If Zlatan was still at PSG, there was a huge possibility that PSG would not have gone for Mbappe or would have offloaded some other player (maybe Cavani or Di Maria). However, since the question does not explicitly mention anything, I will assume that the question wants the answer with respect to this lineup - Neymar, Mbappe, Zlatan, Cavani, Draxler, Di Maria.
Obviously all of them cannot be accommodated in the same starting 11 at a time. Zlatan is ageing. So, I cannot see him starting for all 36 Ligue 1 games or all the UCL games. If Zlatan was still there, he, Cavani and Mbappe would have shared the two forward spots among themselves with all 3 being there in extreme situations when the team desperately needs goals. That would have made the lineup a nightmare for opposition defenders as if their current attack is not scary enough. Though it is highly unlikely that Mbappe could have come to PSG in such a situation as the starting spot would not have been so much for granted. Also, if Zlatan was there, there would not have been an argument regarding taking set pieces. No dispute between Neymar and Cavani would have been there. Last but not the least, coming to last season, PSG probably would not have blown a lead of 4–0 against FC Barcelona as Zlatan would have brought some more attacking threat in the second leg and it would have been tough for Barca to commit all men forward. Also, I would not have liked to be Timothy Weah. Have not heard about him? Exactly. He is a forward at PSG. What is the chance that he would have got some game time to continue his development? That was a rhetorical question anyway. Tottenham are the best premier League team in terms of transfer policy, youth development, attacking football, maximum utilisation of available resources. Tottenham Hotspur didn't spring suddenly from nowhere it was built like every team under transition it also had it's ups and downs now the team enjoys the fruits of their hardwork.
They are yet to win a big trophy it can change in a matter of time but the important thing in sport according to me is the person who plays the sport and also the fans who watch the game should enjoy it in that case hands down Spurs are the best in Premier League. Combining attacking football with consistent results is quiet difficult in PL as best shown by Liverpool then comes the transfer policy building a team is hundred times more difficult than buying a team as shown by both Manchester clubs,youth development is another area where Tottenham trump their rivals best illustrated by the number of Tottenham players linked with every club’s transfer thus showing their strength. Tottenham for last two years has been title contenders but their buys has been more useful than expensive thus indicating Pochettino's shrewd tactics,Spurs don't spend such insane amount of money on a single player as ManUtd did on Paul pogba’s case. The last thing is it has more scope to improve and are not going to stagnate they are more a team than collection of stars barring Kane they aren't not very dependent on a single player thus showing their togetherness on a single goal.I believe Tottenham has the players to be double holders if not the treble hope they win the PL in the coming year. He is an exceptional talent who will raise the potency of the team and bring to the club huge attention and vastly increased marketability.
On a sporting front… He will change our style, for whilst Max is ever the pragmatist, his hand will be forced, to some degree. For Ronaldo will not settle for a 1 goal lead when he plays. How much he will play will be an interesting riddle to be solved as the season unravels and emerges from the horizon. In terms of the team we now have. I would say it is the strongest since 2006. Two goalkeepers of great class. Vying for the number one jersey. Bonucci remains an exceptional ball playing stopper who alongside Can should/could provide the muscle and hustle in the hole between defence and attack we were so sorely lacking last term, which will unleash Pjanic to play more freely, and stick to focusing on his strengths. Chiellini is an old bag of bones but still eminently capable, with Rugani, I hope, set to step in and if he can get a run in the side and dovetail with Bonucci, we could have a superb CB pairing. Benatia is decent but prone to errors and Barzagli is too long in the fang. Sandro remains potentially world class. Cancelo looks a magnificent signing. With De Sciglio to deputise for them both. Bernardeschi, Costa, Cuadrado are top drawer wing options, especially little DOug who was looking a world beater in the second half of last season. Dybala can learn from Ronaldo and their partnership could be pivotal in any serious assault on the CL crown. Add in a still rock solid Mandzukic, viable Matuidi, up and coming Bentancur and the side looks to have no obvious weaknesses, other than Khedira. Who simply must be phased out. Ronaldo has perhaps encouraged others to stay and he very much does improve out chances of winning any game against any opponent. His determination and fastidious attention to training and fitness can but help the squad as a whole, and our chances of ultimate glory in turn. Obviously nobody in their right mind would deny that Roman Abramovich's investment has elevated Chelsea from the plucky underdogs who used to snag a knockout trophy here and there in the late 90s to one of the most intimidating teams that have won almost everything.
That being said, here's my take. 1. They've upset the established order. Look at Arsenal fans whining and complaining throughout this thread and elsewhere for the past decade or so. Chelsea have directly replaced Arsenal as the chief challenger for trophies in England. Arsenal and Liverpool fans have been left to sadly reminisce about their past winnings - while teams like Chelsea and City add trophies to their cabinet in the present. Frankly, I couldn't give less of a rat's rear end what was won in my dad/grand father's time - Look to the present and the future. 2. New, Overseas Fandom. The victors get the praise / backing of the masses. I sure as hell don't think that 300-500 million people live in Manchester - but that is the purported number of fans that United have. Chelsea can't have that? 3. Excessive Spending. FYI, there was no such concept called Financial Fair Play when Abramovich came about. No rules have thus been broken. Spending has been curbed in recent years so as to comply with FFP, else we'd have Cavani/Falcao - the last pieces of the puzzle. (Concepts such as amortisation have to be considered while reporting amounts spent and received. Do check out Jake Cohen's articles on SBnation which explains it a lot better than I possibly could.) Recently 76 clubs have been ordered to explain their finances. Chelsea is NOT one of them. Well, well. With the recent policy of buying highly rated talent and loaning them out, Chelsea are in a win-win situation. The best young talent make it into the team, and the ones who sadly couldn't make it get sold for a profit. Thibaut Courtois - easily the young goalkeeper in the world was bought for approximately 7 million - an incredibly low value - seeing how good he is today. Kevin de Bruyne was obtained for about 7 mill and sold for 20 million Euros. Not bad, considering he didn't score for Chelsea even once! And it's not as though these youngsters are brought against their will - they'd still have had to make it at their original clubs. And if God forbid, there was a financial crisis - after selling off the players with massive wages, there are plenty of classy young talent ready to fill the void. After all, it's cool if a team buys a bunch of stars, christens them the Galacticos, later breaks the world record for a transfer twice in one window, and eventually breaks the record again despite having the likes of di Maria and Jese Rodriguez at the same position as long as evil Chelsea don't do it. Bayern Munich poaching the best talents of their immediate opponents in the Bundesliga is perfectly acceptable, isn't it? 4. Paucity of English Talent. It is unfortunate that Chelsea doesn't have a greater number of local talent - but it's not as though England is the hotbed of such local talent. Look at the top young English talent at United - Welbeck and Cleverley. (Please muffle your laughter.) Arsenal, Liverpool and Southampton have some highly touted talents - but the jury is still out as to whether they are good enough to win anything. There’s only one thing that rules today’s football and it’s money.
I personally would start by assuming that for the next ten years there won’t be any success. ACM needs to build a long term plan, especially reinforcing the chinese/asian presence. This should increase revenues that in turn lead to more solid financials that allow for higher market expenses. I would then focus on the network of scouts around the world. ACM in the past had a strong connection in Brasil, that brought kaka, thiago silva, Leonardo etc just to quote the latest big players that flourished in AC Milan. By paying little these new prospects we can either build talent or fuel the market season by selling talent and reinforcing areas in need. Slowly AC Milan should in 3–5 years reinforce the italian presence to compete in the Scudetto title. This means that our presence in the UCL will not be in jeopardy eveery year, and with it the hundreds of millions from TV rights and marketing exposure. meanwhile we also need to build an own stadium, and focus on a sport director with a long term plan. Sadly nowadays the director cannot plan longer than 2 years, due to high pressure to get back to former glory, but ithink a slower growth is needed, like Juventus from 2006 onward. They followed a 8th place right after relegation, but then started building a strong core team with specific reinforcements every year. They now stably compete in the UCL aiming for the Final. This year was meant to be a bit better than what the final outcome was (Europa league), however we HAD TO completely change the 11 starters, and some mistakes are bound to happen. I would push in this direction, if FFP and society's money allow us to. We now need a strong forward, reinforces in the midfield with more quality and muscle (kessie cannot do another season like this one, 55 games is too much) and start prepping Plizzari for 2–3 seasons from now. In terms of short action i would get rid of Kalinic, Donnarumma, perhaps Andre silva depending on the World cup, Jose Mauri and other players, and focus on obtaining on only starters but also bench players capable of changing the game. An example would be Cutrone, not yet ready to be a starter and perhaps never will, but he has the potential to break games starting on the bench There's a lot of speculation over who is the richest footballer on the planet.
Different publications have different answers but it narrows down to only two people and everbody knows it. Yes, its either Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel messi. No one can exactly estimate their net worth as it includes their weekly wages and tonnes of endorsements. And so the answer has to be ambiguous even after you get all the figures correct. Cristiano Ronaldo Ronaldo’s Real Madrid contract earns him more than €18 million per year. In 2014 he featured on Forbes list with total earnings of $80 million, which he made between 2013- 14. He is the captain of the Portugal national team. He became the most expensive player in the world when he moved from Manchester United to Real Madrid in 2009 in a transfer worth €94 million. He also makes money by endorsing famous brands like Motorola, Tag Heuer and Nike. Lionel MessiLionel Messi is a true football legend. It is a pleasure to watch him play the game. This Argentine football player plays for Argentina national team and FC Barcelona. He is the first football player in history to win four FIFA/Ballons d’Or. As per Forbes’ 2014 list, Messi earned a total of $65 million within 12 months. He is one of football’s biggest endorsers of all time. Goal.com has composed a list of the Top 20 Richest Football Players 2017 - Goal.com Rich List. As suspected, CR7 top the list with a net worth of $230M, which is $12M more than that of the second runner, Messi. Neymar came as a surprise 3rd with $148M. I don't think any player has topped these numbers in the previous years. However, this list might have missed the richest of them all: Mathieu Flamini. A few year ago, Flamini secretly invested in an energy firm that became quite successful Mathieu Flamini: Arsenal midfielder reveals he is set to revolutionise £20bn energy industry. Details are very hazy here, but some of his Arsenal teammates believed that he's a billionaire who is richer than their club's own owner. If these are true, Flamini's net worth would likely drawf the total net worth of the top 3 in Goal's list and it wouldn't be unlike Jessica Alba becoming the richest actress by founding the rather successful Honest company. Pele's dominance of football for 12 years without any rival is still something that stands out.
Not forgeting his skills, pace,goals,ability to read games and outrun defenders, players like this come once in a lifetime. There is Poseidon, appollos,Zeus, then there is “Pele”. I wrote about the 5 greatest of all time and Pele sits at No. 1, you can read it here. Ekemezie Okechukwu's answer to Who are the top 5 best football players of all time? There are many records Pele did set in football, but 5 have been argued that can never be broken….(seriously), the phrase “never say never” will only have an exception here because we might never see anyone break it in our lifetime. Here are the simple 5 records. #1 Most FIFA World Cup winners medal for an individual Its not an easy task to dominate the world from 1958–1970 and winning 3 world cups in the process in 1958, 1962 and 1970. Of the total of 21 players that have won the world cup more than once(16 were Brazilians), only Ronaldo da Lima came close to matching this record but Zidane denied him in France 98 final. Messi and Ronaldo would just bite their fingers and prefer to see the other 4 records they can break. #2 Most career goals in football: His record of 1283 goals in 1363 games(including junior teams and amateur games) is totally mind blowing. When people complain of junior sides and amateur games,they should also remember he played his first world cup at 17 years,a d started playing for Brazilian senior team at 16 , so those junior shouldn't be up to 150 goals, but the fact is that number of goals is still out of this world. #3. Most career hattrick Forget about CR7 and messi hattrick, this man is the king of hattrick, a record 92 hattrick, which is 21.5% of his total goals. #4. Youngest player to score hattrick in a world cup. His game against France in 1958 semi final clash saw the youngster scored 3 unreplied goals for ‘la seleção “ at just 17 years old. #5. Youngest player to score(a brace) in a FIFA world cup final Just 5 days after he broke that # 4 record, he came against the host nation Sweden and scored twice, the first goal, still famous for best world cup goal (with maradona solo run against England in mexico 86). This is what made him“soccer's greatest” player. All hail # King Pele. Not to undermine any of the wonderful players that Barcelona had over the century, Johan Cruyff and Lionel Messiah do deserve special mention.
Johan Cruyff was not just an Ajax, Barcelona and Holland legend. He was a football legend. But plenty of famous footballers have retired with bulging trophy cabinets. Cruyff was different. As both a player and a manager, Cruyff was an innovator, often tearing up the rulebook and coming up with new, ground-breaking ways of approaching the game. Forget tiki-taka. Long before Barcelona and Spain's trademark tactic, there was the Ajax and Holland team of the 1970s and their unique system of "total football". Led by Cruyff, their style was based around quick passing, quick movement and constant rotation of position. Sound familiar? Cruyff was basically Lionel Messi and Andres Iniesta rolled into one… forty years ago. He was the first player to win three ballon d'or. Yeah, Messi has five. But long before he was even born, Cruyff won three golden balls in just four years (1971, 1973 and 1974). The first man to realise the potential of La Masia. La Masia is now a legendary institution - the football factory responsible for the conveyer belt of small, clever, technically gifted players that continue to find their way from into the Barcelona first team. So where did the idea for football's most famous academy come from? Cruyff, of course. La Masia existed before he was appointed Barca manager in 1988, but it was a word away from what we know today. Youngsters were picked on size and physical strength. It was Cruyff who changed the outlook, ensuring the emphasis was on technique and ability. It's no exaggeration to say that without the Dutchman's vision, Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi may have got no further at Barcelona than the front door. First and only winner of European player of the century. well that says all Long live the legend… The best clubs from Europe compete in this competition. Each league or nation has a different number of representatives (nor) in this competition, but the standard nor from each top league is mostly four. The total number of teams has been 32 in recent years.
These teams are then placed in groups of 4, hence being called as group stages. (Note: Two clubs from one same league can not be placed in the same group.)The teams will play each opposition team twice, once at the clubs home ground/stadium and once at the oppositions home ground/stadium, so the number of matches played will be 6 for each team. The teams that have most points from these 6 fixtures will proceed to the next round called as Round of 16 since half the teams from the group stages eliminated and only 16 teams remain in the contest. A draw then takes place as to decide who faces whom from the remaining 16 clubs. (Note: The team seeded first plays at home first then away. Two clubs from one same league can not be placed in a fixture. This can happen only once the competition has reached the semi final stage.) The clubs that advance the next stage by beating the opposition move on to the next round, the quarter finals consisting of a total of 8 teams, the same process from the previous level is applied and 4 teams qualify for the penultimate round, the semi finals. The winners of this round move on to literally the final stage, the final, which takes place in a venue already decided by the organizer, UEFA. |
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