007
Serie A Footballer of the Year: 2004,2007
UEFA Champions League Best Midfielder: 2005
UEFA Team of the Year: 2006, 2007
FIFPro World XI: 2006, 2007, 2008
UEFA Champions League Top Scorer: 2006–07
UEFA Champions League Best Forward: 2006–07
UEFA Club Footballer of the Year: 2007
FIFPro World Player of the Year: 2007
Ballon d'Or: 2007
FIFA Club World Cup Golden Ball: 2007
Toyota Award: 2007
FIFA World Player of the Year: 2007
Onze d'Or: 2007
IFFHS World‘s Best Playmaker: 2007
IAAF Latin Sportsman of the Year: 2007
Time 100: 2008
Maracanã Hall Of Fame: 2008
Thierry Henry
Thierry Daniel Henry (French pronunciation: born 17 August 1977) is a French football striker who plays for Spanish La Liga club FC Barcelona and the France national team.
Henry was born and brought up in the tough neighbourhood of 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 Italian 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 Premiership, 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 twice nominated for the FIFA World Player of the Year, 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 FC Barcelona for a fee of €24 million.
Henry has enjoyed similar success with the French national squad, having won the 1998 FIFA World Cup and Euro 2000. 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. His footballing style and personality have ensured that he is one of the most commercially marketable footballers in the world; he has been featured in advertisements for Nike, Reebok, Renault, Pepsi and Gillette.
Early years
Henry is of Antillean heritage: his father, Antoine, is from Guadeloupe (La Désirade island), and his mother, Maryse, is from Martinique. He was born and raised in a tough environment in the heavily urbanised Les Ulis district of Paris which, despite its hardships, provided good footballing facilities.[3] As a seven-year-old, Henry showed great potential, prompting Claude Chezelle to recruit him to the local club CO Les Ulis. His father pressured him to attend training, although the youngster was not particularly drawn to football. He joined US Palaiseau in 1989, but after a year his father fell out with the club, so Henry moved to ES Viry-Châtillon for two years.[2] US Palaiseau coach Jean-Marie Panza, Henry's future mentor, followed him there.[3]
AS Monaco (1992–1999) and Juventus (1999)
In 1990, AS Monaco sent scout Arnold Catalano to watch Henry in a match. Henry scored all six goals as his side won 6–0. Catalano asked him to join Monaco without even attending a trial first. Catalano requested that Henry complete a course at the elite Clairefontaine academy, and despite the director's reluctance to admit Henry due to his poor school results, he was allowed to complete the course and joined Arsène Wenger's AS Monaco as a youth player.[4] Subsequently, Henry signed professional forms with AS Monaco and made his professional debut in 1994. Wenger put Henry on the left wing because he believed that his pace, natural ball control and skill would be more effective against full-backs than centre-backs. In his first season with Monaco, Henry scored three goals in 18 appearances.[2]
Wenger continued to search for the perfect playing position for Henry, and suspected that he should be deployed as a striker instead, but he was unsure.[2] Under the tutelage of his manager, Henry was named the French Young Footballer of the Year in 1996, and in the 1996–97 season, his solid performances helped the club win the Ligue 1 title.[4][5] During the 1997–98 season, he was instrumental in leading his club to the UEFA Champions League semi-final, setting a French record by scoring seven goals in the competition.[2][6] By his third season, he had received his first cap for the national team, and was part of the winning team in the 1998 World Cup.[2] He continued to impress at his tenure with Monaco, and in his five seasons with the French club, the young winger scored 20 league goals in 105 appearances.[5]
Henry left Monaco in January 1999, one year before his friend and teammate David Trezeguet, and moved to Italian Serie A club Juventus for £10.5 million.[4] He played on the wing,[7] but he was ineffective against the Serie A defensive discipline in a position uncharacteristic for him,
Arsenal (1999–2007)
Unsettled in Italy, Henry transferred from Juventus in August 1999 to Arsenal for £10.5 million, reuniting with his former manager Arsène Wenger.[9] It was at Arsenal that Henry made his name as a world-class footballer,[10] and although his transfer was not without controversy, Wenger was convinced he was worth the transfer fee.[2] Brought in as a replacement for fellow French forward Nicolas Anelka, Henry was immediately moulded into a striker by Wenger, a move that would pay rich dividends in years to come. However, doubts were raised about his ability to adapt to the quick and physical English game when he failed to score in his first eight games. After several difficult months in England, Henry even conceded that he had to "be re-taught everything about the art of striking."[3] These doubts were dispelled when he ended his first season at Arsenal with an impressive goal tally of 26.[11] Arsenal finished second in the league behind Manchester United, and lost in the UEFA Cup final against Turkish side Galatasaray.
Henry was made captain following the departure of fellow Frenchman Patrick Vieira to Juventus in 2005.
Coming off the back of a victorious Euro 2000 campaign with the national side, Henry was ready to make an impact in the 2000–01 campaign. Despite recording fewer goals and assists than his first season, Henry's second season with Arsenal proved to be a breakthrough, as he became the club's top goal-scorer. Armed with one of the league's best offences, Arsenal closed in quickly on perennial rivals Manchester United for the league title. Henry remained frustrated however by the fact that he had yet to help the club win honours, and frequently expressed his desire to establish Arsenal as a powerhouse.
Success finally arrived during the 2001–02 season. Arsenal finished seven points above Liverpool to win the league title, and defeated Chelsea 2–0 in the FA Cup Final.[2] Henry became the league's top goal-scorer and netted 32 goals in all competitions as he led Arsenal to a double and his first silverware with the club.[4][9] There was much expectation that Henry would replicate his club form for France during the 2002 World Cup, but the defending champions suffered a shock exit at the group stage.[2]
2002–03 proved to be another productive season for Henry, as he scored 32 goals in all competitions while contributing 23 assists—remarkable returns for a striker.[9] In doing so, he led Arsenal to another FA Cup triumph.[12] Throughout the season, he competed with Manchester United's Ruud van Nistelrooy for the league scoring title, but the latter edged Henry to the title by a goal.[2] Nonetheless, Henry was named both the PFA Players' Player of the Year and Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year.[13][14] His rising status as one of the world's best footballers was affirmed when he emerged runner-up for the 2003 FIFA World Player of the Year award.[10]
Entering the 2003–04 season, Arsenal were determined to reclaim the Premiership crown. Henry was again instrumental in Arsenal's exceptionally successful campaign; together with the likes of Dennis Bergkamp, Patrick Vieira and Robert Pirès, Henry ensured that the Gunners became the first team in more than a century to go through the entire domestic league campaign unbeaten, claiming the league title in the process.[15] Apart from being named for the second year running as the PFA Players' Player of the Year and Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year,[13][14] Henry emerged once again as the runner-up for 2004 FIFA World Player of the Year award.[10] With 39 goals scored in all competitions, the Frenchman led the league in goals scored and won the European Golden Boot.[4][16] However, as was the case in 2002, Henry was unable to lead the national side to honours during Euro 2004.[2]
This dip in success was compounded when Arsenal failed again to secure back-to-back league titles when they lost out to Chelsea in the 2004–05 season, although the club did win the FA Cup.[5] Henry maintained his reputation as one of Europe's most feared strikers as he led the league in scoring,[4] and with 31 goals in all competitions,[17] he was the co-recipient (with Diego Forlán) of the European Golden Boot, and is currently the only player to have officially won the award twice in a row (Ally McCoist also had two Golden Boots in a row, but both were deemed unofficial).[16] The unexpected departure of compatriot Vieira in mid-2005 led to Henry being awarded club captaincy, a role which many felt was not naturally suited for him; the captaincy is more commonly given to defenders or midfielders, who are better-placed on the pitch to read the game.[4] Along with being chief goal-scorer, he was responsible for leading a very young team which had yet to gel fully.[18]
The 2005–06 season proved to be one of remarkable personal achievements for Henry. On 17 October 2005, Henry became the club's top goal-scorer of all time;[19] two goals against Sparta Prague in the Champions League meant he broke Ian Wright's record of 185 goals.[20] On 1 February 2006, he scored a goal against West Ham, bringing his league goal tally up to 151, breaking Arsenal legend Cliff Bastin's league goals record.[21] Henry scored his 100th league goal at Highbury, a feat unparalleled in the history of the club, and a unique achievement in the Premier League.[22] He completed the season as the league's top goal-scorer,[4] and for the third time in his career, he was voted the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year.[5]
After the retirement of Dennis Bergkamp, Henry regularly partnered Robin van Persie up front in the Arsenal attack.
Nevertheless, Arsenal failed to win the league title again, but hopes of a trophy were revived when Arsenal reached the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final. The Gunners eventually lost 2–1 to FC Barcelona, and Arsenal's inability to win the Premiership for two consecutive seasons combined with the relative inexperience of the Arsenal squad caused much speculation that Henry would leave for another club. However, he declared his love for the club and accepted a four-year contract,[14] and said he would stay at Arsenal for life.[23] Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein later claimed the club had turned down two bids of £50 million from Spanish clubs for Henry before the signing of the new contract.[24] Had the transfer materialised, it would have surpassed the world record £47 million paid for Zinedine Zidane.[24]
Henry's 2006–07 season was marred by injuries.[25] Although he scored 10 goals in 17 domestic appearances for Arsenal, Henry's season was cut short in February. Having missed games due to hamstring, foot, and back problems, he was deemed fit enough to come on as a late substitute against PSV Eindhoven in a Champions League match,[26] but began limping shortly after coming on. Scans the next day revealed that he would need at least three months to heal from new groin and stomach injuries, missing the rest of the 2006–07 season.[27] Wenger attributed Henry's injuries to a protracted 2005–06 campaign, and reiterated that Henry was keen on staying with the Gunners to rebuild for the 2007–08 season.[25]
On 25 June 2007, in an unexpected turn of events, Henry was transferred to FC Barcelona for €24 million. He signed a four-year deal for a reported €6.8 (£4.6) million per season.[28] It was revealed that the contract included a release clause of €125 (£84.9) million.[29] Henry cited the departure of Dein and continued uncertainty over Wenger's future as reasons for leaving,[30][31] and maintained that "I always said that if I ever left Arsenal it would be to play for Barcelona."[32] Despite their captain's departure, Arsenal got off to an impressive start for the 2007–08 campaign, and Henry admitted that his presence in the team might have been more of a hindrance than a help. He stated: "Because of my seniority, the fact that I was captain and my habit of screaming for the ball, they would sometimes give it to me even when I was not in the best position. So in that sense it was good for the team that I moved on."[33] Henry left Arsenal as the club's all-time league goal-scorer with 174 goals and all-time goal-scorer in Europe with 42 goals;[4] in July 2008, Arsenal fans voted him as Arsenal's greatest player ever in Arsenal.com's Gunners' Greatest 50 Players poll.[34]
Barcelona (2007–present)
At Barcelona, Henry was given the number 14 jersey, the same as he had worn at Arsenal. He scored his first goal for his new club on 19 September 2007 in a 3–0 Champions League group stage win over Olympique Lyonnais,[35] and he recorded his first hat-trick for Barcelona in a league match against Levante ten days later.[36] However, with Henry mostly deployed on the wing throughout the season, he was unable to reproduce the goal-scoring form he achieved with Arsenal. He concluded his debut season as the club's top scorer with 19 goals in addition to nine league assists, second behind Lionel Messi's ten.
International career
Henry has had a successful career with the France national team. His international career began in June 1997, when his good form for Monaco was rewarded with a call-up to the Under-20 French national team, where he played in the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship alongside future teammates William Gallas and David Trezeguet.[4] Within four months, France head coach Aimé Jacquet called Henry up to the senior team. The 20-year-old made his senior international debut on 11 October 1997 in a 2–1 win against South Africa.[37] Jacquet was so impressed with Henry that he took him to the 1998 World Cup. Although Henry was a largely unknown quantity at international level, he ended the tournament as France's top scorer with three goals.[38] He was scheduled to appear as a substitute in the final, where France beat Brazil 3–0, but Marcel Desailly's sending off forced a defensive change instead. On Bastille Day 1998, he was awarded France's highest decoration, the Légion d'Honneur.[38]
Henry was a member of France's Euro 2000 championship squad, again scoring three goals in the tournament, including the equaliser against Portugal in the semi-final, and finishing as the country's top scorer.[39] France later won the game in extra time following a converted penalty kick by Zinedine Zidane. France went on to defeat Italy in extra time in the final, earning Henry his second major international medal.[40]
The 2002 FIFA World Cup featured a stunning early exit for both Henry and France as the defending champions were eliminated in the group stage after failing to score a goal in all three games.[4] France lost their first match in group play and Henry was red carded for a dangerous sliding challenge in their next match against Uruguay.[2] In that game, France played to a 0–0 draw, but Henry was forced to miss the final match due to suspension; France lost 2–0 to Denmark.[2]
Henry returned to form for his country at the 2003 Confederations Cup. Despite playing without team stalwarts Zinedine Zidane and Patrick Vieira, France won, in large part owing to Henry's outstanding play, for which he was named Man of the Match by FIFA's Technical Study Group in three of France's five matches.[4] In the final, he scored the golden goal in extra time to lift the title for the host country after a 1–0 victory over Cameroon.[4] Henry was awarded both the adidas Golden Ball as the outstanding player of the competition and the adidas Golden Shoe as the tournament's top goal-scorer with four goals.[4]
In Euro 2004, Henry played in all of France's matches and scored two goals.[5] France beat England in the group stages but lost to the eventual winners Greece 1–0 in the quarter-finals.[41] During the 2006 FIFA World Cup Henry remained as one of the automatic starters in the squad. He played as a lone striker, but despite an indifferent start to the tournament, became one of the top players of the World Cup. He scored three goals, including France's goal against returning champion and tournament favourite Brazil.[4] However, France subsequently lost to Italy on penalties (5–3) in the final. Henry did not take part in the penalty shootout, having been substituted in extra time after his legs had cramped.[42] Henry was one of 10 nominees for the Golden Ball award for Player of the Tournament, an award which was ultimately presented to his teammate, Zidane[43] and was named a starting striker on the 2006 FIFPro World XI team.[44]
On 13 October 2007, Henry scored his 41st goal against the Faroe Islands, joining Michel Platini as the country's top goal-scorer of all time.[33] Four days later at the Stade de la Beaujoire, he scored a late double against Lithuania, thereby setting a new record as France's top goal-scorer.[45] On 3 June 2008, Henry made his 100th appearance for national team in match against Colombia, becoming the sixth French player ever to reach that milestone.[46]
Henry missed the opening game of France's shortlived Euro 2008 campaign, where they were eliminated in the group stages after being grouped together with Italy, the Netherlands and Romania.[47] He scored France's only goal in the competition in a 4–1 loss to the Netherlands
Style of play
Henry was the first-choice free kick taker for Arsenal.
Although Henry played up front as a striker during his youth,[3] he spent his time at Monaco and Juventus playing on the wing. When Henry joined Arsenal in 1999, Wenger immediately changed this, switching Henry to his childhood position, often pairing him with Dutch veteran Dennis Bergkamp.[7] During the 2004–05 season, Wenger switched Arsenal's formation to 4-5-1.[49] This change forced Henry to adapt again to fit into the Arsenal team, and he played many games as a lone striker.[7] Still, Henry remained Arsenal's main offensive threat, on many occasions conjuring spectacular goals. Wenger once said of his fellow Frenchman: "Thierry Henry could take ball in the middle of park and score a goal that no one else in the world could score".[50]
One of the reasons cited for Henry's impressive play up front is his ability to calmly score from one-on-ones.[51] This, combined with his exceptional pace, means that he can get in behind defenders regularly enough to score.[3][52] When up front, Henry is occasionally known to move out wide to the left wing position,[53][54] something which enables him to contribute heavily in assists: between 2002–03 and 2004–05, the striker managed almost 50 assists in total and this was attributed to his unselfish play and creativity.[19] Henry would also drift offside to fool the defence then run back onside before the ball is played and beat the offside trap,[55] although he never provided Arsenal a distinct aerial threat.[55] Given his versatility in being able to operate as both a winger and a striker, the Frenchman is not a prototypical "out-and-out striker", but he has emerged consistently as one of Europe's most prolific strikers.[2] In set pieces, Henry was the first-choice penalty and free kick taker for Arsenal, having scored regularly from those positions.
Awards
Henry has received many plaudits and awards in his football career. He was runner-up for the 2003 and 2004 FIFA World Player of the Year award;[10] in those two seasons, he also won back-to-back PFA Players' Player of the Year titles.[13] Henry is the only player ever to have won the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year three times (2003, 2004, 2006),[14] and the French Player of the Year on a record four occasions. Henry was voted into the Premier League Overseas Team of the Decade in the 10 Seasons Awards poll in 2003,[57] and in 2004 he was named by football legend Pelé as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers.[58]
In terms of goal-scoring awards, Henry was the European Golden Boot winner in 2004 and 2005 (sharing it with Villarreal's Diego Forlán in 2005) and is the first ever player to retain the award.[16] Henry has also been the top goal-scorer in the Premiership for four seasons (2002, 2004, 2005, 2006).[4] In 2006, he became the first player to score more than 20 goals in the league for five consecutive seasons (2002 to 2006).[59] Henry is currently third in the list of all-time English Premiership goal-scorers, behind Alan Shearer and Andy Cole. Given his accomplishments, France's all-time goal-scorer is today regarded by many coaches, footballers and pundits as one of the best footballers in the world.[9][60][61][62] In November 2007, he was ranked 33rd on the Association of Football Statisticians' compendium for "Greatest Ever Footballers".[63] Arsenal fans honoured their former player in 2008, declaring Henry the greatest Arsenal player.[34] In another 2008 survey, Henry emerged as the favourite Premier League player of all time among 32,000 people surveyed in the Barclays 2008 Global Fan Report.
Outside football Personal and family life
Henry married English model Claire Merry on 5 July 2003.[3] The ceremony was held at Highclere Castle, and on 27 May 2005 the couple celebrated the birth of their first child, Téa.[65] Henry dedicated his first goal since Téa's birth to her by holding his fingers in a "T" shape and kissing them after scoring in a match against Newcastle United.[66] When Henry was still at Arsenal, he also purchased a home in Hampstead, North London.[3] However, shortly after his transfer to Barcelona, it was announced that Henry and his wife would divorce; the decree nisi was granted in September 2007.[67] Their separation concluded in December 2008 when Henry paid Merry a divorce settlement close to her requested sum of £10 million.[68]
As a fan of the National Basketball Association (NBA), Henry is often seen with his friend Tony Parker at games when not playing football. Henry stated in an interview that he admires basketball, as it is similar to football in pace and excitement.[69] Having made regular trips to the NBA Finals in the past, he went to watch Parker and the San Antonio Spurs in the 2007 NBA Finals;[70] and in the 2001 NBA Finals, he went to Philadelphia to help with French television coverage of the Finals as well as to watch Allen Iverson, whom he named as one of his favourite players.[69]
Social causes
Henry's club Barcelona has no commercial shirt sponsor; instead, they have a UNICEF-branded jersey.
Henry is a member of the UNICEF-FIFA squad, where together with other professional footballers he appeared in a series of TV spots seen by hundreds of millions of fans around the world during the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. In these spots, the players promote football as a game that must be played on behalf of children.[38]
Having being subjected to racism in the past, Henry is an active spokesperson against racism in football. The most prominent incident of racism against Henry was during a training session with the Spanish national team in 2004,[71][72] when a Spanish TV crew caught coach Luis Aragonés referring to Henry as "black shit".[66] The incident caused an uproar in the British media, and there were calls for Aragonés to be sacked.[73] Henry and Nike started the Stand Up Speak Up campaign against racism in football as a result of the incident.[74] Subsequently, in 2007, Time featured him as one of the "Heroes & Pioneers" on "The Time 100" list.[75]
ommercial marketability
In 2006, Henry was valued as the ninth most commercially marketable footballer in the world,[76] as well as being the eighth richest Premiership player, with £21 million.[77] In terms of past endorsements, Henry featured in the Renault Clio advertisements in which he popularised the term va-va-voom, meaning "life" or "passion". The word was subsequently added to the Concise Oxford English Dictionary.[78] In tandem with the 2006 World Cup, Henry also featured in Nike's Joga Bonito campaign, Portuguese for "play beautifully".[79] His deal with Nike ended after the 2006 World Cup, when he signed a deal with Reebok to appear in their "I Am What I Am" campaign.[80] In February 2007, Henry was named as one of the three ambassadors of Gillette's "Champions Program," which purported to feature three of the "best-known, most widely respected and successful athletes competing today" and also showcased Roger Federer and Tiger Woods in a series of television commercials,[16] though Henry was later replaced by Derek Jeter in subsequent spots broadcast in the United States.[81] As part of Reebok Entertainment's "Framed" series, Henry was the star of a half-hour episode that detailed the making of a commercial about Henry directed by Spanish actress Paz Vega.[82] Other past endorsements include Pepsi's "Dare For More" campaign in 2005, alongside the likes of David Beckham and Ronaldinho.
International
Honours
Monaco
Ligue 1: 1996–97
French Super Cup: 1997
Arsenal
FA Premier League: 2001–02, 2003–04
FA Cup: 2002, 2003, 2005
FA Community Shield: 2002, 2004
International
FIFA World Cup: 1998
UEFA European Championship: 2000
Confederations Cup: 2003
Individual
Confederations Cup top goalscorer: 2003
Confederations Cup Golden Ball: 2003
PFA Players' Player of the Year: 2002–03, 2003–04
FIFA 100
European Golden Boot: 2004, 2005
Premier League top scorer: 2001–02, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06. Henry was also top scorer in all four league divisions in 2004 and 2006
Onze d'Or: 2003, 2006
PFA Team of the Year: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006
FWA Footballer Of The Year: 2002–03, 2003–04, 2005–06
World XI Striker: 2006
UEFA Team of the Year: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006
French Player of the Year: 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006
Time 100: 2007
Orders
Légion d'Honneur: 1998
Lionel Messi
Lionel Andrés Messi (born 24 June 1987 in Rosario, Santa Fe Province) is an Argentine footballer who plays for Spanish La Liga club FC Barcelona and the Argentina national team. He has drawn comparisons to Diego Maradona, and Maradona himself named Messi his "successor".
Early career
At the age of five, Messi started playing football for Grandoli. In 1995, Messi switched to Newell's Old Boys. At the age of 11, he was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency. River Plate showed interest in Messi's progress, but did not have enough money to pay for the treatment of the illness that cost $1500 a month. Carles Rexach, the sporting director of FC Barcelona, was made aware of Messi's talent, and Barcelona signed him after watching him play, offering to pay for the medical bills if he was willing to move to start a new life in Spain. His family moved to Europe and he started in the club's youth teams.
Barcelona
Messi made his unofficial debut for the first team against FC Porto on 16 November 2003 (at 16 years and 145 days). Less than a year later he made his official debut against Espanyol on 16 October 2004 (at 17 years and 114 days), becoming the third-youngest player ever to play for FC Barcelona and youngest club player who played in La Liga (a record broken by team mate Bojan Krkić in September 2007). When he scored his first senior goal for the club against Albacete Balompié on 1 May 2005, Messi was 17 years, 10 months and 7 days old, becoming the youngest to ever score in a La Liga game for FC Barcelona until 2007 when Bojan Krkić broke this record, scoring off a Messi assist.
2005–06 season
On 16 September, for the second time in three months, Barcelona announced an update to Messi's contract - this time improved to pay him as a first team member and extended till June 2014. Messi obtained Spanish citizenship on 25 September and was finally able to make his début in the season's Spanish First Division. He had previously been unable to play because FC Barcelona had filled their quota of non-EU players. Messi's first home outing in the UEFA Champions League came on 27 September against Italian club Udinese.[9] He impressed with some great passing and a seemingly telepathic relationship with Ronaldinho that earned him a standing ovation from the 70,000-odd Nou Camp faithful.
Messi netted six goals in seventeen league appearances, and scored one Champions League goal in six. However, his season ended prematurely on 7 March 2006 when he suffered a muscle tear in his right thigh during the second leg of the second round Champions League tie against Chelsea. Barcelona ended the season as champions of Spain and Europe.
2006–07 season
Consistently strong performances and the occasional goal meant Messi was not starting any more games on the bench. Failure to effectively replace the injured Samuel Eto'o and poor defensive displays prevented Barcelona from taking advantage of Messi's showings against Chelsea and Real Madrid. This would later prove critical to their title challenges. On 12 November, in the game against Real Zaragoza, Messi suffered a broken metatarsal from tackles, ruling him out for 3 months. Messi carried out his recuperation in native Argentina. During this period there were rumours of interest in the player from Inter Milan. Messi returned to action against Racing Santander on the 11 February, coming on as a second-half substitute. Rijkaard carefully managed his complete return, gradually increasing playing minutes with each game. One month since his return, on the 10th of March, he played his first full league match since the injury, Real Madrid being the opposition. Once again, El Clásico saw Messi in top form, scoring a hat-trick to earn 10-man Barcelona a 3-3 draw, equalising thrice and with the final goal coming in injury time. In doing so he became the first player since Iván Zamorano (for Real Madrid in the 1994-95 season) and the first Barcelona player since Romario (1993-94 season) to hit a hat-trick in the El Clásico. Messi is also the youngest player ever to have scored in this fixture. The game also marked the beginning of Messi's best spell of form with Barça. He also began finding the net more often, 11 of his 14 league goals for the season coming from the last 13 games.
Messi also proved the "new Maradona" tag was not all hype, by near-replicating Maradona's most famous goals in the space of the single season. On 18 April 2007, he scored two goals during a Copa del Rey semi-final against Getafe CF, one of which was very similar to Maradona's famous goal against England at the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, known as the Goal of the Century. The world's sports press exploded with Maradona comparisons, and the Spanish press labelled Messi as "Messidona". He ran about the same distance (62 m), beat the same number of players (six, including the goalkeeper), scored from a very similar position, and ran towards the corner flag just as Maradona did in Mexico 21 years before. In a press conference after the game, Messi's team-mate Deco said: "There's no other like Leo." Against Espanyol Messi also scored with his hand in a goal remarkably similar to Maradona's goal against England in the world cup quarter-finals. Messi launched himself at the ball and connected with his hand to guide the ball past the goalkeeper Carlos Kameni. Despite protests by Espanyol players the goal was allowed and despite replays showing it was clear handball, Messi has never admitted the foul.
2007–08 season
Messi takes Barça to 2:0 against Sevilla FC at Camp Nou on 22 September 2007.
Messi scored five goals in a week leading Barcelona to the top four in La Liga. He dedicated the two goals he scored against FC Sevilla on 22 September to Ronaldinho, who was injured and under fire from media outlets at the time. A few days earlier he had scored as Barcelona defeated Lyon 3-0 at home in a Champions League match and then on 26 September, Messi scored another goal in a 4-1 victory over Real Zaragoza.
He has been nominated for a FIFPro World XI Player Award under the category of Forward. A recent poll conducted in the online edition of the Spanish newspaper Marca has him as the current best player of the world with 77 percent of the votes.[21] Also, other columnists from Barcelona-based newspapers El Mundo Deportivo and Sport began asking for the Ballon d'Or to be given to Leo Messi this year. This observation was also made by world football legends Franz Beckenbauer and Johan Cruyff. Various football personalities such as Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto'o, Frank Rijkaard, Víctor Fernández, Bernd Schuster, Guti, Raul, Gianluca Zambrotta, Francesco Totti, Antonio Cassano, Alfredo Di Stefano, Diego Maradona and Pelé have all, at one time or another, declared that they consider Messi to be one of the current best footballers in the world
On 27 February Messi played in his 100th official match for FC Barcelona.
Messi was sidelined for six weeks following an injury on 4 March when he suffered a muscle tear in his left thigh during a Champions League match against Celtic. It was the fourth time in three seasons that the player suffered this type of injury.
2008–09 season
With Ronaldinho's departure from the club, Messi inherited his number 10 jersey. On October 1, 2008 during a Champions League match against Shakhtar Donetsk, Messi scored two goals during the last seven minutes after coming on as a substitute for Thierry Henry, to turn the score from 0-1 to a victory for FC Barcelona 2-1. The next league game was versus Atletico Madrid, a match billed as a friendly battle between Lionel and good friend Sergio Agüero. Messi scored a goal from a free kick and assisted another as FC Barcelona went on to win the match 6-1. Messi netted another impressive brace against Sevilla scoring a spectacular dipping volley after being played through by Xavi and then rounding the keeper and slotting home from a tight angle to double his tally. On December 13, 2008, during the first Clásico of the season, Messi scored the second goal in Barcelona's 2-0 win over Real Madrid. On January 6, 2009, he scored a hatrick against Atletico Madrid at the Vicente Calderon in the first leg of the 1/8 finals.
International career
In June 2004, he got his first chance in Argentina colours, playing in an under-20 friendly match against Paraguay. In 2005 he was part of the team that won the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship in the Netherlands. Here, he won the prize for best player of the tournament and became top-scorer.
On 4 August 2005, José Pekerman called Messi up to the senior Argentine national team. He made his debut on 17 August against Hungary, but it was a forgettable occasion. He was substituted on during the 63rd minute, but was sent off after just 40 seconds because the referee, Markus Merk, found he had elbowed defender Vilmos Vanczák, who was tugging Messi's shirt. The decision was contentious. Maradona even claimed the decision was pre-meditated. Messi then had his first international start on 3 September in Argentina's 0-1 World Cup qualifier away loss against Paraguay. Ahead of the match he had said "This is a re-début. The first one
FIFA World Cup 2006
The injury that kept him from playing for two months at the end of the 2005–06 season jeopardised his presence in the World Cup. Nevertheless, Messi was selected in the Argentina squad for the tournament on 15 May 2006. He also played in the farewell match against the Argentinian U-20 team for fifteen minutes and a friendly against Angola from the 64th minute
He witnessed Argentina's opening match victory against Ivory Coast from the bench. In the next match against Serbia, Messi became the youngest player to represent Argentina at a World Cup when he came on as a substitute for Maxi Rodríguez in the 74th minute. He assisted Hernán Crespo's goal within minutes of entering the game and also scored the final goal in the 6-0 victory, that made him the youngest scorer in the tournament and the fifth youngest goalscorer in the whole World Cup. Messi started in Argentina's following 0-0 tie against the Netherlands. In the following game against Mexico, Messi came on as a substitute in the 84th minute, with the score tied 1-1. He appeared to score a goal, but was ruled offside in a dubious decision, Argentina needing an extra time winner to proceed. Coach José Pekerman controversially left Messi on the bench during the quarter-finals match against Germany. Argentina lost 4-2 on penalties and Messi, who was visibly upset during the game, declined to speak to reporters afterwards.
Copa America 2007
When Copa started Leo was the youngest player in the tournament. Messi played his first game in Copa America on 29 June 2007, when Argentina defeated United States 4-1 in the first game. In this game, Messi showed his capabilities as a playmaker. He set up a goal for fellow striker Hernán Crespo and had numerous shots on target. Tevez came on as a substitute for Messi in the 79th minute and scored minutes later.[38]
His second game was against Colombia, in which he caused a penalty that Crespo converted to tie the game at 1-1. He also played part in Argentina's second goal as he was fouled outside the box, which allowed Juan Roman Riquelme to score from a freekick, and increase Argentina's lead to 3-1. The final score of the game was 4-2 in Argentina's favor and guaranteed them a spot in the tournament's quarterfinals.
In the third game, against Paraguay the coach rested Messi having already qualified for the quarter-finals. He came off the bench in place of Esteban Cambiasso in the 64th minute, with 0-0. In the 79th minute he created a goal for Javier Mascherano.
In the quarterfinals, as Argentina faced Peru, Riquelme made a pass to Messi and the latter scored the second goal for Argentina, which advanced to the semifinals after a 4-0 win.
During the semi-final match against Mexico, Messi scored a fine lob over Oswaldo Sanchez to see Argentina through to the Final.[41] Argentina went on to lose to Brazil in the Final, and Messi won the Young Player of the Tournament award.
2008 Summer Olympics
Having originally been barred from playing for his country in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, Messi joined the Argentina squad to score the first goal in a 2-1 victory over Ivory Coast. He then scored the opening goal and assisted in the second to help his side to a 2-1 extra-time win against the Netherlands. He gave another strong performance in Argentina's match against rival Brazil, in which Argentina took a 3-0 victory, thus advancing to the final. In the gold medal match, Messi assisted Ángel Di María for the only goal in a 1-0 Argentine victory over Nigeria.
Trivia
His cousins Maximiliano Biancucchi and Emanuel Biancucchi play for Brazilian side Flamengo and German side 1860 Munich II respectively.
Messi is the cover athlete for Pro Evolution Soccer 2009.
Honours
Barcelona
La Liga:
Winner (2): 2004-05, 2005-06
Runner-up (1): 2006-07
Supercopa de España:
Winner (2): 2005–06, 2006–07
UEFA Champions League:
Winner (1): 2005-06
International
FIFA U-20 World Cup:
Winner (1): 2005
2008 Summer Olympics
Gold medal (1): 2008
Copa América:
Runner-up (1): 2007
Individual
FIFA U-20 World Cup Top Scorer: 2005
FIFA U-20 World Cup Most Valuable Player: 2005
Copa America Young Player of the Tournament: 2007
Player of the Year of Argentina: 2005, 2007
Premio Don Balón: 2006-07
Bravo Award: 2007
EFE Trophy (Best Ibero-American Player in La Liga): 2006-08
FIFPro World Young Player of the Year: 2006, 2007
FIFPro Special Young Player of the Year: 2007
FIFPro World XI: 2006–07, 2007-08
World Soccer Young Player of the Year: 2006, 2007, 2008
Custom Search
