Pellegrini: Man City have time to catch leaders Chelsea

Manuel Pellegrini feels there is still plenty of time for his Manchester City team to overhaul leaders Chelsea in the race for the Barclays Premier League title.

City’s 5-0 win over Newcastle United at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday cut the deficit to Chelsea to five points, after Jose Mourinho's men had been held to a 1-1 draw by Burnley.


The champions' convincing win represented their first success on home soil in four attempts and provided further evidence of a welcome return to form following a 4-1 victory at Stoke City in their last outing. City came from behind late in the season to claim each of their two Barclays Premier League titles to date, in 2011/12 and 2013/14, and Pellegrini remains optimistic of similar success this term.

"I'm very pleased because we returned to being a scoring team here at home and also because we didn't concede goals," he told BBC Sport. "Of course if the other teams drop points it's better for us, especially Chelsea because we don't depend on just what we can do.

"All the other teams are behind us in the table, so it doesn't matter what they do if we continue winning. If we want to continue fighting for the title, we need Chelsea to drop more points, but we have to play [for] another 36 points more, so that's a lot of time."

City striker Edin Dzeko believes in-form team-mate David Silva is the best player in the Barclays Premier League. Silva scored twice and set up Dzeko with a lofted pass, which was expertly controlled and dispatched into Tim Krul’s goal by the Bosnia striker.

"The pass from David was first-class ... and for me he is the best player in the Premier League," Dzeko told Sky Sports. "To have him here with us is an amazing thing, because with David you can always score goals."

Dzeko was preferred in attack to Wilfried Bony, the January signing who was available for the first time following his participation in the Africa Cup of Nations, and he played down the additional competition he faces for a place in Manuel Pellegrini's starting XI.

"We are all playing for one team and I don't see him [Bony] as competition for me," Dzeko said. "We all try to get results for Man City and he is very welcome. He will definitely bring much more to our team."

Carver rues slow start
Newcastle head coach John Carver acknowledged that his team's plans to contain City went "straight out the window" when Vurnon Anita conceded a first-minute penalty, that was converted by Aguero, one of three goals they scored inside the opening 21 minutes.

"All the plans that you put in place through the week go straight out the window," Carver told BBC Sport when asked about Aguero's opener. "We knew they were going to press us, straight from the kick-off. They put us under pressure. We didn't deal with it.

"You shoot yourself in the foot and it's an uphill task straightaway."

Carver expressed sympathy with Newcastle's travelling supporters.

"I don't think it was a lack of effort; we were just outplayed," he said. "We knew it was going to be tough, but it's so disappointing. We've got a group of travelling fans who've come all the way down here and within a minute you're one-nil down and within 12 minutes you're two-nil down.

"Away from home against one of the top sides, the defending champions, that's not good enough.”

source:http://www.premierleague.com/

Ángel Di María(oblation)

Ángel Fabián Di María Hernández (born 14 February 1988) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays for English clubManchester United and the Argentina national team. He can play as either a winger or attacking midfielder.

After beginning his career with Rosario Central, Di María moved to Europe in 2007 to play for Benfica, earning a €25 million move to Real Madrid three years later. After winning the Champions League with Real Madrid, he signed for Manchester United in 2014 for a British record £59.7 million.

A full international for Argentina since 2008, Di María has earned over 50 caps for his country. He scored the goal that won the country gold at the 2008 Olympics, and has also represented them at two World Cups and the 2011 Copa América.

Early life


Di María was born on 14 February 1988 in Rosario, Argentina as one of three children of Miguel Di María and Diana Hernández de Di María, and grew up in Perdriel. As an infant, he was unusually active, and on recommendation of a doctor was signed up for football at the age of three. He also helped his parents with their work at a local coal yard along with his two sisters, Vanesa and Evelyn. Due to the low income his family earned, purchasing football boots and keeping up with Di María's hobby was difficult for his parents. He considers himself to be very family-oriented, and has used a significant amount of his salary to "give back" to his family.[2] After being transferred to Benfica, he asked his father not to work anymore and bought a house for his parents and sisters.

Club career

Manchester United

On 26 August 2014, Di María signed a five-year deal with Manchester United for a transfer fee of £59.7 million, the fifth most expensive transfer of all time and the highest fee ever paid by a British club. He inherited the number 7 shirt at Manchester United, which was previously worn by club legends such as George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo.

2014–15 season
Di María made his début on 30 August in a 0–0 draw with Burnley, in which he was substituted for Anderson after 70 minutes. Di María scored his first goal for United on hisOld Trafford debut on 14 September, netting directly from a free kick in a 4–0 win over Queens Park Rangers. He also provided an assist for Juan Mata's goal in the same match, winning the vote for 'Man of the Match'. His performance was highlighted by Sky Sports' Player Cam feature, which was brought back especially for the match. In the next match against Leicester City on 21 September 2014, he again scored a goal and provided another assist although United lost the game 5–3.

On 2 October 2014, Di María won Manchester United's Player of the Month for September after racking up two goals and two assists in his first four matches for United. One week later, he won his second individual trophy at United after his goal against Leicester, in which he chipped the goalkeeper, Kasper Schmeichel, was voted as Manchester United's Goal of the Month for September. Di María continued his run of fine form on 5 October 2014 by scoring a goal and providing an assist for Radamel Falcao to help United defeat Everton 2–1. Di María was substituted with a hamstring injury 13 minutes into United's 3–0 defeat of Hull City on 29 November and subsequently made only one substitute appearance in the team's next seven matches.

On 4 January 2015, Di María returned from injury to score a late goal in a 2–0 win against Yeovil Town in the third round of the FA Cup. On 11 January, Di María was used as a forward by manager Louis van Gaal but didn't score, in a 1–0 home defeat to Southampton.

International career

2010 FIFA World Cup
On 19 May 2010, Di María was selected by Argentina manager Diego Maradona as one of a 23-man squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. In Argentina's 5−0 friendly win over Canada on 24 May, Di María scored his first ever international goal, scoring from outside the box as his shot went off the post and in. He helped the side reach the quarter-finals, playing in all five of Argentina's matches and starting four of them.

Following the World Cup, on 11 August 2010, he scored the first ever international goal at Dublin's new Aviva Stadium in a friendly againstIreland as Argentina won 1–0.

2014 FIFA World Cup
Di María made 12 appearances during the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign and was named in Argentina's squad for the tournament finals. In Argentina'sround of 16 match against Switzerland, Di María scored the only goal of the game after 118 minutes, from a Lionel Messi assist. During the quarter-final match againstBelgium, Di María suffered a muscle tear in the thigh and was later taken off the field. It was later announced after the match, that Di María would miss the rest of the tournament due to the injury. He had previously helped to create Gonzalo Higuaín's only goal of the match, which sent Argentina into the semi-finals. Argentina finished the tournament as runners-up to Germany.

On 11 July, Di María was named on the 10-man shortlist for FIFA's Golden Ball award for the tournament's best player.

On 3 September 2014, in a friendly away against World champions Germany, Di María had a part in all four of Argentina's goals in a 4–2 victory, assisting three and scoring one.

Style of play

Di María is a quick, tricky, and talented winger, who is also capable of playing as a more central attacking midfielder, or on either side of the pitch, although he is predominantly aleft-footed player.[67] In recent years, he has even been deployed to great effect as a central midfielder, in particular under Carlo Ancelotti's tenure with Real Madrid. Di María is an agile, creative, and highly technical player, who possesses excellent dribbling skills and ball control, as well as great pace, stamina, and acceleration, attributes which allow him to beat players easily in one on one situations. He is also gifted with excellent vision, passing and crossing ability, which allow him to function effectively as a playmaker and as an assist provider, although he is also capable of scoring goals himself. Despite not being physically imposing, he is also a very hard-working player, and he has recently improved on the defensive aspect of his game under manager José Mourinho.

Personal life
Di María is nicknamed Fideo, which means noodle in Spanish. He holds an Italian passport.



He married his wife Jorgelina (née Cardoso) in 2011. Together they have a daughter, Mia, who was born three months premature and survived after treatment at an intensive care unit at the Hospital Universitario Montepríncipe in Madrid.

Di María's home in Prestbury, Cheshire, was the scene of an attempted burglary on 31 January 2015.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/

Charlie Austin(oblation)

Charles "Charlie" Austin (born 5 July 1989) is an English professional footballer who plays for Queens Park Rangers as aforward.

Released by Reading as a youth, Austin played non-league football up to 2009, when he was signed by Swindon Town after a prolific season for Poole Town. He then went on to Burnley and QPR.

Career

Burnley

On 28 January 2011, Austin signed for Burnley on a three-and-a-half-year contract. He made his Burnley debut on 1 February in a 1–0 loss away to Doncaster Rovers. In his first full season with Burnley, Austin scored 16 goals in the Championship and finished the campaign as the club's top goalscorer in the league.


On 23 October 2012, Austin scored two goals in a 3–4 win over Bristol City, and subsequently equalled Ray Pointer's club record of scoring in eight consecutive appearances, which was achieved back during the 1958–59 season.

Two weeks later, on 6 November 2012, Austin broke another Burnley record as he became the quickest-ever player to reach 20 goals in a season after scoring in a 1–0 win overLeeds United — his 17th appearance of the season. The record was previously held by Bert Freeman, who scored 20 goals in his first 19 matches for the club during the 1911–12 season. He also became only the second-ever Burnley player to score 20 goals before the end of November after Andy Lochhead, who reached 20 goals in 25 games on 26 November 1966. Austin managed to get his goal tally up to 23 goals by the end of the calendar year.

On 8 July 2013, a fee was agreed between Burnley and Premier League club Hull City for Austin. However, on 9 July 2013, Austin failed his medical and Hull pulled out of the deal.

Queens Park Rangers

Austin moved to Queens Park Rangers, on a three-year deal, on 1 August 2013. QPR paid Burnley an undisclosed fee, believed to be £4 million. He scored his first goal for QPR in a League Cup tie against Exeter City on 6 August 2013. On 14 September 2013, Austin scored his first league goal for QPR in a 1–0 win over Birmingham City atLoftus Road.On 28 September 2013, he scored a penalty in a 2–0 win at home to Middlesbrough. On 5 October 2013, he scored 2 goals including a penalty in a 2–0 win at home to Barnsley which increased his goal tally in the home and away season to 6. He scored his 100th professional goal and his 18th of the season in the 3–2 win over Barnsley. His 20th goal of the 2013–14 season sent QPR to Wembley as his team defeated Wigan Athletic 2–1 on 12 May 2014.


On 6 December 2014, Austin scored against former club Burnley in a 2–0 win, but was later sent off for two bookings. Two weeks later, he scored his first Premier League hat-trick in a 3–2 win over West Bromwich Albion, bringing his league tally for the season up to 11. With five goals in five games in December 2014, he was awarded the Premier League Player of the Month award, becoming the only second QPR player to do so.

Personal life

Austin is engaged to his long-term partner Bianca Parker with whom he has a daughter, Avabella. Austin was found guilty of assault in 2013 after he punched a man who had accused him of taking drugs in a nightclub toilet cubicle.He was fined £1,800 and ordered to pay £1,320 in costs.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/

Danny Welbeck(oblation)

Daniel Nii Tackie Mensah "Danny" Welbeck (born 26 November 1990) is an English professionalfootballer who plays as a centre-forward for Arsenal and the England national team. He can also play as awinger.

Welbeck made his way through the youth teams at Manchester United before making his senior debut in 2008 and scoring in the process. He was with United when they won the 2008–09 Football League Cup and the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup before being sent on loan to Preston North End and more recentlySunderland. From the 2011–12 season, Welbeck was a regular figure in the Manchester United first team. He transferred to Arsenal in September 2014 for an estimated £16 million.

He made his senior England debut in March 2011 in a 1–1 friendly draw against Ghana, the homeland of both of his parents. He scored his first senior international goal on 2 June 2012, the only goal in a friendly victory over Belgium. Welbeck has gone on to represent England at UEFA Euro 2012 and the 2014 FIFA World Cup, earning over 30 caps.

Club career

Arsenal
On 2 September 2014, in the late hours of deadline day, Welbeck joined Arsenal on a "long-term deal" for a fee in the region of £16 million. Stating the reason for his departure to a direct rival, Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal said "Welbeck doesn't have the record of Robin van Persie or Wayne Rooney. We let him go because of Falcao, but also to allow the youngsters to fit in. That is the policy. That is why I am here." Welbeck left Manchester United making a total of 142 appearances, scoring 29 goals.Welbeck was given the number 23 shirt, previously worn by Nicklas Bendtner who had departed the club for Wolfsburg.

2014–15 season
Welbeck made his Arsenal debut against previous season's champions Manchester City at the Emirates in a 2–2 draw on 13 September. Following Welbeck's first two games for Arsenal, manager Arsène Wenger urged fans to be patient, saying: "Danny will improve—we don't have to make a problem of that. We have to be patient with him". Welbeck scored his first Arsenal goal againstAston Villa in a 3–0 win on 20 September, and also set up a goal for Mesut Özil. On 1 October, he scored a Champions League hat-trick—the first treble of his professional career—against Galatasaray in a 4–1 victory.

International career

England youth squads
Welbeck made his England Under-16s debut as a 14-year-old in October 2005 against Wales in the Victory Shield, which England won that year. He then progressed to the England Under-17s team, scoring the decider in a qualifying game against Serbia, to help his team progress to the 2007 UEFA U-17 European Championship. The tournament saw England finish as runners-up to Spain, which secured the team a place in the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Korea. There, Welbeck scored two goals against New Zealand, helping Scotland to reach the quarter-finals in their first involvement in the tournament. Welbeck was originally intended to be a squad member for England's European Under-19 Championship campaign in July 2008, but was forced to withdraw. He eventually made his debut for the Under-19s on 9 September 2008, playing the full 90 minutes in a 2–1 win over the Netherlands.

Welbeck made his England under-21 debut on 10 February 2009, in the 3–2 loss to Ecuador, coming on for Adam Johnson. He followed this up with another substitute appearance in a 2–0 home defeat to France on 31 March. He was then named in Stuart Pearce's original 23-man squad for the 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship in Sweden on 27 May, but he had to pull out of the squad on 31 May, due to an injury. On 7 September 2010, Welbeck scored his first two goals for the England under-21 team in a 3–0 win over Lithuania. He scored his third under-21 goal in a 4–0 away victory over Denmark on 24 March 2011. Welbeck then started the first game of England's campaign at the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship against Spain. Welbeck scored an 88th-minute equaliser as England began the tournament with a 1–1 draw.

England senior team
On 18 November 2008, it was reported that the Ghana Football Association was keeping tabs on Welbeck, with a view to him representing the Ghana national team in the future.On 29 March 2011 Welbeck was called up to the England squad, for their friendly fixture against Ghana. Welbeck replaced Ashley Young in the 81st minute of a 1–1 draw with Ghana atWembley Stadium.

He played in England's deciding Euro 2012 qualifier against Montenegro on 7 October 2011, coming on as a substitute forTheo Walcott in the second half. On 29 May 2012, Welbeck was listed as a part of the confirmed 23-man squad for Roy Hodgson's England squad for UEFA Euro 2012. On 2 June 2012, he scored his first goal for England in a 1–0 win againstBelgium, with a chip over goalkeeper Simon Mignolet after collecting a through ball from his Manchester United team-mateAshley Young.On 15 June 2012, Welbeck scored a backheeled winning goal in the 79th minute as England beat Sweden 3–2 in Euro 2012 in Kiev.

Welbeck scored four goals in England's qualification for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, braces in two home matches: a 5–0 win over San Marino on 12 October 2012 and a 4–0 victory against Moldova on 6 September 2013, He was called up for the final squad for the tournament. and started in England's opening 2–1 defeat to Italy before being substituted for Ross Barkley after 61 minutes. Welbeck also played England's second group game, a loss by the same score to Uruguay in which he was substituted for Adam Lallana for the last 19 minutes.

On 8 September 2014, in England's first match of UEFA Euro 2016 qualification, Welbeck scored both goals in a 2–0 victory away to Switzerland at St. Jakob-Park, Basel.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/

Kevin De Bruyne(oblation)

Kevin De Bruyne born 28 June 1991 is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg and the Belgian national team.

He began his career at Genk, where he was a regular player as they won the 2010–11 Belgian Pro League. In 2012 he joined English club Chelsea, where he was used sparingly and also loaned to Werder Bremen. He was signed by Wolfsburg for £18 million in 2014.

De Bruyne made his full international debut in 2010, and has gone on to earn over 25 caps for Belgium. He was part of their squad which reached the quarter-finals of the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Club career

Early career
De Bruyne began his career with hometown club KVV Drongen in 2003. Two years later, he joined Gent and in 2005 moved to Genk. De Bruyne continued his development in their youth set-up and was rewarded for his progress by being promoted to the first team squad in 2008.

Genk

De Bruyne made his first team debut for Genk in a 3–0 defeat at Charleroi on 9 May 2009. Having established himself in the team the following season, On 7 February 2010, De Bruyne scored his first goal for the club, which secured all three points for Genk in a 1–0 win against Standard Liège. He scored five goals and made 16 assists in 32 league matches during the 2010–11 season as Genk were crowned Belgianchampions for the third time.On 29 October 2011, De Bruyne scored his first hat-trick for Genk againstClub Brugge, which ended in a 5–4 win for Genk.On 28 January 2012, De Bruyne scored a brace against OH Leuven in a 5–0 win. On 18 February 2012, De Bruyne scored his first goal back at Genk following his agreed transfer to Chelsea and also assisted the other goal in a 1–2 away win against Mons. De Bruyne ended the season by wrapping up the scoring in a 3–1 victory over Gent. He finished the league campaign with eight goals from 28 appearances.

Chelsea

On 31 January 2012, on the winter transfer deadline day, English Premier League club Chelsea and Genk announced the permanent signing of De Bruyne, with the fee rumoured to be in the region of £7 million.He signed a five-and-a-half-year contract at Stamford Bridge, but would stay at Genk for the remainder of the 2011–12 season. De Bruyne told the club website, "To come to a team like Chelsea is a dream but now I have to work hard to achieve the level that's necessary." On 18 July 2012, De Bruyne made his debut for Chelsea in a friendly match against Major League Soccer (MLS) side Seattle Sounders FC in a 4–2 win. De Bruyne also played the first half against French Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain at Yankee Stadium, New York.

Loan to Werder Bremen

On 2 August 2012, Chelsea announced that De Bruyne was to join Werder Bremen in the German Bundesliga on a season-long loan deal after having successfully completed a medical. De Bruyne scored his first goal for Bremen in a 3–2 defeat to Hannover 96 on 15 September, netting from 11 yards out after being played in by Eljero Elia. De Bruyne continued his good form, scoring in Bremen's next game, a 2–2 draw with VfB Stuttgart, on 23 September. De Bruyne got back on the score sheet on 18 November, scoring the winning goal — despite his team being down to 10 men — as Bremen came from a goal down to defeat Fortuna Düsseldorf 2–1.

De Bruyne scored his first goal in over two months on 4 May 2013, since netting a consolation goal in Bayern Munich's 6–1 hammering of Bremen, putting his side up 2–0 at home to TSG 1899 Hoffenheim before a late brace from Sven Schipplock meant that the game finished 2–2. He followed this up with a goal in Bremen's next match, securing a place in the Bundesliga for the next season with a 1–1 draw against Eintracht Frankfurt on 11 May.

Return to Chelsea

After a successful loan spell in the German Bundesliga with Werder Bremen, De Bruyne was linked with a move to stay in Germany with either Borussia Dortmund or Bayer Leverkusen. Incoming manager José Mourinho, however, assured De Bruyne he was a part of Chelsea's plan for the future, and the player officially returned to Chelsea on 1 July 2013. De Bruyne's agent, Patrick De Koster, explained, "We didn't receive any guarantees, but that's normal in a club like Chelsea. It's up to him (De Bruyne) to prove, like he did in the last 18 months."

De Bruyne injured a knee while scoring his first goal for Chelsea, in a pre-season friendly game against a Malaysia XI,but was fit to make his competitive debut on the opening day of the 2013–14 Premier League season against Hull City, and made an assist for the first goal in a 2–0 win.

Wolfsburg

On 18 January 2014, Wolfsburg signed De Bruyne for a fee of £18 million, ending a protracted transfer saga.On 25 January 2014, he made his debut for Wolfsburg in a 3–1 home loss against Hannover 96. On 12 April 2014, De Bruyne assisted 2 goals in their 4–1 home win against 1. FC Nürnberg. After a week he scored his first goal for Wolfsburg in 3–1 away win against Hamburger SV. He also scored in the last two matches of the Bundesliga helping his team to win against VfB Stuttgart and Borussia Mönchengladbach.

De Bruyne scored his first goal of the 2014–15 season on 2 October 2014, volleying in a clearance from outside the box to salvage a 1–1 draw against Lille in the Europa League. In the third group match away to Krasnodar on 23 October, De Bruyne bagged a brace as Wolfsburg secured their first win in the competition with a 4–2 victory.On 30 January 2015, he scored another brace in a 4-1 home win against Bayern Munich, their first Bundesliga defeat since April 2014.

International career

De Bruyne was capped by Belgium at under-18, under-19, and under-21 level. He made his debut for the Belgian senior team on 11 August 2010 in an international friendly against Finland in Turku; the game ended in a 1–0 loss for Belgium.

De Bruyne became a regular member of Belgium's team during the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign, where he scored four goals as the Red Devils qualified for their first major tournament in 12 years.

On 13 May 2014, he was named in Belgium's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In their first game of the tournament, against Algeria in Belo Horizonte, De Bruyne assisted Marouane Fellaini's equaliser and was named man of the match byFIFA. In the round of 16, De Bruyne scored Belgium's opening goal in the third minute of extra time as they defeated theUnited States 2–1.

source: en.wikipedia.org

Edinson Cavani(oblation)

Edinson Roberto Cavani Gómez born 14 February 1987 is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Paris Saint-Germain and the Uruguayan national team. Cavani is well known for ability to score impressive goals and his tireless work-rate.

Cavani began his career playing for Danubio in Montevideo, where he played for two years, before moving to Italian side Palermo in 2007. He spent four seasons at the club, scoring 34 goals in 109 league appearance. In 2010, Cavani signed for Napoli, who signed him on an initial loan deal before buying him for a total fee €17 million. In the 2011–12 season, he won his first club honour, the Coppa Italia, in which he was top scorer with five goals. With Napoli, Cavani went on to score 33 goals each in his first two seasons, followed by 38 goals in his third season, where he also finished as Serie A top scorer with 29 league goals. On 16 July 2013, Cavani was transferred to Paris Saint-Germain for a reported €64.5 million, making him the most expensive signing in French football history.

Cavani is an Uruguayan international. He scored on his debut against Colombia on 6 February 2008, and has since then earned over 60 caps and scored 23 international goals. He has participated in four major international tournaments: the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the 2011 Copa América, the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup and the2014 FIFA World Cup. He scored once at the 2010 World Cup, to help Uruguay to fourth place in the tournament, and in 2011 was part of the Uruguay squad that won a record 15th Copa América title.

club career

Paris Saint-Germain

2013–14 season
On 16 July 2013, Cavani joined French champions Paris Saint-Germain on a five-year contract, for a fee believed to be around €64.5 million, making it the sixth largest transfer in history. The reported sum made Cavani the record signing in French football, breaking Radamel Falcao's €60 million move to AS Monaco earlier in the summer, and saw him link up with former Napoli teammate Ezequiel Lavezzi in Paris.

Cavani debuted for PSG on 9 August 2013, coming on as 72nd-minute substitute for Ezequiel Lavezzi in a league match against Montpellier. He started the following game on 18 August and scored his first goal for the club, a late equalizer against AC Ajaccio.

He scored his first Champions League goal for the club in their season opener against Olympiacos on 17 September.He ended the group stage with four goals from five matches as PSG qualified with a 100% win record.

On 22 January 2014, Cavani scored his 20th goal of the season in PSG's 2–1 Coupe de France defeat at home to Montpellier.On 2 March, after missing a month of the season with a thigh injury, Cavani scored on his return to the team in a 2–0 win over Le Classique rivalsOlympique de Marseille at the Parc des Princes.

On 19 April 2014, he scored both goals for PSG as they beat Olympique Lyonnais 2–1 in the 2014 Coupe de la Ligue Final. He finished his first season with 25 goals in 43 games across all competitions, including 16 in 30 league games.

2014–15 season
Cavani scored a penalty to secure a 3–1 win at Lens on 17 October 2014, and celebrated by shooting an imaginary gun. Referee Nicolas Rainville booked him for this, and sent him off for dissent after Cavani complained about it. PSG President Nasser Al-Khelaifi said to Canal+ "Why did he get the yellow card before? He always celebrates the same way."

On 5 November 2014, it took Cavani 56 seconds to score the only goal of the game against APOEL Nicosia, a result which put PSG into the Champions League knock-out stage with two games to spare.

Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi were fined and suspended for two matches by PSG manager Laurent Blanc for missing a mid-season training camp in Morocco and the first training session after the break.

International career
In January 2007, Cavani was selected to join the Uruguay under-20s team to play in the 2007 South American Youth Championship in Paraguay. Cavani finished the tournament as top scorer with seven goals in nine games, helping Uruguay to finish in third place, earning them a place in the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

On 6 February 2008, Cavani made his first senior appearance for the Uruguay national team, scoring in a 2–2 draw withColombia. He scored from his own area on the counterattack from a corner and was praised by André Villas-Boas as "... a player with an immense capacity for the technical ability of scoring goals of tremendous skill and magnificent technique". On 10 July 2010, he scored against Germany in the third place match in the 2010 FIFA World Cupto make the score 1–1; Germany went on to win 3–2. On 8 October 2010, he scored his first international hat-trick in a friendly match against Indonesia.


Cavani was included in the Uruguayan squad at the 2011 Copa América in Argentina. He started the first two group games, but a knee injury in the second game against Chile ruled him out until the final. In the final, he replaced Álvaro Pereira after 63 minutes as Uruguay won a record 15th title by beating Paraguay 3–0.

At the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, Cavani equalised in the semi-final against the hosts Brazil, who eventually won 2–1. In the match for third place, he equalised twice against Italy, taking the game to penalties. Although Cavani scored his spot kick, Uruguay lost.

On 13 November 2013 Cavani scored the last goal in Uruguay's 5–0 away win over Jordan in a play-off for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In their first group game of the finals, against Costa Rica in Fortaleza, Cavani opened the scoring with a penalty after Diego Lugano had been pulled down. Uruguay eventually lost 3–1.

Personal life

Cavani was born in Salto, Uruguay's second largest city, on 14 February 1987, to Berta Gómez and Luis Cavani. His elder brother is striker Walter Guglielmone and his younger brother, Christian, is also a footballer.Cavani was married to Maria Soledad, with whom he has two sons, Bautista (born 22 March 2011) and Lucas (born 8 March 2013) He is a devout Evangelical Christian. As a child, Cavani idolised Argentine striker Gabriel Batistuta. In 2014 Cavani announced that he and his wife are to get a divorce, following a split between the two the year before.


source: http://en.wikipedia.org/

Ronaldinho(oblation)

Ronaldo de Assis Moreira (born 21 March 1980), commonly known as Ronaldinho or Ronaldinho Gaúcho, is a Brazilian footballer who plays for Mexican club Querétaro. His main playing position is as an attacking midfielder or forward. He won the FIFA World Player of the Year award in 2004 and 2005. Renowned for his technique, tricks, dribbling, overhead kicks, no-look passes and free kicks, Ronaldinho is regarded to be one of the best players of his generation.

Ronaldinho", the diminutive and term of endearment for "Ronaldo", is accompanied in Brazilian usage by the nickname "Gaúcho" (since he hails from southern Brazil), in order to distinguish him from fellow footballer and countryman Ronaldo, who was known as "Ronaldinho" in Brazil beforehand. Ronaldo simply went by his first name upon his move to Europe, thereby allowing Ronaldinho to drop the "Gaúcho" and go by the name Ronaldinho abroad.

Ronaldinho has played 97 matches and scored 33 goals for the Brazil national football team. He was an integral part of the 2002 FIFA World Cup winning team, starring alongside Ronaldo and Rivaldo in an attacking trio, and was named in the FIFA World Cup All-Star Team.

At club level, prior to his move to Querétaro, Ronaldinho played for Grêmio, Paris Saint-Germain, FC Barcelona,Milan, Flamengo, and Atlético Mineiro. With Barcelona, he won the UEFA Champions League in 2006 and theBallon d'Or in 2005. He became a Spanish citizen in January 2007. Ronaldinho was named in the FIFA 100, a list of the world's greatest living players compiled by Pelé, and to the FIFPro World XI from 2005–2007.

Early and personal life

Ronaldinho was born in the city of Porto Alegre, the state capital of Rio Grande do Sul. His mother, Dona Miguelina Elói Assis dos Santos (daughter of Enviro Assis), is a former salesperson who studied to become a nurse. His father, João de Assis Moreira, was a shipyard worker and footballer for local club Esporte Clube Cruzeiro (not to be confused with Cruzeiro). He suffered a fatal heart attack in the family swimming pool when Ronaldinho was eight. After Ronaldinho's older brother, Roberto, signed with Grêmio, the family moved to a home in the more affluent Guarujá section of Porto Alegre, which was a gift from Grêmio to convince Roberto to stay at the club. Roberto's career was ultimately cut short by injury. Today, Roberto acts as Ronaldinho's manager, while his sister Deisi works as his press coordinator.

Ronaldinho's football skills began to blossom at the of age 8, and he was first given the nickname Ronaldinho because he was often the youngest and the smallest player in youth club matches. He developed an interest in futsal and beach football, which later expanded to organized football. His first brush with the media came at the age of thirteen, when he scored all 23 goals in a 23–0 victory against a local team. Ronaldinho was identified as a rising star at the 1997 U-17 World Championship in Egypt, in which he scored two goals on penalty kicks.

Ronaldinho became a father for the first time on 25 February 2005, after Brazilian dancer Janaína Mendes gave birth to their son, who was named João after Ronaldinho's late father.

Club career(recent)

Atlético Mineiro

Ronaldinho made a surprise move to Atlético Mineiro on 4 June 2012 in a six-month contract, just four days after leaving Flamengo. He wore number 49 in reference to his mother's birth year since his preferred number 10 was already assigned to Guilherme in the 2012 season.

He made his debut for Galo on 9 June 2012 playing for 90 minutes in a 1–0 away win against Palmeiras, and scored his first goal for the club on 23 June 2012 against Náutico, from the penalty spot. Ronaldinho led Atlético Mineiro to a good 2012 season, in which the club finished 2nd in the 2012 Brasileirão and qualified for the 2013 Copa Libertadores. Ronaldinho won the Brazilian Golden Ball award for his performances in league matches with his new club in 2012.


The following year Ronaldinho helped Atletico to win Campeonato Mineiro and led his club to its first ever title of the Copa Libertadores. Ronaldinho scored four goals and assisted on seven occasions during Atletico's dramatic title run which included consecutive comebacks from 0-2 first leg defeats in both the semifinals against Argentinian Newell's Old Boys and the finals against Club Olimpia fromParaguay. Both ties were determined in Atletico's favour after a penalty shootout. Even though Ronaldinho had been injured for a bigger part of the second half of the season he was still voted the 2013 South American Footballer of the Year.

On 9 January 2014 he renewed his contract with the club. Ronaldinho left Atlético Mineiro in July 2014, after reaching an agreement to cancel his contract with the club by mutual consent.After becoming a free agent, he was offered contracts from English Conference South club Basingstoke Town and newly-formedIndian Super League franchise Chennai Titans through their co-owner Prashant Agarwal.

Querétaro

Ronaldinho signed a two-year contract with Mexican club Querétaro on 5 September 2014. Ronaldinho made his debut for Querétaro in a 1–0 loss to Tigres UANL where he missed a penalty kick. However in his next match against C.D. Guadalajara Ronaldinho had a much better game, setting up Camilo to score as well as scoring himself from a penalty kick in a 4–1 win.
International career

2010 and 2014 World Cup absence

Despite having returned to good form and being named as a member of the 30-man provisional squad that was submitted to FIFA on 11 May 2010, he was not named in Coach Dunga's final squad of 23 for the Brazilian squad in South Africa for the 2010 World Cup despite his deep desire to participate in the competition. Critics claimed that the exclusion of players such as Ronaldinho, Alexandre Pato, Adriano and Ronaldo signaled a move away from the classic Brazilian attacking "Jogo Bonito" style of play. At the tournament Brazil was eliminated by the Netherlands in the quarter-final.

In September 2011 he made his return to the national team under coach Mano Menezes in a friendly against Ghana at Fulham F.C.'s Craven Cottage, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–0 win for Brazil. He then had solid performances in back to back friendlies against Argentina in the same month. In October he had a great performance against Mexico in a friendly, scoring a spectacular free kick to equalize after Dani Alves was sent off. Brazil went on to win the match with a goal from Marcelo.

His good form continued in 2013, and in January he was unexpectedly called up by coach Luiz Felipe Scolari for a friendly against England played on 6 February at Wembley as part of the English FA's 150th anniversary.Ronaldinho started in what was his 100th cap (including non-official matches), and had a chance to score from the penalty kick, but his shot was saved by Joe Hart. Brazil lost the match 1-2. He was again called up for the Seleção, being named captain of the national team for an international friendly with Chile on 24 April 2013. However, Ronaldinho was not selected for the national team for the 2013 Confederations Cup and he was also omitted in Scolari's 2014 FIFA World Cup squad.

Style of play

Ronaldinho is regarded as being one of the greatest and most skilful players of his generation. Due to his ability to score and create goals, he is capable of playing in several offensive positions, on either wing or in a central position. Throughout his career, he has been deployed as a forward, a winger, although he usually plays as a classic number 10 in an attacking midfieldrole. Despite primarily being a creative player, he is an accurate finisher with either foot, both from inside and outside the penalty area, and is also a free-kick and penalty kick specialist. Throughout his career, Ronaldinho has been praised in particular for his technical skills and creativity; due to his pace, acceleration, agility, balance, ball control, and dribbling ability, he is capable of beating players when undertaking individual runs, often using feints in one on one situations. Among his repertoire of moves, Ronaldinho is one of the best exponents of the "Elastico", a move he learned by watching videos of one of his idols, the 1970s Brazilian star Rivelino.

ESPN has described Ronaldinho as being "skillful by nature, his tricks are unparalleled and he is wonderful with the ball at his feet. One of the coolest players in pressure situations" and a "fast, brash, skilful, tricky, an uninhibited playmaker" who provides "a mix of goals, assists, skills and a large repertoire of crafty moves." The former Portugal midfield playmaker, Rui Costa, has said of his vision and passing ability: "There are not many players who can offer goalscoring passes like he can. He is just marvellous. He is a rare case of an assist man who can provide the ball from anywhere."

Outside football

Ronaldinho has had endorsements with many companies, including Nike, Pepsi, Coca-Cola, EA Sports, Gatorade and Danone. One of the world's highest paid players, in 2006 he earned over $19 million from endorsements. Having endorsed Pepsi for much of his career and appeared in commercials with David Beckham, Thierry Henry and Lionel Messi, Ronaldinho signed a deal with Coca-Cola in 2011, however this was terminated in July 2012 after he was caught sipping a Pepsi in a news conference.

Ronaldinho features in EA Sports' FIFA video game series, appearing in the cover of FIFA Football 2004, FIFA 06, FIFA 07, FIFA 08 and FIFA 09. At the beginning of his career Ronaldinho signed a lucrative 10-year deal with American sportswear company Nike. His 2005 Nike advertisement, where he is given a new pair of boots and then proceeds to juggle a football and appears to repeatedly volley it against the crossbar of a goal and recover it without the ball touching the ground, went viral on YouTube, becoming the site's first video to reach one million views.

In 2011, Ronaldinho was recruited by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS to help promote awareness among young people of the disease and how to avoid it.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/