To those who dont know football. To me, i would appreciate something like a team building from the back finishing a nice move. Which is what Barca often do. I appreciate great passes that spread the play, and open up space, and just generally stretch teams. I also appreciate smart football. A team that isnt afraid to drop the ball back, when there is no where to go. Teams that keep the ball on the ground. etc etc.. But i am still going to say Ronaldinho as a great football player deserved it. If Lampard won it, it was fully deserved. Whoever says Lampard was robbed, i woud like to knwo their reasoning apart from the stats, which always dont tell the story. For instance, that pass that sets the person who asist on the goal... that person never gets credit.
I think you are right. This damn stupid world don't see it your way. Lampard better than Pele, Rooney better than Maradona, your queen prettier than a chimp.
Di I claim Lampard is better than Pele? Did I claim Rooney better than Maradona? My queen?!?!! What the fvck are you on?
Honestly, this award could've gone either way, I don't think anyone can deny that. Lampard had a brilliant year, he was arguably the most dominant player in Europe, lead Chelsea to their first title in 50 years while being their leading goalscorer, orchestrating the attack, putting in countless miles up and down the pitch, scoring absolutely crucial goals for England in qualifying, and helped Chelsea to the CL semifinals, scoring against Barca and Bayern Munich in the knockout stages. He also helped Chelsea to victory in the League Cup, and was unbelievably consistent, it really was/is remarkable. Ronaldinho's claim is just as valid, a key player in Barca's championship winning season, and scoring a great brace in the CL against Chelsea, and in the past 3 months, he has been absolutely brilliant for Barcelona, and he also helped win the Confed Cup in Germany. He has, at times, almost redefined the sport with his pieces of individual brilliance, and he was part of the Brazilian team that finished first in SA world cup qualifying. Honestly, it comes down to personal preference. Nobody that thinks Ronaldinho deserved to win is going to be swayed in that opinion, and the same holds true for Lampard. Personally, given that Chelsea achieved more domestically and in Europe, I would choose Lampard, with Ronaldinho a close second. Another thing is that I personally find Lampard's unbelievable consistency as amazing as Ronaldinho's moments of genius, anyone who has played any sport can attest to the fact that it is hard to maintain the same level of consistency over any period, let alone a full season at the highest level.
I think Lampard is a phenomenal player, the best English player right now. Obviously he is a player who can lead the attack from midfield and who can score, he has pace and he has speed and he has toughness, he is a very complete player. But I am most impressed by his passing ability. He can make quick effective short passes and very accurate long passes. I think he benefits from the fact that he plays at Chelsea and that Mourinho understands his role and knows how to maximize his talent. For the national team, (and I don't follow England's NT all the time so somebody can correct me), it seems that Ericsson doesn't quite understand his role and that of Gerrard, or maybe it is because they are similar players and they get in each other's way, so perhaps that is why he hasn't played at quite the same level as he has for his club. But against Argentina in the friendly he played well, so maybe they are finally figuring out his role. I personally would pick Ronaldinho over him, but Lampard is unquestionably up there at the top level, and I can understand those who'd argue for him getting the award.
I may have mistaken you for someone else, sorry, but that doesn't resolve the fact that some English players are just horrendously hyped to the max, just a little tired about that.
yea like who? because everyone that's been "hyped to the max" so far have proven their worth; Rooney, Gerrard, Lampard. And lets be honest here, like Brazilians aren't hyped even more to the max
You really need to read more. Do a search and you will find all of my glowing praise for Ronaldinho and Ronaldo. I have stated on many an occasion that I felt Ronaldinho was currently the best player in the world for what he does and that Ronaldo was the best player of our generation (definitely pre-injury and even post-injury he has continually posted scoring stats comparable to the best). I had also praised Robinho for his Santos form, but his Real Madrid form has been shocking to say the least. That is when I said that he is becoming the next Denilson. Many others have agreed with that comparison. So please, try again and state what is wrong with my comments regarding them. There is nothing misleading in what I stated. I know full well who was involved in those discussions and I know full well who I was referring to with that post. Not at all. I mentioned Rooney because he is yet another example of a player criminally under-rated by the groups of people that my complaint is against. By mentioning him and looking at their clearly biased and ignorant comments, it further highlights and indeed confirms my opinions on them. As for nicephoras, he has a well known vendetta against me and the topic isn't even up for debate, as Rooney is clearly more complete. That is fact and something that has been discussed and indeed proved to death. Riquelme was also a contender and my thoughts on him can be clearly noted in the comparison thread on the Uefa board. However, my statement remains the same. I know how the respective players performed and Henry simply did more and had a greater impact. The same applies to Lampard this year. It's not a knock on Ronaldinho, as he would easily be in the top three, just the cold hard facts. Sempre, we know each other fairly well and I must say that I am somewhat surprised by these posts being directed towards me. I would have honestly thought that you would understand my perspective on this matter. After all, the best way I can explain it to you is by comparing the fan boy comments regarding Brazilian players to those of Bruiser regarding Carew. It is exactly the same fight my friend.
Whoooo cares. this award is meaningless anyways...it's all about reputation and a popularity contest. If you are going to go by awards like these to decide on a "best" player you need to check yourself as a football fan.
Sorry if I over-reacted, Teso. Call my reaction an over-reaction to an over-reaction, because I feel that earlier in this thread not only were some posters blathering ignorantly about Ronaldinho's achievements, but some were denigrating his creativity and his wonderful skill at improvising as mere flashiness and "tricks." I do think it's important to grasp that he has a real gift and is no mere entertainer--that there's style and substance all in one. Having said this, I had no cause to jump on you because you hadn't said a peep in this thread. I'm glad you've put things in perspective for me though because I think I had misunderstand your point of view previously.
*Not part of their game* Hee hee.They dont do the tricks or the plays Ronaldinho does because they simply dont have the skills Ronaldinho has..get it thru that empty head once and for all.
you don't get it, I was talking about simple and general tricks like step overs and cyclones which they've all done already numerous times. Of course none of them have the talent or improvisation skill that Dinho does, but then again that wasn't even near of what I was talking about. But you wouldn't understand that would you!? nah..of course not.
What does it actually relate to though? What point are you trying to make about me and where are you getting it from?
listen teso. your view on rooney is what someone could expect from an english kid who just got a man u jersey with rooney written on it on his 12th birthday. don't accuse others of being fanboys when your devotion to rooney makes you the most outrageous fanboy of all.
Don't be an idiot and just jump into something you clearly know nothing about. Read the relevant posts vico.
Refusing to accept Dinho is better than Lampard is idiocracy in application. Claiming Rooney should have been up there with the selected 3 for WPY instead of Eto'o is a tired argument. This doesn't take from the fact that Lampard is the best player in England and one of the top in Europe- and from the fact that Rooney a promising young talent. This is where the buck should stop. My point of discussion is about hype not the players and their talent. May be this is not the right thread. So I bow out.
1. you find the post where I stated that Rooney should be included and I'll never post on BS again. 2. Claiming Lampard is better than Dinho is not dumb, its my opinion, everyone is entitled one if you can back it up, which I did fairly as opposed to many of you with your insipid one liners. 3. your judging this based on hype alone defeats the whole purpose of thsi trhead and this award in itself. the end.
The point that most of you are failing to grasp is that there were players who had better seasons than Ronaldinho. We are not saying that he is crap or that other players are clearly better, just pointing out that for the last two years he has been outperformed. It's that simple and something that you cannot debate as it is fact. So the question is why did he win? Was it bias towards flashy players, bias towards La Liga, bias towards Brazilian players, bias against English players... ?
All right, comme... very well. I'll engage you in this pointless exercise, even as I know you'll come out of it none the wiser about what makes the Game what it should be. You've made derogatory references to the players who have done the work necessary to possess the skills of ball control and misdirection. You referred to Zidane in the Draft as a "showpony" (what's your problem with Zidane anyhow?), you've described 'Dinho as "flashy", and generally discredited the use of those skills as being directly applicable to moving either ball, team or both toward the overall end of scoring more goals. Those are not acceptable terms for what should be a part of the repertoire of any and every attacking player at the professional level and you know it. But you've attempted to belittle this as nothing more than entertainment. There's a post here by Sempre which explains perfectly the connection between what 'Dinho does and the results it achieves for his team. Read it again, if you can find it, because he said it better than I could ever have done. It's the way the fvcking Game ought to be played everywhere, by everyone. But attitudes like yours won't allow it to grow. I told you when we were "teammates" in that draft that a bigger hammer was not always the answer, but you didn't get it then, were quite Britsmug about it then, and I suspect you won't get it now. You're not the only poster around here with such dismissive views of skill, but you're the only one I know who possesses the wealth of knowledge of the Game that you do (a great deal more knowedge than I have, and I have no problem saying so) and still clings to the sad, run around like crazy and bump 'em off the ball attitude I read from more than a few posters in your part of Europe (that is, the island off the coast). You've also made negative comments about the weather at USA '94, even going so far as to suggest that the more or less constant dreariness of someplace like England is more suitable for the World Cup than the overall climate of the USA. It's a huge country, and the average weather here is perfect for the Game, provided players aren't allergic to a bit of sunshine. The Germans have no problem with the weather. I truly believe it's a sad reflection on a culture that they could care so much about the Game, but would rather remain firmly entrenched in 20th century football rather than follow the innovative techniques of players such as Ronaldinho simply because he's not from your neck of the woods. We both know it, but you're not going to admit to being blatantly wrong about any of this here, so perhaps I've wasted my time.