Football Stars: Neymar

Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior (born 5 February 1992 in Mogi das Cruzes), commonly known simply as Neymar, is a Brazilian footballer who currently plays as a striker for Santos and the Brazilian national football team. Still a teenager, he is largely untested outside Brazil, but has gathered interest from a number of leading European clubs.


Club career

Santos

Neymar joined Santos in 2003[2] and eventually made his first-team debut six years later aged 17 on 7 March 2009 in a 2–1 win against Oeste. He made another appearance the following week against Mogi Mirim, during which he scored his first goal for Santos. On 11 April, in the 2009 Campeonato Paulista semi-final first leg against Palmeiras, Neymar scored the decisive goal in a 2–1 win at Estádio Vila Belmiro.[3] In the final however Santos suffered a 4–2 aggregate defeat to Corinthians.[4]
On 15 April 2010, Neymar scored six goals for Santos in an 8–1 routing of Guarani in the round of 16 of the Brazilian Cup.[5] Following the 2010 Campeonato Paulista in which Neymar scored 14 goals in 19 games,[2] the club were crowned champions after a 5–5 aggregate win over Santo André in the finals.[6] Neymar was subsequently given the award for the best player in the competition.[7]
Neymar's performances for Santos have drawn comparisons to Brazilian idols such as Robinho and Pelé.[8] In June 2010, Santos rejected a £12 million bid from English Premier League team West Ham United for his services.[9] Neymar has also attracted interest from clubs such as Manchester United,[10], AC Milan, Internazionale,[8] Real Madrid,[8] Chelsea[11] and Juventus, with Real Madrid even going so far as to claim that they had signed a pre-contract agreement with Neymar's agent, Renato Rodrigues,[12] which Santos fervently denied.[13] Following this, Santos placed a €30 million price tag on the player's head,[12] and tied Neymar down to a new contract lasting until December 2014.[14] Neymar himself said he did not think it was time to leave Santos, and that he was entirely focused on his current club,[15] However, Renato Rodrigues insisted that the Santos striker does not want to stay in his home country of Brazil.[16]
On 30 November 2010, Santos sold 5% interests on future transfer fees received to an investment group, Terceira Estrela Investimentos S.A. (TEISA), for R$ 3,549,900 (€1.5 million).[17] DIS Group (subsidiary of Sonda Group, a Brazil supermarket chain), investment partner of Santos in recent years, bought 40% sporting rights from Neymar's family in 2009.[18]



International career

Following Neymar's performances for Brazil's U-17 team at the 2009 U-17 World Cup in which he scored a goal in the opening match against Japan[19] former Brazilian football players Pelé and Romário reportedly urged coach Dunga to take Neymar to the 2010 World Cup.[15][20] Although the widespread opinion that Neymar deserved a place in Dunga's squad went as far as a 14,000 signature petition,[15][21] and despite the huge pressure on Dunga to pick Neymar,[22] he was omitted from both the squad of 23,[23][24] and the stand-by list.[25] Although Dunga described Neymar as "extremely talented", he claimed that he had not been tested sufficiently on the international level to earn a World Cup spot and he had failed to impress enough while on international duty.[26][27]
On 26 July 2010, Neymar was selected in the squad for the Brazil team by new head coach Mano Menezes for a friendly match against the USA on 10 August 2010. He started the game and wore the number 11 jersey. He scored on his debut after 28 minutes, a header coming from an André Santos cross in a 2–0 win for Brazil.[28]


Neymar celebrates a goal for Brazil against Scotland in March 2011 with Andre Santos and Ramires
On 27 March 2011, he scored twice in a 2–0 win against Scotland at the Emirates Stadium.[29] During the match against Scotland, a banana was thrown onto the pitch after a penalty was taken, which Neymar claimed was an act of racism from a Scottish fan.[30] However a German student later admitted to throwing the banana. This led to the Scottish Football Association asking the Brazilian Football Confederation for an apology for the accusations made to the Scottish fans.[31]

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History of Barcelona

On November 29, 1899, Hans Gamper founded Futbol Club Barcelona, along with eleven other enthusiasts of 'foot-ball', a game that was still largely unknown in this part of the world.

He could never have imagined the magnitude of what that initiative would eventually develop into. Over more than one hundred years of history, FC Barcelona has grown spectacularly in every area and has progressed into something much greater than a mere sports club, turning Barça’s ‘more than a club’ slogan into a reality. 

Barça has become, for millions of people all around the world, a symbol of their identity, and not just in a sporting sense, but also in terms of society, politics and culture. Throughout the most difficult of times, Barça was the standard that represented Catalonia and the Catalan people's desire for freedom, a symbolism that has continued to be closely linked to the idiosyncrasy of the Club and its members to this day. Within the context of Spain, Barça is seen as an open and democratic club. And all around the world, Barça is identified with caring causes, and most especially children through its sponsorship agreement with Unicef. 

For a whole century, FC Barcelona has passed through moments of glory and pain, periods of brilliance and other less successful ones, epic victories and humbling defeats. But all these different moments have helped define the personality of a Club that, due to its peculiar nature, is considered unique in the world. 

With over one hundred years of history, there have naturally been many different periods, both in a social and a sporting sense. In the early years (1899-1922) , from the foundation of the club to the construction of Les Corts stadium, Barça was a club that had to distinguish itself from all the other football teams in Barcelona, to the point that it would come to be identified with the city as a whole. Barça soon became the leading club in Catalonia, and also associated itself with the increasingly growing sense of Catalan national identity. 

From Les Corts to the Camp Nou (1922-1957), the club went through contrasting periods. Its membership reached 10,000 for the first time, while football developed into a mass phenomenon and turned professional, and these were the years of such legendary figures as Alcántara and Samitier. But due to material difficulties and the political troubles of the Spanish Civil War and post-war period, the club was forced to overcome several adverse circumstances, including the assassination of president Josep Sunyol in 1936, the very person who had propagated the slogan ‘sport and citizenship'. But the club survived, and a period of social and sporting recovery materialised in the form of the Camp Nou, coinciding with the arrival of the hugely influential Ladislau Kubala. 

From the construction of the Camp Nou to the 75th anniversary (1957-1974) , Barça suffered mediocre results but was consolidated as an entity, with a constantly increasing membership and the slow but steady recovery, in the face of adversity, of its identity. A very clear sensation that was manifested for the first time ever in the words ‘Barça, more than a club’ proclaimed by president Narcís de Carreras. The board presided by Agustí Montal brought a player to Barcelona who would change the history of the club, Johan Cruyff. 

From the 7th anniversary to the European Cup (1974-1992) the club saw the conversion of football clubs to democracy, the start of Josep Lluís Núñez’s long presidency, the extension of the Camp Nou on occasion of the 1982 World Cup and the Cup Winners Cup triumph in Basle (1979), a major success not just in a sporting sense but also in a social one, with an enormous and exemplary expedition of Barça supporters demonstrating to Europe the unity of the Barcelona and Catalan flags. Cruyff returned, this time as coach, and created what would come to be known as the 'Dream Team' (1990-1994), whose crowning glory was the conquest of the European Cup at Wembley (1992), thanks to Koeman’s famous goal.

 International Dominance. From Wembley to Abu Dhabi (1992-2009) was when the club’s most recent developments occurred in between its three greatest achievements, becoming champions of Europe. Josep Lluís Núñez’s long presidency came to an end, and the club displayed its finest potential during the celebrations of the club Centenary. Following on from Joan Gaspart (2000-2003), the June 2003 election brought Joan Laporta into office, and the start of new social expansion, reaching 172,938 members, and more successes on the pitch, including four league titles, the Champions League titles won in Paris and Rome and the FIFA Club World Cup.

In the season 2008-09 the arrival of Josep Guardiola as first team coach brought new energy to the club and they recorded the most successful season in their entire history winning the six titles that will be forever burned into the memories of all Barça fans. Success on the field has helped the club expand its social role and heighten its media profile. In the 2009/10 season, Guardiola’s second in charge, the Liga title was won for the second year in a row, and the twentieth on club history, setting a new record of 99 points in the process. The title was not decided until the very last day, with a game against Valladolid, and the celebrations went ahead that very same evening in the company of the fans at the Camp Nou.

The grandeur of Futbol Club Barcelona is explained, among many other factors, by its impressive honours list. Very few clubs anywhere in the world have won so many titles. The Intercontinental Cup is the only major football trophy that has never made its way into the club museum, where the club's greatest pride and joy remain the three European Cup titles won in Wembley (1992) Paris (2006), Rome (2009) and the FIFA Club World Cup in 2009. 

Apart from winning Europe’s top title,, the Club also has the honour of being the only one to have appeared in every single edition of European club competition since the tournaments were first created back in 1955. Barcelona's many achievements in Europe include being considered 'King of the Cup Winners Cup', having won that title a record four times

In addition, FC Barcelona also won three Fairs Cups (the tournament now known as the UEFA Cup) in 1958, 1960 and 1966. In 1971, Barça won that trophy outright in a match played between themselves, as the first ever winners of the competition, and Leeds United, as the last.

ChealseaFC old stadium

Chelsea's home stadium is called Stamford Bridge and has a history as varied and unique as the team itself.

Stamford Bridge officially opened on 28 April 1877. For the first 28 years of its existence it was used almost exclusively by the London Athletic Club as an arena for athletics meetings and not for football at all.

In 1904 the ownership of the ground changed hands when Mr H A (Gus) Mears and his brother, Mr J T Mears, obtained the deeds, having previously acquired additional land (formerly a large market garden) with the aim of establishing a football team there on the now 12.5 acre site.

Stamford Bridge was designed by Archibald Leitch and initially included a 120 yard long stand on the East side which could hold 5000 spectators.

The other sides were all open in a vast bowl with thousands of tons of material excavated from the building of the underground railway provided high terracing on the West side.

The capacity was originally planned to be 100,000 and was the second largest in country behind Crystal Palace - the FA Cup final venue.

Initially the stadium was offered to Fulham FC to play there, they turned down the chance and so instead a new side, Chelsea Football Club, was born in 1905 and moved into the new Stamford Bridge stadium.

FC Barcelona won the Champion League

With the majority of European Leagues having finished, most of the spots for the 2011-12 Champions League are known and Barça will be defending their title in a year that sees the return of ex-champions Porto and Borussia Dortmund.


Barça are the only team who managed to retain their league title amongst the major European leagues, but there will be a full line up of top clubs in the Champions League next season. 

City in for Spurs 
The trio of Arsenal. Chelsea and Manchester United are again into the competition from England, but Spurs will not be –their place having been taken by the big spending Manchester City. Five times European Champions Liverpool again miss out on the chance to make it six –the second season on the run they’ve not made the competition. 

Naples and Udinese back 
Alongside the two Milan teams, Naples and Udinese are the Italian representatives, with Juve, Roma and Fiorentina all failing to reach the competition. 

Dortmund and Porto 
Two ex-champions are also back in the competition: Borussia Dortmund and Porto. The Germans, who won the title in the 1996-7 season, took the Bundesliga title in May and will go straight through to the group stages, whilst Porto ran away with the Portuguese league and also took the Europa Cup, to set up the European Super Cup game against Barça in August. 

Familiar faces –and some new ones! 
There are also many familiar teams who will be going into the draw-Ukranian champions Shaktar Donetsk, Anderlecht from Belgium,Olympiacos, coached by Ernesto Valverde, from Greece, Copenhagen, Basle, Glasgow Rangers, Partizan and the Russian champions Zenith. From Romania, there will again be a new team -Otalut Galati, who won the title and left Cluj with no chance to repeat their title.

Manchester United FC

1900-1909

John Henry Davies decided to invest in Newton Heath, in return for some interest in running it.

This led to a change of name and, after several alternatives including Manchester Central and Manchester Celtic were rejected, Manchester United was born in April/May 1902.

The next influential figure to arrive at United was Ernest Mangnall, who was appointed secretary in September 1903 but is widely acknowledged as being the club's first manager. His side, including new signings like goalkeeper Harry Moger and forwardCharlie Sagar, finished third in the Second Division in 1903/04 and again in 1904/05.

The following season, 1905/06, was to prove one of the greatest in the early life of Manchester United. The half-back line of Dick Duckworth, Alex Bell and captain Charlie Roberts were instrumental in the side which reached the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, but more importantly finished as runners-up in the Second Division. Twelve years after being relegated, United reclaimed their place in the top flight.

To celebrate, Mangnall signed Billy Meredith from rivals Manchester City. Nicknamed the Welsh Wizard, Meredith had been implicated in a bribery scandal at City, and was due to be auctioned along with 17 other players. Mangnall made his move early, and acquired Meredith's signature before the bidding began.

The winger's arrival proved to be inspirational - Meredith set up countless goals for Sandy Turnbull in 1907/08 when United won the Football League Championship for the first time. As champions, United played in the first-ever Charity Shield in 1908. They duly won the trophy, beating Southern League champions QPR 4-0 thanks to a hat-trick from Sandy's namesake, Jimmy Turnbull.

The third trophy to be added to the club's honours board was the FA Cup, at the end of a tremendous run in 1909. United beat Bristol City 1-0 in the final, thanks to Sandy Turnbull's goal.