Euro 2012 Preview

Welcome to the Euro 2012 preview!

We're within two weeks of the much-awaited Euro competition. I just can't wait.

So therefore I'm going to see through my very own crystal ball and hope to predict what's coming up for us in June. To be honest I'm not very confident about picking the finishing positions of the teams, because the difference in finishing first or second in the group will lead to a totally different quarterfinal match-up. You never know if teams which have already qualified for the quarterfinals deliberately finish second to avoid meeting the table toppers of another group.

I will have a clearer idea of the teams' strengths and weaknesses after I watch their warm-up friendlies games. But this is written based on my experience of the teams that are competing in this year's finals.

I'm sure once the group stages have ended I'd be writing another post on the knockout phases. But hopefully I've got a decent hit rate on this predictions.

At I'm writing this, only provisional squads of some countries have been announced. You never know if some big players are going to be dropped or some untried and untested youngsters may be called up. So I can only judge from the maximum potential the teams have and write an overview of it.

Let us take a look at Group A.

Group A

Group A comprises of Poland, Russia, Greece and the Czech Republic. With no major powerhouses in this group, I'm sure each and every one of the teams here will fancy their own chances to make it to the quarterfinals.

Russia, FIFA Rankings 11th:



I expect Russia to top this group. Magical worker Guus Hiddink might have left long ago but in Dick Advocaat, Russia have an experienced manager working with them. However, this competition will signal the end of Advocaat's reign as the manager of Russia as he will be leaving the post after Euro 2012. Will he deliver results as a parting gift? We'll see.

Verdict: 1st in Group A. A close call in this group but the Russians should be able to overcome their difficulties to top the group.


Czech Republic, FIFA Rankings 26th:



Czech Republic boosts the likes of Petr Cech, Michal Kadlec, Tomas Sivok, Jaroslav Plasil, Tomas Rosicky and Milan Baros. They seem to be bringing a squad full on experience and experience is something that they will need to see them through to the next round of the competition.

Verdict: 2nd in Group A. Not as good as they used to be but I really can't see Poland or Greece getting into the knockout phases.

Poland, FIFA Rankings 65th:



For a team that only made it to the Euro competition by virtue of being one of the co-hosts, I don't really see Poland progressing past the group stages. You might argue that Poland as the home nation will have plenty of support that will see them through to the latter stages of the competition. By after taking a look at their squad, apart from Dortmund hotshot Robert Lewandowski, the other two more well known players are Lukasz Fabianski and Wojciech Szezesny, both who are goalkeepers at Arsenal. That probably sums up the amount of quality Poland have in their ranks. Lewandowski will need to convert every chance he that he gets into goal if his country is to spring a major surprise to make it into the quarterfinals.

Verdict: 3rd in Group A. The co-hosts' journey will most likely end after the group stages. The good thing is that they won't be going home. They are already at home.


Greece, FIFA Rankings 14th:



Greece's heydays are well and truly over since their surprise victory at Euro 2004. Three defeats in the group stages at Euro 2008 meant that Greece was the first defending champions not to earn a single point at the next European Championship. With majority of their squad being based in their native country, I just can't see enough quality in them to make it past the group stages.

Verdict: 4th in Group A and going home.

Group B

This is undoubtedly the Group of Death, with all four teams in the top ten of the FIFA World Rankings. The fixtures in this group will have football fans all around the world smacking their lips in anticipation. In a group of Germany, Netherlands, Denmark and Portugal, anything can happen.

Germany, FIFA Rankings 2nd:



Whichever team Germany brings to major international tournaments, you can be sure that they will always be one of the the tournaments' favourites. They have an impressive record of reaching the latter stages in competitions. Despite not winning anything since 1996, they have finished either 2nd or 3rd in the last three World Cups and have finished second in Euro 2008. With one of the world's best goalkeeper in Manuel Neuer, experienced heads like Philipp Lahm and Bastian Schweinsteiger, and a host of promising young players like Mesut Ozil, Toni Kroos and Thomas Muller who have already taken the world by storm, write off the Germans at your own peril.

Verdict: 1st in Group B. Should seal top spot easily with the quality they have in their squad.


Netherlands, FIFA Rankings 4th:



I'll pick the Dutch team nicking second place off Portugal, but only just. The Dutch players have had enjoyed mixed seasons with their respectively clubs. Attacking menaces Robin van Persie, Arjen Robben and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar have enjoyed prolific seasons but other key players such as Wesley Sneijder, Dirk Kuyt and Rafael van der Vaart have seen their stocks fall in the past year or so. But still, I believe a quarterfinal spot is well within their abilities.

Verdict: 2nd in Group B. A close call between the Portuguese team, but I see the Dutch being more prolific in front of goal.


Portugal, FIFA Rankings 5th:



I might be receiving some stick from some of you for taking Cristiano Ronaldo off this competiton so early. There is still plenty of quality in this Portuguese side, as star man Ronaldo finds himself a couple of Real Madrid team mates in Pepe and Fabio Coentrao. Their midfield trio of Miguel Veloso, Raul Meireles and Joao Moutinho will have plenty of work to do in order to supply the frontline of Ronaldo, Helder Postiga and Hugo Almeida. But still you feel that the pressure is too much on the Portugal captain to handle, as his international scoring record is nowhere as prolific as the one he has at Real Madrid.

Verdict: 3rd in Group B. Ronaldo will have too much to do on his own and at the end of the group stages, expect to see him cry again in front of the cameras.


Denmark, FIFA World Rankings 10th:



Denmark must be cursing their luck to be drawn in this group. They still have decent players in their squad but will find their work cut out when they face the other powerhouses in the group. Simon Kjaer and Daniel Agger will be expected to be the key men in defence. Christian Poulsen and Thomas Kahlenberg might have benefited from their time together at French club Evian and in Christian Eriksen, they have one of Europe's finest young talents. But I still feel this competition is still too premature for Eriksen himself, as I have doubts in their striking department where they have an ageing Dennis Rommedahl and an erratic Nicklas Bendtner.

Verdict: 4th in Group B. I can't see Denmark making miracles happen in this European Championship, certainly not in the group they find themselves in. Will need more than just divine intervention for them to oust out 2 teams from Germany, Netherlands and Portugal.

Group C

This group is probably the second toughest in this European Championship. It consists of two teams that have won the last two World Cups and a Croatian team which is in the top ten of the FIFA World Rankings.


Spain, FIFA World Rankings 1st:



Spain received disappointing news ahead of the defence of their European Championship. Star striker David Villa suffered a horrific injury in December and is on his rehabilitation. Though half-fit, he was still expected to make the squad for the Euros but the striker has since ruled himself out for contention. This means that Spain will have to pin their hopes on Fernando Torres, whose form this season has been as horrific as David Villa's injury, despite Torres' improvement in form in the last few months which has seen him fight his way back into the squad. The other bad news being captain Carles Puyol's absence from the tournament due to his surgery which will put him out for six weeks. Still they have an embarrassing wrath of talents in their midfield area, which should create enough chances for Torres to waste.

Verdict: 1st in Group C. Though the squad is not in good shape with the loss of two key players, they still have at least three or four world-class midfield stars who are forced to watch from the bench in each game. I still expect them to take top spot in this group.


Italy, FIFA World Rankings 12th:



It wasn't easy to pick either Italy or Croatia to join Spain in the quarterfinals. My initial choice was Italy, then I thought about Croatia, before reverting back to my original choice. It's been six years since Italy's World Cup triumph, but how football can change in six years. The likes of Fabio Cannavaro and Alessandro del Piero have retired. Key players such as Gianluigi Buffon and Andrea Pirlo are already well over their 30s. The experience of other players like Giorgio Chiellini, Andrea Barzagli and Daniele de Rossi will be crucial. They will need to depend on goals from an ageing Antonio di Natale and the controversial figures of Mario Balotelli and Antonio Cassano.

Verdict: 2nd in Group C. It's a tough choice between the Italians and the Croatians. But Italy's vast experience in major tournaments should see them achieve the basic expectation of making the knockout stages.

Croatia, FIFA World Rankings 8th:



Croatia made big news about four years ago when they defeated England in the qualifying rounds, which meant that English hopes of Euro 2008 were dashed. But they are actually a much better team than what many give them credit for. Manager Slaven Bilic might be a Rob Thomas lookalike, but he sure does know something about football. He has been Croatia's best manager for the last 20 years without a doubt. In Luka Modric, they have a midfielder who is coveted by every top European club, although Spurs team mate Niko Kranjcar might suffer due to his lack of playing time at the London club. Strikers Nikica Jelavic and Nikola Kalinic have enjoyed rich goalscoring form since they switched teams at the turn of the year.

Verdict: 3rd in Group C. As mentioned above, I won't be surprised if Croatia qualifies ahead of Italy. Bilic's tactics will need to be spot on if he's to take his country through.


Ireland, FIFA World Rankings 18th:



This will be just Ireland's fifth appearance in a major tournament. Fans of the English Premier League will be familiar with most of the Irish players, with majority of their players plying their trade in England. If so, you would have noticed that none of their players actually feature for a team that finished in the top five of the English Premier League. That about tells you all about the quality of the team. Ireland will need key players like Shay Given, Richard Dunne, John O'Shea, Darron Gibson and Robbie Keane to be on top of their games if Ireland are to have the slightest chance of making through this group.

Verdict: 4th in Group C. I can't see Ireland completing Mission Impossible with the squad they have. Will need to book an early flight home but credit to them for qualifying for the Euros for just the second time in their history.

Group D

This could be the group which every team will decide where to finish after observing results in Group C. Finishing second will mean an early meeting with current holders Spain who are expected to top their group. England will yet again lock horns familiar nemesis in Sweden and France. Co-hosts Ukraine completes the group.

England, FIFA World Rankings 7th:



England's off field problems have dominated the news for the past six months. The stripping of captaincy of John Terry, Fabio Capello's resignation, the delayed appointment of the new manager, the surprise appointment of Roy Hodgson and now we have the dropping of Rio Ferdinand for Terry, the surprise call-up of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and finally, the inclusion of Wayne Rooney despite his two-game ban. In Joe Hart, England will seek comfort that they have finally found a man who can remain as England's number one for the next decade. John Terry will need to prove that Hodgson made the right choice in picking him over the brother of his alleged racial-abused victim Anton Ferdinand. Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard will have the pressure on their shoulders to deliver the results, before stars man Wayne Rooney returns for the third and final group game.

Verdict: 1st in Group D. I already have many people calling me crazy. But this is the way I see things. With England not even given a chance by many, I think they will have the pressure off them for once and go further than many expected.


France, FIFA Rankings 18th:



France, like England, have many controversies over the years, especially their World Cup disaster in 2010 where several players were thought to disagree with then-manager Raymond Domenech. Current manager Laurent Blanc still have much work to do with a French team very much in transition. But they still have Hatem Ben Arfa, Franck Ribery, Yann M'Vila and Samir Nasri. Frontmen Olivier Giroud and Karim Benzema have had good seasons with their respective clubs.

Verdict: 2nd in Group D. France will make it through to the next round, as I can't see Ukraine and Sweden posing too much of a threat.

Sweden, FIFA Rankings 17th:



Sweden have a few good players in Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Johan Elmander, Kim Kallstrom and Sebastian Larsson. Captain Olof Mellberg is no longer the player that used to play for Aston Villa. Other than these players mentioned, I really don't see any quality in the team.

Verdict: 3rd in Group D. Should do enough to get a win over Ukraine, but that's all they can muster.


Ukraine, FIFA Rankings 50th:



Just like Poland, Ukraine have qualified for Euro 2012 as co-host. A 36-year old Andriy Shevchenko is no more one of the most-feared striker in the world when he first signed for Chelsea. At his age, I don't think he alone is enough to carry hopes of the whole nation. Bayern Munich midfielder Anatoliy Tymoshchuk is probably the next more-known player in this side, while the rest of the team are made up of players playing in their own domestic league.


Verdict: 4th in Group D. Hosting teams usually make it to the latter stages of the competition. But sadly, I can only predict that both co-hosts Poland and Ukraine don't have enough quality to make that happen. You could almost say that they are only here to make up the numbers and to host the competition. Maybe they should just concentrate on that.

Quarterfinals:

So from my predictions, we will have the following match-ups for the knockout phases.

Quarterfinal #1: Russia VS Netherlands



This could be a repeat of the quarterfinal clash in Euro 2008 which Russia won in extra time. But with Dick Advocaat being Dutch, I don't think he will relish the chance to knock out his home country. I'll pick the Dutch to have revenge on the Russia for this.

Verdict: Netherlands to go through.


Quarterfinal #2: Germany VS Czech Republic




 

Germany should find the Czechs too easy to get past. The Germans might have endured a tough and grueling season. But the Czechs should not pose too much of a problem for one of the tournament's favourites.

Verdict: Germany to go through.


Quarterfinal #3:Spain VS France











 

Probably the first big game we will see in the knockout phase. I'll take the Spanish side to go through against a French team which needs much rebuilding.

Verdict: Spain to go through.


Quarterfinal #4: England VS Italy

Call it blind faith if you would like, but I'm picking the English to beat an ageing Italian team.

Verdict: England to go through.


Semifinals:

And now we're down to the last four!


Semifinal #1: Netherlands VS Spain












This would be a rematch of the World Cup final two years ago as the Dutch square up once against with the Spaniards. I believe the loss of Carles Puyol and David Villa will be crucial at this stage of the competition. The Dutch will have revenge on their mind and they will do what they need to do.


Verdict: Netherlands to go through.


Semifinal #2: Germany VS England

And here we will have another rematch from the 2010 World Cup, in which Germany defeated England 4-1 in the second round. Most will remember the Frank Lampard 'goal' that didn't count. If Lampard starts in this one, expect him to be fired up to make it count for England. England will also want to heap further misery on the Germans as Chelsea have earlier beaten Bayern Munich in the last Champions League final.

Verdict: England to go through.


Final: Netherlands VS England



The final will be down to these two sides which met earlier in the year for a friendly game. The Dutch came back to beat England 3-2 with late goals. I believe England will go far in this competition because they have ready-made excuses for failure. The delay in appointment of the new manager was planned to take the pressure off the team and the new manager. But in recruiting Gary Neville as the coach is one masterclass. The United legend has carved out a career as a pundit with Sky Sports. For those who have watched his analysis before, you will know what I'm talking about. His tactical astuteness may just be the weapon to see England win their first European Championship and only their second international honour, after their only World Cup win in 1966.

Verdict: England to win Euro 2012!

And there we have it. England to seal victory in this version of European Championship. I know many people will doubt my predictions. But this is all done for fun and I don't expect people to be putting money on my predictions.

Let us all wait for the big kickoff in June!

Chelsea's European triumph written in the stars

It's probably the game which made me believe that some football results are written in the stars, destined, fated and scripted.

For those who remember me sharing the 'omens' that Chelsea will win it.

After witnessing the turn of events that occurred in the Champions League final, it's not hard to see how the 'omens' have really worked.

First of all, I don't think anyone will challenge that fact that Bayern are definitely favourites for this game. With the venue for the final held at their very own Allianz Arena, it was almost a home game for the German side and Chelsea have a difficult away game, rather than having the usual neutral venue for a cup final.

Secondly, Chelsea have been hit harder by the suspensions that have seen them lose the services of captain John Terry, recently in-form Ivanovic, driving force Ramires and Meireles. So much that youngster Ryan Bertrand, a left-back by trade, had to be thrown on as a makeshift left winger. Central defenders Gary Cahill and David Luiz had to be rushed back from their injuries to feature in Chelsea's biggest game in their history.

Bayern on the other hand, were without a host of defenders as well. David Alaba, Holger Badstubber and Luiz Gustavo were banned for the final. Ukraine midfielder Anatoliy Tymoshchuk had to be thrown into central defence. But the most crucial thing was that Bayern could still call upon the services of their Fantastic Four, namely former Chelsea winger Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery, Thomas Muller and Mario Gomez.

Therefore I've always believed on paper, Bayern were clear favourites. Anything less than a German win would meant that it was truly Chelsea's destiny for the European Cup.

The first half started like it was played from a script. Bayern dominated proceedings as expected, but was guilty of missing a series of chances that would have even made Andy Carroll and Fernando Torres blush. The longer it took for them to make the breakthrough, the more belief Chelsea had in themselves.

Let's look at the 3 key moments in the game which proved that Chelsea had all the luck in the world to defy the inevitable.

#1 Drogba equalizer
When Thomas Muller headed Bayern into the lead, I thought that was it. My 'omens' were simply just made-up facts that meant nothing. There were just eight minutes of regulation time left in the game, and up to that point Chelsea haven't done enough in the first 80 minutes to show that they were capable of breaching the Germans' net.

And then in the 88th minute, who else but talisman Didier Drogba rose to head home a corner to break Germans hearts. Drogba have been synonymous with Chelsea's successes in the past decade. He was the man who scored in virtually every cup finals he's ever played for Chelsea. In my memory, it was only in the Champions League final against Manchester United in 2008 that he didn't find the net, but instead found himself sent off in the later stages of the game.

#2 Robben's missed penalty
When it seemed that Drogba had allowed himself to turn from a hero to villain when he conceded a penalty in extra time, the prolific Dutchman chose the worst possible time to hit a tame shot that was well saved by former Chelsea team mate Petr Cech.


#3 Revival in the shootout
Juan Mata's miss in the first kick of the shooutout have given Bayern Munich the initiatives. But forgotten man Ivica Olic in probably his last game for the Bavarians, missed to throw away his team's advantage. Bastian Schweinsteiger missed another and the stage was set for Drogba to claim the trophy for his team. You wouldn't bet against him, would you?

Pre-match omens
As I watched Chelsea's semi-final tie against Barcelona, I started to notice the uncanny similarities this Chelsea team had with the winning teams of United in 1999 and 2008, as well as Liverpool in 2005.

#1 
It started out with Ramires who scored Chelsea's first at the Nou Camp to halve Barcelona's 2-0 second leg lead. Ramires would go on to miss the final after picking up a yellow card minutes before his goal.

There was a smack of resemblance with Roy Keane's heroics in Turin in 1999. Captain Keano put up one of the finest performances ever seen despite picking up a yellow card on Zidane which ruled him out of the final. Just like Ramires did, Keane's goal started United's fightback after Juventus had a 2-0 lead.

#2
Ramires and Meireles would be missing from the final. It's a completely similar situation with United in 1999 when they had to make do without first-choice midfielders Roy Keane and Paul Scholes.

#3
Captain John Terry would miss the final after a foolish foul against Barcelona. United were missing captain Roy Keane in 1999, who has been starring in these first three omens.

#4
United in 1999 faced Bayern Munich in the final. By now we'd have known Chelsea's opposition, don't we?

#5 
Manchester United reached both the FA Cup and Champions League final in 1999. Chelsea have already won the FA Cup and the Champions League seemed to be waiting to be won by them.

#6
The last time an English team won the Champions League and finished out of the top four in the league. It was Liverpool in 2005. Chelsea have emulated them as well.

#7
I came up with this for the purpose of having a joke in here. But you'll have to admit it makes sense nonetheless. If the final boils down to another penalty shootout, which it did, then villains of 2008, Anelka and Terry would not be there to miss their kicks. True enough.

#8
Champions' luck with penalties and the right-hand post.
This is probably the most eerie of them all. We all know how United won the European Cup in 2008, no thanks to a slip by John Terry and he subsequently hit his kick onto the RIGHT hand post.
Chelsea enjoyed such luck with Lionel Messi hit his spot kick to the RIGHT-sided crossbar.
Arjen Robben saw his penalty saved in extra time when he kicked it to his RIGHT.
Ivica Olic also had his penatly saved in the shootout. He too, was aiming for the RIGHT side.
Almost like a carbon copy to Terry' infamous miss, Bastian Schweinsteiger hit his kick to the RIGHT hand post.

Post-match omens?
In the aftermath of the dramatic final, Nigel and I found further reasons that football results were indeed written in the stars.

Chelsea were founded in 1905. They won their first European Cup on 19 May, which is 19/05.

We could also look at the first two league titles that Chelsea won. Their first was in 1955, which was 50 years after the club was founded. Their second title came in 2005, which was their 100th anniversary.

Oh, the footballing gods have decided the fate long ago.

Wasted talents?

More and more established football stars are are seeing out the twilight of their careers by seeking lucrative contracts in the smaller leagues around the world. For others, it's a sad case of returning to their native leagues too early in their careers.

Some may see their decisions as one last shot to make a fortune before they retire. But in my opinion, that is actually something sad to see for the world of football. Some of them are taking this step too early in their career. I feel that they still have much to offer in Europe's biggest leagues. If not as a player for Europe's biggest teams, their experience and abilities can still be valuable assets for the smaller clubs.

And then comes the problem, are the small clubs willing or able to offer the big wages the top stars demand? Even Tottenham Hotspur are struggling to retain the services of Emmanuel Adebayor, his wage demands being a huge stumbling block. It simply highlights the fact that footballers these days are blinded by greed.

More than 10 years ago, former United captain Roy Keane was branded a 'money grabber' when he signed a £50,000 per week contract. Today, the average wage of a top-class footballer ranges from £100,000 to £150,000, with some of the superstars earning well over £200,000 per week.



Being the multi-millionaires that are they already are, can't they forgo the chance to line their pockets and choose to play in the more popular leagues instead? By moving to the smaller and virtually unknown leagues, they have taken themselves off the radar of world football. Fans will not be able to follow them as closely as they have been.



How much do you know about Los Angeles Galaxy's successes following David Beckham's move? How many goals have Thierry Henry scored for New York Red Bulls? How is Samuel Eto'o's Anzhi doing in the Russian league?



Kudos to you if you managed to answer correctly all the questions mentioned above, you're one of the most football crazy people on this planet. I don't even know the answers if I don't Google for them. But if you're like me who can't get the correct answers, you're just one of the majority of people who have lost track of the careers of the past footballing greats. Sad to say, huh.

The fact that Beckham regularly moved to Milan on loan and the loans of Robbie Keane or Thierry Henry back to the Premier League suggest that the players still have something to offer in the big leagues.


It's not an entirely bad decision to move to the smaller and less watched leagues though. Beckham's move to the LA Galaxy was a mission on his part to boost the popularity of football, or rather soccer as they call it there, on the American shores. Beckham's, Henry's and Eto'o's moves can also help to raise the standards of other leagues.


And so I've come up with a list of players whom I think have left the major footballing scenes too early in their careers.


#1 David Beckham, Real Madrid to Los Angeles Galaxy, aged 32 ( at time of transfer)

Goldenballs turning out for Galaxy

Becks' move to the United States started a trend of former Premier League players joining teams in the Major League Soccer. It was speculated at first that football's most famous face has signed a contract with the MLS side for a record-breaking deal worth US$250 million over 5 years, but in fact it was just US$6.5 million a year.

It was thought that Beckham chose to join the American side in order to boost his popularity in that part of the world. It is a well-known fact that America is the only country where Becks can walk freely in the streets without being recognized and mobbed. Although Becks have rejected claims of interest in acting roles, the moves certainly helps he was to join the movie industry well after his playing days, it's part of the marketing ploy to promote himself. Not surprising, as the film "Bend it like Beckham" was a box office success even though it didn't even feature Beckham himself. The film used lookalikes for a brief cameo appearance for the superstars and other footages of him were from archives.

His other 'project' in the States is to promote football as a sport, as basketball, baseball and American football continue to be the country's most popular sports.

Beckham joined LA Galaxy aged just 32. For me, he had a couple of years left in the Premier League. Teams like West Ham and Tottenham were keen to bring England's favourite son back to his homeland. But it was not to be.

A player known for his exceptional stamina, set-pieces and crossing abilities, surely he would have been a great addition for England's smaller teams despite his age?

#2 Juan Pablo Angel, Aston Villa to New York Red Bulls, aged 32

It's that hot in America?

Shortly after Beckham's transfer to the MLS was made public, another former Premier League star was set to follow in Becks' footsteps.

The former Aston Villa striker joined New York Red Bulls after leaving the Midlands team, scoring just 10 goals in all competitions in his last two seasons. Despite 7 years with Villa, he only got past double digits in 2 seasons. However, with 74 goals in 205 appearances, he can still boost about being Villa's most prolific scorers in recent times.

He probably joined the MLS in a bid to rebuild his career and has since turned out for fellow MLS sides LA Galaxy and Chivas USA.

#3 Thierry Henry, Barcelona to New York Red Bulls, aged 33

Life in USA doesn't look that good eh?

Henry is undoubtedly one of the world's finest talents and one of the best Premier League striker of all time. He has just been recently been named in both experts and public votes' versions of the Team of 20 Premier League Seasons, taking his place alongside another EPL great Alan Shearer.

Despite not reaching the personal heights he had at Arsenal with Barcelona, Henry was part of a formidable trio with Lionel Messi and Samuel Eto'o. In 2009, the 3 of them were accountable for more than 100 Barcelona goals in a single season, more than virtually any team had managed that season.

His time with Barcelona was still rewarding in terms of medals collected, as being part of the team that won 2 league titles and a European Cup amongst other successes.

Since moving to the MLS, he came back to Arsenal on loan, proving that he still has the ability to perform in a difficult league.

#4 Robbie Keane, Aston Villa to Los Angeles Galaxy, aged 30

A nomadic footballer since his younger days, Keane has turned out for 10 different clubs throughout his career and achieved the feat of scoring for each and every one of them.

He is best known for his spells at Leeds United and Tottenham Hotspur. However, his second spell at Spurs after moving back from Liverpool proved to be an unhappy one. He found himself out of favour as his strike partner Dimitar Berbatov had already been sold to Manchester United.

Keane went out on loan to Celtic and then West Ham United, before signing a deal with LA Galaxy to team up with David Beckham.

In 2012, Keane moved on loan to Aston Villa, notching an impressive three goals in just six outings. He remains the top scorer for the Irish national team with 53 goals.


#5 Samuel Eto'o, Inter Milan to Anzhi Makhachkala, aged 30

Good good money!

This is the player on this list whose talent is a complete waste in Russia. Tempted by a fat paycheck by Anzhi's Qatari investors, Eto'o signed on with the Russian team to make himself the world's best paid footballer.

This is a player who is one of the most feared goal poachers. His early days with Real Madrid and Espanyol brought him only a handful of appearances and no goals. But he rapidly came into prominence with his goals with Real Mallorca, which was largely a mid-table team.

His goalscoring exploits captured the attention of Barcelona, who made lengthy negotiations with Real Madrid and Real Mallorca, who co-owned Eto'o. How stupid it was for Real to not just to sell a prized asset to their rivals Barca, but also let such a striker slip out of their grasp.

Eto'o would go on to have a prolific scoring career with Barca, winning 3 league titles and 2 Champions League. He would go on to win another Champions League with new team Inter Milan, who traded Zlatan Ibrahimovich to Barcelona.

Aged just 30 when he moved to Russia, I felt that Eto'o still have plenty in his tank to achieve success with Europe's other clubs. He is the kind of player Liverpool severely lacks.

Eto'o has recently reported that he would be interested to move to big-spending Paris Saint Germain if the opportunity arises.

#6 Nicolas Anelka, Chelsea to Shanghai Shenhua, aged 32

I see us going down

English fans are familiar with Anelka, who have had spells with Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, Bolton and Chelsea.

Despite not boosting a good goals-to-games ratio like most of the top strikers do, Anelka has always been a valuable source of goals, especially for smaller clubs like Manchester City and Bolton.

Having turned out for Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea, Anelka has played for three of the original 'Big Four' in England. His spells with Real Madrid, Paris Saint Germain and Fenerbahce also means that he has played for the top clubs in Spain, France and Turkey.

Just like Robbie Keane, Anelka's nomadic career has seen him amassed a large combined transfer fee of almost £90 million, more than Keane's estimated £75 million.

He is now a player-coach at the Chinese team.

#7 Lucas Barrios, Borussia Dortmund to Guangzhou Evergrande, aged 27

Well I've really got nothing to say about Barrios' decision to join a Chinese team, really. Barrios has lost his starting spot to Polish revelation Robert Lewandowski, but that doesn't mean he's any less or a player. He was the very same player who had scored 44 goals in 87 games in his first two seasons at Dortmund. he was the striker who spearheaded Dortmund's successful title challenge last year.

I'm sure a host of European clubs will be interested to have Barrios' signature. He was on the verge on moving to Fulham in January 2012 but a deal broke down. Instead Barrios opted to join Guangzhou Evergrande with a salary of 6.7 million euros a year.

#8 Adriano Leite Ribeiro, better known as Adriano, Parma to Flamengo (loan), aged 26

Adriano came to fame with Inter Milan and Parma who co-owned the player. Known for his physical strength and powerful shots, he reached the peak of his career in the 2004-05 season with Inter.

Things started to go down south for him since then. He has since won 3 Bidone d'oro, an 'award' given to the worst player in Serie A for the year. Since the 'award' started in 2003, this means that Adriano has won a third of the 9 'awards', making him the player with the most Bidone d'oro.

He was loaned out to native Brazilian team Sao Paulo in 2008 and moved to rivals Flamengo for the next two seasons. At one point it seemed that Adriano was making his comeback to Europe, when he signed a three-year contract with AS Roma in 2010. That was shortlived though, as Roma terminated his contract just 7 months later, with Adriano failing to find the net in 5 games.

Adriano moved back to Brazil yet again to sign for Corinthians. He had find playing time hard to come by and is currently now a free agent.

#9 Ronaldo Luis Nazario de Lima, AC Milan to Corinthians, aged 33

No introduction needed for this phenomenal player. He was the Original Ronaldo. He has won virtually everything as a boy. Winner of 3 World Player awards and other individual accolades. He was the top scorer in the 2002 World Cup. He made the stepovers famous. Enough said.

And yet again we rue injuries for destroying a player who could have been so much better. He was a player who set scoring records during his time with PSV Eindhoven and Barcelona before suffering a serious knee injury at Inter Milan. His recurrence of the same injury prevented him from playing more at Inter.

He did recovered in time to re-announce his presence in world football, winning the Golden Boot award in Japan & South Korea and then earning a move to big-spending Real Madrid.

Ronaldo then moved to AC Milan for a brief spell before moving back to Brazil with Corinthians before calling time on his playing career in 2011.

#10 Ronaldo de Assis Moreira, better known as Ronaldinho, AC Milan to Flamengo, aged 31

Ronaldinho was the world's best player at one point of time, winning 2 World Player awards. United's failure to sign him in 2003 remains one of my biggest regret. He was the driving force behind Barcelona's success in the mid-2000s. His hat trick at the Santiago Bernabeu even brought applause from the Real Madrid faithful.

Just like Ronaldo, he played for Barcelona and AC Milan before moving back to Brazil with Flamengo. There was interest from Blackburn Rovers to take him to the Premier League, though the move never materialized.


#11 Frederico Chaves Guedes, better known as Fred, Lyon to Fluminense, aged 25

Fred was part of the Lyon team which won successive Ligue 1 titles. He was a prolific scorer for the French champions before losing his place to new signing Milan Baros and youth product Karim Benzema.

Despite being linked with a move to Tottenham Hotspur, Fred chose to move back to native Brazil with Fluminense.