Lionel Messi-Professional soccer player

Lionel Messi-Professional soccer player.
Born: 24 June 1987(age 23)
Full Name: Lionel Andrés Messi
Place Of Birth: Rosario, Argentina.

Trivia :
- Height: 169cm
- Position: Striker or right winger
- Number: 19


Lionel Andres Messi was born on June 24, 1987, in Rosario, Argentina. His parents Jorge Horacio Messi (born 1958), a factory worker, and Celia María Cuccittini, a part-time cleaner. He has two older brothers named Rodrigo and Matías as well as a sister named Maria Sol.


Messi, who stands just 5-foot 7-inches, at the age of five, Messi started playing football for Grandoli, a local club coached by his father Jorge. His start in the game at the age of 8, when he started playing for the Newell's Old Boys, a team in Rosario. Recognizably smaller than most of the boys he played with, at the age of 11, Messi was eventually diagnosed by doctors as suffering from a hormone deficiency that restricted his growth.


Medication wasn't cheap—about £500 a month—and Messi's parents couldn't afford to pay for it on their own. So, at the age of 13, when Messi was offered a chance to play for Barcelona with the opportunity to have his medical bills covered by the team, Messi's family picked up and moved across the Atlantic to make a new home in Spain.




Club career
Barcelona:
In the 2003-2004 season, when he was still only 16, Messi made his first team debut in a friendly with Porto that marked the opening of the new Dragao stadium. The following championship-winning season, Messi made his first appearance in an official match on October 16, 2004, in Barcelona`s derby win against Espanyol at the Olympic Stadium (0-1).


With several first team players seriously injured, the services of several reserve team players were called upon, and Messi became a regular feature of Barça squads. On May 1, 2005, he became the youngest player ever to score a league goal forFC Barcelona - against Albacete when Messi was only 17 years, 10 months and 7 days old.


He was offered the chance to play for the Spain national football team, but declined, prefering to wait for the opportunity to play for the country of his birth. In June 2004 he got his chance, playing in a U-20 friendly match against Paraguay.


Lionel Messi wearing FC Barcelona`s colorsIn June 2005 he starred for the Argentina U-20 team that won the Football World Youth Championship played in The Netherlands. Messi picked up the Golden Boot as top scorer with 6 goals, and the Golden Ball for the best player of the tournament. Despite his youth, Lionel has already drawn comparisons with Diego Maradona, arguably the best football player of all time.



On September 25, 2005 Messi obtained a Spanish citizenship and was finally able to make his debut in this season`s Spanish First Division. He had previously been unable to play becauseFC Barcelona had filled up all of their quota of non-EU players.


Messi`s first outing in the UEFA Champions League at the Nou Camp was on Sept 28 against Italian club Udinese. He impressed with some great passing and a seemingly telepathic relationship with Ronaldinho that earned him a standing ovation from the 70,000-odd Nou Camp faithful. On December of that year, the Italian newspaper Tuttosport awarded him the Golden Boy 2005 title for the best under-21 player in Europe, over Wayne Rooney and Lukas Podolski .


In September 2005, Messi was given an improved and extended contract until 2014.



2010 World Cup
Messi played the entire game on Argentina's opening match 1–0 victory against Nigeria, he had several opportunities to score but was repeatedly denied by Vincent Enyeama. Messi started in Argentina's following 4–1 win against Korea Republic, he participated in all of the goals of his team and helped Gonzalo Higuain score a hat-trick. On the third and last group stage match Messi captained during Argentina's 2-0 win over Greece, again being the centrepoint of Argentina's play and was voted man of the match. At the Round of 16 he assisted Tevez for the first goal in a 3-1 win against Mexico, the referee awarded that goal even though it was a clear offside.
Charity:
In 2007 Messi established Fundacion Leo Messi, a charity supporting access to education and health care for vulnerable children. In an fansite interview, Messi said: “Being a bit famous now gives me the opportunity to help people who really need it, especially children."
Other:
Off the field Messi, who got his EU citizenship in 2009, has tried to make a name for himself. In early 2010, he was named a Goodwill Ambassador by UNICEF with a focus on fighting for children's rights across the globe.


Honours :
With Argentina National Team:
FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2005
Copa America 2007 second place
With FC Barcelona:
La Liga: 2004-05, 2005-06
Supercopa de Espagna: 2005, 2006


Personal Honours:
Golden Ball: FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2005
Golden Boot: FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2005
Golden Boy: 2005 Bravo Award: 2007
World Soccer Young Player of the Year: 2006, 2007
Olimpia de Plata: Argentinian Player of the Year: 2005
FIFPro World Young Player of the Year: 2006
FIFPro World XI: 2007
EFE Trophy: Best Ibero-American Player in La Liga: 2007


Best foreign player in La Liga: 2007
Copa America Best Young Player: 2007
France Football Player of the Year: 3rd place: 2007


World Soccer Footballer of the Year: 2nd place: 2007
FIFA World Player of the Year: 2nd place: 2007
SI Latino's 2007 Sportsman of the Year: 2007

Celebrity-Cristiano Ronaldo (Professional soccer player)

Cristiano Ronaldo-Professional soccer player.

Born: 5 February 1985 (age 25)

Full name: Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro

Place Of Birth: Funchal, Madeira, Portugal

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro was born on February 5, 1985 in Madeira, Portugal, a small island off the western coast of the country. Ronaldo, The youngest of Maria Dolores dos Santos and Jose Dinis Aveiro's four children, was named after Ronald Reagan, a favorite actor of his father's.

Ronaldo grew up in a largely working class neighborhood, his home a small tin roofed shack that overlooked the ocean. His early life was shaped by hardship; his father, a gardener, often drank too much, and eventually died from kidney problems in 2005. To help keep the children fed, and maintain some financial stability, Rolando's mother worked as a cook and cleaning person.

Career

Early career

Ronaldo first began kicking a football when he was three, and when he started primary school at age six, his passion for the sport was obvious. His favourite boyhood team was SL Benfica even though he would later join their rival, Sporting CP. He first played for an amateur team, Andorinha, where his father was the kit man, when he was just eight years old. By 1995, at just ten years of age, Cristiano Ronaldo's reputation was growing in Portugal. Madeira's top two teams, CS Marítimo and CD Nacional were both interested in signing him. Marítimo, the bigger team, missed a crucial meeting with Rui Santos manager of Andorinha, and as a result Ronaldo signed for Nacional. After a title-winning campaign at Nacional, Ronaldo went on a three day trial with Sporting Lisbon who subsequently signed him for an undisclosed sum.

Sporting CP

Ronaldo joined Sporting's other youth players who trained at the Alcochete, the club's "football factory," where he received first-class instruction. Sporting realised that Ronaldo needed more support and arranged for his mother to join him. He made his debut for Sporting Lisbon against Moreirense and scored 2 goals. He also featured for Portugal in the UEFA Under 17 Championships.

His performances at the UEFA Under 17 championship drew him to the attention of the wider football world. He was first spotted by former Liverpool F.C. manager Gérard Houllier at the age of 16. However, Liverpool later declined him because he was too young and needed some time to develop into a top footballer.

However he came to the attention of Sir Alex Ferguson in the summer of 2003, when Sporting Lisbon beat Manchester United 3–1 in the inauguration of the Alvalade XXI stadium in Lisbon. Ronaldo demonstrated his ability to play on both wings. After the match, United's players spoke enthusiastically of the young talent that they had just played against, saying they would rather have him in their team than play against him in the future.

Manchester United

Liverpool, under manager Gérard Houllier back then, was reported to have interest in signing Ronaldo. It was also revealed later that Arsenal was closed to signing him before his move to Manchester Utd in 2003.

Ronaldo’s signature came after Sporting defeated United 3–1 in a pre-season friendly. The United players spoke enthusiastically about the winger on their way home, and suggested manager Alex Ferguson to sign the player up, which he did for a price of £12.24 million.

Ronaldo made a memorable debut for United as a substitute against Bolton; his 30 minutes performances created hype with United fans and the English media with his dazzling dribbles. He scored his first goal for the club with a free kick in a 3–0 win over Portsmouth in November.

Despite promising starts, his first two seasons at the club received mixed reviews. He’s being praised for his technique and skill, but often criticised for lack of consistency and poor decision making on the field.

Ronaldo won both the PFA Player and Young Player of the Year Award in 2007; he’s also voted Footballer of the Year by the Football Writers’ Association; and was the top 3 finalists for both the FIFA World Player of the Year and European Player of the Year awards in 2007.

Ronaldo continued his fine form in the 2007/2008 season, netted in 42 goals in all competition (31 in Premier League), and was again voted as the PFA Player of The Year and Football Writers’ Footballer of the Year.

His performance contributed to United’s double for the season; winning the Premiership in succession as well as bringing home the UEFA Champions League trophy, in which he scored a goal in the final.

Ronaldo was crowned as both the FIFA World Player of the Year and European Player of the Year in 2008.

Ronaldo scored 26 goals in the 2008/09 season, helping United to another Premiership title, and again reached the final of the Champions League in which they lost to Barcelona.

Real Madrid

Ronaldo became the world’s most expensive football player following his move from Manchester United to Real Madrid in July 2009 in a £80 million transfer. He was welcome by 80,000 fans in the Santiago Bernabéu stadium during his official presentation.

Ronaldo’s Real Madrid career started well and was in untouchable form until his injury in October. He recovered his form soon after and scored 33 goals in his first season for Real, but couldn’t help the club to win any trophies.

International career

Ronaldo earned his first cap for Portugal in a 1–0 victory against Kazakhstan on 20 August 2003. He was called up for Euro 2004, scoring in a 2–1 group stage loss to eventual champions Greece and in a 2–1 semi-final win over the Netherlands. He was named in the team of the tournament despite finishing with only two goals. That same year, he also represented Portugal at the 2004 Summer Olympics.

2006 World Cup

Ronaldo was the second-highest scorer in FIFA World Cup qualification in the European zone with seven goals and scored his first World Cup goal against Iran with a penalty kick.

During a quarter-final match against England on 1 July 2006, Ronaldo's United teammate Wayne Rooney was sent off for stamping on Portugal defender Ricardo Carvalho.

2010 FIFA World Cup

On 15 June 2010, in Portugal's opening 2010 FIFA World Cup match against Côte d'Ivoire, Ronaldo shot from 35 yards in the 11th minute, but the ball hit the post. Ten minutes later, Ronaldo was yellow-carded, with much controversy, after being tackled by Guy Demel. As Ronaldo was making his way down the field, Demel started an argument between the two which led to both being booked. On 16 June 2010, the Portugal Football Federation contacted FIFA to suggest that Ronaldo's yellow card be rescinded since the player was "pulled into" the confrontation after having already moved away from the spot where he was tackled. In the match Portugal v.s. North Korea, Ronaldo scored in the 87th minute, assisting one more goal ending the match 7-0.

Celebrity-Kaka (Professional soccer player)

Kaka-Professional soccer player.
Born: April 22, 1982 (1982-04-22) (age 28)
Full Name: Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite
Place of birth: Brasília, Brazil.



Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite was born on April 22, 1982, in Brasilia, the capital city of Brazil. A top-level player soccer player throughout his youth, Kaká began his move toward the professional ranks at the age of 15, when he signed to the São Paulo youth club. His bright career was brought to a halt only three years later, when a swimming pool accident fractured a vertebrae in his neck. The incident could have paralyzed the athlete, but Kaká fully healed. Crediting God for his miraculous recovery, the budding star began leading an actively Christian life, engaging in daily prayer; tithing a portion of his income to the church; refusing to swear; and remaining chaste until his marriage to childhood sweetheart Caroline Celico in 2005.


Club Career
São Paulo
A year after the injury, Kaká made his professional debut with São Paulo's senior team in dramatic fashion. In the closing minutes of a tight game he scored two times, sealing a win for his club. The performance proved to be the start of a successful rookie year that would see him score 12 times in just 27 games. He also aided his team in taking home the Torneio Rio-Sao Paulo title in 2001—the only time the team has won the championship to date. In 2002, while seeing limited action, his team also took home the World Cup title.



Milan
In 2003, the midfielder left his home country for a new team and a new contract in Milan, Italy. For Milan, the transfer had cost $10 million, a sum that the club's owner labeled as "peanuts" compared to the talent he was getting. It didn't take long for Kaká to live up to his pricetag. Over the next several seasons, Kaká assembled a player résumé like no other. His accolades included The Serie A Foreign Footballer of the Year title in 2004 and 2006, as well as recognition as the Champions League Best Midfielder in 2005. But his finest season to date came in 2007, when Kaká became the league's top scorer, and led his team to Champions League and Club World Cup titles. In addition, he was named the European Footballer of the Year, World Soccer Player of the year, FIFA World Cup Best Player, and FIFA World Player of the Year.









Real Madrid
For much of his time in Milan, rumors circulated that he may leave for another team. In January 2009, talks heated up between Milan and Manchester City about a proposed $145 million transfer that would see Kaká move north to England. Negotiations eventually came undone, but not the rumors about the player's departure. Five months later, the Milan team—a club that was deeply in debt—handed Kaká over to the Real Madrid club in Spain for a $78 million, six-year contract. "Now the soap opera is over," Kaká told reporters.




International career
Kaká was called up for the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship, but the Brazilians crashed out to Ghana in the quarter-finals. Several months later, he made his debut for the senior Brazil squad in a friendly match against Bolivia on 31 January 2002. He was part of the 2002 FIFA World Cup-winning squad, but played only 25 minutes, all of which were in the first round match against Costa Rica.


In 2003, Kaká was the captain for the 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament, where Brazil, competing with their under-23 team, finished as runner-up to Mexico. He scored three goals during the tournament. He was included in Brazil's squad for 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup in Germany. He appeared in all five matches and scored one goal in a 4–1 win over Argentina in the final.

Kaká started in his first FIFA World Cup finals in 2006 and scored his first and only goal of the tournament in Brazil's 1–0 victory over Croatia in Brazil's opener, for which he was named Man of the Match. He was unable to keep up the momentum for the remainder of the tournament, as Brazil was eliminated by France in the quarter-finals. In a friendly against rivals Argentina on 3 September 2006, after entering as a substitute, he received the ball off a deflection from an Argentina corner kick and outran Lionel Messi while taking the ball down three quarters of the field to score.


On 12 May 2007, citing an exhaustive schedule of Serie A, Champions League, and national team play, Kaká bowed out of the 2007 Copa América, which Brazil won. After missing out on the Copa América, he returned to play in Brazil's friendly match against Algeria on 22 August 2007.


Kaká participated in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, marking his first international tournament since the 2006 World Cup. His only two goals came in Brazil's group stage opener against Egypt on 14 June, when he scored a goal in the fifth minute and then added a 90th-minute penalty in Brazil's 4–3 victory. He received the Golden Ball as the player of the tournament at the Confederations Cup and was also named the Man of the Match in the final after helping Brazil to a 3-2 win against the United States.


In the 2010 FIFA World Cup, during the 20 June match against Côte d'Ivoire, Kaká received a red card after receiving two yellow cards. The second card was given for a controversial elbow in the direction of Abdul Kader Keïta. The Telegraph called the incident leading to the second yellow card "an innocuous off the-the-ball incident".


Personal life
In 2008, Kaká celebrated a different milestone when his wife gave birth to a baby boy, Luca Celico Leite. The couple resides in Madrid, Spain.