Ronaldo beats Messi to top the Goal Rich List 2014

Cristiano Ronaldo was today named the world’s richest footballer after topping the annual list of players’ net worth compiled by global football media title Goal.com.

The Real Madrid forward just held off Barcelona rival Lionel Messi in the Goal Rich List 2014 with an estimated wealth of €148 million.
Ronaldo has enjoyed a remarkable 12 months in which his value to club and country has been never been more evident.
He scored all four goals as Portugal beat Sweden in the World Cup play-offs, landed the 2013 Ballon d’Or and signed a record-breaking new five-year deal with Madrid.

Messi, who lost his Ballon d’Or crown to Ronaldo in January, came in second after inspiring Barcelona to the Spanish title and signing up for a range of lucrative endorsements.

The Goal Rich List is collated by a team of analysts and takes into account all streams of revenue for active footballers over the course of their careers.

Ronaldo succeeds David Beckham who led the way in the 2013 Goal Rich List but called time on his playing career in May 2013.
Only current professionals are eligible with the earnings of more than 200 contenders assessed before Goal’s experts finalised on their selection.

Wayne Rooney makes the top four on the list following Manchester United’s decision to offer him the biggest contract in British football history, worth €365,000 a week.

Neymar’s controversial transfer to Barcelona sees him rise sharply in the standings to sixth, with his parents’ €40m ‘compensation’ payment included in Goal’s figures due to its game-changing significance.

The rest of the list is made up of global superstars, who have accrued huge wealth over significant spells at the top of the professional game.

Chelsea’s Samuel Eto’o is at number three, ahead of Rooney, thanks largely to the millions he earned at Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala, with Kaka, Ronaldinho, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Gianluigi Buffon and Thierry Henry completing the top 10.

Goal Rich List 2014 – Top 10

1. ​Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid​​​€148m (£122m)

2. ​Lionel Messi, Barcelona​​​​€146m (£120.5m)

3. ​Samuel Eto’o, Chelsea ​​​​€85m (£70m)

4. ​Wayne Rooney, Manchester United​​€84m (£69m)

5. ​Kaka, AC Milan​​​​​​€82m (£67.5m)

6. ​Neymar & family, Barcelona ​​​€80m (£66m)

7. ​Ronaldinho, Atletico Mineiro​​​€78m (£64m)

8. ​Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paris St-Germain​​€69m (£57m)

9. ​Gianluigi Buffon, Juventus​​​​€63m (£52m)

10. ​Thierry Henry, New York Red Bulls​​€57m (£47m)

Draws and group pairings for 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup In Spain

The Official Draw for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup took place on Monday evening at the Palau de la Musica Catalana.

Here are the four Preliminary Round groups, which each consist of six teams.

Group A (Granada): 1. Spain; 2. Serbia; 3. France; 4. Brazil; 5. Egypt; 6. Iran.

Group B (Seville): 1. Philippines; 2. Senegal; 3. Puerto Rico; 4. Argentina; 5. Greece; 6. Croatia.

Group C (Bilbao): 1. Dominican Republic; 2. Turkey; 3. USA; 4. Finland; 5. New Zealand; 6. Ukraine.

Group D (Gran Canaria): 1. Slovenia; 2. Lithuania; 3. Angola; 4. Korea; 5. Mexico; 6. Australia.

In attendance for this milestone event on the Road to Spain 2014 were distinguished guest including: the Mayor of the City of Barcelona, Mr Xavier Trias; the President of the High Council of Sport of Spain; the President of FIBA, Mr Yvan Mainini; the President of the Spanish Basketball Federation, Mr José Luis Saez; the Secretary General Emeritus of FIBA, Mr Borislav Stankovic; the Secretary General of FIBA, Mr Patrick Baumann.

Lending a helping hand in the draw procedure were international legends Juan San Epifanio (‘Epi’) of Spain, Croatia’s Dino Radja, Puerto Rico’s José ‘Piculin’ Ortiz and FIBA Hall of Fame inductee Jean Jacques Conceicao of Angola.

2006 FIBA World Champions Juan Carlos Navarro and Jorge Garbajosa were also among the more than 500 in attendance, along with Eduardo Kucharski, Jaume Bassó and Angel González Adrio,members of Spain’s national team at the first FIBA World Championship in 1950.

They were joined by representatives of the participating team delegations – including head coaches of a dozen of the 24 teams – as well as members of the Spanish and foreign media.

Click here for the competition system and here for the full schedule (please note that the times of the games will be determined at a later stage and that the order in which the games are listed does not reflect the order in which they will be played).

The first-ever FIBA Basketball World Cup will take place in Spain from 30 August to 14 September 2014.

The Preliminary Round will be played in Bilbao, Gran Canaria, Granada and Seville (30 August-4 September). The Final Round will take place in the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona and in the Palacio de los Deportes of Madrid (6-14 September).

The FIBA Basketball World Cup, known from 1950 until 2010 as the FIBA World Championship, is the flagship event of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA).

The winners of the FIBA Basketball World Cup get to celebrate their crowning moment by holding aloft the Naismith Trophy, named after the inventor of basketball, Dr James Naismith.

Source : FIBA

Football Fixtures Across Europe Today Wednesday 8 January 2014

Football Fixtures Across Europe Today Wednesday 8 January 2014

France – Ligue 1

19:45 Saint Etienne vs Evian Thonon Gaillard

France – FA Cup Fixtures

18:00 Brest vs Paris Saint Germain

19:00 Jura Sud vs Creteil

Italy – Coppa Italia Fixtures

20:00 Fiorentina vs Chievo

England – FA Cup Fixtures

19:45 Crawley vs Bristol Rovers

England – Capital One Cup

19:45 Manchester City vs West Ham

Spain – Copa del Rey

19:00 Alcorcon vs Espanyol

19:00 Real Betis vs Athletic Bilbao

21:00 Barcelona vs Getafe

21:00 Santander vs Almeria

Weekend fixtures in England its FA Cup weekend and the La Liga, and the Serie A also returns…,

Weekend fixtures in England its FA Cup weekend and the La Liga, and the Serie A also returns…,

As Football action returns to major leagues across Europe here’s a full list of fixtures of matches to be played on Saturday the 4th of January 2014, Sunday the 5th and of course Monday night football returns too and that on Monday the 6th of January 2014. In England it’s the 3rd Round of the oldest cup competition in the world and some EPL teams have been drawn against each other, Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur is arguably the star match on Saturday, and in Spain the likely return of Lionel Messi to the Barca starting 11 will definitely make the Barcelona vs Elche game a must watch. On Monday it’s Real Madrid vs Celta Vigo in the Primera Liga, and the Serie A throws up Lazio vs Inter Milan . Below is a full list of fixtures.

Saturday 4th January 2014

English FA Cup Third Round

Blackburn Rovers v Manchester City 12:45

Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur 17:15

Aston Villa v Sheffield United 15:00

Barnsley v Coventry City 15:00

Bolton Wanderers v Blackpool 15:00

Newcastle United v Cardiff City 15:00

Norwich City v Fulham 15:00

Rochdale v Leeds United 15:00

Southampton v Burnley 15:00

Southend United v Millwall 15:00

Stoke City v Leicester City 15:00

Bournemouth v Burton Albion 15:00

Brighton and Hove A v Reading 15:00

Bristol City v Watford 15:00

Charlton Athletic v Oxford United 15:00

Doncaster Rovers v Stevenage 15:00

Everton v Queens Park Rangers 15:00

Grimsby Town v Huddersfield Town 15:00

Ipswich Town v Preston North End 15:00

Kidderminster v Peterborough United 15:00

Macclesfield Town v Sheffield Wednesday 15:00

Middlesbrough v Hull City 15:00

West Bromwich Albion v Crystal Palace 15:00

Wigan Athletic v Milton Keynes Dons 15:00

Yeovil Town v Leyton Orient 15:00

English FA Cup Second Round Replay

Crawley Town v Bristol Rovers 15:00

Spanish Primera Liga

Malaga v Atletico Madrid 15:00

Real Valladolid v Real Betis 17:00

Valencia v Levante 19:00

Almeria v Granada 21:00

Sunday 5th January 2014

English FA Cup Third Round

Nottingham Forest v West Ham United 12:00

Derby County v Chelsea 14:15

Sunderland v Carlisle United 14:00

Liverpool v Oldham Athletic 15:00

Port Vale v Plymouth Argyle 15:00

Manchester United v Swansea City 16:30

Spanish Primera Liga

Barcelona v Elche 15:00

Osasuna v Espanyol 17:00

Real Sociedad v Athletic Bilbao 19:00

Seville v Getafe 11:00

Italian Serie A

Chievo v Cagliari 14:00

Fiorentina v Livorno 17:00

Juventus v Roma 19:45

Monday 6th January 2014

Spanish Primera Liga

Real Madrid v Celta Vigo 18:00

Rayo Vallecano v Villarreal 21:00

Italian Serie A

Napoli v Sampdoria 11:30

AC Milan v Atalanta 14:00

Catania v Bologna 14:00

Genoa v Sassuolo 14:00

Parma v Torino 14:00

Udinese v Verona 14:00

Lazio v Inter Milan 17:30

Top 5 in performers in Europe’s top 5 football leagues (2013/2014) the story so far…,

Top 5 in performers in Europe’s top 5 football leagues (2013/2014) the story so far…,

We have put together a list of Europe’s top 5 leagues top 5 performers, our focus is on a few highlights of the game, mainly goals, assist and discipline for individuals and for teams it’s got to do with Their positions on the Log, comments are welcome and hope you find this useful.

Please note that this is based on results as at the 25th of December 2013 and the Leagues are arranged in no particular other……..

1, German Bundesliga Top 5

Topscorers

Player Team Goals
R. Lewandowski Dortmund 11
A. Ramos Berlin 11
M. Mandžukić Bayern München 10
P. Aubameyang Dortmund 9
Raffael M’gladbach 9

Assist

Player Team Assist(s)
G. Castro Leverkusen 7
F. Ribéry Bayern München 7
Roberto Firmino Hoffenheim 6
A. Maxim Stuttgart 6
T. Müller Bayern München 6

Discipline (bad boys)
Player Team Yellow. Red
Luiz Gustavo Wolfsburg 4 2
S. Sané Hannover 6 1
J. Flum Frankfurt 6 1
T. Perthel Braunschweig 2 2
S. Huszti Hannover 5 1

Bundesliga top 5

League table

Pos Team MP W D L F A D P
1 Bayern München 16 14 2 0 42 8 +34 44
2 Bayer Leverkusen 17 12 1 4 32 16 +16 37
3 Borussia M’gla… 17 10 3 4 35 19 +16 33
4 Borussia Dortmund 17 10 2 5 38 20 +18 32
5 Wolfsburg 17 9 3 5 28 19 +9 30
6 Hertha BSC 17 8 4 5 27 20 +7 28

2, English Premier League Top 5

Topscorers

Player Team Goals
L. Suárez Liverpool 19
S. Agüero Man City 13
D. Sturridge Liverpool 9
Y. Touré Man City 9
W. Rooney Man Utd 8
R. Lukaku Everton 8
A. Ramsey Arsenal 8
L. Rémy Newcastle 8

*Rooney, Lukaku, Ramsey, and Remy are tied on 8 goals.

Assist

Player Team Assist(s)
W. Rooney Man Utd 7
M. Özil Arsenal 7
S. Gerrard Liverpool 6
A. Ramsey Arsenal 6
K. Mirallas Everton 5
L. Suárez Liverpool 5
P. Zabaleta Man City 5

*Rooney and Özil are tied on 7, Gerrard and Ramsey are both on 6, while, Mirallas, Suarez and Zabaleta have got 5 assist each

Discipline

Discipline (bad boys)

Player Team Yellow. Red

Paulinho Tottenham 4 1
W. Brown Sunderland 0 2
K. Nolan West Ham 3 1
M. Noble West Ham 3 1
Fernando Torres Chelsea 2 1

English Premier League table top 5

Pos Team MP W D L F A D P
1 Liverpool 17 11 3 3 42 19 +23 36
2 Arsenal 17 11 3 3 33 17 +16 36
3 Manchester City 17 11 2 4 51 20 +31 35
4 Chelsea 17 10 4 3 32 18 +14 34
5 Everton 17 9 7 1 29 16 +13 34

3, French Ligue1 top 5

Topscorers

Player Team Goals

Z. Ibrahimovic PSG 15
E. Cavani PSG 12
V. Aboubakar Lorient 11
R. Falcao Monaco 9
A. Lacazette Lyon 9

Assist

Player Team Assist(s)
J. Rodríguez Monaco 7
Z. Ibrahimovic PSG 6
H. Bedimo Lyon 5
Y. Gourcuff Lyon 5
Lucas PSG 5

Discipline (bad boys)
Player Team Yellow. Red
A. Lacazette Lyon 5 2
F. Lemoine Saint-Étienne 7 1
P. Djilobodji Nantes 6 1
A. El Kaoutari Montpellier 2 2
M. Poundjé Bordeaux 2 2

French League table top 5

Ligue1

Pos Team MP W D L F A D P
1 PSG 19 13 5 1 44 13 +31 44
2 Monaco 19 12 5 2 31 13 +18 41
3 Lille 19 12 4 3 22 8 +14 40
4 Bordeaux 19 8 7 4 27 21 +6 31
5 Saint-Étienne 18 9 3 6 27 20 +7 30

Italian SerieA top 5

Topscorers

Player Team Goals
G. Rossi Fiorentina 14
C. Tévez Juventus 11
R. Palacio Inter 10
A. Cerci Torino 9
G. Higuaín Napoli 9

Assist

Player Team Assist(s)
A. Cerci Torino 7
R. Álvarez Inter 6
L. Cigarini Atalanta 6
K. Strootman Roma 6
L. Toni Verona 6
F. Totti Roma 6
Borja Valero Fiorentina 6

*Alvarez, Cigarini, Strootman, Toni, Totti and Valero are all tied on 6

Discipline (bad boys)
Player Team Yellow. Red
T. Manfredini Genoa 7 2
N. Krstičić Sampdoria 7 1
M. Balotelli Milan 7 1
A. Costa Sampdoria 6 1
R. Montolivo Milan 5 1

Italian SerieA League table

Pos Team MP W D L F A D P
1 Juventus 17 15 1 1 39 11 +28 46
2 Roma 17 12 5 0 35 7 +28 41
3 Napoli 17 11 3 3 36 20 +16 36
4 Fiorentina 17 10 3 4 33 20 +13 33
5 Internazionale 17 8 7 2 37 21 +16 31

Spanish Liga BBVA Primera Division Top 5

Topscorers

Player Team Goals
Diego Costa Atlético 19
Cristiano Ronaldo Real Madrid 18
A. Griezmann Real Sociedad 11
Javi Guerra Valladolid 11
Pedro Barcelona 10

Assist

Player Team Assist(s)
Fàbregas Barcelona 9
Koke Atlético 9
Neymar Barcelona 8
I. Rakitić Sevilla 7
G. Bale Real Madrid 6

Discipline (bad boys)
Player Team Yellow. Red
Víctor Sánchez Espanyol 7 2
Juan Cala Sevilla 6 2
Gálvez Vallecano 7 1
Sergio Ramos. Real Madrid 7 1
P. Ebert Valladolid 6 1

Sqnish League table Top 5

Pos Team MP W D L F A D P
1 Barcelona 17 15 1 1 49 12 +37 46
2 Atlético Madrid 17 15 1 1 46 11 +35 46
3 Real Madrid 17 13 2 2 49 21 +28 41
4 Athletic Club 17 10 3 4 26 21 +5 33
5 Real Sociedad 17 8 5 4 33 23 +10 29
6 Villarreal 17 8 4 5 27 18 +9 28

Barcelona grant Neymar 10 days off

Barcelona grant Neymar 10 days off

Neymar, has been granted time to fly back to Brazil after a very busy schedule

The Brazilian since signing for Barcelona hasn’t had any time off after travelling with Brazil and playing with his new club 23 times this season.

He is suspended for this weekend’s clash against Getafe, so the coach of the catalan side has given his Brazilian youngster to visit his family in Brazil.

Neymar has scored 11 goals since moving from Santos to Barcelona in the summer.