Thursday, 28 April 2011

Fernando Torres

Fernando Torres was born March 20th 1984 in Madrid, Spain. He has an older brother Israel and an older sister Mari Paz by parents Flori and Jose. Torres first came into contact with a football at the age of two. At just 5 years old El Nino joined his first football team Parque 84.At the age of seven Torres played for his second team Mario’s Holland for three years in an indoor league. At the age of ten Torres was playing 11-a-side football for Rayo 13 which is where he got his big break.
Fernando Torres’ passion for Atletico Madrid started early. His grandfather was an Atletico’s supporter, although he wasn’t very passionate about soccer in general. That led to Torres’ to immediately become an Atletico’s lover as well. Torres excels due to his agility, strength and precision in his strikes, helped by his strong build and 6”1’ height. After his deal with Atletico Madrid, other major English teams like Chelsea and Manchester United speculated his acquisition but “The Kid” preferred to stick with the tradition of Liverpool, where he currently plays as a striker, wearing shirt number 9.
As well as scoring three goals at the last World Cup, Torres helped Spain to victory at Euro 2008 when scoring the winner in the final against Germany.
He joined Liverpool FC in 2007, after the club paid their record transfer fee to sign him. El Nino was an instant hit in England as his brand of speedy forward play and physical stature perfectly suited the Premiership. By the end of his debut season, 2007/08, he had scored 33 goals in all competitions - 24 in the Premier League.
On 4 May 2008, Torres scoring in eight consecutive games with his 57th minute winner against Manchester City. His 24th goal of the Premier League season came against Tottenham and set a new record as most prolific foreign goal scorer in a debut season, beating Ruud van Nistelrooy’s 23 goals.

Saturday, 23 April 2011

Michael Ballack


Michael Ballack (born September 26, 1976) is a German football player.


He is currently playing for Bundisliga club Bayer Leverkusen. He is among the top goal scorers in the history of his international team. Ballack has worn the number 13 shirt for every team he has played for except for Kaiserslautern.
Michael Ballack is a very smart midfielder too important for every coach he's ever had. Excellent touch on the ball. Criticized for being 'lazy' on the pitch, Michael proved that his seemingly slow gait in midfield was merely a case of the lion waiting to pounce. Owner of powerful shots from outside the area. Instrumental to both club and country, manager Rudi Völler will be counting on the attacking midfielder to set the tone for his side at FIFA World Cup in 2006.

The 2001/2002 season saw Ballack at his best as he took his side to the Champions League finals before losing out to Real Madrid. With Leverkusen finishing second in the Bundesliga, Ballack's 17 club goals earned him the German Player of the Year title. His first season with FC Bayern München was a success as the squad took the league title and Ballack once again won German Player of the Year.
At 27 Ballack is already a veteran on the international stage. Finishing second behind England in the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifications, Ballack's three goals over two legs against the Ukraine were the saving grace for Germany. Ballack continued his quality play in Japan / South Korea, scoring three goals including the crucial semi-final strike against South Korea. His leadership and four goals carried Germany through the 2004 Eurocup qualifications, with his side finishing first in their group.

Saturday, 9 April 2011

Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo born on the 5th February 1985 on the small island of Madeira,Portuguese.

Cristiano has an elder brother, Hugo and two elder sisters, Elma and Liliana Cátia. His name was inspired by the former US-president, Ronald Reagan.
At just 12 years old Cristiano was moved 600 miles to Lisbon, situated on the mainland of Portugal,  in oder to play for Sporting Lisbon's youth team. It was difficult for Cristiano, as he was away from his family and many of his team mates used to make fun of his Madeiran accent. His goal scoring abilities made him a superstar.
he was 17 when he played for Sporting Lisbon in the Portuguese Super League.
Cristiano became Manchester United first-ever Portuguese player.He requested for the number 28 as his jersey number instead of 7 because he didn't feel that he could live up to the pressure of previous players such as George Best and David Beckham.
The year 2006 to 2008 proved to be a rather controversial year for the star. In the 2006 World Cup, Cristiano faced accusations regarding his sportsmanship. In a quarter-final match against England, he was heavily criticized for sending of his club team mate, Wayne Rooney who was playing for the England team. It wasn't too long until fans started accepting Cristiano again. In 2007, he won PFA Young Player of the Year, PFA Player of the Year, PFA Fans' Player of the Year, Portuguese Footballer of the Year, FWA Footballer of the Year, Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year and Manchester United's Players' Player of the Year. The year 2008 also saw him taking back the PFA Player Of The Year Award for the second time running. That same year, Cristiano also had to deal with controversies regarding his club transfer to Spanish giants, Real Madrid. He eventually chose to stay with Manchester United and stressed to the public that he had no intentions of leaving the club.
Cristiano now lives with his cousin, Nuno and his brother in law Ze.
During his free time, Cristiano enjoys cooking. He mentioned in an interview that he usually cooks before he leaves for his soccer practice. Because he is constantly training, Cristiano rarely has time to watch TV. If he does get the time to watch, he says he loves watching one of the local Portuguese game show which is mostly about trivia questions. Cristiano is an avid learner and he takes interest in learning new things everyday. Among Cristiano's biggest pet peeves are smoking, people who don't make an effort and dishonesty.

When the tsunami hit South East Asia, Cristiano flew to Indonesia to help those in need. He auctioned off a few stuff to help raise funds for charity. He hopes to get involved in more charity projects in the future because he believes his star status will help him reach out to others for help.
       
         On January 2014, Ronaldo won the 2013 FiFa Ballon d'Or, beating Lionel Messi , who had won the prize previous four years. He also become the third player to win the award after playing at least a full calender at Real Madrid.
   


       Full name : Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro
       Birth date : 5th Febrary 1985
       Age : 29 years old
       Birth place : Funchal, Madeira - Portugal 
       Height : 186cm
       Weight : 84kg
       Field position : Left/right wringer, striker/forward
       First Professional Club : Sporting Clube de Portugal
       Career debut : Oct 7th 2002 against Moreirense
       Current Club : Real Madrid since 2009
       International Team : Portugal
       International Debut : August 20th 2003, against Kazakhstan 
       Nicknames : Cr7, Cr9, Ronny