Karim Benzema Life's Journey

Karim Benzema (Arabic: كريم بنزيمة‎; born 20 December 1987) is a French international footballer of Algerian descent who currently plays for Real Madrid in the Spanish La Liga. He primarily plays as a striker whose influence can extend out to the wings and is known for his technical ability, powerful style of play, and vast goal-scoring ability. He is described as an "immensely-talented striker" who is "strong and powerful" and "a potent finisher from inside the box".
Benzema was born in the city of Lyon beginning his football career with local club Bron Terraillon. In 1996, he joined the biggest club in the city Olympique Lyonnais and, subsequently, came through the club's youth academy. Benzema made his professional debut in the 2004–05 season and appeared sporadically in his first three seasons as Lyon won three titles in that span. In the 2007–08 season, Benzema became a starter and had a breakthrough year scoring over 30 goals as Lyon won its seventh straight league title. For his performances, he was named the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) Ligue 1 Player of the Year and named to the organization's Team of the Year. Benzema was also the league's top scorer and given the Bravo Award by Italian magazine Guerin Sportivo. After another season at Lyon, in July 2009, Benzema signed a six-year contract with Spanish outfit Real Madrid. After struggling to establish himself in his debut season with the club, in the 2010–11 season, Benzema reached prominence scoring 26 goals en-route to helping Real Madrid win the Copa del Rey. In December 2011, he was named the French Player of the Year for his performances during the calendar year.
Benzema is a former French youth international and has represented his nation from under-17 level onwards. Prior to playing for the senior team, he played on the under-17 team that won the 2004 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship. Benzema made his senior international debut in March 2007 in a friendly match against Austria. On his debut, he scored his first international goal in a 1–0 win. Benzema has represented France at one major international tournament; UEFA Euro 2008. He made two appearances in the competition against Romania and Italy in the group stage.

Personal life

Benzema was born in Lyon, to parents of Algerian descent. Benzema grew up with nine siblings and his father Hafid in the nearby town of Bron. His grandfather, Da Lakehal Benzema, lived in the village of Tighzert, located in the northern town of Beni Djellil in Algeria before migrating to Lyon, where he eventually settled in the 1950s.
On 18 April 2010, it was first reported by French television service M6 that four members of the French national team were being investigated for their roles as clients in a prostitute ring that was being operated inside of a Paris nightclub with some of the women possibly being underage. The report also stated that two of the players were already questioned as witnesses by judge André Dando and a group of magistrates. The report described the two players as being one who “is a major player in a big foreign club” and that the other “plays in the championship of France Ligue 1". Later that day, the players were discovered to be Franck Ribéry and Sidney Govou. The other two players were later discovered to be Benzema and Hatem Ben Arfa. Benzema was alleged to have had a sexual rendezvous with a prostitute when she was 16 years of age, an act Benzema has denied through his lawyer. On 29 April, the country's Secretary of State for Sports Rama Yade, after refusing to publicly comment on the case in its infancy, declared that any player placed under investigation should not represent the France national team. The following day, a judicial source confirmed that Benzema would not be questioned, if at all, before the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. On 20 July, Benzema was questioned by Paris police and, following questioning, was indicted by judge Dando on the charge of "solicitation of a minor prostitute".

Club career

LyonEarly career

Benzema is a graduate of the Lyon academy. Before joining Lyon, he trained at local Rhône-Alpes club Bron Terraillon SC in the commune Bron, a suburb of Lyon. His performances with Bron's youth team caught the attention of Lyon scouts and he joined the academy in 1996 at the age of 9. Benzema quickly ascended up the ranks scoring 38 goals in one season with Lyon's under-16 team and scoring 12 goals in 14 matches with the under-18 team before earning a call up to the senior squad by manager Paul Le Guen.
He made his league debut for Lyon on 15 January 2005 during the 2004–05 season in a match against FC Metz, coming on as a substitute in the 77th minute. Lyon won the match 2–0 with Benzema providing the assist on the second goal scored by Bryan Bergougnoux. Five days later, he signed his first professional contract, agreeing to a three-year deal. Over the next two seasons, his play was limited making a total of 34 appearances and scoring six goals, including his first ever against AC Ajaccio in a 3–1 win, as well as his first UEFA Champions League goal against Norwegian club Rosenborg BK in a 2–1 victory.

Breakthrough season

For the 2007–08 season, with the likes of Florent Malouda, John Carew, and Sylvain Wiltord all departing from the club, Benzema, despite being 19 at the time, switched to the number 10 shirt and was inserted into the lead striker role. After forming a special relationship with new manager Alain Perrin, he responded with 31 goals in 51 games. He topped the league with 20 goals, scored four goals in the UEFA Champions League, one in the Coupe de la Ligue, and totaled six goals in six Coupe de France matches, helping Lyon win their first ever double. Some of his more dazzling performances that season included a hat-trick against Metz on 15 September, an equalizing goal in the 90th minute from a free kick against Derby du Rhône rivals Saint-Étienne, and a goal against RC Lens that was nominated for goal of the season by fans.
In the Champions League, Benzema scored an important double against Rangers at Ibrox Stadium on the last match day of the group stage. The 3–0 victory assured Lyon progression to the knockout rounds. In the knockout rounds, Lyon faced Manchester United and Benzema continued to score, this time it was from outside the penalty box in the first leg match which ended in a 1–1 draw and United eventually won the tie 1–2 on aggregate. Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson and players praised Benzema for his performance. Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas later accused Ferguson of tapping-up Benzema.

"It's a compliment to be compared to Zinedine Zidane, but we are different players."

Karim Benzema, after being compared to Zinedine Zidane.

On 13 March 2008, Benzema extended his contract with Lyon until 2013 with a one year extension option. After signing his new contract, Benzema became one of the highest paid footballers in France. For his efforts that season, he was named the Ligue 1 Player of the Year, selected to the Team of the Year, and awarded the Trophée du Meilleur Buteur for being the league's top scorer. He was also shortlisted by the French magazine France Football for the 2008 Ballon d'Or award, won by Cristiano Ronaldo.

2008–09 season

Benzema got off to a good start for the 2008–09 season scoring twice in Lyon's opening league match against Toulouse. The following three weeks, he scored goals against Rhône-Alpes rivals Grenoble and Saint-Étienne and scored a goal against OGC Nice, converting a penalty in the dying seconds. Lyon won all three matches. As a result of his early goals, Olympique Lyonnais president Jean-Michel Aulas quelled the many transfer rumors surrounding Benzema by placing a €100 million price tag on the striker. He was also nominated alongside Franck Ribéry to be featured on the French cover of the video game FIFA 09.

He scored his seventh goal of the league on 29 October, scoring in the 2–0 win over Sochaux. Benzema scored again the following weekend in a 2–0 win over Le Mans. He was among the top scorers in the UEFA Champions League group stage, scoring five goals, a double against Steaua Bucureşti, two goals in two matches against Fiorentina, and a goal against the eventual group winners Bayern Munich on the final match day.
Following the winter break, Benzema endured a rough patch going scoreless the first three games before recording his 11th goal of the season against Nice in a 3–1 victory. Two weeks later, he scored his 12th goal against Nancy in a 2–0 victory. The next nine matches, both Benzema and Lyon's form dwindled losing four matches, drawing three, and winning only two with Benzema scoring only two goals in that stretch, both of them against Le Mans in a 3–1 victory. The bad form resulted in Lyon losing their grip on first place position and eventually falling out of the title race, thus ending their streak of seven consecutive Ligue 1 titles. Benzema was a part of four of those title runs.
Despite losing the title, Benzema got back on track scoring his 15th and 16th goals of the season on 17 May in a 3–1 away victory over rivals Marseille, the first goal being a penalty. He scored his 17th goal the following weekend against Caen in a 3–1 victory moving him into third place among Ligue 1 top scorers.

Real Madrid

2009–10 season

On 1 July 2009, it was announced that Lyon had reached an agreement with Spanish club Real Madrid for the transfer of Benzema. The transfer fee was priced at €35 million with the fee rising to as much as €41 million based on incentives. On 9 July, Benzema successfully passed his medical and signed his contract, a six-year deal, later that afternoon. He was presented officially as a Real Madrid player later that night at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, similarly to the previous signings of Kaká and Cristiano Ronaldo. Benzema made his Real Madrid debut on 20 July in the club's opening pre-season friendly against Irish club Shamrock Rovers in Dublin, appearing as a halftime substitute. He scored the lone goal in the club's 1–0 win, scoring in the 87th minute. On 24 August, Benzema netted two goals in Real Madrid's 4–0 victory over Norwegian club Rosenborg in an annual friendly tournament organized for the Santiago Bernabeu Trophy. The goals brought his total tally in the preseason with Real Madrid to five, making him the joint top scorer alongside fellow striker Raúl.
He made his La Liga debut on 29 August against Deportivo La Coruña. Benzema scored his first official goal for Madrid on 20 September 2009 at home against newly promoted side Xerez in a 5–0 victory. Six days later, he scored his first brace for the club in a 3–0 home victory over Tenerife. On 3 November, Benzema made his first European goal for Madrid in a 1–1 draw against Milan at the San Siro. He scored his second brace on 30 January 2010 for the club against Deportivo.

2010–11 season

The new season started slowly for Benzema, he was mainly used as a substitute early on the season, but due to a serious injury to Gonzalo Higuaín and the team's lack of senior strikers, Benzema was given more starts by José Mourinho. On 4 December, Benzema netted a hat-trick in a 4–0 victory against Auxerre, the first goal being Real Madrid's 300th goal in the Champions League era. His second hat-trick came on 22 December 2010 in a 8–0 thrashing in a Copa del Rey match against Levante.
On 22 February 2011, Benzema opened the scoring in the 1–1 draw against his former club Lyon at Stade de Gerland. The France striker scored just after 40 seconds coming on as a substitute on the 62nd minute in which he dodged three players and placed the ball between the legs of Lyon goalkeeper Hugo Lloris. The goal was the 100th goal of his professional senior career, and also the first goal for Real Madrid at Stade de Gerland in 6 years. Nevertheless he did not celebrate the goal out of respect for his former club. He then continued his fine form by scoring twice in the 7–0 win against Malaga, he added another brace (two goals) against Racing Santander in a 1–3 away win on 6 March 2011. Six days later, he scored another two against Hércules helping Madrid to a 2–0 victory, making it his third consecutive brace for his club. He also scored the opener in the 1–2 away win at Vicente Calderón Stadium in the Madrid derby match against Atlético Madrid on 19 March 2011, which took his tally to 10 goals in his last 8 games. After missing several weeks through injury, he returned to score a goal on 23 April in a 3–6 win against Valencia. In Real Madrid's last game of 2010–11 season against Almería, he scored two goals in an 8–1 home win which summarize his season with 26 goals in 31 starts and 17 substitute appearances.

2011–12 season

Benzema was impressive in the preseason matches, scoring 8 goals in 7 games. He opened his tally in the new league season with a brace against Getafe on September 10. He then scored against Dutch club Ajax in Real Madrid's 3–0 Champions League win. On 10 December 2011, Benzema scored the fastest ever El Clásico goal, just 22 seconds into the game but eventually the opposing team, FC Barcelona, scored 3 goals (Alexis, Xavi and Cesc), ending with Real Madrid losing the game, with Karim's goal as the only one for the team.
On March 24,2012, Benzema surpassed Zinedine Zidane as the top French scorer in La Liga history with 2 goals against Real Socidead.

International career

In 2004, he was a part of the under-17 squad that won the 2004 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship, the nation's first ever. In the tournament, which was played on home soil, Benzema scored one goal against Northern Ireland in the group stage. Benzema later played with the under-18 team at the 2005 edition of the UEFA-CAF Meridian Cup. He played in all four matches scoring a tournament-leading five goals helping France win the tournament. During the 2005–06 season, he played with the under-19 team making eight appearances scoring four goals before earning a call up to the under-21 squad who were attempting to qualify for the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship. Benzema made only five appearances with the team scoring no goals. His final appearances with the squad was in their shocking two-legged loss to Israel in the qualifying playoffs to determine the participants in the UEFA under-21 tournament.
Before representing France, Benzema was eligible for Algeria and was called up to the squad by the Fédération Algérienne de Football in December 2006, but turned them down stating, "Algeria is my parents’ country and it is in my heart, but football-wise I will only play for the French national team." On 28 March 2007, Benzema won his first cap for France against Austria, scoring the only goal in a 1–0 win for France. His next two goals came in one game against the Faroe Islands, who France subsequently beat 6–0.
He was selected to represent France at Euro 2008. France's Euro 2008 campaign opened with a 0–0 draw against Romania and after a frustrating performance, he was substituted in the second half and played no part in their following game, a 1–4 defeat to the Netherlands. In the last group game, France lost 2–0 to Italy and Benzema featured in the starting lineup. He has now adopted the number 10 for France. He scored his first goal since adopting the jersey from the penalty spot against Turkey on 5 June 2009 in a friendly where they won 1–0. Benzema was left out of France's preliminary 30-man squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup announced by manager Raymond Domenech on 11 May 2010. Domenech cited his poor season with Real Madrid, rather than his alleged involvement in a sex scandal.
Following the World Cup, Benzema returned to the national team under new manager Laurent Blanc. After going almost a year without representing France, he made his return to the team in its 2–1 defeat to Norway. Alongside Yoann Gourcuff, Benzema led the team in scoring in qualifying for UEFA Euro 2012 netting three. He scored his three goals in wins over Bosnia and Herzegovina, Luxembourg, and Albania. On 17 November 2010, Benzema scored the opening goal in France's 2–1 win over England at Wembley Stadium. In the team's next match against Brazil in February 2011, he scored the only goal for France in a 1–0 win.

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Steven Gerrard Life's Lourney

Steven George Gerrard MBE ( /ˈdʒɛrɑrd/; born 30 May 1980) is an English footballer who plays for and captains Premier League club Liverpool. He also has 90 caps for the England national team. He has played much of his career in a centre midfielder role, but he has also been used as a second striker and right winger. Gerrard is best known for his tremendous long-range striking ability and has scored in numerous cup finals, including the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final and the 2006 FA Cup Final.
Gerrard, who has spent his entire career at Anfield, made his début in 1998 and cemented his place in the first team in the 2000–01 season, succeeding Sami Hyypiä as Liverpool team captain in 2003. His honours include two FA Cup wins, three League Cup wins, a UEFA Cup win, and a UEFA Champions League win in 2005. In 2005, Gerrard came third in the voting for Ballon d'Or, given to the top player in Europe.
Gerrard made his international debut in 2000 and has represented England at Euro 2000 and Euro 2004, as well as the 2006 World Cup, where he was the team's top goalscorer with two goals. Gerrard is the current vice-captain of the England national football team. However, he captained his country at the 2010 World Cup in the absence of regular captain Rio Ferdinand who missed the tournament through injury.
Gerrard is widely regarded as one of the greatest English footballers ever. Gerrard came second only to Kenny Dalglish in the 100 Players Who Shook The Kop, a Liverpool F.C. fan poll. Zinedine Zidane said in 2009 that he considered Gerrard one of the best footballers in the world. In 2010, The Guardian named Gerrard to their World XI team, which compiled the greatest footballers of all-time onto one squad.

Early years

Born in Whiston, Merseyside, Gerrard started out playing for hometown team Whiston Juniors, where he was noticed by Liverpool scouts. He joined the Reds' youth academy at the age of nine. Gerrard then had trials with various clubs at fourteen, but his success wasn't immediate—Gerrard never made it into the England Schoolboys team. Gerrard's trials included Manchester United, which he claimed in his 2006 autobiography was "to pressure Liverpool into giving me a YTS contract.^" He signed his first professional contract with Liverpool on 5 November 1997.

Liverpool beginnings (1998-2003)

Gerrard made his Liverpool first-team debut on 29 November 1998 in a match against Blackburn Rovers as a last minute substitute for Vegard Heggem. He made thirteen appearances in his debut season, filling in the midfield position for injured captain Jamie Redknapp and playing on the right wing, but he scarcely contributed in the short on-pitch time he received, due to nervousness affecting his play. Gerrard recalled in a November 2008 interview with The Guardian, "I was out of position and out of my depth." The Liverpool hierarchy nonetheless remained convinced that he would improve. Gerrard saw himself as a defensive player primarily, looking to make key tackles rather than push the team forward.
Gerrard partnered Redknapp in central midfield for the 1999–00 season. After starting the derby match against Everton on the bench, he replaced Robbie Fowler in the second half but received his first career red card for a late foul on Everton's Kevin Campbell. Later that season, Gerrard scored his first senior goal in a 4–1 victory over Sheffield Wednesday. However, he began to suffer from nagging back problems, which sports consultant Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt later diagnosed as a result of accelerated growth, coupled with excessive playing, during his teenage years. He was then beset by groin injuries that required four separate operations.

In 2000–01, he made fifty starts in all competitions and scored ten goals as Liverpool won the League Cup, FA Cup, and the 2001 UEFA Cup.

Team struggles and uncertainty (2003-2004)

Gerrard replaced Sami Hyypiä as Liverpool captain in October 2003, as manager Gérard Houllier said that he recognised Gerrard had demonstrated leadership qualities early on, but needed to mature. He chose to extend his contract at the club, signing a new four-year deal
Houllier quit after a trophyless 2003–04 campaign, and Gerrard was linked with a move to Chelsea during the offseason. He admitted he was not "happy with the progress Liverpool has made," and that "for the first time in my career I've thought about the possibility of moving on." In the end, Gerrard turned down a £20 million offer from Chelsea to stay with Liverpool and new coach Rafael Benítez.

Breakthrough and trophy campaigns (2004-2007)

Liverpool were wracked with injury early in the 2004–05 season, and a foot injury suffered in a September league match against Manchester United shelved Gerrard until late November. He returned to score in the last five minutes of a Champions League group stage match against Olympiacos to secure Liverpool's advancement to the knockout round. He claimed that this was his most important, if not his best, goal for Liverpool to date. However, Gerrard netted an own goal during the 2005 League Cup final on 27 February, which proved decisive in Liverpool's 3–2 loss to Chelsea.
During a six-minute stretch in the second half of the 2005 Champions League final against A.C. Milan, Liverpool came back from a three-goal deficit to tie the match at 3–3 after extra time, with Gerrard scoring one of the goals. Liverpool's third goal was gained as a penalty from a foul awarded to Liverpool when Gennaro Gattuso fouled Gerrard in Milan's penalty box. Gerrard did not participate in the penalty shootout, which Liverpool won 3–2 as they claimed their first Champions League trophy in twenty years, though he was named the Man of the Match, and later received the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year award.
In regards to his contract issues with Liverpool, Gerrard told the press after the final, "How can I leave after a night like this?" But negotiations soon stalled and on 5 July 2005, after Liverpool turned down another lucrative offer from Chelsea, Gerrard rejected a club-record £100,000-a-week offer. Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry conceded the club had lost Gerrard, saying, "Now we have to move on. We have done our best, but he has made it clear he wants to go and I think it looks pretty final." The next day, Gerrard signed a new four-year deal as Parry blamed the earlier breakdown of talks on miscommunication between the two sides.

Gerrard scored 23 goals in 53 appearances in 2005–06, and in April became the first Liverpool player since John Barnes in 1988 to be voted the PFA Player of the Year. He scored twice in the 2006 FA Cup final against West Ham United, including an equalizer that sent the match into extra time, and Liverpool won their second consecutive major trophy on penalties. The goals made him the only player to have scored in the FA Cup, League Cup, UEFA Cup and Champions League finals. Gerrard netted a penalty as Liverpool eliminated league rival Chelsea in the 2006–07 Champions League semi-finals to return to their second final in three seasons, which they lost 2–1 to Milan
Gerrard suffered a hairline toe fracture in an August 2007 Champions League qualifier against Toulouse F.C., but returned four days later to play the entirety of a 1–1 league draw against Chelsea. On 28 October 2007, Gerrard played his 400th game for Liverpool in a league match against Arsenal, in which he scored. He scored in all but one of Liverpool's domestic and European matches during the month of November, and after scoring the only goal in a Champions League away tie against Olympique de Marseille on 11 December, he became the first Liverpool player since John Aldridge in 1989 to score in seven consecutive games in all competitions.

Continued success and stardom (2007-)

Gerrard made his 300th Premier League appearance on 13 April 2008 in a match against Blackburn Rovers, scoring the opening goal, and finished the season with twenty-one goals in all competitions, surpassing his total from the 2006–07 season. Gerrard was selected for the PFA Team of the Year and he was also one of the nominees or the PFA Player of the Year, alongside teammate Fernando Torres.
Gerrard needed to undergo groin surgery at the beginning of the 2008–09 season, but the problem was not serious and he quickly returned to training. He scored what appeared to be his hundredth career Liverpool goal against Stoke City on 20 September, but it was disallowed after Dirk Kuyt was ruled offside. He achieved the milestone eleven days later in a 3–1 Champions League group stage win over PSV.
He made his 100th appearance in European club competition for Liverpool on 10 March 2009 against Real Madrid and scored twice in a 4–0 win Four days after the impressive victory over Real, Gerrard would score at Old Trafford for the first time from the penalty spot, putting Liverpool ahead on their way to a 4–1 victory over Manchester United. Following these results, three-time FIFA World Player of the Year Zinedine Zidane hailed the Liverpool skipper, saying "Is he the best in the world? He might not get the attention of Messi and Ronaldo but yes, I think he might be." On 22 March 2009, Gerrard scored his first ever hat-trick in the Premier League, against Aston Villa, in a 5–0 victory. On 13 May 2009, Gerrard was named as the 2009 Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year, becoming the first Liverpool player to win the award in nineteen years. Gerrard had pipped Manchester United duo Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney in the poll voted for by journalists, beating Ryan Giggs by just 10 votes. Upon receiving the award, he was quoted as saying "I'm delighted but I'm a little bit surprised," he commented. "When you look at the quality of the players there are in this league, it's a great privilege to win this kind of award." He ended the 2009–10 season with a total of 12 goals and 9 assists from 46 matches.
Following the 2009–10 season, Rafael Benitez departed Liverpool after six years and was succeeded as manager by Roy Hodgson, who quickly assured fans that Gerrard would not be sold.[2] To further eliminate any speculation surrounding his future at the club, Gerrard made a statement emphasising his excitement at the coming season with Liverpool and praising the signing of Joe Cole. Gerrard soon played his first pre-season match of the 2010–11 season against Borussia Mönchengladbach on 1 August 2010 alongside new signing Joe Cole.

Gerrard scored his first goal of the 2010–11 season from the penalty spot in a Europa League qualifier against Macedonian side FK Rabotnicki on the 5th August 2010.
His next two goals came on 19 September at Old Trafford in a 3–2 loss against Manchester United; he scored from a penalty kick in the 64th minute and a free-kick 6 minutes later to level the game at 2–2. He followed this up with the equaliser in a 2–2 home draw with Sunderland. 11 days later Gerrard came off the bench to score a second-half hat-trick in a 3–1 win over Napoli in the Europa League.
Gerrard missed the start of English Premier League season 2011-2012 due to groin injury which had kept him away for much of the 2010-2011 season as well.  Gerrard made his first start for Liverpool squad in the October match at Anfield against fierce rivals Manchester United. Gerrard scored the club's only goal in the match, from a free kick, which ended in a 1-1 draw. On October 29, Gerrard underwent a treatment to clear an infection in his right ankle, which was placed in a protective plaster cast. He was forced to miss Liverpool's league match against West Bromwich that day and was ruled out for at least the following week's match against Swansea the following week and England's friendly matches against Sweden and Spain the week after. After a prolonged ankle injury recuperation, Gerrard returned to first team action in the match against Blackburn Rovers, coming off the bench. On 30th December, Gerrard came off the bench against Newcastle United and scored a fine goal. Gerrard helped Liverpool reach their first cup final at Wembley Stadium in 18 years as Liverpool prevailed 3-2 on aggregate over Manchester City. Gerrard fired home a penalty during both legs to secure a trip to the Carling Cup Final against Cardiff in February 2012, which Liverpool won on penalties.
On his 400th league appearance for Liverpool, Gerrard scored a hat-trick to give Liverpool a 3-0 victory over rivals Everton in the Merseyside Derby on 13 March 2012.

International career

Gerrard made his international debut against Ukraine on 31 May 2000. That summer, he was called up for Euro 2000, making only one appearance as a substitute in a 1–0 win over Germany before England were eliminated in the group stage. Gerrard scored his first international goal in the famous 5–1 victory over Germany in a 2002 World Cup qualifier in September 2001, and while England qualified, Gerrard was forced to pull out of the squad due to his ongoing groin problems after pulling up in Liverpool's final match of the season against Ipswich.
He was a regular starter in Euro 2004, scoring once – against Switzerland – before England were eliminated by Portugal in the quarter-finals on penalties. He participated in his first World Cup in 2006 and two goals, both in the group stage, against Trinidad & Tobago and Sweden, although his spot kick was one of three saved by goalkeeper Ricardo as England again bowed out to Portugal in the quarter-finals on penalties. He was England's top scorer in the tournament.
Gerrard was made vice-captain of the England team by coach Steve McClaren, and while he filled in for John Terry as captain, England suffered back-to-back losses to Russia and Croatia that ended their Euro 2008 qualifying hopes. After new coach Fabio Capello took over the team in early 2008, Gerrard was given a trial run as captain but Capello settled on Terry for the role. Gerrard was subsequently replaced as England vice-captain by Rio Ferdinand.
Gerrard helped England qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, scoring two goals in England's 5–1 win over Croatia.
John Terry was replaced by Rio Ferdinand as captain in 2010, following revelations about the former's private life, and Gerrard subsequently became vice-captain again. When the England team left for the 2010 World Cup, Gerrard was the most experienced player in the squad with 80 caps. During preparations for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, however, Rio Ferdinand was injured, meaning that Gerrard was appointed by Capello as captain for the tournament. After the tournament Gerrard, part of a group of England players dubbed the "Golden Generation", confirmed that he would continue to be available for selection, despite suggestions from Capello that he would seek to re-build the team.
In August 2010, Gerrard scored twice in a friendly match against Hungary and helped England to a 2–1 win. Due to Ferdinand's continued absence through injury, Gerrard retained the captaincy for the opening match of the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign against Bulgaria, which England won 4–0.

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Gonzalo Higuaín Life's Journey

Gonzalo Gerardo "El Pipita" Higuaín (Spanish pronunciation: [ɡonˈsalo iɰwaˈjin], born 10 December 1987) is an Argentine professional footballer. He was born in France, attaining Argentine citizenship in 2007, and now holding dual nationality. He currently plays as a striker for Real Madrid and the Argentina national football team.

Early life

Higuaín was born in Brest, France, the son of the Argentine former footballer Jorge Higuaín, who was playing for Stade Brestois 29 as an expatriate. Therefore, he holds dual French-Argentine nationality. Having left the country at the age of 10 months, he did not return to France until the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Even though he does not speak French, he holds a French passport because his father was naturalized in France. He successfully applied for Argentine nationality in January 2007.
Higuaín has two older brothers, Nicolas and Federico and one younger brother, Lautaro.

Club career

River Plate

Higuaín started playing in the youth teams and made his debut with River Plate in a 2–1 defeat against Gimnasia y Esgrima de La Plata on 29 May 2005. On 12 February 2006, he scored his first league goal in a 3–1 victory over Banfield.Higuaín ended the 2005–06 season with five goals in 12 appearances.
Following his brace in the Superclásico derby against Boca Juniors on 8 October 2006, River Plate manager Daniel Passarella declared that Higuain had an "enormous future" and was "destined for superstardom. In the following season, he scored eight goals in 17 league matches.

Real Madrid 2006–07 season

In December 2006, Spanish club Real Madrid signed Higuaín for €13 million, after River Plate had earlier turned down a €10 million offer for the 19-year-old striker. His debut came on 11 January 2007 against Real Betis in the second round of the Copa del Rey in Seville. His presentation at the League came 3 days later, on 14 January 2007, against Real Zaragoza at home. Higuain was involved in the creation of numerous scoring chances and in the assistance for the only goal, which earned Madrid the victory. His first goal with Real came on 24 February when the team faced Atlético Madrid in the Madrid derby, scoring the tying goal (1–1) at the Estadio Vicente Calderón. Later on the season, Higuaín showed an impressive performance by scoring a last minute goal on a league match against Espanyol to earn his team a 4–3 victory when the tie was rampant on the scoreboard. However, during his first season in the Bernabéu, Higuaín arose some doubts over his performance due to his lack of goals.

2007–08 season

During the 2007–08 season, Higuaín faced a rather intermittent performance. Yet, during the last stages of the league he managed to consolidate an impressive display. He first scored a last minute goal to earn his team a victory in a 2–1 comeback against Osasuna, which allowed Real Madrid to be mathematically crowned League Champions for the second consecutive year. Four days later, Pipita arose to the spotlight once more by scoring the 3rd goal of a 4–1 trashing over Barcelona in El Clásico. This performance was particularly praised due to Higuaín scoring his goal barely 57 seconds after coming in from the bench.

2008–09 season

In the 2008–09 season Higuaín was offered the chance to be a starter due to the serious injury suffered by the Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy. On 21 April 2009, he accounted another great performance when he defined the match against Getafe with a goal in the last minute, giving Real Madrid a 3–2 victory which enabled the team to follow the trail of Josep Guardiola´s Barcelona. In August 2008, Higuaín scored the winner in Madrid's victory over Valencia in the Spanish Supercup. Shortly afterwards, he scored all four goals in a 4–3 win against Málaga. Because of this, he started to gain international recognition, at the same time he got to be one of the leading goalscorers of the Spanish League, alongside his Barcelona counterpart, Samuel Eto'o. That season, the striker was devoted as one of the great promises of world football in the wake of spectacular games, and particularly dazzling last-minute goals. Higuaín ended the season with 22 league goals, 24 in all competitions, shining alongside longtime football stars like Diego Forlán, David Villa and Thierry Henry.

2009–10 season

The 2009–10 season saw Higuaín become Real's top goalscorer with 27 league goals, 29 in total, being at the same time the La Liga's 2nd top goalscorer, behind only Lionel Messi but surpassing Swedish international Zlatan Ibrahimović and even his fellow teammate Cristiano Ronaldo. This season included him scoring his first two goals in the Champions league and his 2nd hat-trick for the club. He also played at the 2010 FIFA world cup held in South Africa for Argentina. He scored the only hat-trick of the tournament against South Korea in a 4–1 victory, in Argentina's second group match

2010–11 season

In June 2010, Real Madrid extended Higuaín's contract until 2016. On 23 October 2010, he scored Real Madrid's 5200th league goal, against Racing Santander on a 6–1 trashing by the Whites. On 4 November of the same year, Gonzalo entered the history of Real Madrid by being the scorer of the club's 700th goal in the Champions League.
On the first weeks of December 2010, Higuaín was diagnosed with a herniated lumbar disc, and was suggested by Real's medical staff to have it operated.On 5 January 2011, Real Madrid announced he would finally undergo surgery at the Department of Neurological Surgery of Chicago's Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine under the command of Dr. Richard G. Fessler, M.D. The surgery took place on 11 January, and Higuaín was discharged from the hospital the next day following a successful operation.He was expected to spend at least four months away from the field in the recovery process. Two months spent to recover from the surgery and another two to train with the team, however he was able to make an early comeback. On 23 April 2011, Higuaín scored a hat-trick against Valencia in a 3–6 away win in Estadio Mestalla, giving him 8 goals in 8 matches against Valencia. Higuaín also assisted two other goals for Karim Benzema and Kaká in that same match.

2011–12 season

Gonzalo Higuaín opened his tally for the new league season with a goal against Getafe on September 10. On September 24, 2011 he scored his second goal of the season in a game against Rayo Vallecano which ended in a 6–2 win. On October 2, 2011 he scored his first hat-trick of the season against Espanyol in a 4–0 away win. On October 8, 2011 he scored a hat-trick for Argentina in a 4–1 win against Chile, to take his tally of goals for the Argentina shirt to 12 goals from 20 games. On October 15, 2011 he scored yet another hat-trick in a 4–1 win against Real Betis. That meant "El Pipita" had scored 9 official goals in less than two weeks time. On 29 October Higuaín scored the only goal of the game in a 1–0 win against Real Sociedad in San Sebastián. On 6 November he scored once in Real Madrid's 7–1 thrashing of Osasuna at the Santiago Bernabéu and he also scored the liberating 3–1 in a 4–1 win against local rivals Atlético Madrid in the Madrid derby on 26 November 2011. On November 22, 2011, Higuain scored Real's third goal in a 6–2 defeat of Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League. He added another one in the last round, at AFC Ajax (3–0). On 31 March 2012, he scored his 100th Real Madrid goal against CA Osasuna.

International career

Higuaín initially rejected calls from both the Argentine and French national teams, claiming at the time he was undecided for which country he would prefer to play, before choosing Argentina. Higuaín was called up by the Argentina Olympic squad for a friendly match against Guatemala in February 2008,and scored two goals in his debut as Argentina won 5–0, though the match was not officially recognized by FIFA as "A" international matches.
Higuaín was selected for Argentina by coach Diego Maradona for the last 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification games against Peru and Uruguay. He scored his first goal on his full debut, a 49th minute strike during a 2–1 win over Peru on 10 October 2009. He netted his second goal for Argentina in the 1–0 win over Germany at the Allianz Arena in Munich on 3 March 2010, right on the stroke of half-time, pouncing on a mistake made by German goalkeeper Rene Adler, in which Higuaín tapped into an open net from about 25 yards out. Following Argentina's qualification, Higuaín was included in the squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He scored a hat-trick in Argentina's 4–1 win over South Korea in their second group match, becoming the third Argentinian to score a hat-trick in the World Cup finals, after Guillermo Stábile in 1930 and Gabriel Batistuta in 1994 and 1998, and the first player to score a hat-trick in the tournament since 2002. His goal in the 3–1 win over Mexico in the Second Round took him to a total of four, and he remained one of the top scorers for Argentina in the competition.
Shortly after a disappointing World Cup campaign, on 7 September 2010, Higuaín scored in a friendly match against newly crowned world champions Spain making it 2–0, a game that ended 4–1.
Higuaín is one of only three foreign-born players to have played for Argentina in a FIFA World Cup, along with Pedro Arico Suárez and Constantino Urbieta Sosa.
Higuain scored the equalizer against Uruguay in the Copa America quarter-finals, and he scored a goal hitting the upright twice before going into the net in the penalty shootout where they lost 4–5.
Team in the Asian tour with Argentina, led by new coach Alejandro Sabella On September 2, Gonzalo Higuain played in the match against Venezuela in the city of Calcutta in India, Argentina won 1–0 in Argentina scoring Nicolás Otamendi. Higuain scored the first goal September 6, for Argentina when they beat Nigeria 3–1 in the city of Dhaka, Bangladesh, with the help of Lionel Messi and had a role in the third goal, but did not record his name. On 8 October 2011, Gonzalo scored a hattrick and assisted one goal for Messi in a 4–1 win against Chile, To take his tally of goals for the Argentine national team shirt 12 goals from 22 games.

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Diego Milito Life's Journey

Diego Alberto Milito (born 12 June 1979) is an Argentine footballer who plays as a striker for the Italian Serie A team Internazionale. He also plays for the Argentine national team. A prolific and consistent center-forward, Milito has statistically averaged just over a goal every two appearances, over the course of his 10 year professional career. He was pivotal in Inter's 2009/10 treble winning season and his two goals in the Champions League final at last gave him international recognition as one of the world's most effective strikers.
He has been nicknamed El Príncipe ("The Prince" in Spanish) because of his physical resemblance with former Uruguayan footballer Enzo Francescoli, who was nicknamed that way.

Racing Club

1999–2003: Early years in Argentina

Diego Milito started playing at Argentine first division team Racing Club in 1999, where he won the 2001 Apertura tournament. During this time, his younger brother Gabriel played for Racing's main rival, Independiente, as a defender. The two clubs would contest the Avellaneda derby with the two brothers lining up against each other.

Genoa

2004–2005: First years in European football

At the beginning of 2004, Milito moved to Italian second division Genoa. After two very successful seasons, where he scored 33 goals in 59 matches in Italy, Genoa were relegated down to Serie C1 as a punishment for an alleged match-fixing case in the final match of the 2004–05 season. Due to this, Milito was forced to leave Genoa and ultimately joined his brother Gabriel at Spanish club Real Zaragoza.

Real Zaragoza

2005–2008: Making his mark in Spain

Diego again showed his potential in Spain, scoring four goals in the first semi-final of the 2006 Copa del Rey to beat Real Madrid 6–1. He finished the season as Real Zaragoza's top scorer with 16 goals in the Spanish first division.
Milito was one of the top scorers in the La Liga 2006–07 season. He scored 23 goals, two less than the top goalscorer Ruud van Nistelrooy and three behind European Golden Boot winner Francesco Totti.
In November 2006, it was reported Zaragoza decided to buy him outright after his 2-year loan was set to expire.
Milito became the club captain at Real Zaragoza, taking over this role from brother Gabriel, who departed for FC Barcelona in 2007. His contract was extended in August 2007 with a buy-out clause of €100M. His goals helped Zaragoza to a sixth place finish in the league. As of January 2008, Diego was averaging higher than a goal every two games for Real Zaragoza, a statistic he also achieved with Genoa.

Genoa

 2008–2009: A return to Serie A

On 1 September 2008, just a few minutes before the transfer window closure time, Genoa completed the transfer of Milito from Zaragoza, after the Spanish team were relegated to Segunda División. His agent Fernando Hidalgo confirmed Milito chose explicitly to return to Genoa despite having received more lucrative offers from other major European clubs. He made his debut on 14 September against Milan. Genoa won this game 2–0 with Milito assisting the first goal and scoring the second. On 9 November, Milito scored his first hat-trick for Genoa in the 4–0 victory against Reggina. He finished the season with 24 goals in 31 league appearances, placing him second behind Zlatan Ibrahimović in the Capocannonieri scoring title.

Internazionale

2009–2010: A treble-winning debut season

Diego Milito in 2009

On 20 May 2009, La Gazzetta dello Sport confirmed that Diego Milito was transferred to Internazionale (alongside Thiago Motta). The transfer fees were undisclosed but Genoa got Robert Acquafresca, Riccardo Meggiorini, Leonardo Bonucci, Francesco Bolzoni Ivan Fatic and cash.
The striker adapted to his new surroundings quickly and had an excellent start to his Internazionale career scoring two goals in a 2–0 World Football Challenge win over Milan. Subsequently on 29 August, in his first ever Milan Derby in Serie A, Milito assisted two goals and scored a penalty, his first league goal of the season, to cap off a 4–0 victory. Later, on 13 September, he scored his second league goal in a 2–0 home win against Parma. In the next league match against Cagliari he scored both goals for Inter in a 1–2 away win. These two goals placed him at the top of the all-time Serie A scoring charts for best strike rate, with 28 goals in 35 games, giving him an average of 0.8 goals per game. Milito continued his fine run of form with another goal in the next league match against Napoli, scoring the second goal after Samuel Eto'o scored in the first minute, a game that they won 3–1.
The consistency which Milito had shown at his previous clubs was sustained throughout his debut season at Inter, and after the first few matches he had established himself as a key contributor to the squad. On 30 October, in a 5–3 home victory against Palermo, Milito, who had returned from an injury, came off the bench to make the result safe scoring Internazionale's fifth goal. In the next game, against Livorno he scored another goal, taking his strike rate up to seven goals in nine league matches. Three days later, on 4 November, he scored his first goal in the UEFA Champions League in a 1–2 group stage win over Dynamo Kyiv, it was the equaliser which led to Wesley Sneijder's game-winner in the 89th. On 24 February, in another Champions League match, this time in a 2–1 round of 16 win against Chelsea, he scored another important goal, his second in the competition. Four days later, Milito netted the matchwinner which gave Internazionale a 3–2 victory at Udinese, in a thrilling win for the "Nerazzurri".On 27 March, after missing a 3–0 win over Livorno with a hamstring problem, Milito returned for a crucial battle at title contenders Roma, where he scored one goal in a 2–1 loss. On 31 March, in a 1–0 Champions League quarter-finals win against CSKA Moscow, he scored the winning goal which enhanced Internazionale's chances of reaching the semi-finals. Diego scored a vital goal in a 3–1 home win against Barcelona in a first leg Champions League semi-final win.
During the very last matches of the 2009–2010 season, Milito proved instrumental in Inter's winning of the first treble in the history of Italian football. The Argentine first scored the only goal in Inter's victory over Roma in the final of the Coppa Italia on 5 May 2010, enabling the nerazzurri to take home their first trophy of the season. Eleven days later, it was also Milito's goal which secured Internazionale's 18th scudetto when they beat Siena 1–0 on the final matchday of Serie A. With only two points separating the top two teams in Serie A, the goal lifted Inter to the summit of the table after being in a position to lose the league title to Roma at the half-time break as Roma, playing simultaneously, were winning their own match against Chievo at that point. Milito himself declared this goal to be the "best of his career having been decisive in delivering a league title to his team. However, there was more to come from the forward and on 22 May 2010 Milito yet again proved vital as he scored twice to seal a victory in the Champions League Final over Bayern Munich. As a result Internazionale became European club champions for the first time in 45 years with a 2–0 victory and completed their historic treble championship season.
After the treble success many pundits took note of the fact that Milito had always been an effective and efficient striker, yet remained one of the most underrated players in world football because of his low-key manner and the fact that he had plied his trade for smaller, less competitive teams prior to joining Inter. Scoring goals on the biggest stages for a marquee team finally earned the striker the recognition merited by his skill and goalscoring record. Of the player and his two Champions League winning goals, The Guardian wrote:

“

Vision, timing, flawless technique and sangfroid – these two goals had everything a great striker needs, plus a sense of lyricism in the fluency of his movement. The 30-year-old Milito is hardly a fancy striker, not a Messi taking your breath away with a trick or a Tévez galvanising the stadium with elemental force, but his economy has been just as devastating...

”

On 9 August 2010, Milito signed a new four-year contract with the Nerazzurri. On 26 August 2010, Milito was named 2010 UEFA Forward and Player of the Year.

2010–present: After the treble

Milito has so far been unable to recreate the success he had during his first season at Inter. This has largely been due to a recurring muscle injury which has seen him feature only sporadically in the first eleven from August to April. Il Principe's form was thus affected and this was probably not helped by the departure of manager José Mourinho at the start of the season, nor the instability caused by the arrival and then subsequent departure of Rafa Benitez (August–December 2010). On 29 May 2011 Milito scored a goal in the final of the Italian Cup to help Internazionale beat Palermo 3–1. However during the 2011–2012 Serie A season he begun to regain his form, scoring a goal in Inter-Lecce 4-1, two goals in Inter-Parma 5-0, and a very important goal in Inter's 1-0 victory against Milan putting Inter back into the title race. He also continued on his scoring streak in Inter's 2-1 victory over Lazio. His good form continued as he scored an amazing 4 goals in a 4-4 draw with Palermo at home, a game in which Palermo player Fabrizio Miccoli also scored a hat-trick.

International career

Milito scored two goals on his international debut against Uruguay in 2003, but appeared only intermittently during the following years, and was omitted from the 2006 World Cup squad. He played for Argentina in the 2007 Copa América tournament, gaining playing time after Hernán Crespo's injury in a group stage match against Colombia and he was also included in Argentina's final 23 player roster for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Personal life

Diego is married to Sofia and they have two children. He also holds an Italian passport, due to his Italian ancestry - Milito is a third-generation Italian-Argentine, his roots go to Terranova da Sibari (CS), in Calabria. He has a younger brother named Gabriel who plays football for Independiente.

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Zinédine Zidane Life's Journey

The full name	Zinedine Yazid Zidane
Date of birth	June 23, 1972 (age 39)
Place of birth	Marseille, France
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position play	Attacking Midfield

Zinedine Yazid Zidane (IPA: [ˌ zinedin Jazi Zidan ː d]; Arabic: زين الدين زيدان,Zainuddin Zidan was born June 23, 1972, age 39 years) are well known and popular with the call Zizou is a French footballer Algerian descent. His position is an attacking midfielder. Began his career as a player at the club  AS Cannes, he later played in Bordeaux, Juventus and real madrid last. He retired from club football in 2006 and retired from the french national football team after the 2006 word cup . He also briefly
holds the record as the world's most expensive player when the transfer from Juventus to Real Madrid in the 2001-02 season with a value of 46 million pounds.
As a world-class footballer, Zidane had received his many accomplishments, including two Serie A titles with Juventus, the European Champions League titles and one league title with Real Madrid. Zidane also successfully led the French to be world champion and 1998 World Cup 2000 European Cup winners. Together with his friend Ronaldo, Zidane became a football player is capable of reaching the FIFA World Player of the Year title three times. He also won the Ballon d'Or in 1998.
Zidane was born in Marseille and raised in La Castellane. Although born in Marseille, Zidane has never played for Olympique de Marseille. Zidane Muslim religious parents, and they immigrated from Algeria to France in 1954.
Zidane's career began at age 14, son of Algerian immigrants is seen by a talent scout named Jean Varraud and then offered a place at the U.S. Academy of Cannes. Originally he was just getting a chance to survive in Cannes for six weeks, before finally making good talent Zidane is able to secure its first contract for four seasons. Zidane went on to play in the first professional level at age 17 in 1991. He then scored his first goal on February 8, 1991, which later earned him a prize from the automobile club president. Zidane then managed to take Cannes enter the UEFA Cup at the end of the 1991-92 season.
Zidane then transferred to Girondins de Bordeaux in the 1992-93 season, and then led the club won the Intertoto Cup and the 1995 season runner-up 1995-96 UEFA Cup. Colleagues in Bordeaux is Bixente Lizarazu and Christophe Dugarry, who later would become a powerful trio in the French national team at the 1998 World Cup.In the spring of 1995, Blackburn Rovers coach Ray Harford had offered a contract on Zidane and Dugarry, but Zidane refused an offer from English club.
In 2001 Zidane transferred from Italian club, Juventus FC Real Madrid to a contract for 4 years. Fee of € 66 million, making it be a football player with the most expensive transfer in the world. He scored a 2-1 victory against the German club, Bayer Leverkusen in the 2001-2002 Champions League Final at Hampden Park in Glasgow. The next year at the 2002 World Cup he only appeared once for injury-hit defense of France. In the tournament, the French did not managed to score one golpun and slumped in the bottom group in the first half that failed to qualify for next round.
2004 after the end of the 2004 European Cup, Zidane retired from international football, but when the French had difficulty to escape to the 2006 World Cup, Zidane announdced on August 2005 that he would return to play in national team. French finally escaped, but the new Zidane through an injury-filled seasons in Madrid, decided that he would step down after the World Cup ends.
On 25 April 2006, Zidane officially announced his decision to quit the club and national team football World Cupin France after 2006.
On May 7, 2006 Zizou played the last game as a host to Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. Real Madrid players wearing special T-shirt marked "Zidane 2001 - 2006" written below the club logo. As might be expected, Real Madrid fans gave him a warm welcome and support throughout the game Zizou. This match against Villarreal CF and, unfortunately for Zidane, the best result obtained is the series 3-3 Real Madrid. Zidane scored the second goal for Real Madrid without a massive celebration. Zidane exchanged his T-shirt with Juan Roman Riquelme, Villarreal CF and Argentinian midfielder. At the end of the match, Real Madrid fans say goodbye to Zizou by giving it a long applause, which made him shed tears. 

World Cup 2006

In the initial two games of World Cup 2006, he performed poorly and even had to miss three games due to yellow card accumulation. Zidane then showed again his best game in the later rounds, starting from the aborted match against Spain 3-1, then defeated Brazil 1-0, and then defeated Portugal 1-0. With the form of the game at that time, many are hoping that Zidane will hang with the beautiful shoes by beating Italy in the final game, but his career ended when he was bitter referee Horacio Elizondo red carded in the final result of butting Italian defender Marco Materazzi in the chest.
Although his football career ends bitterly Zidane voted Footballer of the FIFA 2006 World Cup and the reporters covering the event to get 2012 points, the Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro in second place with 1977 points, and other Italians, Andrea Pirlo in the top three with 715 points. The reason he was chosen as the best player because it managed to display a charming appearance and showed good leadership in bringing the French strugglers in the group stage to the final round. France coach Domenech and the "Emperor" Beckenbauer defended FIFA's decision to continue to give the title even though Zizou considered doing such stupid acts against Materazzi. Materazzi may be saying the very words of the world's best offensive player three times so that made it into the emotions and finally complete this action.
According to BBC reports, Player of the election conducted at the break after the first round. BBC correspondent Gordon Farquhar, argues that "if we asked the reporters who have made the selection after the game ended - whether they would change his voice - perhaps they will."
Inspired a song called Headbutt Zinedine Zidane from ramming head into Marco Materazzi's chest in the 2006 World Cup finals to be the most popular songs in France. In two and a half weeks earlier, there are 80 000 downloaders song on the site.

Style of play

After a fantastic performance at the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000, not least the football public who regard it as the best player in the world. Strengths and expertise to do dribbling and ball control often make opposing players feel frustrated because it's hard to steal the ball from him. Coach-pelatihpun assume that imposing man-to-man marking against Zidane is futile. Even the German sports manufacturer Adidas to make "new formation" the 4-Zidane-2. 

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Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayor Life's Journey

Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayor (born 26 February 1984), better known as Emmanuel Adebayor is a Togolese footballer who plays for Tottenham Hotspur as a striker on loan from Manchester City. He plays in the same position for the Togo national team. Adebayor previously played for Metz, Monaco and Arsenal and was voted African Footballer of the Year for 2008. In January 2010, Adebayor was one of the players involved when the Togo national team's bus came under a gunfire attack on the way to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in Angola.

Early career

In his first season, he played nine games and scored twice. In the 2002–03 season, Adebayor scored 17 goals in 35 games. He signed a new contract with Monaco in 2003, and he scored seven goals in 17 appearances, helping them reach the 2004 UEFA Champions League Final with two goals in 10 games.

Arsenal

On 13 January 2006, Arsenal signed Adebayor for a reported £7m. He was given the nickname "Baby Kanu" due to his resemblance to former Arsenal star Nwankwo Kanu, whom Adebayor had idolised as a youth. On 4 February 2006, Adebayor made his Arsenal debut in a Premiership match at Birmingham City and scored after 21 minutes, with Arsenal winning 2–0. At the end of his first season for the Gunners he had scored four goals in ten matches. However, Adebayor was cup-tied for Arsenal's 2005–06 Champions League campaign as they reached the final against Barcelona, having appeared for Monaco in the qualifying rounds of the competition.
Adebayor scored Arsenal's winning goal against Manchester United to give Arsenal a 1–0 win at Old Trafford, their first league win of the 2006–07 season. Earlier in the game, Adebayor was brought down in the six-yard box to earn Arsenal a penalty, which was taken by Gilberto Silva and saved. On 8 November 2006, Adebayor scored the only goal of the match to send Arsenal into the quarterfinals of the League Cup against Everton.

Adebayor in 2006

Adebayor with Arsenal.

He was sent off in Arsenal's 2–1 Carling Cup final loss to Chelsea. He was shown a red card after a fracas towards the end of the match involving both Chelsea and Arsenal players. It was alleged that he had thrown a punch at Frank Lampard. The FA subsequently gave him an additional one-match ban and a fine of £7,500 for failing to leave the field of play immediately, as well as a three-match ban for the red card. Adebayor and Lampard both denied it.
On 19 January, after scoring twice against Fulham, the fans sang, "Adebayor, Adebayor, give him the ball, and he will score". After scoring a penalty during the 3–1 win over Portsmouth, his two goals against Tottenham helped Arsenal win 3–1 in the first North London derby of the season. Adebayor then scored his first hat-trick for Arsenal in a 5–0 home win against Derby County on 22 September; this was the second-ever hat-trick scored at the Emirates. He was involved in a controversial incident on 22 January in which he clashed with teammate Nicklas Bendtner seven minutes from the end of a 5–1 League Cup semi-final defeat to Tottenham. Bendtner appeared to cut his nose in the clash, for which Adebayor apologised the following day. Three days later he scored the hundredth goal at the Emirates during the side's 3–0 FA Cup victory over Newcastle United. Starting on 4 March against Milan, Adebayor went on a goalscoring streak in the Champions League. Despite having never scored before in the competition, he scored a goal in the 2nd leg against Milan at the San Siro. On 13 April in a Premier League game against Manchester United, Adebayor scored Arsenal's only goal, a game which they lost 2–1 at Old Trafford. He scored his second hat-trick for Arsenal after coming off the bench at half time in the 6–2 win against Derby County on 28 April, making him the only player in the Premiership's history to score a hat-trick home and away against the same side in the same season. Although Arsenal finished the season empty handed, he was named in the PFA Team of the Year. Adebayor's second goal against Tottenham Hotspur won Match of the Day's Goal of the Season competition for the 2007–08 season. He was also awarded the BBC African Footballer of the Year for his performance in 2008.
On the summer transfer window he was linked with a £30million move to AC Milan and Barcelona, but later insisted to stay at the club after he signed a long contract. On 13 September 2008, Adebayor scored a hat trick in Arsenal's 4–0 win away to Blackburn Rovers, getting his first league goals of the 2008–09 season. Adebayor received his first red card of the season in a 1–1 draw with Liverpool after an altercation with opposing defender Álvaro Arbeloa; this was his second bookable offence of the game and therefore served a one-match ban. On 8 February, Adebayor suffered a hamstring injury in Arsenal's 0–0 draw against Tottenham Hotspur. The injury would keep him out for almost two months, despite initial estimations suggesting only a three week absence. He made a goalscoring return to action, scoring a brace on his return against Manchester City. On 7 April 2009, Adebayor equalized a goal for Arsenal in the Quarter finals of the Champions League against Villarreal, in which he chested the ball into his control and then performed a brilliant bicycle kick. In the return leg at the Emirates Stadium a week later, he scored in a 3–0 Arsenal win, setting up a semi-final showdown with Manchester United. However, Adebayor was injured for the last two Premier League games and finished the season as Arsenal's second top goal scorer, scoring 16, behind Robin van Persie's 20 in all competitions.

Manchester City

Adebayor in Manchester.

On 18 July 2009, Adebayor signed a five-year contract with Manchester City, for a transfer fee believed to be in the region of £25million. He scored a goal on his debut for City against Blackburn Rovers, smashing a shot from 18 yards past Paul Robinson in the third minute. On his home debut, Adebayor scored the only goal in the 17th minute in a 1–0 in over Wolverhampton Wanderers, assisted by fellow summer signing Carlos Tévez. He scored in his third consecutive league match, heading the winner in a 1–0 away victory against Portsmouth. He then scored in his fourth consecutive match, this time against his former team, Arsenal in a 4–2 victory at the City of Manchester Stadium. As a result, he is one of only six players to score in their first four games for a club. In the match against Arsenal, Adebayor's former team mate Robin van Persie accused him of deliberately kicking him in the face, and he was later handed a three-match ban after being found guilty of violent conduct.
Adebayor was also criticised for running almost the full length of the pitch to the Arsenal supporters and celebrating in front of them after scoring his goal causing an angry reaction from the Arsenal supporters. He was booked for this, but did later apologise. Manchester City manager Mark Hughes suggested Adebayor did it because he wanted to be loved by City fans. For the start of the 2010–11 season he was given the No.9 shirt instead of his favoured No.25 he previously wore at Arsenal and City. He scored his first hat-trick for Manchester City on the 21 October in a UEFA Europa League group stage match against Lech Poznań. In doing so, he became the first Manchester City player to score a hat-trick in a European competition. However during the 2010–11 season, Adebayor fell down the pecking order at Manchester City following the club purchasing Edin Džeko with Carlos Tévez and Mario Balotelli also being chosen ahead of him. In August 2011, Roberto Mancini confirmed that Adebayor, along with Craig Bellamy, were no longer part of his plans and could leave Manchester City.

Real Madrid (loan)

On 25 January 2011, Adebayor signed a loan deal to play for Real Madrid for the rest of the season. Adebayor scored his first goal for Real Madrid in the second leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final against Sevilla at the Santiago Bernabéu. The game ended 2–0 with an aggregate score of 3–0.
The following weekend, he scored his first goal in La Liga against Real Sociedad, again at the Santiago Bernabéu. The game ended 4–1 and Adebayor scored the last goal within the last 3 minutes of the game. On 6 March 2011, Adebayor scored the opening goal in the 24th minute against Racing Santander from a Mesut Özil pass. Real Madrid won the match 3–1. Adebayor was heavily criticised for his performance against Sporting Gijón, especially for missing many chances. The game ended 0–1 to Sporting Gijón. Adebayor added two goals to his European tally for Madrid with goals against Tottenham Hotspur in a 4–0 win on 5 April 2011.
Adebayor scored his first hat-trick for Real Madrid on 21 May 2011, on the last round of the 2010–11 La Liga season, against Almería. In that match, Real Madrid beat Almería 8–1.
Adebayor returned to Manchester City after the Spanish season had finished, but was omitted from their pre-season tour of the USA on 11 July 2011 and later risked a £300,000 fine for refusing to train with the club's reserve and youth teams.

Tottenham Hotspur (loan)

On 25 August 2011, Tottenham Hotspur signed Adebayor on a season-long loan. On 10 September 2011, Adebayor scored on his debut against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the 67th minute. On 18 September 2011, he scored twice on his home debut in a 4–0 win against Liverpool, his second strike marking the 100th league goal of his senior career.
Adebayor also provided the assist for Rafael van der Vaart's goal in their 2–1 North London derby win against former club Arsenal on 2 October. He scored his fourth and fifth goal for Tottenham in their 2–0 win against Aston Villa on 21 November, the first with an overhead kick and the second after a mistake from Villa defender James Collins. He scored another brace in Tottenham's 3–1 win over West Bromwich Albion. Later on Adebayor went on to score a further two goals, one was a penalty at Stoke and one came in a derby against Chelsea where the scores ended up 1–1.
On 11 February 2012, Adebayor scored on a volley and supplied four assists in the 5-0 win over Newcastle United.

International career

Adebayor playing for Togo in May 2006.

Adebayor was also eligible to play for Nigeria but chose to represent the country of his birth. Adebayor helped Togo qualify for the 2006 African Cup of Nations by scoring 11 goals in the qualifiers, more than any other player in the African qualifiers. On 10 February 2009, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) picked Adebayor as the African Footballer of the Year for 2008 at an awards ceremony held in Lagos, Nigeria. Adebayor beat final nominees Mohamed Aboutrika of Egypt and Ghana's Michael Essien in a vote that involved the national team coaches of CAF's 54 member-nations. It was the first time a Togolese won the award as Africa's best player.
Adebayor helped Togo to qualify for the 2006 World Cup in Germany and started all three group matches against South Korea, Switzerland and France, but did not score any goals and Togo ended up in last place. Adebayor was made team captain after the finals.
He was called up for the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations, where he was a substitute for the country's first match, following a row with the coach. Adebayor first vowed to leave the tournament and return home, although he later resumed training with the side. Togo were eliminated after losing all three matches. He was dropped by Togo following the row over bonus payments. However, Adebayor was brought back into the Togo team in September 2007. On 11 October 2008, he scored four goals in Togo's 6–0 hammering of Swaziland during the World Cup qualification rounds.
Despite being injured, Adebayor played for Togo against Cameroon. Within this match he scored the only goal for Togo to seal the win.
On 8 January 2010, Adebayor was one of the players involved when the Togo national team's bus came under a gunfire attack on the way to the African Cup of Nations in Angola. The fatal attack, in which all the players survived but three other people were killed, led to Togo withdrawing from the tournament. Adebayor consequently announced his retirement from international football on 12 April 2010 in a statement which read, "I have weighed up my feelings in the weeks and months since the attack and I am still haunted by the events which I witnessed on that horrible afternoon on the Togo team bus. We were just footballers going to play a football match and represent our country, yet we were attacked by people who wanted to kill us all. It is a moment I will never forget and one I never want to experience again."
Adebeyor subsequently returned to international duty in November 2011 following assurances from the Togo Football Federation regarding safety, making his comeback in a 1–0 win over Guinea-Bissau in a 2014 World Cup qualifier.

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