Dear Pavel

One great player ever to don the colors for Bianconeri celebrates his 39th birthday today.
Ever since 2003, i was a fan of Juventus, knowing the fact that the club has a rich tradition and a great reputation both nationally and internationally. Among the players i grew up watching, Alessandro Dep Piero, David Trezguet,Pavel Nedved and Gianluig Buffon were my favorite players.

Pavel Nedved, arguably the best player to emerge from Czech Republic has won numerous accolades and is a recipient of the prestigious Ballon d'Or in 2003, thereby becoming only the second Czech Republic to win the prestigious accolade. He will be best remembered for his 8 long years he played at Juventus. Being brought to Turin in 2001 as a direct replacement for Zinedine Zidane, he proved to be one of the few players capable of assuming the "trequartista" role of his French predecessor.

Over his time at Turin, he was instrumental in leading Juventus into UCL final against Milan in 2003. He eventually missed the match as he was booked in the semi-finals. However, Nedved won the European Player of the Year. He's one of the very few players who stood by the team when they were relegated in 2005 following Juventus involvement in Calciopoli. He helped them return back to Serie-A and extended his stay till 2008-09 season dispelling rumours of moving to J-League. He stated that he will retire in February,2009 after playing almost 327 games for Bianconeri and scoring 65 goals. His retirement has caused a void on the left wing which Juventus had problem. I hope that Marcelo Estigarribia can fill the void.
Nedved returned to Turin as one of the directors of the club.

Dear Pavel,
Juventus may miss your brilliant runs, crosses and spectacular goals, but it will never see Pavel playing again. Happy Birthday once again.

love
One among your millions of fans.

Juventus -2011 Summer Signings

Juventus have spent a staggering 76.4 M € this summer. Here's the list of the player's who can make a significant change in the fortune's of Juventus.

Emanuele Giaccherini - 3 M
Mirko Vucinic - 15M
Arturo Vidal - 10.5M
Stephan Lichtsteiner - 10M
Alessandro Matri - 15.5M
Fabio Quagliarella - 10.5M
Marco Motta - 3.8M
Simone Pepe - 7.5M
Frederik Sorensen - 0.5M
Andrea Pirlo - free transfer
Michele Pazienza - free transfer
Reto Ziegler - free transfer

A record 12 transfers under Antonio Conte in his first season in charge! Forza Juventus!

FC Barcelona: Hypocrisy at It's Finest

"We create players, not buy them, unlike Real Madrid." – Joan Laporta, Barcelona President.

It has been three months since Real Madrid embarked upon their second "Galactico" era, and they have been facing ridicule and attacks from all around the globe ever since.

Yet while Florentino Perez has come under heavy criticism for spending "ridiculous" amounts of money in this transfer window, their great Spanish rivals FC Barcelona have somewhat slipped under the radar.

Indeed, everyone seems to have forgotten and "forgiven" Barcelona for spending profusely on a certain striker who goes by the name of Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

But the Director General of Real Madrid, Jorge Valdano, didn't:

"The church appears to be above religion. When they signed Ibrahimovic they didn't practice what they preached. It surprised me that they didn't apply the same rules as Cristiano Ronaldo to the Ibrahimovic transfer."—This is an excerpt from Jorge Valdano's interview which he gave two days ago to AS.

Just one day after Valdano's interview, the Catalan club purchased a 22-year-old defender—Dmytro Chyhrynskiy—from Shaktar Donetsk for €25 million, a significant sum for an established, world-class player, let alone a young, almost unheard of defender.

Had Real Madrid made the same signing, newspapers around the world would be condemning their transfer policies and Perez would no doubt come under scrutiny once again.

Barcelona, on the other hand, made the signing with no surrounding fanfare, and the move was barely reported in media outlets.

Fueled by the Chyhrynskiy transfer and Jorge Valdano's interview, I set out to research and found out that Barca isn't any better than Real Madrid when it comes to splashing the cash, yet people continue to turn a blind-eye on their spending.

Many would ask, how is that so?

Firstly, I would like to point at the transfer activities of both the clubs in the 2008-09 season:

Real Madrid purchased Rafael Van der Vaart and Ezequiel Garay in the summer and Lassana Diarra and Klaas Jan Huntelaar in the winter which took their spending to €68 million but the sales of Robinho, Soldado, and Julio Baptista got them €54.7 million. Their net expenditure, therefore, was €13.3 million.

Barcelona, on the other hand, spent €102 million in 2008-09 for Keita, Pique, Hleb, Caceres, Dani Alves, and Henrique, re-couping just €49.5 million of that through sales, leading to a net expenditure of €51.5 million.

Now let’s look at the much talked about transfer window of 2009-10 season.

Real Madrid purchased Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo, Xabi Alonso, Raul Albiol, Karim Benzema, Alvaro Arbeloa, and Esteban Granero for a whopping total of €249 million.

The recent (stupid) sales of Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder, brought Florentino Perez’s sales figures to the magical number of €90.5 million (which he aimed for before starting the project). The net expenditure for this season, then, is €158.5 million.

FC Barcelona quite surprisingly spent over €100 million for the second year running, €129.5 million to be exact for Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Dmytro Chyhrynskiy, Keirsson, and Maxwell. Through Samuel Eto’o’s sale, they recovered only €30 million, leading to a net expenditure of €99.5 million.

So in the two seasons combined Real Madrid's net expenditure is €171.8 million and FC Barcelona's net expenditure is €151 million, just a €20.8 million difference between the two.

If the difference had been larger, Barcelona had every right criticise Madrid’s transfer policy, but the fact is they are very similar.

So much for Laporta's, "We create players not buy them, unlike Real Madrid"statement.

That statement also implies Real Madrid do not have enough academy players in their team which, shockingly, is again not true.

Real Madrid now have seven academy players in their squad, namely Iker Casillas, Antonio Adan, Alvaro Arbeloa, Miguel Torres, Esteban Granero, Guti, and Raul.

Barcelona, on the other hand, have just six—Victor Valdes, Gerard Pique, Xavi Hernandez, Iniesta, Lionel Messi, and Bojan.

I have counted out Puyol and Busqets because they joined at the age of 17. However, if you are willing to agree that Cesc Fabregas is an academy product of Arsenal (he joined at the age of 15) then you can count Puyol and Busquets as products of Barca's academy.

I am not that good at math so I used a calculator and found out that Real Madrid now have one player more from their academy than Barcelona. So I guess you are wrong again Joan Laporta.

Real Madrid came into everyone's eyes because they spent truck-loads at once, their spending is indefensible but aren't FC Barcelona and Real Madrid at level planes?

So what should be said about FC Barcelona?

Why indeed, "The church appears to be above religion, they don't practice what they preach."

Club Record Transfers (BPL)

here's a compilation of the individual club record transfers. (2011-12 EPL)

Read as club- player- former club-price-year and month of transfer




1. Arsenal - Samir Nasri - Marseille -15.8 M £ (July 2008)


2. Aston Villa - Darren Bent - Sunderland- 18 M £ (rising to 24 M £ ) ( January 2011)


3. Blackburn Rovers - Andy Cole - Manchester United - 8 M £ (December 2001)


4. Bolton Wanderers - Johan Elmander - Toulouse - 8.2 M £ (June 2008)


5. Chelsea - Fernando Torres - Liverpool - 50 M £( January 2011)


6. Everton - Marouane Fellaini - Standard Liege - 15 M £ ( August 2008)


7. Fulham - Andy Johnson - Everton - 10.5 M £ (August 2008)


8. Liverpool - Andy Carroll - Newcastle - 35 M £ ( January 2011)


9. Manchester City - Sergio Aguero - Atletico Madrid - 38 M £ ( August 2011)


10. Manchester United - Dimitar Berbatov - Totenham Hotspurs - 30.75 M £ (September 2008)


11. Newcastle United - Michael Owen - Real Madrid - 16 M £ ( August 2005)


12. Norwich City - Dean Ashton - Crewe Alexandria - 3 M £ ( January 2005)


13. Queens Park Rangers - John Spencer - Chelsea - 2.35 M £ ( November 2006)


14. Stoke City - Kenwyne Jones - Sunderland - 8 M £ (August 2010)


15. Sunderland - Asamoah Gyan - Stade Rennais - 13 M £ ( August 2010)


16. Swansea City - Danny Graham - Watford - 3.5 M £ ( July 2011)


17. Tottenham Hotspurs - Luka Modric - Dinamo Zagreb - 16.5 M £ ( June 2008)


18. West Bromwich Albion - Borja Valero - RCD Mallorca - 4.7 M £ ( August 2008)


19. Wigan Athletic - Mauro Boselli - Estudiantes - 6.5 M £ ( August 2010)


20. Wolverhampton Wanderers - Steven Fletcher - Burnley - 6.5 M £ ( June 2010)

Is Messi benefitting from the use of the Steroids ?

Lionel Messi was administered the Human Growth Hormone (HGH) since the age of 9.

"The use of HGH in a normal bodied human being acts as an anabolic steroid, but for Lionel Messi, it merely enabled to him to overcome a condition known as growth hormone deficiency and reach his natural height. The spectacularly skilled Argentinean is no giant, standing just 5-foot-6, even in his cleats. Without treatment, though, doctors believe he would have reached only 4-7 as an adult."

Well and good but if we think about it the HGH is a powerful anabolic hormone more potent than even Testosterone (in fact it is a precursor of many androgens) and any athlete or bodybuilder can gain an unfair advantage from using it. HGH has the following known benefits in addition to increasing height in children and adolescents (the original reason why he was administered the treatment)

1) Increases anaerobic energy burst capacity (needed for acceleration/sharp burts of speed)
2) Increases lean muscle mass and fatigue recovery capacity
3) Increases calcium retention, and strengthens and increases the mineralization of bone (lessens the chance of injuries)

It is also known that you dont take steroids and stop using them one fine day abruptly. Messi has a deficiency which is a life long problem which means he has to be taking doses throughout his life. Normally HGH production level falls after the teenage years (growth phase) but it may be possible that Messi is being administered higher than normal levels of this powerful hormone under the guise of his therapy which gives him a clear advantage over his peers. Also, HGH is more difficult to detect than most other performance enhancing drugs, such as anabolic steroids which is why it is abused by many powerlifters and athletes even today.

In the case of Messi one can observe

1) He rarely gets seriously injured inspite of all the attention he gets from the defenders and the intense running he does on the pitch.
2) Has super human bursts of acceleration at times which defenders simply cannot handle.
Barca for all the magic of Xavi and Iniesta are not an extraordinary team if one removes Messi from the equation. Anyways this post is not to inflame the Barca fans (which will inevitably happen) but to create a discussion on whether Messi has knowingly/unknowingly benefitted from the use of the extemely potent HGH. What if other footballers were also administered the same hormone ? How would a Vidic or a Drogba or a Gerrard have played on steroids ?

References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Growth_hormone
http://www.hghbenefits.net/
http://www.lahealthandrejuvenation.com/hgh-benefits.html

Know Your Star's ( La Liga )

well, its time to look at some of the interesting prospects of Spanish football ;)


#1. Diego Alves 


Diego Alves, 6'1" goalkeeper from Brazil currently plays for Valencia FC. He was born on 24 June,1985 in Rio De Jenario. He started his career at Atletico  Mineiro. Later he moved to Almeira in 2007. It was his performances at Almeira which caught the attention of the spanish media. He was a key member that performed brilliantly in 2007-08 season where the club performed well against big clubs and got a positive result against Madrid. He helped his club finish at 8th postition in La Liga, which was their record finish in Spanish Top Flight. The next season his individual performances saved Almeira from relegation. He was in the goal when Barcelona hit 8 goals which ultimately cost the club manager his job. After Almeira were relegated, Valencia have announced they have signed Alves who was given squad number 1.


#2. Fernando Llorente


Fernando Llorente, nicknamed El Rey León, is a 6'5" Spanish Striker who currently plays for Athletic Bilbao. He was born on February 26,1985 in Pamplona. A regular international for Spain since 2008, he helped Spain win 2010 WC.  He started his career with Bilbao's youth team. For the first few seasons, he found himself down the pecking order at Bilbao. But injuries to key players made him the automatic first choice striker and he returned the favor for fans scoring 17 goals in 2007-08 season. Bilbao rewarded him with a new contract which included a buyout clause between 30-50 million euros. He rose to international fame when he scored 8 goals in 11 matches for Bilbao in 2009-10 Europa League. Bilbao were unfortunately eliminated by Anderlecht. Llorente was the second highest goal scorer In europa league that season. He finished the season with 23 goals in 50 matches. In 2010-11 season Llorente scored 18 league goals in 38 matches as Bilbao qualified for Europa League. He sure looks to be a good striker in making, given his knack for scoring incredible goals and his height advantage.


#3. Thiago Alcantara


Thiago Alcantara, 5'8" is an Italian born Spanish Player who plays for Barcelona FC as a midfielder. Thiago is the son of a former Brazilian WC winner Mazinho. He was born on 11 April,1991 in San Pietro, Vernotico, Italy. He started his career at the age of 5, when he was signed into the Flamengo youth team. In 2005, he returned to Spain and joined Barcelona. He was a prominent player in the reserve team, often scoring some spectacular goals. He scored his first goal for barcelona first team against Santander on February 20,2010. On 29 June,2011 he signed a contract extension that will keep him at Nou Camp till 2015 and a buyout clause of 90 million euros. In 2011-12 preseason he scored a 40 yard scorcher against Manchester United in a friendly game. He got his first Spanish cap against Italy on 10 august,2011. Looks to be a good player in the making but the recent purchase of Fabregas has clouded his future at barcelona. Maybe a move away from Nou Camp where he can get some first team football can help him mature as a player.


#4. Arda Turan


Arda Turan, 5'9" is a Turkish player who plays as a left winger for Atletico Madrid who have signed him from Galatasray for 12 million € + bonuses. He was born on 30 January,1987 in Istanbul. Arda was a product of Gala's youth academy and had a successful loan spell at manisaspor. He was later made an automatic first team player by then coach Eric Gerets and he was instrumental in Gala's progress to the UCL group stage. Following impressive displays, Newcastle made an offer of £ 9m which the chairman rejected. He was made the captain at the beginning of 2009-10 season and led Gala to 6 consecutive league wins. He ended the season with 11 goals and 25 assists in 47 games. However 2010-11 season began on a bad note. He was injured for most of the season and played only few games. He was sold to Atletico on 9 august,2011 making him the most expensive Turkish footballer. He earned his first cap for Turkey in 2006. However it was his performance in Euro 2008 where he helped Turkey reach semi-finals that attracted international acclaim. He is known for his exceptionally good dribbling skills and passing ability. Atletico must consider themselves lucky as they got a bargain for one of the best wingers in Europe.

#5. Jesús Navas
Navas, 5'7" is a Spanish International who currently plays for Sevilla FC. He was born on November 21,1985 in Los Palacios,Spain. Navas joined Sevilla's youth academy as a 15 year old and made his debut in a 1-0 loss to RCD Espanyol on 23 November,2003. The next season, Navas was permanently promoted to the first team scoring 2 goals in 22 appearances.    2005-06 season was a monumental one for Navas who played a key part as Sevilla defeated Middlesbrough to win UEFA Cup, in which he played in all 12 games. In August 2006, a deal was arranged for Navas transfer to Chelsea but it fell through as Navas rejected it citing possible home sickness. For the next 3 seasons, Navas was the club's highest assist provider and he won the league cup in 2008 and also helped the club to a third place finish in the following season. In 2009-10 season he was ever present, recording 50 appearances and also scored in the Spanish cup final against Atletico Madrid. however 2010-11 season was hampered with an injury and he could appear only for half of Sevilla's matches. He finished the season scoring a rare header against Barcelona in an entertaining 1-1 draw at home. He was a part of the victorious Spanish Team which won WC 2010. Navas looks to be a good player who may make it to the top of the assists table this season


#6. Nuri Kâzım Şahin


Şahin, 5'10.5" is a German born Turkish international who plays for Real Madrid FC as a midfielder. Nuri was born on 5 september, 1988 in Lüdenscheid, West Germany. He was a product of Borussia  Dortmund's youth academy. On 6 august 2005 at the age of 16 years and 
334 days Nuri became the youngest player to have played in Bundesliga, later becoming the youngest scorer on 25 november  against FC Nuremburg. He was loaned to Feyernoord in 2006-07 season where he was reunited with his former coach bert wan wijk. Nuri returned to Dortmund where he played an important role starting 33 out of 34 matches. He won Bundesliga title in 2010-11 season. After weeks of speculation he signed with Real Madrid for an estimated €10m. He has a powerful left foot and is known to be a good dead ball specialist. He was given squad number 5, previously worn by Zinedine Zidane. 


#7. Diego Perotti


Diego Perotti, 5'10.5" is an Argentine international who plays for Sevilla FC as a left winger who can play with both feet, he can also play as an attacking midfielder. Perotti was born on 26 July 1988 in Moreno, Argentina. He began his career at Club Deportivo Moron. Perotti joined Sevilla in summer of 2007 and was assigned to Sevilla's B side. He was instrumental in the reserve team which gained promotion second division. He made his debut for the first team on February 15,2009. He competed with Diego Capel, another academy graduate for regular berth. He began 2009-10 season on a high and was a regular started replacing Capel. He scored against CSKA Moskow in UCL round of 16, but the Russians progressed through a 2-1 away win. He won his first international cap replacing Messi, in a 1-2 loss to Spain on 9 November,2009. he looks to be a good player who can play on both flanks and also in the hole.  Sevilla's attacking fortunes depend on him this season.


#8. Alberto Tino Costa


Alberto Costa, 5'9.5" is an Argentine international who plays for Valencia FC as a central midfielder. He was born on 9 January, 1985 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Costa began his career in Argentina playing for local club La Terrazza. At the age of 17, he made the highly risky decision of leaving the country for the island of Guadeloupe to play for Racing Club de Basse-Terre in the Guadeloupe Division d’Honneur. Costa spent two years at the island club helping the club win the league and cup double. His great play caught the attention ofRacing Club de Paris, who offered the player a trial. Racing, who were playing in the third-tier National, signed the player and Costa played one season for the club appearing in 28 total matches scoring 3 goals. Costa later moved to Montpellier of ligue 2 in 2008. He helped the club in getting back to Ligue-1. On 1 July,2010 Costa was snapped up by Valencia for an estimated transfer fee € 6.5M.  He scored his first goal for Valencia on his debut in the UEFA Champion's League. The midfielder shot accurately from 30 yards out, and Valencia went on to win 0-4 at Bursaspor. He scored his first league goal for Valencia against Getafe on 14 November 2010. On 18 December he scored his second league goal from 35 yeards out when he converted a free-kick against Real Sociedad. He is a good dead ball specialist , penalty taking ability and pin point passing. 


#9. Juan Manuel Mata


Mata, 5'7" is a Spanish International who currently plays for Valencia as a winger/midfielder. Mata was born on 28 April,1988 in Burgos, Spain. He joined Madrid's youth academy at the age of 15 years.Switching to Real Madrid Castilla in 2006–07, Mata was given the number 34 shirt in the first team, while wearing #28 in Castilla. In spite of Castilla's final Segunda División relegation, he finished the season as the side's second best scorer at nine, behind striker Álvaro Negredo.

Mata had a contractual clause at Real Madrid during his last season at the club, and eventually agreed to sign for fellow La Liga sideValencia CF in March 2007, starting in 2007–08. Benefiting from constant injuries to Vicente and the ostracism to which then-manager Ronald Koeman condemned Miguel Ángel Angulo, Mata gradually carved a niche on Valencia's first eleven. On 20 March 2008, he scored twice in the Copa del Rey semifinal match against FC Barcelona to help Valencia reach the final against Getafe CF where, on 16 April, he netted the opener in a 3–1 win. During that first season, he was voted the team's Best young player by fans and players alike.


In the following two seasons, Mata was an everpresent offensive figure for Valencia, scoring 17 goals in 68 games combined, with the club achieving back-to-back third-league places. On 10 April 2011, he netted two in a 5–0 home win against Valencian neighbours Villarreal CF. On 9 May, England-based Spanish journalist Guillem Balagué reported interest from several Premier League clubs.


A clever player, who possesses great pace, intelligence, and goalscoring ability.After successfully graduating from Real Madrid's youth academy, he spent the majority of his senior career with Valencia.

#10. Lionel Messi


Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi, 5'6.5" is an Argentine International who currently plays for Barcelona as a striker/winger. He was born on 24 June, 1987 in Rosario, Argentina. He is widely regarded by many people as the best player of his generation. When he was 13 years old, he was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency. His family moved to barcelona after their chief promised to pay for the medical expenses. Messi made his official debut on 16 November 2003 aged 16 years and 145 days in a friendly against Porto. Ever since then he was the main stay of the Barcelona's squad.  

Making his debut in the 2004–05 season, he broke his team record for the youngest footballer to score a league goal. Major honors 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. Messi then had the most successful season of his playing career, the 2008–09 season, in which he scored 38 goals to play an integral part in a treble-winning campaign. This record-breaking season was then eclipsed in the following 2009–10 campaign, where Messi scored 47 goals in all competitions, equalling Ronaldo's record total for Barcelona. He surpassed this record in the 2010–11 season with 53 goals in all competitions.

Messi has won five La Liga titles, three Champions League titles, scoring in two of those finals, against Manchester United in both 2009and 2011. He was not on the pitch as Barcelona defeated Arsenal in 2006, but received a winners' medal from the tournament. After scoring 12 goals in the 2010–11 Champions League, Messi became only the third player (after Gerd Müller and Jean-Pierre Papin) to top-score in three successive European Champion Clubs' Cup campaigns. However, Messi is the first one to win the Champions League top scorer titles for three consecutive years after Champions League changed its format in 1992.

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 theFIFA 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. He has already scored one goal against Madrid in supercopa and must play a vital part as Barcelona prepare to defend their UCL crown.


#11. Giuseppe Rossi 

Rossi 5'8" is an American born Italian international who currently plays for Villareal as a striker. Rossi was born on February 1,1987 in Teaneck,New Jersey, USA. His father, Fernando Rossi, coached soccer and taught Italian and Spanish at Clifton High School. His mother, Cleonilde Rossi, was also a language teacher at Clifton. At age 12, he moved to Parma, Italy with his father to begin his youth career at Parma.

When offered a spot on the youth team of Parma, Rossi (then 12) and his father moved to Italy until Manchester United bought his contract when he was 17. He scored his only Premier League goal with a long range effort in a 3–1 win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

At the start of the 2006–07 season, Rossi moved to Newcastle United on loan until January 1, 2007, where he was expected to gain some first team experience. He made his home debut on September 24, 2006. Rossi scored his only Newcastle goal in his first start on October 25, 2006, against Portsmouth in a Carling Cup Third Round tie at St James' Park.For the second half of the season, he was again loaned out, this time to his former club, Parma. Scoring nine goals in 19 league appearances, he helped the club escape the threat of relegation.

On July 31, 2007, Manchester United confirmed Rossi had been sold to Spanish club Villarreal CF for an undisclosed fee, reportedly around €10 million. He scored his first goal for Villarreal on his debut against Valencia on August 26, 2007. In his second season with Villarreal, Rossi had scored 12 goals in 30 league appearances, along with three goals in eight Champions League appearances. In January, 2011, he signed a contract extension with Villarreal until 2016. The 2010–11 season proved to be his breakthrough season, as he scored 32 goals in 56 appearances in all competitions.

#12. Diego Roberto Godín Leal

Godin 6'1" is a Uruguayan international who plays for Atletico Madrid as a centre back. He was born on 16 February,1986 in Rosario,Uruguay. Godín started his professional career with C.A. Cerro, moving at 20 to top division powerhouse Club Nacional de Football. There, he quickly became captain due to his maturity and professionalism.

In August 2007, Godín signed a five-year deal with La Liga side Villarreal CF, scoring in just his second game, a 2–3 loss at CA Osasuna, on October 7, and participating with 24 matches in the club's best-league placement ever (second). He consolidated his starting position in the subsequent seasons, mostly partnering Argentine Gonzalo Rodríguez in the heart of the back four.

On 4 August 2010, after experiencing his best season at Villarreal - 36 games, three goals - Godín joined fellow first-divisioner Atlético Madrid on a five-year contract, after the two clubs agreed an initial fee believed to be around €8 million (or £6.6 million). He made his official debut for the Colchoneros on the 27th, playing the entire 2–0 win against F.C. Internazionale Milano for the season's UEFA Super Cup.

Aged just 19, Godín made his debut for Uruguay, in a friendly defeat against Mexico, in Guadalajara. He represented the nation at the2007 Copa América.Godín was selected for the squad at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, starting in the opener against France (0–0), in Cape Town Stadium in Cape Town, and playing in a further four matches for the eventual semifinalists.Godin finally claimed his first international title as Uruguay won 2011 Copa America .

#13. Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro, 6'1" is a Portuguese international who plays for Real Madrid FC as a striker/winger. Ronaldo was born on 5 February, 1985 in Funchal, Madeira,Portugual.

Ronaldo is the most expensive player in football history after moving from Manchester United to Real Madrid in a transfer deal worth £80 million (€94m, US$132m). In addition, 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, and values him at €1 billion as per his buyout clause.

Ronaldo began his career as a youth player for Andorinha, where he played for two years, then moved to Nacional. In 1997, he made a move to Portuguese giants Sporting Clube de Portugal. Ronaldo's precocious talent caught the attention of Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson and signed the 18-year-old for £12.24 million in 2003. The following season, Ronaldo won his first club honour, the FA Cup and played at Euro 2004 with Portugal. Ronaldo scored his first international goal in the opening game of the tournament against Greece, although Greece won 2–1. Portugal reached the final, which they again lost to Greece.

Ronaldo was the first player to win all four main PFA and FWA awards, doing so in 2007. In 2008, Ronaldo won the Champions League with United, was named best forward and player of the tournament and was the competition's top goalscorer as well as winning the European Golden Shoe, becoming the first winger to do so, and topping the Premier League Golden Boot award. He won three of the four main PFA and FWA trophies, only missing the PFA Young Player of the Year, and was named the FIFPro, World Soccer and Onze d'Or Footballer of the Year and the FIFA World Player of the Year, in addition to becoming Manchester United's first Ballon d'Or winner in 40 years. Ronaldo holds the distinction of being the first player to win the FIFA Puskás Award, an honour handed by FIFA to the best goal of the year. He scored that goal from 40 yards out against FC Porto in a UEFA Champions League quarter-final match, while playing for Manchester United. Three-time Ballon d'Or winner Johan Cruyff 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."

On 15 May 2011, Ronaldo became the highest goalscorer in a season in the history of Real Madrid with 51 goals, surpassing the club's previous high of 49 by Ferenc Puskás. He would later finish the season with a total of 53 goals, making him the first Real Madrid player to ever reach and surpass 50 goals in a season. Six days later, Ronaldo broke the record of most goals ever scored in a season in La Liga with 40, surpassing Telmo Zarra's mark established in 1951 and Hugo Sanchez's mark matched in 1990. Ronaldo also broke Zarra's record of most goals per minute, with a goal scored every 70.7 minutes. The newspaper Marca, the official deliverer of the Pichichi Trophy (the top La Liga goalscorer award), claimed that Ronaldo scored 41 goals. By doing so, he won the European Golden Shoe award once again, becoming the first player to win the trophy in two different championships.                                                                    


After having two great seasons with Madrid, Ronaldo would love to win UCL and La Liga for Madrid. He's clever and fast and also a very good dead ball specialist.

#14. Gerard Piqué i Bernabéu 

Pique, 6'3.5" is a Spanish International who currently plays for Barcelona as a central defender. He was born on 2 February,1987 in Barcelona, Catalonia. A product of Barça's cantera, he initially left the club for Manchester United in 2004, where he remained for four years, before returning to Barça under Josep Guardiola's leadership, helping the club become the first football club ever to complete The Sextuple. Piqué is one of four players to have won the UEFA Champions League two years in a row with different teams, the others being Marcel Desailly,Paulo Sousa and Samuel Eto'o.

Piqué has also represented the Spanish national team, making his debut on 11 February 2009. He played an integral role in the Spain team that won the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

#15. Xabi Alonso

Xabi Alonso, 6'0" is a Spanish international who plays for Real Madrid as a midfielder. Alonso was born on 25 September,1981 in Tolosa, Spain. Alonso began his career at Real Sociedad, the main team of his home region Gipuzkoa. After a brief loan period at SD Eibar he returned to Sociedad where then manager John Toshack appointed Alonso as his team captain and Alonso succeeded in the role, taking Real Sociedad to second place in the 2002–03 season. He moved to Liverpool in August 2004 for £10,5 million. He won the UEFA Champions League in his first season at the club, scoring the equalising goal in a final in which his team had been 3-0 down at half-time. The following season he won the FA Cup, and subsequently also the FA Community Shield. He moved to Real Madrid for the start of the 2009–10 season, in a deal worth around £30 million, thus making him the fourth most expensive midfielder. Internationally, Alonso has represented Spain in the Euro 2004, Euro 2008 tournaments and in the 2006 World Cup and 2010 World Cup. He made his international debut in April 2003 in a 4–0 victory against Ecuador. He won the Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup with Spain.

He holds the record for the longest-range goal ever scored in open play in the Premier League, being some 61 yards away from Steve Harper's line when he netted against Newcastle United in 2006. The season before, he scored from 78 yards with an effort against Luton Town at Kenilworth Road in the FA Cup.

Xabi Alonso is known for his vision in midfield, Free kick Technique and pin point passing. He has played 87 matches scoring 11 goals for Spain.

#16. Andrés Iniesta Luján

Iniesta, 5'7" is a Spanish international who plays for Barcelona as a midfielder/winger. Iniesta was born on 11 May,1984 in Fuentealbilla, Spain. Iniesta came through La Masia, the Barcelona youth academy, and impressed from an early age. He made his first-team debut in 2002, aged 18. He began playing regularly during the 2004–05 season, and has remained in the side ever since. He was an integral part of thesextuple-winning Barcelona side in 2009, the only time which a club has achieved six titles in a year.

Iniesta played for Spain at Under-16, Under-19 and Under-21 levels, before making his international debut in 2006. He was selected for the2006 FIFA World Cup, playing one game, as Spain went out in the second round. He helped Spain qualify for Euro 2008, and played an important role in the side as they went on to win the competition, playing every game and being selected in the UEFA Team of the Tournament. Iniesta was selected for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and was a key member of the victorious Spanish side; he scored the winning goal in the final against the Netherlands, also being named Man of the Match, and was selected in the tournament's All-Star Team. He was also the Man of the Match for two other World Cup games.

#17. Alexis Alejandro Sánchez Sánchez

Alexis Sanchez, 5'7" is a Chile international who currently plays for Barcelona as a forward. Sanchez was born on 19 December,1988 in Tocopilla, Chile. Sánchez began his career as a youth player for Cobreloa in 2003, aged 15, for then be promoted to the first adult team, two years later. His precocious talent caught the attention of Udinese, team of the Italian Serie A, and signed the 17-year-old for $3 million in May 2006, but was immediately loaned out to Colo-Colo, and then River Plate where he was able to mature in less physically demanding confines than the Italian first division.

He joined Udinese after becoming champion of the Argentina and Chilean leagues in June 2008. Sánchez made a steady progress in his first two seasons at Udinese, and in the 2010-11 season he established himself as one of the key player's that allowed Udinese to finish fourth in Serie A. On 27 February 2011, Sánchez scored four of seven goals as his team defeated Palermo 7-0, playing only the first 52 minutes of the game. This event meant he broke the record of goals scored by a Chilean player (in a single match) in theItalian Serie A, thus beating the records set by his historic countrymen Marcelo Salas and Ivan Zamorano.

Alexis made his international debut for his national team against Sweden in 2006 and scored his first goal against Switzerland in a 2–1 loss, being also the first goal of the Marcelo Bielsa era. During the period of Bielsa, he was the top-scorer of Chile with 14 goals surpassing to Humberto Suazo with 11 goals.

Fight Against Corruption

A great man once said "Freedom has its life in the hearts, the actions, the spirit of men."  INDIA, celebrates its 64th Independence Day today. Ever since ancient times, India has been known to be the cradle for all great religions and traditions. Home to the Indus valley civilization, India was known for historic trade routes and was identified for its Commercial and cultural wealth since ages. These factors made India vulnerable to attacks from foreigners, among whom the Mughals led by Babur seiged the throne at Delhi and thus began a golden period in Indian History-Rise of Mughal. Generations apart, it was  Babur's grandson, Akbar who was the most prominent ruler of the entire Mughal generation. After the fall of the Mughal Empire, India became vulnerable and thus the British seized this oppurtunity and came across to India as traders who later became rulers. Ever since the British Empire seized the Indian throne at Delhi, countless sacrifices and numerous mutinies occurred throughout the history. Finally, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi decided that Non-Violence is the better option than fighting through violence. His beliefs laid foundations of a peaceful revolution that saw a massive support in the Indian Public. After almost 150 years of British rule, India declared its INDEPENDENCE from the British on August 15, 1947 and Jawaharlal Nehru who along with Gandhi was a pioneer in the Non-Violence movement (satyagraha) was sworn in as the First PrimeMinister of India.
Well coming to the present scenario, India, ranked tenth in GDP (Gross Domestic Product) a worrying fact which indicates that we are not yet a fully developed country. Interestingly, India's economy comes from the rural sector i.e. agriculture. This is one of the concerns of the government, because we are in an age of Technology and we can't rely on age old techniques. India with 28 states and 7 union territories is the second most populated country in the world with an estimated population of 1.2 billion and only 74% of that astounding figure are literates which makes nearly 300 million people living in poverty or even worse conditions. I dont want to point the cause for this problem but would put up a solution to tackle this "poverty menace".
Recently , there was a report from wiki-leaks that nearly 1,70,000 croresrupees is been stashed in the Swiss banks. This is a real shame to the government as they have failed to curb corruption and interestingly many disgraced politicians make up that list. One such example i would point out would be the case of Mr.A.Raja, former central ministed for Telecommunications who was found guilty of being implicated in the 2G scam which shook the very foundations of the UPA government. A. Raja is noteworthy as the largest political corruption case in modern Indian history, amounting to a record $40 billion loss from underpricing to the Government of India.[citation needed] The alleged modus operandi was telecom bandwidth being grossly undervalued and offered to a chosen few with vested interests, on a dubious 'First-Come-First-Served' basis. It is alleged that it should have been put under a transparent auction system, purportedly advised by higher office.
The bandwidth-spectrum allocation of 2G bandwidth had later come under criticism for gross irregularities. An FIR filed by the CBI claims that the allocation was not done as per market prices, resulting in a scam worth 200 crore (US$44.6 million).[4] However it had been alleged by Arun Jaitley of Bhartiya Janata Party that the scam is worth around 176,000 crore (US$39.25 billion). The Comptroller and Auditor General holds Raja personally responsible for the sale of 2G spectrum at 2001 rates in 2008, resulting the previously mentioned loss of up to Rs. 1.76 lakh crores (US$40 billion) to the national exchequer. On February 2,2011 Raja was arrested by CBI and was found guilty for causing a loss of almost 30,000 crores to the government. This judgement was a landmark in the history of Indian Judicial System. I really look forward to see a lot of crooked politicians get proper justice for their wrong actions.
Well the solution to eradicate poverty is quite a general idea, create an autonomous body that can act on its own and can file charge sheets against any corrupt individual. This would ensure that Justice would be served quicker than expected. The Autonomous body would hence freeze the accounts and get the money back to India using which India's entire Debt's since its Independence can be wiped out. We need people to know about the facts which the government has hid from the public. If we can eliminate corruption starting from the very bottom level in the society then we can believe we have achieved true INDEPENDENCE.

I am against Corruption!!
Are you ?

Know Your Star's ( Bundesliga )

well here's a list of players who are expected to make Bundesliga much better this season ;)



#1. Bastian Schweinsteiger

Schweinsteiger has become one of the most well known footballers in Europe but he almost did not get there. ”Schweini” as he is know now was a successful youth skier and had to decide between a professional career in skiing or soccer. Fortunately he chose the latter. Schweinsteiger is a product of Bayern’s youth academy and very much a “local lad”, hailing from the same town as German soccer legend Paul Breitner. Schweinsteiger received his Bayern debut in 2002 by then Bayern coach Ottmar Hitzfeld at the ripe age of 18. He signed a professional contract the following month and gradually worked his way to becoming a regular for Bayern.

Bastian received his first call up to the National Team in 2004 in the overhauling of Germany’s soccer structure by Jurgen Klinsmann and Joachim Loew. Schweinsteiger represented the first wave of a new young crop of German talent. He was made part of Germany’s 2004 Euro team and has since featured regularly in every international tournament Germany participated in including impressive performances at the 2006 and 2010 World Cups.

Schweinsteiger’s strengths as a player lay in the versatility and completeness of his game. He was originally used as a wide player, and even fullback, before setting into a central role under Louis van Gaal. Schweinsteiger was effective in spurs out wide but never lived up this potential consistently. The move to the middle in 2009 changed Schweinsteiger as a player and helped him establish himself as one of Europe’s premier central midfielders. Now vice captain for Bayern and Germany, Schweinsteiger is one of Europe’s best footballers


#2.Christian Schulz

Schulz is a defender, who can play in central defense, the left back, and defensive midfield. Schulz has during his career been amongst Germany top defenders, and has 4 caps for his country so far.

Born in Bassum, 1st of April 1983, Schulz joined Werder Bremen´s youth team at the age of 12. He rose quickly through the youth ranks of the green and whites, and made it into Werder´s second team at the age of 18. A year later Schulz got his debut in the Bundesliga. Schulz played a total of 103 Bundesliga matches for Werder, before he switched to Hannover 96 in 2007. Schulz has been among the cornerstones of the 96´ers ever since he started playing for them.


#3. Claudio Pizarro
The Peruvian striker was born on the 3rd of October 1978, and started his playing career at Deportivo Pesquero in Peru. Bremen discovered the young talented striker in the beginning of 1999, and brought the talent to the Weserstadion in the summer of 1999 for 1.5 million euros. Pizzaro became quickly one of the cornerstones of the Bremen team, and scored 29 goals in 55 matches between 99 and 01.

Bayern Munich bought the Peruvian striker for 8.2 million euros in the summer of 2001. Pizzaro stayed at Munich until 2007. He was sold to Chelsea in 2007, but failed to make an impression at Stamford Bridge and he was loaned to his old club Bremen in 2008. The year afterwards Bremen decided to make the move permanent. Pizzaro scored his 134 goal in last Octobers match against Borussia Mönchengladbach, making him the most scoring foreign striker of all time in the Bundesliga.

#4. Didier Ya Konan

Born on May 22nd 1984, the Ivorian striker started his European career at the Norwegian club Rosenborg Trondheim in 2007. Never gaining traction at the most successful club of Norwegian football, he was sold for 900.000 euros to Hannover 96 in 2009. Ya Konan became the team’s top scorer in his first season at the club with 9 goals. He is currently the top scorer for Hannover 96, and has been vital to their success in the league.

Hannover’s first victory without Ya Konan came in match day 24, which shows how important he is for the team. Ya Konan is known to be clinical finisher, who often creates chances for his partners upfront. Furthermore, the little Ivorian is also a physical force to be reckoned with, and doesn’t shy away from one-on-ones with the best defenders in the league.

#5. Gerald Asamoah

Born in Ghana in 1978, Asamoah moved to Hannover with his family as a 12 year old. Asamoah joined immediately the local football team BV Werder Hannover, and four years after arriving in Germany he made his debut in the third tier of German football for Hannover 96. The talented youngster got of to a brilliant start at Hannover and was quickly rated amongst the most promising players in Germany.

After three years at Hannover, and 79 appearances in the third and second tier of German football, Asamoah moved to Schalke and the Bundesliga in 1999. Asamoah stayed at Schalke until 2010, and played a total of 279 Bundesliga matches for them, mostly on the wing. His total goal tally for his 11 seasons at Schalke is 44 goals. During his best years as a footballer Asamoah was part of the German national team. Between 2001 and 2006 Asamoah played 43 times for Germany, scoring 6 goals. After 11 years at Schalke, Asamoah made a move to the Reeperbahn club St. Pauli, where he currently is their star striker.

#6. Papiss Demba Cisse

Cisse was born in Dakar on June 3, 1985. After playing as a youth at French side AS Generation Foot, Cisse was signed by FC Metz in 2005. Cisse made almost 100 appearances for Metz, 10 of which were in Ligue 1 competition. Cisse also spent time on loan to Championnat National club AS Cherbourg and additional time in Ligue 2 with LB Chateauroux, displaying a consistent scoring touch in the lower levels of French competition.

Cisse’s career blossomed after arriving in Germany in December, 2009. Under the tutelage of SC Freiburg Coach Robin Dutt, Cisse helped the newly promoted team remain in 1. Bundesliga during the 2nd half of the 2009-2010 season before becoming a leading Bundesliga scorer during the 2010-2011, accumulating 15 goals by MatchDay 21 despite missing three games. The 6’0″ striker has been a huge factor in Freburg’s surprising 6th place standing in the Bundesliga table. Muscular and powerful, Cisse has also represented his native Senegal, earning 8 caps while scoring 7 goals for the Senegalese since 2010.

#7. Per Mertesacker

Born on 29. September 1984 in Hannover, Mertesacker joined the local football team Hannover 96 at the age of 11. The central defender made his Bundesliga debut in 2003, and evolved to be among the best players of the Hannover 96. His great performances for the reds drew the attention of then national coach Jürgen Klinsmann, and Mertesacker got his debut for the German national team in September 2004.

Mertesacker moved from Hannover 96 to Werder Bremen after the World Cup in 2006. The central defender his known for his excellent record in one-on-ones with strikers, his great ability to lead the defense and creating danger from set pieces due to his massive height.

#8. Philipp Lahm
“Mr. Consistent”. Since coming through the Bayern youth ranks, Lahm has established himself as one of the premier fullbacks in the game and distinguished himself by playing successfully on both sides of the pitch. Born and bread in Munich, Lahm was sent out on loan to Stuttgart to gain match experience. That is where Lahm grew into the player he would eventually become. Used as an early form of the modern attacking fullback, Lahm was switched form his natural right side to the left and told to cut inside when he went forward. His style of play and energy cultivated the “young and the wild” side that Magath’s Stuttgart came to be known as.

It did not take long for Lahm to establish himself as a first team regular for both Bayern and the German National Team after his success in Stuttgart and Lahm really made a name for himself at the 2006 World Cup as he scored the impressive opening goal to the tournament. Pursued by Barcelona, Lahm chose to extend his stay at Bayern and was eventually reward with the captaincy after Van Bommel’s departure. He also received the armband from Loew after Ballack’s long injury and captained Germany at the 2010 World Cup. Lahm is known to be one of the most reliable players on his teams, rarely missing a game and rarely putting a foot wrong in a match. His tackling and tracking back are second to none in the Bundesliga and he has the football IQ of a playmaker. He has a quiet and respectful personality which makes him a fan and coach favorite.

#9. Steve Cherundolo

Steve is the American-born captain of Hannover 96. Born in 1979 in Rockford, Illinois, Steve grew up in California where his youth club team won six California State Championships. Steve played two years at the University of Portland, earning Freshman of the Year honors in the West Coast Conference.

After two years at Portland, Steve sought his professional fortunes in Germany and joined Hannover 96 in 1999. The 5’6″ defender has spent his entire professional career with Hannover, appearing in over 325 matches for the Reds in 2. Bundesliga, 1. Bundesliga and DFB Pokal Cup play. His steadiness, professionalism and leadership abilities brought him Hannover’s captain’s armband, where despite offers from other clubs, he has remained. He has been nicknamed “The Mayor of Hannover” for his service to the club.

Steve has also proudly represented the U.S. Men’s National team since 1999, earning 65 caps and a starter’s positioon in the FIFA 2010 World Cup. His dangerous runs down the right flank in the USMNT draw with England at the South Africa World Cup caused England coach Fabio Capello to make an early substituion to England’s lineup to neutrallize Cherundolo. Steve was a member of the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup champion American side.

#10. Torsten Frings

Born 22nd November 1976 in Würselen close to Aachen, Frings joined the youth ranks of Alemania Aachen in 1990. Four years later Frings joined the senior squad of the team as a striker, and played for them for three years. In 1997 a 21 year old Frings made the huge step from Aachen into the Bundesliga when he chose to move to Bremen. Frings was reeducated as a player in Bremen and became a right-midfielder and right back. Frings stayed at Bremen until 2002, playing a total of 162 matches, scoring 15 goals. During his time in Bremen Frings got his debut for the national team in 2001, and was amongst the cornerstones of Germany’s success in the 2002 World Cup. After two seasons at Dortmund, and one season at Bayern Munich Frings returned to Werder Bremen. He gained quickly the captain’s armband, and is now one of their most important center midfielder. During his long career Torsten Frings played a total of 79 matches for Germany”s national team, scoring 10 goals.


#11. Vedad Ibisevic

Vedad Ibisevic is a 6’2″ striker who currently plays for 1899 Hoffenheim, having joined the club in the 2007-2008 season. Ibisevic was born in Bosnia in August 1984. His family left the former Yugoslavian republic in 2000, settling first in Switzerland before making their home among the thriving Bosnian community in St. Louis, Mo.

Ibisevic quickly established himself as a rising star in his new country, being cited by Soccer America as one of the top prospects in the U.S. in 2002 while at Roosevelt High School. Ibisevic earned NCAA Freshman of the Year honors at St. Louis University, scoring 16 goals, while also playing in the USL Premier Development League in the summer. Ibisevic signed on with famed French club Paris Saint-Germain in 2004, but only made four appearances for the Parisian club, spending most of his time on loan with Ligue 2 side Dijon FCO. He joined Alemannia Aachen for their 2006-2007 promoted season in the Bundesliga, but the team was relegated and he joined 1899 Hoffenheim in 2. Bundesliga for the 2007-2008 campaign.

Hoffenheim gained promotion, and both they and Ibisevic exploded onto the Bundesliga scene in 2008-2009. Ibisevic scored 18 goals in the first half of the season to lead teh Bundesliga before a winter break knee injury kept him from competing in the 2nd half of the season, and Hoffenheim slid down the table from their lofty Hinrunde heights. Ibisevic returned to health the next season, and has scored 37 goals in 90 league matches for Dietmar Hopp’s team. Ibisevic has also represented Bosnia-Herzegovinia 27 times on the international stage, scoring 7 goals.

#12. Mario Gomez

Mario Gomez is a 6' 2.5" striker who currently plays for Bayern Munich, having joined the club in 2009 for a Bundesliga record of 35 million euros. Gomez was born in Riedlingen, West Germany on 10 July, 1985. Gomez was brought up in Unlingen, an upper Swabian village and is of german-spanish descent (his father is a Spaniard and his mother is German). He has both nationalities but decided to play for the German national Team at the age of 17. His first appearance for the team was in February 2007 against Switzerland and he has been called up regularly since then.

Gomez started his career at Stuttgart and played frequently for the first team although he spent most of the 2004 season with the reserve squad. In the 2005-06 season, he finally joined the first team scoring 6 goals in 30 bundesliga appearances. In the 2006-07 season, Gomez established himself as one of the top scorers in the Bundesliga. During the 06-07 season, he had torn his ankle ligament and was out for several weeks. He returned to the squad and scored immediately. He ended the season winning Bundesliga title as well as being awarded the German Player of the Year. 2007-08 season began on a positive note for Gomez, but Stuttgart struggled to produce performances that won them the title previous season. Gomez finished the season with 19 goals, placed second to Bayern Munich's Luca Toni who scored 24 goals. On 26 may,2009 Gomez was transferred to Bayern Munich for a German record transfer and was given the squad number 33.

His first season with the Bavarian giants was erratic and he managed to score only 10 goals in 29 games. It was during the season 2010-11, Gomez established himself as a first team player, owing to the injury of Ivica Olic and loss of form of Miroslav Klose. During 2010-11, Gomez finished top of the charts with 28 goals in 32 games and finishing the season with 39 goals in 45 appearances. Gomez has scored 8 hattricks in his career till date, 3 of them with Stuttgart and 5 with Bayern.

Gomez is a regular started for the German National Team, netting 19 goals in 47 games.

#13. Manuel Neuer

Manuel Neuer is a 6' 4" goalkeeper who currently plays for Bayern Munich, having joined the club in June,2011 for 18 million euros from Schalke. Neuer was born in Gelsenkirchen, West Germany on 27 march,1986.

He started his career at local club, Schalke FC as a reserve keeper. He rose to first choice keeper when Frank Rost got injured during 2006-07 season. The 20 year old was given his first start against Bayern, and didn't disappoint anyone and managed to secure a 2-2 draw. following such performances, he was tipped to be the successor to Jens Lehman as the future German goal keeper, despite his young age. In the knock out stages of 2008-09 UCL, his individual brilliance coupled with couple of great saves and good defense led Schalke to quarter-finals where they lost to Barcelona. For his heroics, Neuer was shortlisted for UEFA Goalkeeper of the year which was a record, being the youngest goalkeeper and the only one from Bundesliga. He is only one of the three players who have played every minute in the Bundesliga.

His heroics continued to the national team and a strong performance with the German national team in 2010 WC at South Africa attracted interest from top European Clubs. Bayern emerged victorious and signed him on a 5 year contact that extends till 2016.

#14. Thomas Müller

Müller is a 6' 1" midfielder/forward who plays for Bayern Munich and the German National Team, having been a product of Bayern Munich's youth academy. Müller was born on 13 september,1989 in Weilheim, West Germany.

Müller was drafted into the first team during 2009-10 season when Louis Van Gaal was made the coach. He played every match in the league and cup and was instrumental in Bayern's progress to UCL final where they lost to Inter Milan. He ended his first season with 19 goals in 52 matches.

He performed exceptionally well for the German Team during WC 2010 where they finished with 3 place and Müller scored 5 goals in 6 appearances which won him the Young Player of the tournament and also won the Golden Boot with 5 goals and 3 assists.

After returning from WC, he was the subject of intense transfer rumors, linking him with the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and Real Madrid. He decided to stay in Munich and signed a contract extension that will keep him in Munich till July 2015. His second season saw a dip in form, altercations with team mate, Arjen Robben and scoring only 19 goals in 52 games which saw Bayern finishing third in the league due to which Louis Van Gaal was sacked and was replaced by Jupp Heynckes.

#15. Mats Hummels

Mats Hummels, 6' 3" defender born on 16 december,1988 in Bergisch Gladbach plays as a center back/half for Borussia Dortmund and German national team. Hummels was a product of Bayern's youth academy. He played his first and final game for bayern in a 5-2 home routing of FSV Mainz.

Borussia signed him initially on loan for 2009-10 season, where he was partnered with Nevan Subotic. He missed the final months due to an injury. The 2010-11 brought increased success for Hummels. He is the regular first-choice center-back, again paired with Subotic. The duo have helped Dortmund to the best defensive record in the Bundesliga and to the unofficial title of Autumn Champions. Hummels's performances this season have displayed great quality in tackling, positioning, and composure. He has attracted praise from pundits and coaches alike, and he is considered one of the best defenders in the Bundesliga.

#16. Mario Götze

Mario Götze, 5' 9.5" is an attacking midfielder for Borussia Dortmund and Germany national team. Götze was born on 3 June,1992 in Memmingen, Germany.

Götze is considered to be an up-and-coming, potential world class player due to his speed, technical skill and creativity.German Football Association's technical director Matthias Sammer called him "one of the best talents that we've ever had". 

Götze is a product of Dortmund's youth academy, first entering the club as an 8-year-old. He made his Bundesliga debut on 21 November 2009 in a 0–0 draw against FSV Mainz, coming on as a substitute for Jakub Błaszczykowski in the 88th minute. During the 2010–11 Bundesliga season, Borussia Dortmund trainer Jürgen Klopp promoted Mario Götze to the first team, since Shinji Kagawa had suffered an injury and was unable to play for the rest of the season. Götze took his chance and was an important player in Dortmund's championship winning team. He scored six goals and made 15 assists, making him the best 18-year old player in the Bundesliga since the accurate goal and assist data have been recorded (since 2004–05).

After ascending through several youth teams, Mario Götze was called up for his first senior match for Germany against Sweden, on 17 November 2010. He made his debut that day, coming on in the 78th minute in a goalless draw, substituting for his Dortmund teammateKevin Großkreutz and becoming the youngest German international since Uwe Seeler. Götze and André Schürrle who came on simultaneously are the first two Germany players to be born in reunified Germany. He made his second appearance for the national team in a friendly match against Italy on 9 February 2011.

Götze's first goal for Germany was against Brazil on 10 August 2011; at 19 years and 68 days he became the joint-youngest goalscorer for the German national team in the post-war era along with Klaus Stürmer who scored on debut against France on 16 October 1954.

Auf Wiedersehen Michael Ballack

In an ideal world, every football hero would ride off into the sunset. At the end of a sparkling career, the typical protagonist would have a farewell match in which to bow out of the spotlight to the roars of a capacity crowd. At least, that is the way things ought to be.

In reality, not every hero is fortunate enough to make such an exit. True to the narrative of his career, Michael Ballack will not have a goodbye game for Germany: following a spat with Joachim Low, he was omitted from the coach’s roster to face Brazil on Wednesday in a match that was billed to be his 99th - and final - appearance for the DFB team.
Nine years ago, a younger Ballack missed out on another with Brazil, the 2002 World Cup final. Having carried his unfavoured country through the tournament, the Bayer Leverkusen man was suspended for the match that mattered most. It was a bitter ending to a season in which his club finished runners-up in the Champions League, Bundesliga and DFB Pokal.



Career Statistics:
Age : 34
Position : Midfielder
Caps : 98
Int'l Goals : 42

Ballack's fateful spell in 2002 would prove to be a microcosm of his career. He was far and away the best player on a Germany team that lacked individual quality for most of the 2000’s, and played for Bayern Munich during a time when the Bundesliga was in steep decline. With Chelsea, he came a penalty kick away from winning the Champions League; with Germany, a little more luck would have seen him win a major title. By the time German football recovered from its slump, his best years were long passed.
The 2010 World Cup was meant to be Ballack’s last hurrah, his opportunity to finally lead a worthy Germany team to glory. It was his chance to ride off into the sunset a champion at long last. But as it did so many times in his career, fate intervened in the form of an injury that excluded him from his farewell tournament.


If he was in decline in the spring of 2010, Ballack was in freefall after the summer. Persistent injuries and the effects of age relegated him to a bench role at Leverkusen: especially given Germany’s success without him, it was quite clear that the 34-year old’s international career was over.
Low offered the former skipper the chance to ride off into a different backdrop against Brazil, but the player’s frustration and pride saw him decline the invitation, insisting that he retire on his own terms. The sad reality is that his sunset has passed; the veteran now rides off into the darkness.

As unfortunate as it is, perhaps Ballack’s is the most fitting conclusion to an international career of near misses. He almost won the 2008 European Championship, but fell just short. He almost recorded his 100th cap, but did not quite. He almost appeared in a World Cup final, but fate intervened both in 2002 and 2006. And now, he hangs up his international boots under unfortunate circumstances. A cruel ending to a cruel career.

PAUL SCHOLES, 17 years and still a LEGEND

Not many know that the foundations of United were laid upon their youth academy. The class of 92' Scholes,Giggs,Beckham,Butt,Neville brothers graduated from the academy, Messi was still in his diapers, Federer didn't even know how to play a backhand, Schumacher was still struggling to win his first race in Formula-1.

Paul Scholes, a man who was one of the best midfielders ever to don the shirt for Manchester United. being bought up in salford, he was excellent in cricket as well as football, but later opted to join the youth team of United.

He was a part of the famous team that won the youth cup, where he played alongside future team mates giggs,beckham,phil neville and gary neville. It was in 1993 that Scholes turned a professional. Oppurtunities at United were hard to come until Mark Hughes made a move to Chelsea in 95-96 season. During this season, Scholes got many oppurtunities and was mainly played as an attacking midfielder. After Roy Keane suffered an injury in 1997, Scholesy was deployed as a central midfielder, a role he excelled to greatest degree.

Scholes was an important member inThe Treble winning squad,98-99. He scored an important goal against Internazionale in UCL quaterfinals. He was bought in as a substitute in the second half during the semi final match against Juventus in which he was booked and eventually missed the final which United defeated Bayern Munich 2-1.

During the summer of 2001, when United signed Veron from Lazio, Scholes was reassigned as a withdrawn striker, just behind Ruud Van Nistelroy. Finally his thirst for UCL glory ended when United defeated Chelsea 6-5 on penalities at Luzhinski Stadium,Mosckow.  On April 22,2009 he went on to make his 600 appearance for United against Portsmouth.

He finallt bought down curtains over a glittering career in which he won 10 BPL titles, 3 FA cups and 2 Champions League titles. On August 5,2011 a testimonial was arranged at Old Trafford against New York Cosmos, in which he captained United for one last time. He opened the scoring with a 25 yard scorcher and finally called it a day. A TRUE RED DEVIL.!!

Dreams, fantasies and Realities

6 years ago, everyone i knew were studying just for the heck of getting good marks, and many of them including myself did achieve it.

fast forward -> 4 years ago, the same people changed a lot ( atleast their mindsets did :P ) and they were carefree about the marks what they were after some time ago. The big thing i noticed in them was they were after ranks. i.e. getting ranks in exams like IIT-JEE,AIEEE etc, which was nothing more than a dream to me :D

these guys ( and gals :P) joined engineering and now, they struggle over aggregates and percentages. ;) and also jobs too.

Presently, getting a government job with a good pay remains a fantasy to many.