Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo has won the prestigious Ballon d'Or trophy for 2008, polling 446 points from a maximum of 480, to oust his closest rivals, Lionel Messi and Fernando Torres into 2nd and 3rd place respectively.
The Portugese winger scored an incredible 42 goals as Manchester United won the Champions League and Premier League double last season. Despite a less than spectacular performance at Euro 2008, the world's football journalists had no hesitation voting him for the most prestigious individual award in world football, awarded by France Football magazine.
"It is one of the most beautiful days of my life, something I dreamed of as a child," said the 23-year-old winger.
Ronaldo becomes only the third Portuguese player to lift the famous trophy - after Eusebio and Luis Figo - and the fourth Manchester United player to take the prestigious gong. He is the first Premier League player since Michael Owen in 2001 to scoop the award.
LA Galaxy midfielder David Beckham led out England for the 59th time in his international career as he captained his country to a comfortable 3-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago overnight.
It capped off a remarkable turn in fortunes for the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star who relinquished the England captaincy after his country's quarter-final exit at the 2006 world cup. He was subsequently dropped by Steve McLaren for the Euro 2008 qualifying campaign but fought back to win a spot in the team and earn his 100th cap against France.
England boss Fabio Capello has yet to decide who will get the captaincy full-time but realistically, the favourites remains Rio Ferdinand, Steven Gerrard and John Terry with Beckham being an outsider at best. Perhaps more importantly is the high regard in which Capello has for Beckham and it is almost certain his role in helping England qualify for the 2010 World Cup is assured.
A few days after setting up John Terry for the opener against the USA, it was Beckham who again delivered the telling pass - this time for Gareth Barry to open the scoring for the visitors before a brace from Portsmouth striker Jermain Defoe sealed a comfortable win.
The world's most famous footballer, David Beckham, finally won his much prized 100th cap for England in their 1-0 loss against France at the Stade de France in Paris on Wednesday.
It was England manager Fabio Capello's second game in charge and Beckham's first under his former mentor at Real Madrid but a disjointed performance from the English meant that Beckham's special night was soured by a 1-0 defeat courtesy of a Franck Ribery penalty after England goalkeeper David James had upended France striker Nicolas Anelka just before half-time.
Becks wore these special gold boots to mark his 100th cap
Although Beckham was able to prove his fitness to the new manager he was unable to inspire his teammates with a display that was described by the BBC as "clear his most athletic days are now gone" despite Fabio Capello's positive reaction by his performance.
The Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder insisted that he will not retire from international football having won his 100th cap - the fifth English player to do so - and he now joins an elite band of England players who have earned 100 caps: Bobby Moore, Peter Shilton, Billy Wright and Sir Bobby Charlton.
Lyon striker Karim Benzema has rejected the overtures of some of Europe's top clubs by signing a new contract at the French club until 2013 plus an option for a further one-year extension.
The 20 year-old France striker is one of the hottest prospects in Europe and has been linked with Manchester United amid speculation that he could be joining the English Premier League champions.
Instead, he has chosen to heed the advice of leading football figures such as former Liverpool manager Gerard Houllier and remain at the club he joined as an eight year old. As a product of the club's youth academy, Benzema is capable of playing on both wings or as a target man, the latter being his deadliest position - 24 goals in 37 games in the 2006-07 season is a testament to that.
Karim Benzema said: "In my head it was clear that I wanted to continue my progression here and not exile myself in Spain, England or Italy.
'I'm happy in Lyon, I was born here, I live here, I want to continue learning at Olympique Lyonnais.
'Everyone has faith in me, my team-mates are behind me. I really want to win lots of titles, starting with a cup-league double this season and I'd love to one day win the Champions League with Lyon. There's still so much to do.''
If Benzema does stay at Lyon for the duration of his contract, he will still be 25-26 and yet to approach his peak as a footballer. Should he continue to improve, he will be a frightening prospect by that time and will have all the top European clubs vying for his signature. In reality, though, he will be encouraged to change clubs and move to either the Spanish or English leagues by the time he is 23.
The president of AC Milan and former Prime Minister of Italy, Silvio Berlusconi, wants to re-sign Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko from Chelsea to replace the injured Ronaldo.
Chelsea's £30million flop is a legend back in Milan where he spent a glorious seven years and became the club's second all-time leading goalscorer before moving to the London club in the summer of 2006.
Since moving to Stamford Bridge, he has hardly captured his form and has lost the reputation as one of Europe's deadliest strikers. Spending most of his time on the bench under the Mourinho era, he was rumoured to have caused the huge rift between the ex-manager and club owner Roman Abramovich.
It is hard to see why Sheva would rule out a return to his old hunting ground if Milan were to make an offer to Chelsea. His chances of a starting berth in the side has recently taken another blow with the capture of French striker Nicolas Anelka during the January transfer window. He also seems miserable in London so a move back to Italy, a country which he loves, might be able to reignite his passion and form.
However, at 31 years of age and clearly over the hill, it is very doubtful that he would be an 'ideal choice' as a replacement for Ronaldo, another player who is approaching retirement age, or to help a club which is in a bit of a crisis.
Eight players aged thirty or older featured in the second leg of the Champion's League match against a young Arsenal side and were ran ragged. Adding another 30-something to the squad is hardly planning for the long-term nor rebuilding a squad that needs quite a heavy overhaul to challenge for domestic and European honours.
Berlusconi may be a sentimental guy and the Milan faithful would certainly welcome 'home' one of their favourite sons but the team desperately needs some new blood...thick and fast.
Ronaldo is stretchered off after his latest injury
AC Milan and Brazil striker Ronaldo's top-flight career could be over after suffering another serious setback in his injury-plagued career.
The 31 year-old former World Player of the Year had to be carried off on a stretcher after rupturing a tendon in his left knee in a match against Livorno in the Serie A. Ronaldo fell awkwardly while challenging for a ball in the air with Jose Vidigal just three minutes after replacing Alberto Gilardino in the second half.
Ronaldo: In happier times...
Livorno goalkeeper Marco Amelia, who was close by when Ronaldo fell to the ground, was reported saying he heard a 'horrible sound' before the Brazilian went down clutching his left knee in tears.
Ronaldo suffered the same injury in his right knee in November 1999 and it took him a total of 25 months out of the world game which means if the current injury took the same amount of time to fully heal, he would be 33 years old by the time he makes a return.
A concerned Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti said: "I don't want to say it's the end of his career because only time can decide - all we can do is stand by him".
The striker, who has already hardly featured this season because of a series of niggling injuries is also out of contract with AC Milan at the end of the season and it remains uncertain whether he will be offered a new contract in light of this new injury.
Whether or not a player like Ronaldo, who has won every prestigious trophy and honour in the game, still has the motivation to make a comeback from another serious injury in the twilight of his career remains to be seen.
In the latest FIFA world rankings, England have moved up one place to eleventh. I don't begin to understand how these things are worked out but I would suggest that the system is flawed! Since failing to qualify for Euro 2008 England have one unconvincing win 2-1 at home to 41st ranked Switzerland. How does this mean we are on the up?
Interestingly, England are ranked above Croatia, Russia, Poland, Turkey, Sweden and Romania, all of whom have qualified for Euro 2008, the first two of course, at England's expense.
I fail to see how England can possibly be regarded as the eleventh best side in the world. The FIFA rankings are clearly non-sensical.
Other interesting rankings are that Argentina, Brazil and Italy remain the unchanged 1,2,3. Not too many people would argue with that.
Australia have moved up 10 places to 38th, and other big movers include African Cup of Nations semi-finalists Ghana and the Ivory Coast up 29 places and 14 places to 14th and 24th respectively. Losing finalists Cameroon have risen 8 places to 17th, yet Egypt, who won the title for the second year in a row have only risen 6 places to be 29th, and last of the African quartet.
Anyone who can make sense of these rankings, please let me know!
Egypt won the African Nations Cup for a record sixth time when they beat Cameroon 1-0 in the final at the Stade Omnisport.
Al-Ahly midfielder Mohamed Aboutrika slotted home the winner in the 77th minute after teammate Mohamed Zidan had capitalised on an error by ex-West Ham and Cameroon defender Rigobert Song.
The North Africans had to work almighty hard to fight off a spirited Cameroon outfit which had a string of opportunities in the last five minutes alone to force the match into extra time. However, it was not to be and Egypt captain Ahmed Hassan went onto lift the African Nations Cup for a record three times.
The champions had been one of the form sides throughout the tournament, dominating their opposition from the very first match and all the way through to their 4-1 victory in the semi-final.
LA Galaxy midfielder and global footballing icon, David Beckham, recently took part in his first training session with English giants Arsenal after accepting an offer from Gunners boss Arsene Wenger to train with the London club during the MLS off-season.
The former Manchester United and Real Madrid player is working with the Premier League leaders in a bid to reach peak physical condition before the start of MLS pre-season and more importantly, to win his 100th cap in England's friendly against Switzerland on 6 February.
A delighted Fabregas is joined by Becks in training
Arsenal's training ground is based conveniently in Colney, just minutes from Beckham's Hertfordshire mansion.
It has been reported that Beckham will mainly train with Arsenal's reserves and will only join up with the first team occasionally when they are short of players.
Judging by how delighted Arsenal's midfield sensation Cesc Fabregas looks in some of these snaps, it appears Becks has settled in well with the lads.
As widely expect, AC Milan and Brazil playmaker Kaka has won the FIFA World Player of the Year award in a glittering ceremony in Zurich overnight.
In a poll of all national coaches and captains, Kaka polled 1,047 votes - more than double that of second-placed Lionel Messi (504) and third-placed Cristiano Ronaldo (426).
Chelsea and Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba came fourth in the voting with 209, while 2004 and 2005 winner Ronaldinho came fifth after a rather bland season by his high standards.
The 25-year-old superstar was named European player of the year earlier this month and this latest accolade caps off a remarkable year for the talented attacking midfielder who led his club side AC Milan to Champions League glory in 2007, scoring 10 goals in the process.
Kaka becomes the fifth Brazilian - after Romario, Ronaldo (3), Rivaldo and Ronaldinho (2) - to win the prestigious award.
After receiving the award, Kaka said: "It's really special for me - it was a dream for me just to play for Sao Paulo and one game for Brazil,".
Italian Fabio Capello is all set to become the next manager of the England national football team after the English Football Association board approved his appointment subject to the successful conclusion of contract negotiations.
The contract 'negotiations' includes the small matter of Capello accepting a four-and-a-half year deal worth £6.5m PER year - or £4 a year AFTER tax.
I can't see any problem there!
The 61-year-old football manager is keen to bring his own backroom staff of three or four fellow Italians with him, including his trusted aide Franco Baldini as an assistant. The English FA, however, is keen to include an Englishman in the setup with former defender Stuart Pearce and goal-scoring legend Alan Shearer at the top of the list of candidates.
Fabio Capello is a former AC Milan, Juventus, Roma and Real Madrid coach with one of the most impressive CV's in world football today. He has won 9 league titles in 16 years as a coach, picking up silverware with all four clubs he has been in charge of.
He won the Champions League with Milan in 1994 by a 4-0 margin over Barcelona in one of the most destructive performances in the Champions League's history.
He will be charged with restoring pride in the Three Lions after the country failed to qualify for next year's Euro 2008 Championship finals under the reign of Steve McLaren and to qualify (and win) the 2010 World Cup.
Dutchman Pim Verbeek has been named the new Head Coach of the Socceroos through to the end of the 2010 FIFA World Cup campaign by Football Federation Australia.
But what do we know about the man in charge of leading the Socceroos to South Africa in around two and a half year's time?
Not a lot. And neither does Socceroos and West Ham defender Lucas Neill, apparently.
“I only know him from googling.
“Truthfully it surprised me, it surprised me the fact that we were bandying about Jurgen Klinsmann, Gerard Houllier and Pim Verbeek never came into the equation.
“When it was announced last night and I got the message it was like not a bad surprise, oh we have got him.”
Badoom-Touche!
He recovers by saying that he had heard previous coach Guus Hiddink speak of Verbeek highly and that his vast experience in Asian football should be vital in leading Australia to the World Cup finals in 2010.
Huh? VerbEEEEEEEEEEEK?
“I know stories from the time we were together during the World Cup when (coach) Guus (Hiddink) spoke of him and he spoke highly of him.
“He is experienced in Asia and he got South Korea third in the Asia Cup and let’s face it we failed (at the Asia Cup).
“What he is going to bring is an experience in Asia and how to win games in Asia.
“When we get to the World Cup it is a world thing but at the moment we just have to focus on getting through Asia and maybe he is the best man for the job in Asia.”
According to Wikipedia, Verbeek is 51 (March 12, 1956) and has been mostly managing Dutch football clubs since 1981. He was the assistant coach of South Korea at the 2002 and 2006 World Cup and was promoted to head coach for the 2007 AFC Asian Cup. He led Korea to a third-place finish thus guaranteeing them an automatic berth in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup tournament.
Now that we have this new little Pim Verbeek fact-file on Soccer.org.au, perhaps the other Socceroo members can learn more about their new head coach from Orbling?
AC Milan's Brazilian playmaker, Kaka, has won the prestigious Ballon D'Or as European Footballer of the Year for 2007.
The Brazilian, 25, was the Champions League's top scorer last season with 10 goals as he led his team to the title, beating Liverpool in Athens in the final.
"This is very special for me - it culminates an astonishing year for me," Kaka said.
The Ballon D'Or is awarded annually by France Football magazine who poll 96 prominent football journalists for their votes on who they think is that year's best player from a shortlist of 50. In the end, Kaka won by a large margin on 444 points with second placed Cristiano Ronaldo, 22, on 277 points. Barcelona's Lionel Messi came third.
For those of you that have been living under a rock, full-time celebrity and some-time footballer David Beckham has been in Australia for the past week in preparation for the exhibition match between his club side LA Galaxy and A-League's Sydney FC.
The match took place last night at the Telstra Stadium in front of a packed house of 80,295 spectators all there to see one thing: Beckham magic.
And the former England captain duly delivered in the first-half stoppage time when he curled home a trademark free-kick. Although unable to prevent his team from succumbing to a 5-3 defeat by the home side, his fans were happy to see their idol deliver some magic on Australian soil.
The preliminary draw for the World Cup 2010 in South Africa has been made with over 100 countries fighting for one of 32 places at the finals
The host country, which qualifies automatically, will be joined by five other African nations, thirteen from Europe, four from South America and Asia and three from Concacaf. There will also be two places decided by an Oceania/Asia play-off and a Concacaf/South America play-off.
The preliminary draw for Europe, Asia and Africa is as follows:
EUROPE DRAW
Group 1: Portugal, Sweden, Denmark, Hungary, Albania, Malta
Group 2: Greece, Israel, Switzerland, Moldova, Latvia, Luxembourg
Group 3: Czech Republic, Poland, Northern Ireland, Slovakia, Slovenia, San Marino
Group 4: Germany, Russia, Finland, Wales, Azerbaijan, Liechtenstein
Group 5: Spain, Turkey, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Armenia, Estonia
Group 6: Croatia, England, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Andorra
Group 7: France, Romania, Serbia, Lithuania, Austria, Faroe Islands
Group 8: Italy, Bulgaria, Republic of Ireland, Cyprus, Georgia, Montenegro
Group 9: Holland, Scotland, Norway, FYR Macedonia, Iceland
AFRICA DRAW
Group 1: Cameroon, Cape Verde Islands, Tanzania, Mauritius
Group 2: Guinea, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Kenya
Group 3: Angola, Benin, Uganda, Niger
Group 4: Nigeria, South Africa, Equatorial Guinea, Sierra Leone
Group 5: Ghana, Libya, Gabon, Lesotho
Group 6: Liberia, Algeria, Senegal, Gambia
Group 7: Ivory Coast, Mozambique, Botswana, Madagascar
Group 8: Morocco, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Mauritania
Group 9: Burkina Faso, Tunisia, Burundi, Seychelles
Group 10: Mali, Congo, Sudan, Chad
Group 11: Togo, Eritrea, Zambia, Swaziland
Group 12: Egypt, DR Congo, Malawi, Djibouti
ASIAN DRAW
Group 1: Qatar, Iraq, China, Australia
Group 2: Thailand, Oman, Bahrain, Japan
Group 3: Turkmenistan, Jordan, North Korea, Korea Republic
Group 4: Singapore, Lebanon, Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia
Group 5: Syria, UAE, Kuwait, Iran
England will be given the opportunity to get revenge on their Euro 2008 qualifying conquerors Croatia after they were ironically paired in Group 6 of the European draw.
Australia was drawn in Group 1 of the Asian draw against the likes of Qatar, Iraq and China. The competitiveness of the group has led to it being named "Asia's Group of Death".
What do you think of Australia's chances of qualifying?
Steve McLaren's 15-month tenure as England head coach - the briefest of any full-time England coach - came to an abrupt end on Thursday morning (GMT) after England's disastrous exit from the Euro 2008 Championship.
In the aftermath of England's 3-2 defeat by Croatia, the Football Association held an emergency board meeting the morning after and made an unanimous decision to terminate the contract of McClaren and his assistant Terry Venables with immediate effect.
The FA's chief executive Brian Barwick admitted McClaren's failure to qualify for Euro 2008 cost him his job.
'It was a board decision - it was unanimous." he said.
"I spoke to Steve this morning - we get on very well with him. I've had many grown-up conversations and had another one with him this morning - and I can only wish him well.
But in the end, not qualifying for Euro 2008 comes up short. Qualification for a major tournament is probably a minimum requirement." he added.
McLaren took over as manager of England after the departure of Sven Goran Eriksson on August 1st 2006 to very little public backing. He had been involved with the England setup for many years as assistant coach prior to his appointment as head coach and many felt that he had been hastily appointed due to the lack of candidates available to the FA at the time.
Despite being given two chances to qualify for the finals in Austria and Switzerland, McLaren and his men wasted both opportunities with completely inept performances to miss out on qualification for a major tournament for the first time since the 1994 World Cup.
It took years for the last manager that failed to lead the country to a major tournament, Graham Taylor, years to rebuild his reputation and there is no doubt that it would take even longer for Steve McLaren, who now has the unenviable record of the highest percentage of games lost as manager at 28%.
AC Milan goalkeeper Dida has had his two-match suspension reduced by UEFA following an appeal by the club.
The 34-year-old Brazilian was initially banned for two games for his theatrics following a very minor 'altercation' with a Celtic fan that had gone onto the pitch during the 2-1 defeat at Celtic Park.
The initial two-match suspension has now been reduced to just one with a further game suspended for a year.
AC Milan's grounds for appeal were that the keeper's actions was nevertheless a mistake but his error did not hinder anyone, not Celtic, nor any player. The club were also unhappy that Celtic were fined only £25,000 which, in their opinion, was lenient compared to the suspension Dida received.
The decision by UEFA to reduce the suspension is an absolute disgrace. The initial two-match suspension was by no means harsh by any standards - some would say that Dida deserved to have been heavily punished for tarnishing the reputation and integrity of the game.
By reducing the length of the suspension, UEFA has effectively condoned the keeper's actions and that any other player thinking of doing the same in the future can expect just a one-match ban.
Who else thinks Celtic should reduce the fan's lifetime banishment from the club's matches now? They might as bloody well!
Dida is stretchered off after being tapped by a fan
AC Milan's play acting 'genius' Dida received a two-match ban from UEFA for his ludicrous theatrics in last week's controversial Champions League match again Scottish side Celtic.
Dida was found to have breached UEFA's 'principles of loyalty, integrity and sportsmanship' for writhing around in feigned agony near the goalmouth when approached by a Celtic supporting pitch-invader who had barely tapped him on/near the collarbone.
Celtic have been fined £25,000, half of which is suspended, for their part in the incident by UEFA.
Celtic has banned the fan from all the club's matches - both home and away - for life.
Manchester United striker Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is set to announce his retirement from football today at the age of 34.
The UK's The Sun newspaper has reported that the Norwegian has finally given in to the persistent knee problems he has suffered since 2003.
Affectionately named the "Baby-faced assassin" by the press and United fans alike, the striker epitomised the role of "super-sub" - by coming off the bench to rescue his beloved United side many times.
None more so than in the Champions League final of 1999 when he scored the winner with effectively the last kick of the game thus writing himself in Manchester United history.
Playing in an era when footballers collected super big pay cheques, Solskjaer avoided the big ego that came almost hand-in-hand with the money and adulation by keeping his private life exactly that - private.
He was also the consummate professional and never moaned nor complained about his place in the United team and squad, despite starting many games on the bench. When called upon, he never failed to deliver and that is the reason why he has been a mainstay in Ferguson's team for over 10 years.
Making a total of 235 appearances for the Red Devils and scoring 92 goals, these statistics would have been even more impressive had he not experienced persistent knee problems since 2003.
His injury nightmare first arose in 2003 when a recurring knee problem restricted his first-team appearances but worse was to come in season 2004-05.
Solksjaer celebrates after scoring THAT goal
After undergoing intensive knee operations, he was forced to sit out the entire season which coincided with Chelsea's dominance in the Premier League that saw United endure a barren spell when it came to trophies.
Solskjaer finally recovered well enough for regular football last season and helped the club win the Premiership with 30 appearances and 11 goals - making him the club's third highest scorer for the season.
His injury nightmare returned in June 2007 when he began to feel discomfort in the same problematic knee whilst in Norway. After undergoing another knee operation, Solskjaer failed to recover well enough to cope with the demands of top-flight football.
He is scheduled to officially announce his retirement later today.
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