sports players blog

Monday, December 20, 2010

Ronaldinho International career

Ronaldinho participated in his first World Cup in 2002, as part of a formidable offensive unit with Ronaldo and Rivaldo, who were also on the 1999 Copa América winning squad. He appeared in five matches and scored two goals. The first goal came in the group stage match against China, which Brazil won 4–0. The second goal was a match-winning goal in the quarterfinal against England on 21 June. In the 50th minute, Ronaldinho took a free-kick from 35 metres, beating England goalkeeper David Seaman to give Brazil a 2–1 lead. However, seven minutes later, he was sent-off for a foul on England defender Danny Mills. He was suspended for the semifinal, but returned to Brazil's starting lineup for the 2–0 victory over Germany in the final as Brazil won the World Cup for the fifth time.

On 7 July 2008, Ronaldinho was named to Brazil's 2008 Summer Olympics squad as one of the over-age players.[42] Barcelona initially blocked the move because of his then-upcoming Champions League commitments with the club, but the decision was later nullified following Ronaldinho's transfer to Milan, who in turn permitted him to make the trip to Beijing.[43] Ronaldinho scored his only two goals in a decisive 5–0 victory over New Zealand before Brazil were beaten by Argentina in the semifinal. Brazil finished with the bronze medal after defeating Belgium 3–0 in the bronze medal match.

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,[44] he was not named in Coach Dunga's final squad of 23 for the Brazilian squad in South Africa for the 2010 World Cup[45] despite his deep desire to do so.[46] Critics have claimed that the exclusion of players such as Ronaldinho, Alexandre Pato, Adriano and Ronaldo signals a move away from the classic Brazilian attacking "Joga Bonito" style of play.[47]

ronaldinho

Ronaldinho

Ronaldo de Assis Moreira (born 21 March 1980 in Porto Alegre), commonly known as Ronaldinho (Brazilian Portuguese: [ʁonaɫˈdʒĩɲu]) or Ronaldinho Gaúcho,[2] is a Brazilian footballer who plays for Italian Serie A club Milan and the Brazilian national team. He is a free-kick specialist and has exceptional dribbling ability.

Ronaldinho, Portuguese for "Little Ronaldo," is known in Brazil by the nickname "Gaúcho," in order to distinguish him from Ronaldo, who was already called "Ronaldinho" in Brazil. Ronaldo simply went by his first name upon his move to Europe, thereby allowing Ronaldinho to drop the "Gaúcho" and remain simply as Ronaldinho.

Prior to his move to Milan, he played for Paris Saint-Germain and FC Barcelona, with whom he won his first Champions League in 2006 and he won the Ballon d'Or in 2005. He became a Spanish citizen in January 2007.[3]

Ronaldinho

roberto carlos International career

Roberto Carlos amassed 125 caps, scoring 11 goals[15] for the Brazilian national team. At the 1998 World Cup, he played seven matches, including the final loss to France. After a qualifying game for the 2002 World Cup, Paraguay goalkeeper José Luis Chilavert spat on Roberto Carlos, an action which caused FIFA to give Chilavert a three-match suspension and forced him to watch the first game of the World Cup from the stands. Roberto Carlos also played seven matches in the finals, scoring a goal from a free kick against China. He also was a starter in the final against Germany, with Brazil winning 2–0. After the tournament Carlos was also included in the World Cup's All Star team.

He is especially famous for a free kick against France in the inaugural match of Tournoi de France 1997 on 3 June 1997. He shot from 35 m (115 ft) from the centre-right channel, and scored. The ball curved so much that the ball boy 10 yards to the right ducked instinctively, thinking that the ball would hit him. Instead, it eventually curled back on target, much to the surprise of goalkeeper Fabien Barthez, who just stood in place.[16] In 2010, a team of French scientists produced a paper explaining the trajectory of the ball.[17]

Roberto Carlos' next international tournament was 2006 World Cup. In July 2006, after Brazil's 1-0 defeat to France in the World Cup quarter-finals, Roberto Carlos announced his retirement from the national team, saying, "I've stopped with the national team. It was my last game."[18] He said he no longer wanted to play for Brazil because of the criticism he faced from fans and Brazilian media for his failure to mark goal scorer Thierry Henry on France's winning goal.[19]

Upon signing with Corinthians in January 2010, Roberto Carlos told TV Globo that he hoped to play at the 2010 World Cup and believed his return to Brazilian football may help him return to the national team, as manager Dunga had yet to settle on a left back.[19] However, the long time left-defender was left off the 30-man provisional squad that was submitted to FIFA on 11 May 2010, along with veteran and famous players such as Ronaldo.[20] Despite his deep desire to do so, Roberto Carlos was not named in Coach Dunga's final squad of 23 for the Brazilian squad in South Africa for the 2010 World Cup. Instead, Brazil newcomer Michel Bastos earned a spot for the left wingback position.[21]

roberto carlos

roberto carlos brazil

Roberto Carlos, is a Brazilian footballer. He was a member of the Brazil national team in three World Cups, helping the team reach the final in 1998 and win the 2002 tournament. He is also known for his trademark free kicks with powerful speed, especially the one in 1997 against France. With explosive running speed (34km/h, 0-100 meters 10.6 seconds), powerful curling banana trajectory shot of 170km/h and hand throwing shot of 36 meters, Carlos has definitely dominated the position of left wingback. [1]

Roberto Carlos plays for Corinthians in Brazil. Previously he played for Spanish club Real Madrid for 11 years, winning four leagues, three UEFA Champions League trophies, and two Intercontinental Cups. He is also one of only six players to have played more than 100 matches in the Champions League, as of February 2008.[2] He finished second to countryman Ronaldo in the 1997 FIFA World Player of the Year award poll and was named as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers by Pelé in March 2004. Encyclopædia Britannica heralds Roberto Carlos as "an excellent exponent of the wing back position."[3]

roberto carlos brazil

Thursday, December 16, 2010

triple h dx images

In 2006, a series of events took place which suggested a reunion of Michaels and Triple H as DX. They began at WrestleMania 22, where both Michaels and Triple H performed the crotch chop, during their matches.[98] On Raw, the two continued to deliver chops, as Michaels feuded with Vince McMahon and Triple H went for the WWE Championship, repeatedly butting heads with Vince McMahon in the process. On the June 12 episode of Raw, DX officially reunited.[105] During Triple H's gauntlet match, which had him compete against the Spirit Squad. Michaels came in to help Triple H, and the two did the DX "crotch chops."[105] At Vengeance, DX defeated the Spirit Squad in a 5–on–2 handicap match.[106] They also defeated the Spirit Squad at Saturday Night's Main Event in a 5-on-2 elimination match and defeated The McMahons at SummerSlam.[107] At Unforgiven, DX once again defeated the McMahons and ECW World Champion The Big Show in a Hell in a Cell match.[108]

At Cyber Sunday, DX took on Rated-RKO (Edge and Randy Orton). The fan-selected referee Eric Bischoff allowed the illegal use of a steel chair to give Rated-RKO the ill-gotten win and the plaudit of being the first tag team to defeat DX in a tag team match since their reformation in June 2006.[109] At Survivor Series, however, Team DX emerged victorious against Team Rated-RKO.[110] At New Year's Revolution, Triple H suffered a legitimate torn right quadriceps during their match with Rated-RKO.[111] Rated-RKO claimed victory over DX, citing Triple H's injury, as the "end" of DX.[112] On January 15, Michaels lived up to his word of "dealing" with Rated-RKO, from his comments the previous week before,[113][114] when he took out Randy Orton with a con-chair-to after a handicap match against Edge and Orton.[1

triple h dx

hbk shawn michaels DX (2006–2007)

On the December 26, 2005 episode of Raw, Vince McMahon lauded Michaels for his part in the "Montreal Screwjob". Michaels said he was only being loyal to his company, he had moved on, and McMahon should move on as well. McMahon then began setting unusual stipulations for Michaels' matches and interfering on behalf of Michaels' opponents.[96] During the Royal Rumble, McMahon made his way to the ring, and as Michaels stared at McMahon, Shane McMahon made a surprising appearance, eliminating Michaels from the match.[97] On the February 13 episode of Raw, McMahon tried unsuccessfully to force Michaels to sign retirement papers.[98] The following week, Michaels won a handicap match against the Spirit Squad (Kenny, Johnny, Mitch, Nicky and Mikey) and after the match, Michaels' former partner, Marty Jannetty, came down to help Michaels from the assault by the Spirit Squad. After the two reunited, McMahon offered Jannetty a contract if he "kissed his ass."[99] The following week, Jannetty refused McMahon's offer and instead took Chris Masters' "Masterlock challenge."[100] Michaels tried to help Jannetty, which ultimately resulted in Shane attacking Michaels and forcing him to kiss his father's ass.[100] At Saturday Night's Main Event, Shane defeated Michaels in a Street Fight, a match without disqualifications and where scoring conditions can occur anywhere, after he applied a sharpshooter on Michaels, which led to McMahon immediately ordering for the bell to be rung, even though Michaels did not submit, which was an allusion to the "Montreal Screwjob".[101] Despite interference from the Spirit Squad and Shane, Michaels defeated McMahon at WrestleMania 22 in a No Holds Barred match, a match where there are no disqualifications.[98] At Backlash, The McMahons (Vince and Shane) defeated Michaels and "God" in a tag team match, with help from the Spirit Squad in a no disqualification match.[102] On the May 22 episode of Raw, the Squad was scripted to injure Michaels' knee.[103] This was angle was written so that Michaels could have surgery on his knee, which had been legitimately injured for some time.[104]

hbk shawn michaels DX (2006–2007)

Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born July 22, 1965), better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is a former American professional wrestler. He performed for World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), formerly the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), from 1988 until his retirement in 2010. He was considered one of WWE's senior performers, having performed for over 20 years.

Hickenbottom began his wrestling career with Mid-South Wrestling, now known as Universal Wrestling Federation, and American Wrestling Association (AWA). During his time with AWA, he performed in partnership with Marty Jannetty, as The Midnight Rockers; winning the AWA World Tag Team Championship twice. Hickenbottom and Jannetty then signed with World Wrestling Federation (WWF), while in contract with AWA. They returned to AWA, only to go back to the WWF in 1988.

Hickenbottom later worked as a single performer, taking on a new persona of "The Heartbreak Kid" and, first as a villain and later as a fan favorite, moved into the main event sphere. He yielded considerable influence on booking decisions as the leader of The Kliq, a backstage group, which however fell apart in 1996. The following year, he teamed up with Hunter Hearst Hemsley, who often was referred to as Triple H (HHH), and Chyna to form D-Generation X (DX). This group of wrestlers was known for their sophomoric crude humor. That same year, Hickenbottom took part in one of the most controversial matches in wrestling history, dubbed as the "Montreal Screwjob." After a back injury forced him to retire following his WWF Championship loss at WrestleMania XIV, Hickenbottom opened a wrestling academy, called The Shawn Michaels Wrestling Academy, in which he trained upcoming wrestlers. He made his in-ring return at SummerSlam in 2002. In 2006, Hickenbottom and Triple H briefly reformed DX, but after an injury that Triple H sustained, Hickenbottom returned to singles wrestling. Although as of 2009, the duo reunited as a tag team once more, with the two capturing the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship.