Friday, 29 November 2013

FourFourTwos Top 100 Players in the World 2013: 90-81

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FourFourTwos Top 100 Players in the World 2013: 90-81

FourFourTwos Top 100 Players in the World 2013: 90-81

Posted: 28 Nov 2013 12:29 PM PST

As ever, it has been a far from easy task. But the results are in, and we've nailed down the final list. Will Iker Casillas lose his place in our list like he lost his place in the Real Madrid first team? Will England's 'golden generation' continue to drift? Has the Bundesliga become our most represented league? Can Franck Ribery break the duopoly of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi? They've both had sensational years but who of Messi or Ronaldo is topping the tree this year? As both battle it out for January's grand FIFA prize we've ranked the duo ourselves based on their 2013 showings. The top three of our list has exactly matched the top three in the Ballon d'Or for the last two seasons, so you should see this as something of a prelude to January's big do in Zurich. In the new magazine - out on Wednesday - we've interviewed several of the world's best players, including the No.1. But who's the greatest? There's only one way to find out… In a tough start to Premier League life that's seen precious little service from his Tottenham team-mates, Soldado has shown occasional flashes of true class. It's easy to underestimate his talent for scoring: over the last 12 months, only the unstoppable fivesome of Ronaldo, Messi, Cavani, Lewandowski and Falcao – all at far better teams – have netted more in Europe's top five leagues than 'Bobby Soldier'. The two-time UEFA Cup and Copa del Rey winner conquered his homesickness to leave Seville after 10 years and join Manuel Pellegrini's revolution at Manchester City. Armed with speed, trickery and vision, Navas gets bums out of seats and strikers scoring goals. Last season he created 76 chances in La Liga - the fifth highest total in the league. With former Sevilla team-mate Alvaro Negredo joining Navas at City, Premier League defences are in for a rough ride. Jose Mourinho may sometimes struggle to choose between his attacking midfielders, but behind them it's Ramires +1. The indefatigable Brazilian is an ever-present at Stamford Bridge, having started every match bar the Basle defeat and two League Cup fixtures this season. Mourinho's problem may be keeping hold of the 26-year-old, linked with Real Madrid and Barcelona. He likes flash cars and Swarovski crystal-encrusted football boots, but behind the flash exterior lies an all-round good egg and a fine footballer. With explosive pace and acceleration, the Gabon international striker was a shrewd signing by Dortmund after excelling at Saint-Etienne, where he was Ligue 1's second top scorer with 19 goals. Helped fire Les Verts to a first major trophy in 32 years. It's strange to think now that some doubted Fergie's decision to sign the Serbian centre-back: the subsequent eight years as the granite bedrock of United's defence have proven the old knight right yet again. David Moyes' problem is how to replace the 32-year-old, without whom the champions' back line is still prone to struggling. The France international is one of those players who often goes under the radar – maybe because of his pint-sized 5ft 6in frame. Marseille's No.10 is, however, a player of great skill and trickery, with excellent technique. He created more chances than any other player in Europe's five leagues last season – some achievement. A player equally comfortable operating as a No.10 in a deeper attacking role or as an out-and-out striker, Jovetic is a livewire of a forward and a devastating finisher. The Montenegro international hit 13 league goals for Fiorentina last season, although his career at Manchester City hasn't really got up and running yet. One of Germany's most prolific strikers, scoring 25 goals in 34 league appearances to book Bayer's place in this season's Champions League. But the Leverkusen front-man, last season's top Bundesliga marksman, is unlikely to travel to Brazil after falling out with national team boss Joachim Low. Stating he would "never play under Low again", the striker continues to be snubbed despite injuries to Germany's first choice front men Miroslav Klose and Mario Gomez. Poland's skipper has now passed 200 games in Dortmund colours since joining from Wisla Krakow. Forming a deadly double act with compatriot Lukasz Piszczek on the right, 'Kuba' was key in Die Schwarzgelben's run to last season's Champions League final and recently signed a new deal at Westfalenstadion, saying: "Where else would I feel as good as I do at Dortmund? I'm part of the city and club." The feelings are mutual in north Germany. Two full seasons and two titles at Juventusfor the stylish centre-back. Eyebrows were raised when the Bianconeri snapped up this one-time €11m underachiever for just €300k from Wolfsburg in January 2011 - but nobody's sneering now. The Italy regular has flourished under Antonio Conte and continues to be the calm presence behind Juve's exemplary backline. 100-91• 90-81 •80-71• 70-61• 60-51 • 50-41 • 40-31 • 30-21 • 20-11 • 10-1

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FourFourTwos Top 100 Players in the World 2013: 80-71

Posted: 28 Nov 2013 12:28 PM PST

As ever, it has been a far from easy task. But the results are in, and we've nailed down the final list. Will Iker Casillas lose his place in our list like he lost his place in the Real Madrid first team? Will England's 'golden generation' continue to drift? Has the Bundesliga become our most represented league? Can Franck Ribery break the duopoly of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi? They've both had sensational years but who of Messi or Ronaldo is topping the tree this year? As both battle it out for January's grand FIFA prize we've ranked the duo ourselves based on their 2013 showings. The top three of our list has exactly matched the top three in the Ballon d'Or for the last two seasons, so you should see this as something of a prelude to January's big do in Zurich. In the new magazine - out on Wednesday - we've interviewed several of the world's best players, including the No.1. But who's the greatest? There's only one way to find out… It's official. You're not allowed to discuss Hugo Lloris without mentioning the words 'sweeper-keeper' in the same sentence. About as close to a rush keeper as you're going to get in the professional game, the French captain makes this year's list having firmly established himself as Spurs No.1, dealing with shots, crosses and balls in behind the defence with equal ease. Recent events suggest he could do with improving his kicking, though... The spearhead of the Rojiblancos' resurgence under Diego Simeone; the Brazil-born striker could have been plying his trade at Liverpool in 2013/14 but is banging in the goals for Atletico instead. The 25-year-old bagged 13 goals in 13 La Liga appearances to start the campaign as the Vicente Calderon club kept up with defending champions Barcelona at the top of the standings and overshadowed city rivals Real. Only rock-bottom Pescara conceded more goals than Inter last season, which is hardly a glowing reference – and yet, unbelievably, things could have been far worse for the Nerazzurri without Handanovic in nets. If anything, the Slovenian No.1 enhanced his reputation despite his club's horrific season, displaying sharp reflexes and a commanding presence behind a leaky Inter defence. Manchester City are rumoured to be interested. Statistics do not a great player make, but Baines created the second-most chances in Europe's top five leagues last season. From left-back. In a team that finished sixth. Stylish and relentless (before his injury against Liverpool he'd played the full 90 minutes in his previous 170 Premier League games), the mop-haired adventurer is finally getting the recognition he deserves. His defending needs work, but he takes self-improvement in his stride. Having spent large chunk of 2012 on the sidelines with a broken tibia, things were only really ever likely to get better in 2013. The striker scored the crucial third goal as Barca overturned a 2-0 first-leg deficit to overcome Milan in the last 16 of the Champions League, before sealing a summer move to Atletico Madrid with the aim of securing regular football and another World Cup winner's medal. After scoring 69 league goals over four years for Sevilla, Negredo earned his shot at Premier League stardom by joining Manchester City and has made an impressive start to life in England. The powerful frontman netted in two of his opening three league appearances for his new club and wasted no time in striking up a potent partnership with another talismanic import from the Spanish top flight, Sergio Aguero. EXCLUSIVE Alvaro Negredo interview in the new FourFourTwo In days gone by, pundits used to claim that flair players like Glenn Hoddle would have received a century of caps for any other country. A similar complaint could be made for 31-cap Michael Carrick, whose unflustered interceptions and distribution have kept Manchester United ticking over for going on eight seasons. Expect Roy Hodgson to export his calming metronome to Brazil - and rightly so. Roughly a goal every other game isn't bad going for your first season with Bayern Munich, let alone lifting a hat-trick of trophies to boot. The Croatian's job is simple - scoring - and making sure the work of Ribery Co. doesn't go to waste is what he does best. No frills, just guaranteed goals. A knack for the perfect last-gasp tackle and impressive composure in possession helped the versatile Tottenham star win a place in the Premier League's team of 2012/13 at centre-back, despite playing at least a third of the season a left-back. Although by his own admission the latter not his favoured position, it is where he's likely to feature for Belgium at next summer's World Cup. While 2012/13 may not have been a vintage season for the midfielder, De Rossi has been much improved this season under the watchful eye of new coach Rudi Garcia. He may continue to be merely 'Captain Futuro' (future captain) of the Stadio Olimpico outfit, with the evergreen Francesco Totti signing yet another new contract in September, but De Rossi's importance to Roma's resurgence shouldn't be underestimated. 100-91 • 90-81 • 80-71 • 70-61 • 60-51 • 50-41 • 40-31 • 30-21 • 20-11 • 10-1

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FourFourTwos Top 100 Players in the World 2013: 30-21

Posted: 28 Nov 2013 12:23 PM PST

As ever, it has been a far from easy task. But the results are in, and we've nailed down the final list. Will Iker Casillas lose his place in our list like he lost his place in the Real Madrid first team? Will England's 'golden generation' continue to drift? Has the Bundesliga become our most represented league? Can Franck Ribery break the duopoly of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi? They've both had sensational years but who of Messi or Ronaldo is topping the tree this year? As both battle it out for January's grand FIFA prize we've ranked the duo ourselves based on their 2013 showings. The top three of our list has exactly matched the top three in the Ballon d'Or for the last two seasons, so you should see this as something of a prelude to January's big do in Zurich. There's only one way to find out… The exemplar of the modern top-class centre-back - bulky but agile, tall but lithe, an economic migrant but settled enough to captain his team - Kompany has been a roaring success in the Premier League. He should be looking forward to 2014, considering the Belgium side he skippers are off to their first finals since 2002, but he will be concerned that injuries are taking longer to shrug off these days. His club side Manchester City are certainly the poorer without his calming presence. The 26-year-old's habit of scoring important goals continued into 2013, with crucial strikes against PSG and France towards the business end of last season. That's not to say he isn't extremely consistent and effective - the forward has continued to perform well under Barcelona's new manager Gerardo Martino, and is something of an unsung hero at Camp Nou. EXCLUSIVEPedro interview in the new FourFourTwo "No matter how many shots you save, we will never accept you in our shirt." So claimed the banner unfurled by Bayern fans after Neuer's move from Schalke in summer 2011. All Neuer can do is keep saving shots, and he does it well: last season Bayern broke dozens of Bundesliga records at both ends of the field, including most clean sheets (21 in 34 games), fewest goals conceded (18) and fewest away goals conceded (7). Neuer was in goal for 31 of those 34 games, and is Germany's undisputed No.1. Accept it. Nine league goals and a starring role in Malaga's surprise run to the Champions League quarter-finals inspired Carlo Ancelotti to make the former Valencia trainee his first summer signing at Real Madrid. The €30 million man hit the ground running at Santiago Bernabeu with three goals in his first three outings, keeping Mesut Ozil out of the side and forcing the German to seek regular football elsewhere, much to Arsenal's gain. Muller's 23 goals and 17 assists were a major contributing factor to Bayern's unprecedented treble last season, as the 24-year-old brilliant Bavarian consolidated his position as one of the world's top players. In a sense, his incredible versatility weighs against him: the German doesn't instantly spring to mind in debates about great forwards or midfielders, but he can play as both to a very high level. His spatial awareness in midfield makes him a dastardly opponent and he can finish too: he was Bayern's top scorer in the Champions League with eight goals. Sensational in a Chelsea side anything but last season, Mata's creativity saw him top the charts for Premier League assists - and net 12 goals. It didn't seem to matter to Jose Mourinho, who dropped the Spain man at the start of his tenure, but make no mistake: Mata is still one of the world's greatest No.10s. He's got a point to prove with both club and country now. The centre-back's late blooming was worth the wait where Bayern are concerned. "He's one of the best defenders I've ever played with," glowed Philipp Lahm shortly after his team-mate's arrival. While far from an unknown quantity after almost three years at Borussia Mönchengladbach, the 30-year-old's influence in the Bavarians' brilliant campaign was surprising as it was significant. The big-haired Brazilian can do no wrong right now. Yes, yes, we know. And no, he shouldn't be higher. Not when you consider the last 12 months haven't been the best for the Manchester United forward. Not only did he see his position as Manchester United's best player usurped by Robin van Persie, he was dropped for key games in the league and Champions League. So there. Returning to his boyhood club last season couldn't have gone any better for the 24-year-old, who took to Jürgen Klopp's adventurous brand of attacking football like a duck to water. When Dortmund need him Reus steps up, as demonstrated by his flawless displays domestically and in Europe last season. With his guile comes goals too - lots of them. And there's much more to come. EXCLUSIVEMarco Reus interview in the new FourFourTwo Long gone is the scamp found with females in training ground hot tubs. So much so, in fact, that former Bayern manager Jupp Heynckes went as far to name him "the world's best midfielder" alongside Sergio Busquets. It was just more praise in a terrific year for the 29-year-old, whose three Bayern trophies were complemented by a 100th Germany cap in October. 100-91 • 90-81 • 80-71 • 70-61 • 60-51 • 50-41 • 40-31 • 30-21 • 20-11 • 10-1

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FourFourTwos Top 100 Players in the World 2013: 10-1

Posted: 28 Nov 2013 12:21 PM PST

As ever, it has been a far from easy task. But the results are in, and we've nailed down the final list. Will Iker Casillas lose his place in our list like he lost his place in the Real Madrid first team? Will England's 'golden generation' continue to drift? Has the Bundesliga become our most represented league? Can Franck Ribery break the duopoly of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi? They've both had sensational years but who of Messi or Ronaldo is topping the tree this year? As both battle it out for January's grand FIFA prize we've ranked the duo ourselves based on their 2013 showings. The top three of our list has exactly matched the top three in the Ballon d'Or for the last two seasons, so you should see this as something of a prelude to January's big do in Zurich. In this month's magazine, out on Wednesday, we interview several of the best players in the world. But who's the greatest? There's only one way to find out… A rock at the heart of PSG's title-winning defence, this was the year in which Silva finally became almost unanimously regarded as the world's best centre-back. Fierce, committed and driven, the Brazilian is a captain and a leader in the purest sense, and capped a fine season by helping his nation lift the Confederations Cup on home soil. A hat-trick and wonder goal against Aston Villa to seal the Premier League title proved a fitting finale to the Dutchman's devastating debut season at Old Trafford. Van Persie's decision to pick United over City ultimately determined the destination of last season's silverware. His 26 league goals played no small part in the Red Devils finishing 11 points above their noisy neighbours to snatch the trophy back off them. Forget that hat-trick against Inter in 2010 - this will be the year remembered as the one in which Bale really put his name on the map. A sensational second half of 2012/13 may not have been enough to drag Spurs into the Champions League, but it was enough to convince Real Madrid to finally cough up a reported £86m for his services. After a slow start, the Welshman is starting to show the expectant Bernabeu crowd that the club's big-wigs were right to be so keen. FFT wouldn't presume to understand what goes on inside the shiny dome of football's Professor X, but we were surprised when Pep Guardiola took the best full-back since Paolo Maldini and moved him into a packed Bayern midfield. Lahm's response was to marshal the middle like a natural, foiling opponents and regularly completing over 100 passes per game. Guardiola says if he played Lahm upfront, "he'd be the best striker in Europe". Modern football's understated, underrated genius? No doubt. What more can be said about the big, brilliant Swede? Zlatan is Zlatan: the man, the myth, the legend. He defies analysis. After joining the Qatari revolution at PSG, 30 league goals fired the French club to their first league title in 19 years and it's fair to say he often singlehandedly carried the team. Four iconic goals against England summed up a stellar season. Barcelona may be changing, even as the Camp Nou crew march toward another title, but it looks like Iniesta is there for the duration. Turning 30 in May, just before the World Cup at which Spain will chase a fourth successive tournament triumph, the Catalans' creator-in-chief looks set to sign a new contract which could take him to 20 years at the club he joined as a 12-year-old. The manner with which the Colombian striker hit the ground running following his summer move to Ligue 1 was as impressive as it was predictable. Having blasted Atletico Madrid to the Copa del Rey and third in La Liga last season, the powerful forward has his eyes on the Ligue 1 title and a return to the Champions League - a competition he has only played in just one of his five seasons in Europe. There isn't much more the brilliant Frenchman can do to stake his claim for January's Ballon d'Or ("it will go above my fireplace," he quipped last month). Jokes aside, Bayern's terrace hero has been nothing short of sensational in 2013. He won the UEFA Best Player in Europe award by a landslide - just reward for being the driving force behind his side's stunning treble season. Only No.2, we hear you cry? Well, yes. It may not be his fault that Barcelona are over-reliant on him, especially against top-level European quality, but an injury-punctuated last six months have highlighted that arguably the world's greatest team are in decline. Both legs of the Champions League semi-final against Bayern Munich would have been unthinkable even 18 months ago - just like Messi not being No.1 on our list every year. But such is life, and the Argentine now has a big year ahead to prove why it's he who should be taking this mantle in 12 months' time. He could do a lot worse than leading his country to World Cup glory on enemy soil. "Firstly, I want to thank you for this honour", Ronaldo told FFT upon hearing we had named him our player of 2013, on the night of Portugal's World Cup qualifying play-off first-leg win over Sweden. Having been kept off our top spot since 2008 by Lionel Messi, the Real Madrid superstar is finally numero uno. It's not hard to see why - his stunning hat-trick in the second leg of that play-off underlined his ability to drag a team to victory, thanks to his pace, power and world-wowwing skills. But what for 2014? "I think we can win the league and the Champions League", Ronaldo tells us. Our No.2 will have something to say about that... FEATURE Viva Ronaldo: Why Cristiano is FourFourTwo's player of 2013 EXCLUSIVECristiano Ronaldo interview in the new FourFourTwo 100-91 • 90-81 • 80-71 • 70-61 • 60-51 • 50-41 • 40-31 • 30-21 • 20-11 • 10-01

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The FourFourTwo Preview: Tottenham vs Man United

Posted: 28 Nov 2013 08:07 AM PST

Billed as A chance for one of Moyes or AVB to get the media off their backs for a week. The lowdown Could this be Andre Villas-Boas' final game in charge of Spurs? If you believe reports elsewhere, possibly. It would be a wildly irrational move to allow a manager to spend more than £100 million rebuilding a squad in his image only to sack him within 13 league games. But this is football, and we all know she dances to the beat of her own drum. A 6-0 thumping at Manchester City last weekend was 'extremely embarrassing' as The Gruff-Voiced One himself put it post-match, but even allowing for that avalanche of Etihad goals Spurs still have one of the league's best defensive records - only Southampton, Arsenal and Chelsea are tighter at the back. Spurs' real problems are in attack, where nine goals in 12 games has seen striker Roberto Soldado come under increased scrutiny. For the champions, more late goal heartache (aren't Manchester United supposed to be the masters of scoring late goals?!) cost them another two points at Cardiff. While few will argue that Moyes' deserved all three points, a growing inability to hang onto winning scorelines will concern those of a red persuasion. United's 5-0 Champions League win at Bayer Leverkusen was a huge tonic for Moyes, and after taking only one point from their meetings with Tottenham last season, the Red Devils go looking for a result that would push them closer to the top four and Spurs a step nearer to those back page 'crisis' headlines. Team news Nemanja Vidic (concussion) and Robin van Persie (groin) are injury doubts for Moyes' boys, while Michael Carrick will miss out. One of Marouane Fellaini or Tom Cleverley is therefore likely to return to the side in place of Ryan Giggs, whose 40-year-old legs will struggle to play in two high intensity away games inside a week. Neither Fellaini nor Cleverley covered themselves in glory during last Sunday's draw in Cardiff, so the manager has a decision to make. Spurs are without Danny Rose (foot), Harry Kane (back) and Christian Eriksen (ankle), but having rested Paulinho, Hugo Lloris, Kyle Walker, Sandro, Aaron Lennon, Younes Kaboul and Jermain Defoe for the Europa League game at Tromso, the majority of those players should feature. Key battle: Andros Townsend vs Patrice Evra Evra was taken off with 20 minutes to go in Germany, presumably to keep him fresh for White Hart Lane. Given the way Moyes likes to set his team up with strong emphasis on width, Evra is of huge importance to United. The Frenchman will have to be diligent in his defensive duties against a livewire in Townsend, but the England international will have his own concerns. Evra is the most fundamental player to United's attack this season after Wayne Rooney, with 1.5 key passes per game - more than Phillippe Coutinho, Oscar and Leighton Baines. Townsend, meanwhile, was left out of the 6-0 drubbing at City and may be recalled here. After Luis Suarez, no-one has had more shots per game in the Premier League than Spurs' 22-year-old wing sensation, but only one goal from 45 shots (a misplaced cross at that) is a poor return, and one that needs improving. The managers Late goals are often the order of the day when Moyes meets AVB. Last season, Everton scored two last-gasp goals to beat Spurs 2-1 at Goodison Park before Gylfi Sigurdsson returned the favour in the 88th minute of a 2-2 draw at White Hart Lane. The season before, AVB's Chelsea knocked Moyes' Everton out of the League Cup with a late goal. In five meetings they have two wins each and one draw. Facts and figures Ryan Giggs has scored more Premier League goals against Tottenham than he has against any other opponent (10). More facts at FFT's Tottenham vs Man United Stats Zone page Tips and trends Spurs suffered their worst defeat since 1996 last weekend as they got stuffed 6-0 by City. Spurs have won just 2 of their last 7 home games against top-six sides, with both sides scoring in each of those matches. Since the start of last season Man United have lost just 4 of their 19 trips to top-half teams since 2011/12 – winning 9 times. Ten of United's last 14 trips to top-half teams have provided at least 3 goals. United haven't lost in any of their last 13 trips to White Hart Lane. Find the best odds with Bet Butler FourFourTwo prediction This one has late goal written all over it, but which way is anyone's guess. 1-1. Tottenham vs Man United LIVE ANALYSIS with Stats Zone

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Moyes marvels over evergreen Giggs

Posted: 28 Nov 2013 12:22 AM PST

The midfielder gave a timely reminder of the quality he still possesses in the 5-0 UEFA Champions League win in Germany on Wednesday as he prepares to turn 40 on Friday. Giggs had a hand in two of United's goals as the Premier League champions eased into the last 16 of the competition. The build-up to Giggs reaching the milestone age has been dominated by talk of whether or not he can play on beyond the end of the season, but his performance against Leverkusen left United manager Moyes in no doubt that the Welshman still has a big part in the side. Moyes, who promoted Giggs to player-coach following his close-season arrival at Old Trafford, said: "He's an unbelievable footballer and is even getting better. His vision, his pass for Nani's last goal, you wouldn't say he needed to come off because of his fitness. "Some people have mentioned his age , but you can't mention anything about his footballing ability. "He's a wonderful footballer and I'm lucky to be working with him. "I got asked the question the other day about how long he'll carry on and the situation with Ryan is that you keep playing. "He'll tell us when he thinks he's had enough, but he keeps training, he keeps playing and his performances have been excellent."

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