Football News: The First Hattrick in English Premiership 2010/2011 from Didier Drogba

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Didier Drogba Chelsea Football Player Photos

Date of Birth: 11 March 1978
Height: 180 cm
Shirt number: 11
Position: Forward
Current club: Chelsea (ENG)
International Caps: 71
International Goals: 42
First international: Côte d'Ivoire - South Africa (8 September 2002)

Didier Drogba Chelsea Football Player Pictures

Didier Drogba Chelsea Football Player Wallpapers

Injuries blighted his maiden campaign at the Stade He struck seven goals in 30 matches in 1999/2000 but despite failing to build on that showing the following season, he was lured back to Brittany by Gunigamp coach Guy Lacombe. It was there that he was spotted by Ligue 2 outfit Le Mans, and two years after joining the Stade Leon-Bollee side he signed his first professional contract. The youngster got started in the game at Vannes but then left Brittany to move to the suburbs of Paris, where he spent four years playing for Levallois. ‘Tito’, as he is known by those close to him, was barely five years old when he left Côte d'Ivoire for the French town of Brest to join up with his uncle and tutor Abraham Tebily, a professional footballer.

Didier Drogba Chelsea Football Player Images

Now, having taken the long route to the top, he is the icon and undisputed leader of the national team, his frustration at lacking the international trophies to go with his standing only matched by the extent to which he is scapegoated by the Ivorian press whenever the Elephants fall short. When the emblematic Côte d'Ivoire captain ended the 2001/02 season having hit three goals in just 11 Ligue 1 outings for Guingamp, nothing suggested he would go on to become a global superstar, two-time CAF African Player of the Year (2006 and 2009), Chelsea’s most prolific ever marksman in Europe and a respected UNICEF ambassador. The Elephants’ all-time leading scorer was not being facetious when he entitled his autobiography C’était pas gagné (It wasn’t easy).

Iker Casillas Spain Goalkeeper is The Winner of The Adidas Golden Glove Award in FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010

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Iker Casillas Spain Goalkeeper Pictures

Iker Casillas Biography:
Date of Birth: 20 May 1981
Height: 184 cm
Shirt number: 1
Position: Goalkeeper
Current club: Real Madrid (ESP)
International Caps: 111
International Goals: 0
First international: Sweden - Spain (3 June 2000)

Iker Casillas Spain Goalkeeper Photos

Since then Casillas's No1 status for club and country has never been in doubt, with the player travelling to two editions of the FIFA World Cup (Korea/Japan 2002 and Germany 2006) and three UEFA EUROs (Belgium and the Netherlands 2000, Portugal 2004 and Austria and Switzerland Having lost his starting place to the more experienced Cesar Sanchez after a rare period of uncertainty, Casillas replaced the injured Cesar late on in the final in Glasgow and proceeded to thwart the Bayer Leverkusen onslaught with a series of phenomenal saves. A winner with Spain at the 1999 edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Nigeria, in 2000 Casillas was also voted Europe's best player under the age of 21, though it would be Madrid's 2001/02 Champions League success (the club's ninth win in the competition) that would cement his status among the world's finest shot-stoppers. And it was current national-team coach Vicente del Bosque who gave the custodian his top-flight debut in 1998/99, with Casillas making the Los Blancos' No1 jersey his own the following campaign and contributing to victory in the 1999/00 UEFA Champions League.
Born on 20 May 1981, Casillas earned his first call-up for the Madrid first-team at the age of just 17, having come all the way up through the youth ranks at the Spanish giants. The latest in a long line of Spanish goalkeeping greats is La Roja captain Iker Casillas, whose agility, speed, reflexes and cool head in one-on-one situations have earned him the nickname ‘San Iker' (Saint Iker) at club side Real Madrid.

Iker Casillas Spain Goalkeeper on Action

Under pressure after La Roja opened up with a shock defeat to Switzerland, Casillas has since answered his critics with a string of superb displays that have proved crucial to his Spain’s progress to a Final they have long dreamed about. The Spain Goalkeeper has conceded just two goals at South Africa 2010.

Thomas Mueller Germany Football Player is The Winner of The Adidas Golden Boot Award and Best Young Player Award in FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010

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Thomas Mueller is The Winner Of The Adidas Golden Shoe Award

Muller finished on five goals at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, but claimed the top scorer accolade thanks to no fewer than three assists, leaving him ahead of Spain marksman David Villa and Dutch hitman Wesley Sneijder, both of whom finished on five goals but with only one assist apiece. Thomas Muller’s opening goal for Germany against Uruguay in the third-place play-off proved enough to earn the Bayern Munich starlet the adidas Golden Boot.

Thomas Mueller is The Winner Of The Hyundai Best Young Player Award

"I think I Quite apart from pace, vision and exceptional technical ability for a relatively big man, he has demonstrated remarkable versatility, with more than creditable displays both in attacking midfield and wide on the flanks. Muller repaid the coach’s faith with a total of 13 league goals, although the 20-year-old offers considerably more than effective finishing skill. The fast-starting 1.86m forward instantly became a first-team regular. Searching for the right man to operate in the hole behind the central striker in a 4-5-1 formation, the Dutch supremo settled on the promising young reserve.
However, Muller’s stellar ascent began for real with Louis van Gaal’s arrival at Bayern. A fringe member of the senior squad in Munich from summer 2008, he received a first taste of Bundesliga and UEFA Champions League action under Jurgen Klinsmann. The German FA (DFB) quickly spotted his goal-scoring ability and highly effective playing style, handing him frequent appearances at junior international level. A native of Upper Bavaria, Muller joined Bayern at the age of just ten. Thomas Muller has exploded onto the top flight scene in his first full season as a pro, and surely has the potential to be a major discovery for Germany at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
There can be no avoiding comparisons with the legendary Gerd, from journalists and fans alike, but this eloquent and intelligent young man seems to have his feet firmly planted on the ground. There are easier surnames for a German footballer to possess than Muller, especially if you happen to be a Bayern Munich striker.

Thomas Mueller Germany Football Player Pictures

Thomas Mueller Biography:
Date of Birth: 13 September 1989
Height: 186 cm
Shirt number: 13
Position: Midfielder
Current club: Bayern Munich (GER)
International Caps: 8
International Goals: 5
First international: Germany - Argentina (3 March 2010)

Diego Forlan is The Winner of The Adidas Golden Ball Award FIFA World Cup 2010

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Diego Forlan Uruguay Football Player on Celebration

Diego Forlan Uruguay Football Player Pictures

Diego Forlan Uruguay Football Player Photos

Diego Forlan Uruguay Football Player on Action

Diego Forlan Uruguay Football Player Wallpapers

The 31-year-old Forlan took the starring role in his country’s heroic performance at the FIFA World Cup finals. The Uruguay striker topped the prestigious poll of accredited media representatives ahead of the Netherlands’ Wesley Sneijder and Spain hitman David Villa. Diego Forlan has been named Best Player at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Diego Forlan Biography:
Date of Birth: 19 May 1979
Height: 181 cm
Shirt number: 10
Position: Forward
Current club: Atletico Madrid (ESP)
International Caps: 69
International Goals: 29
First international: Saudi Arabia - Uruguay (27 March 2002)

Football News Ten Nominees for The GOLDEN BALL Award at The World Cup South Africa 2010

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Lionel Messi Argentia Football Player

I can’t help but feel he is in the top ten just because of who he is. 23 years old – 48 caps I thought he was getting better as the tournament went on and that we would see something special from the little genius before it ended.As it turned out he was totally ineffective against Germany who totally nullified his threat.

David Villa Spanis Football Player

Is there a better striker in the world. He has shown what a top player and big game player he is. The bad news was that Villa was the only one of their players who looked like scoring and the good news was that he looks like scoring every time he gets the ball.He starred at Euro 2008 before missing the final through injury and he has starred again here. 28 years old – 64 caps I said earlier in the tournament that there was good news and bad news for Spain.

Wessley Sneijder Netherlands Football Player

If he can lead Netherlands to victory on Sunday then his driving performances and his goals will probably deserve it.He has won the Serie A title and the Champions League this season so if he adds the World Cup I suppose you could say he hasn’t done too badly. 26 years old – 66 caps Surely the only man who can stop Xavi winning this award.

Xavi Hernandez Spain Football Player

He simply doesn’t give the ball away and he is behind everything his team do at club level with Barcelona and at international level with Spain.Barcelona are arguably the best club side in the world and Spain are arguably the best national side in the world and this little man makes them both tick. He has completed more passes than anyone else in the tournament and only needs to complete about thirty in the final to break the record at any World Cup. 30 years old – 90 caps This player is a master of the art.

Mezut Ozil Germany Football Player

He had a great tournament though and will definitely come again. Against the fantastic Spanish midfield he couldn’t get the ball and was taught a lesson. He came to the tournament as someone that not many people knew about and then by the time he played England and Argentina he was being talked about as a superstar who the opposition had to make special plans for.Neither team did and he had two excellent games. 21 years old – 16 caps The youngest and least experienced by far of all the nominees.

Bastian Schweinsteiger Germany Football Player

He has totally re-invented himself as a player and has become one of the finest midfielders in the world.He was at the heart of two performances that were as good as anything we have seen at the tournament when his Germany side absolutely blew England and Argentina away. 25 years old – 80 caps It was a shame that his side had to lose because his performances deserved a place in the final.

Diego Forlan Uruguay Football Player

31 years old – 68 caps This man has a twin brother who played for Manchester United a few years back and that brother is nowhere near as good as him, that’s for sure.Forlan has shown in Spain that he is a top class striker, twice winning the golden boot, and he has proved it in South Africa on the biggest stage of all.

Asamoah Gyan Ghana Football Player

It should also be remembered that he stepped up to take the first one in the penalty shoot-out and despatched it confidently.He scored three goals and played a wonderful role as a lone front player for Ghana who were by far the best African team at the tournament. 24 years old – 44 caps Gyan will unfortunately be remembered most for missing the last kick of the game penalty that would have taken his country to the semi-finals.

Arjen Robben Netherlands Football Player

Knowing that he is going to do it and stopping him from doing so is quite another matter.Scored the goal that took them to the final with a rare header. He plays out on the right and all opponents know he is going to cut back in on to his left foot. He is totally left footed but that hardly matters when his left foot is as good as it is.He missed the first game but has come back into the side and given Netherlands another dimension. 26 years old – 51 caps Another player who almost missed the tournament after he injured a thigh in a warm-up game.

Andres Iniesta Spain Football Player

He is getting better with each game and I fully expect him to star in the final tomorrow. He was a doubt for the tournament with an injury and he hasn’t looked fully fit. He has only been brilliant whereas his normal level is ‘absolutely’ brilliant. 26 years old – 48 caps Although Iniesta is a technically gifted player who has a telepathic understanding with club and country colleague Xavi, I’m not sure he has quite produced his best at this tournament.