Barcelona's Giant Lionel Messi beats Real Madrid's Play Boy Cristiano Ronaldo & team-mate Xavi to win third straight Ballon d'Or

Barcelona's Giant Lionel Messi beats Real Madrid's Play Boy Cristiano Ronaldo & team-mate Xavi to win third straight Ballon d'Or

The Argentine has emulated Michel Platini, the only other player to win the award three times in a row, and joins Johan Cruyff and Marco van Basten on a trio of successes

Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona and Argentina has beaten Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo and team-mate Xavi to claim the Fifa Ballon d'Or award for the best player of 2011.

It is the third straight Ballon d'Or success for Messi, who has now won the first two awards since the prestigious prize was merged with Fifa's World Player of the Year gong in 2010.

Messi was the clear favourite to claim the title after helping Barca to a third straight Liga title in 2011 and a second Champions League success in three years. The Argentine reveived 47.88 per cent of the overall vote, with Cristiano claiming 21.6% and Xavi in third with 9.23%.

Simply The Best

Messi beat team-mates Andres Iniesta and Xavi to the award in 2010, even though his colleagues had shone for Spain in La Roja's World Cup success in South Africa.

This time around there appeared little doubt he would claim the prize, as the undoubted star of a Barca side dominating domestically and on the continent in 2010-11.

Barca claimed La Liga and the Champions League last term, losing out to Real Madrid only in the final of the Copa del Rey in April, when Ronaldo rose to head the winner and secure his side's first silverware since 2007-08.

Messi enjoyed the last laugh over his Portuguese rival in 2011, however, claiming five trophies overall with Barca as the Catalans picked up the Spanish Supercopa, the Uefa Super Cup and the World Club Cup later in the year.

The Argentine forward, still only 24, has now drawn level with three-time winners Michel Platini [the only other player to win three in a row], Johan Cruyff and Marco van Basten.

And Cruyff, who has watched Messi emerge at Barca over the last few years, believes the Argentine can go on to claim the award six or seven times.


Messi also came out on top in the Goal.com 50 countdown of the world's best players in 2010-11, earlier on this year.

The Argentine scored 59 goals in 70 appearances for club and country in 2011, including 55 in 57 for Barcelona. He also racked up an incredible 35 assists in the calendar year.

Real Madrid Manager Mourinho on Plan of massive Ronaldo, Kaka blow-up

Real Madrid Manager Mourinho on Plan of massive Ronaldo, Kaka blow-up

Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho is to pair  star Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka.

The jet-setting of both players during the winter break has infuriated Mourinho, says Sport, who spoke openly about how disappointed he was to see some of his players being snapped at glamour spots around the world over Christmas and the New Year.

The relationship with Kaka is now said to be at its lowest ebb, with the player actively seeking another club where he can enjoy greater playing chances. Nuri Sahin's emergence and Mesut Ozil's form has made Kaka surplus to requirements as far as Mourinho is concerned.

Meanwhile, the coach's relationship with Ronaldo is also becoming increasingly frosty. Mou failed to defend Ronaldo after the El Clasico jeers from Real fans and even their agent, Jorge Mendes, appears powerless to prevent a major blow-up.

It's claimed all hell will break loose between the Portuguese should Real fail to finish with a major trophy this season.

Man City are ready to make a surprising €70M bid for Neymar

Man City are ready to make a Surprising  €70M bid for Neymar

Submitted by www.yusufmurtala.blogspot.com on Thu, 01/05/2012 - 11:21

Manchester City are making a move for Santos star Neymar.

Express says the announcement from Santos that they're shutting down their women's and indoor soccer teams due to Neymar's wages has alerted interested clubs.

The development has seen suitors see a new opportunity to prise away the Brazilian dazzler.

And City have been the first to act, with claims they're willing to offer a staggering €70 MILLION to bring Neymar to England this month.

What awaits Arsenal ace Robin van Persie if he takes Anzhi option

Barely a fortnight away from kickoff, don't discount the shadow of Anzhi Makhachkala hanging over the English transfer market next month.
With the backpages are buzzing over Robin van Persie's future and where next for the Arsenal captain, Anzhi remain lurking in the background - the one club in the world capable of going toe-to-toe with Sheikh Mansour's billions at Manchester City.
If Arsene Wenger fails to convince his captain about Arsenal as a title contender, then City is the obvious destination for most pundits, with rivals Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United trailing in the wake of their spending power.
But as Samuel Eto'o has shown, if it is to get down to money, then Anzhi will have something to say should RVP become available.
Russian football expert Kate Partridge, the sports anchor at Russia's RT, says Anzhi owner Suleyman Kerimov is determined to for the club to match uber-rich brothers City and PSG - and this plan includes moving for high-profile players like Van Persie.
"The fact is that the dynamic Kerimov bought his little-known native club Anzhi in January, signed Roberto Carlos, and added his mission statement for the Russian Premier League side was Champions League football," Partridge told tribalfootball.com.
"The acquisition of Samuel Eto’o from Inter Milan was headline news globally, but followed a plethora of signings including Anderlecht winger Mbark Boussoufa, Brazilians Jucilei from Corinthians and Diego Tardelli from Atletico Mineiro, plus Chelsea’s Yuri Zhirkov.
"Continuous rumours have linked the visionary Kerimov with the world’s best players and managers – particularly experienced stars whose contracts are under negotiation, such as van Persie – and have lifted Anzhi onto the same plateau as uber-rich Manchester City and Paris St. Germain as the teams to join in terms of ambition, and phenomenal wealth."
Should Van Persie take the gamble and choose Anzhi as his next port-of-call, he will not want for anything courtesy of Kerimov, whose net worth was set at $7.8 billion by Forbes magazine this year.
"Anzhi’s impressive, five-star training facilities are based in the village of Kratovo, 40 kilometres south-east of Moscow, which formerly belonged to the now bankrupt club of Saturn Ramenskoe," continued Partridge.
"As this was once a top-flight club, there are houses suitable for footballers and their families nearby, while it is easier to live locally due to the heavy traffic in the Russian capital (to beat the jams, Eto'o arrived at his first training session escorted by a police car). In an interview with sports.ru, Eto'o said he has a support staff of 30 people, including lawyers, press officers and in-house staff.
"Meanwhile, Anzhi’s players fly the 1,600 kilometres from Moscow to Makhachkala to play their home games. However, Kerimov has announced that a brand new training facility as well as a stadium for 50,000 spectators will be built in Makhachkala."
The big question mark for a player of Van Persie's status, particularly with Holland's European Championship campaign ahead, is whether the gamble is worth it in January. A new country and a new culture must be handled by Van Persie and his young family, while the league is now in shutdown mode and won't resume until March due to the heavy local winter, with temperatures dropping to -35°C.
Partridge has kept a close eye on how Anzhi's local players have handled the influx of foreign names arriving on bank-busting contracts and says the spirit within the squad remains unaffected.
Eto'o has quickly settled into life in the Russian championship and mixes well with his Anzhi teammates, as does the other foreigners like former PSV Eindhoven winger Balazs Dszudzsak and the ex-Anderlecht star Boussoufa.
"The general consensus seems to have been summed up by Samuel Eto’o on the BBC on November 12th: 'I'm very comfortable and happy in my life. I'm trying to help my team mates improve, I'm scoring goals - I couldn't ask God for more'," said Partridge.
"When asked, Dutch-born Moroccan Boussoufa was also happy with the new project to propel Anzhi into a European powerhouse. (Diego) Tardelli, who only joined Anzhi on March 8th, is back on the transfer market and valued at 11 million Euros, but there does not appear to have been a problem with him fitting in."

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Mon Jan 2nd
Wolverhampton Wanderers	vs    Chelsea	-	15:00
Aston Villa       vs	Swansea City	-	15:00
Blackburn Rovers vs	Stoke City	-	15:00
Queens Park Rangers vs	Norwich City	-	15:00
Fulham vs	Arsenal	-	17:30
Tue Jan 3rd
Tottenham Hotspur vs	West Bromwich Albion	-	19:45
Wigan Athletic vs	Sunderland	-	19:45
Manchester City vs	Liverpool	-	20:00
Wed Jan 4th
Everton vs	Bolton Wanderers	-	20:00
Newcastle United vs	Manchester United	-	20:00

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