Name: Cristiano Ronaldo
Born: , Portugal
Nationality: Portugal
Position: Right midfielder, Left midfielder
DOB: 5/2/1985
Current Club: Manchester United
Cristiano Ronaldo became Manchester United's newest young hero when he signed from Sporting Lisbon in August 2003 and was immediately given David Beckham's number 7 shirt.
The Portuguese teenager is expected to become one of the world's best players in years to come, but will be trying to offer support to Ruud van Nistelrooy as soon as possible.
Hailed by Sir Alex Ferguson as the most outstanding young talent in Europe, Cristiano Ronaldo is skilful, he has got an awful lot of talent and he can open people up. So much is his adoration for the Portuguese that the Man Utd manager had no hesitation in handing this tricky and unpredictable winger the No7 shirt vacated by David Beckham in summer 2003.
Among his main characteristics there are: terrific physique, balance, pace, two feet and he`s technically terrific. Also he`s got a fantastic personality and great strength of mind.
Born in Madeira in August 1985, Ronaldo joined Sporting Clube de Portugal from CD Nacional in 1997. Made his debut for the Lisbon club against Internazionale FC in the 2002/03 UEFA Champions League third qualifying round, and went on make 25 appearances - starting eleven of them - in his only season at Sporting. Joined United on 13 August 2003 - the same day as Kleberson - for €17.5m, a world-record fee for a teenager.
Ronaldo is in the mold of a past Manchester United winger, by the name of George Best. Ronaldo is as comfortable on the left as he is on the right side of the pitch.
Cristiano Ronaldo produced a performance to remember at the Millennium Stadium as Manchester United claimed a record 11th FA Cup win in 2004.
Ronaldo tortured the Millwall defence with a mesmerising display of wing wizardry that the First Division side simply could not handle.
Played an important role in Portugal's run to the finals of Euro 2004. Ended the tournament with 2 goals and 2 assists.
Name: Michael Ballack
Nicknames: Kapitano, Balle, Michi
Nicknames: Kapitano, Balle, Michi
Nationality: German
Date and Place of Birth: 26 September 1976 in Görlitz, Saxony, (the former East) Germany
Playing Position: Midfield
Current Club: Chelsea (English Premiership)
Michael Ballack’s footballing career started early when his parents sent him to train with BSG Motor Karl-Marx-Stadt at the tender age of seven. Ballack quickly imposed himself in the team developing his skills and remarkable ability to use both feet with equal confidence which earned him a move onto FC Karl-Marx-Stadt, later to become Chemnitz in 1990.
Michael Ballack received his first professional contract with the club in 1995 and he was highly praised for his commanding performances in the central midfield role. Ballack made his debut on 4th August 1995 and in March 1996 his exceptional talent was recognised as he was called up to the Under 21 Germany National team. Ballack became a first team regular at Chimnitz before being snapped up by FC Kaiserslauten in 1997.Ballack made his Bundesliga debut with Kaiserslauten in the 1997-1998 season by March 1998 he had negotiated himself into the starting line up making a total of 16 appearances for the team. Ballack’s efforts were duly rewarded Kaiserslauten became the first ever newly promoted club to win the Bundesliga title. At only 22 years of age Michael Ballack moved to Bayer Leverkusen in July 1999.
It was Bayern Leverkusen where Ballack made his sensational break through as a top flight player to be reckoned with. Ballack was given a free reign by the management of Leverkusen to control the game from the midfield and he quickly received recognition as one of Europe’s best midfielders.
Ballack left Leverkusen after the 2001-2002 season and signed for Bayern Munich for a fee of €12.9 where he settled into a more defensive midfield role. Ballack won the Bundesliga title in his first season with the club and became an institution at Bayern who was widely regarded as an automatic starter for the team. Ballack did come under heavy criticism at times for his failure to perform in important Champions League matches coupled by attacks that he was motivated by money. Before his high profile move to Chelsea was complete Ballack was jeered by the loyal Bayern supporters who believed that his move to Chelsea was being dictated by his greed.
Ballack signed for London based Chelsea in May 2006 and he made his Premiership debut against Blackburn Rovers FC on 27th August 2006. Many fans and football pundits have criticised Ballack on his weak performances for Chelsea thus far as he has failed to impress. It seems Ballack is finding it difficult to adjust to the style of the Premiership and he has yet to prove his worth to his new team with rumours surfacing that he is only interested in the money.
Ballack has received international success in his career and is the current Captain of the German National side who played in the recent Fifa World Cup. Ballack played a part in the World Cup despite suffering from injury problems and he ended the campaign with no goals, one assist and was named man of the match in Germany’s games against both Ecuador and Argentina. Ballack was included in the FIFA World Cup All Star team.
Michael Ballack’s footballing career started early when his parents sent him to train with BSG Motor Karl-Marx-Stadt at the tender age of seven. Ballack quickly imposed himself in the team developing his skills and remarkable ability to use both feet with equal confidence which earned him a move onto FC Karl-Marx-Stadt, later to become Chemnitz in 1990.
Michael Ballack received his first professional contract with the club in 1995 and he was highly praised for his commanding performances in the central midfield role. Ballack made his debut on 4th August 1995 and in March 1996 his exceptional talent was recognised as he was called up to the Under 21 Germany National team. Ballack became a first team regular at Chimnitz before being snapped up by FC Kaiserslauten in 1997.Ballack made his Bundesliga debut with Kaiserslauten in the 1997-1998 season by March 1998 he had negotiated himself into the starting line up making a total of 16 appearances for the team. Ballack’s efforts were duly rewarded Kaiserslauten became the first ever newly promoted club to win the Bundesliga title. At only 22 years of age Michael Ballack moved to Bayer Leverkusen in July 1999.
It was Bayern Leverkusen where Ballack made his sensational break through as a top flight player to be reckoned with. Ballack was given a free reign by the management of Leverkusen to control the game from the midfield and he quickly received recognition as one of Europe’s best midfielders.
Ballack left Leverkusen after the 2001-2002 season and signed for Bayern Munich for a fee of €12.9 where he settled into a more defensive midfield role. Ballack won the Bundesliga title in his first season with the club and became an institution at Bayern who was widely regarded as an automatic starter for the team. Ballack did come under heavy criticism at times for his failure to perform in important Champions League matches coupled by attacks that he was motivated by money. Before his high profile move to Chelsea was complete Ballack was jeered by the loyal Bayern supporters who believed that his move to Chelsea was being dictated by his greed.
Ballack signed for London based Chelsea in May 2006 and he made his Premiership debut against Blackburn Rovers FC on 27th August 2006. Many fans and football pundits have criticised Ballack on his weak performances for Chelsea thus far as he has failed to impress. It seems Ballack is finding it difficult to adjust to the style of the Premiership and he has yet to prove his worth to his new team with rumours surfacing that he is only interested in the money.
Ballack has received international success in his career and is the current Captain of the German National side who played in the recent Fifa World Cup. Ballack played a part in the World Cup despite suffering from injury problems and he ended the campaign with no goals, one assist and was named man of the match in Germany’s games against both Ecuador and Argentina. Ballack was included in the FIFA World Cup All Star team.
No comments:
Post a Comment