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The Beautiful Game: Difference between revisions
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{{Useful Notes}}
{{quote|''Someone said to me, 'To you, football is a [[Matter of Life and Death]]!' and I said 'Listen, it's [[Serious Business|more important than that]]'."''|'''Bill Shankly'''}}
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* Sing amusing songs and chants at the opposing teams' fans. Example: If they're from Liverpool: "You Scouse Bastards", "Stand Up If You've Got A Job", "We Pay Your Benefit". Other areas have their own songs. Frequently based on well-known songs, such as [[The Beatles|"Yellow Submarine"]] or [[Dean Martin|"That's Amore"]]. This is definitely an undersold attraction of the sport; you may have just come home from a 4-3 cracker, but what'll [[Ear Worm|stick in your head]] is one of the chants. Example: supporters of the England national team like to serenade their opponents (especially France) with "If it wasn't for the British you'd be Krauts" to the tune of "If You're Happy And You Know It". When playing "the Krauts" the "There were ten German bombers in the air," (to the tune of "Ten Green Bottles") chant is popular.
* Loudly insult the referee every time he does something you don't agree with. Be as vulgar as you like. (Note: don't ever do this if you're a player.)
* Loudly express your pleasure or displeasure at your and the opposing team's performance. Be as vulgar as you like. (Note: don't ever do this if you're a player, especially if you're in front of a television camera.)
** Feel free to take "expressing your displeasure a player on your team's performance" to the level of [[I Have No Son]] if applicable ([[National Stereotypes|if you're American and watching soccer it probably is]]). Bonus points if the kid's younger than eight.
* In general be as loud as possible. Particularly easy if you haven't disposed of the vuvuzela you bought for the 2010 World Cup.
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* '''Franz Beckenbauer''' - Also known as Kaiser Franz. Without a doubt most famous German player, and the most famous defender. He is considered the best libero ever. Also won the World Cup as both a team captain (1974) ''and'' a team coach (1990).
* '''Gerd Müller''' - Not only scoring 398 Bundesliga-goals in 453 matches but being the very reason Germany won the World Cup in 1974. He was considered to be a threat when being in the opponents penalty box. And he had the unique ability to instinctively position himself the best to score. He also scored an incredible 68 goals in just 62 international appearances. He is still, by some distance, the all-time top scorer for the German national team.
** The slang term "[http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=mullered Mullered]" was coined because of him.
* '''Miroslav Klose'''. Fourteen World Cup goals, making him tied with Müller and second only to the great Brazilian Ronaldo. The only player to have scored five or more goals in consecutive World Cups and the only player to have scored at least four goals in three different tournaments. His goal tally for the German National Team is currently at 63, only five behind. Germany has also never lost a game when Miroslav Klose scored.
* '''Michael Ballack''' THE face of German football for much of the 2000s. Michael Ballack is a talented midfielder who Pele himself selected as one of FIFA's 100 Greatest Living Players. Since June 2005 and to his exit, Germany never lost when Michael Ballack scored a goal. Tragically, he was injured right before the start of the 2010 World Cup and this signalled an end to his international appearances.
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* '''Eric Cantona''' - If there is one man who can be attributed for kicking off the modern era of football it is this man. Almost single-handedly making the English Premiership the focal point of domestic football, whilst becoming a true pop-culture icon in the UK, the likes of which Beckham, Zidane and Henry can only match. He was also likely the greatest bargain signing of all time for only £1.2 million.
* '''Lionel "Leo" Messi''' An Argentine striker playing for FC Barcelona who is widely considered the best active player in the world (a title he's fighting over with the above-mentioned Cristiano Ronaldo). Fast, creative, talented, goal-hungry and basically unstoppable if he has a good day (he has a lot of good days), even the arrogant Maradona and the godlike Pele have bowed to his skills. He broke the original Ronaldo's single-season goal-scoring team record for FC Barcelona and passed Lazlo Kubala on the club's career scoring list (he's on pace to be the team's career top-scorer ever by the end of the season). Oh, he's TWENTY FOUR.
* '''Josep "Pep" Guardiola''': Some of the younger tropers may only recognize him as the very successful manager of the Catalan giant FC Barcelona. But he also was one of the best Spanish midfielders ever. The king of the defensive area, he was able to read the game like no other, and his milimetrically precise passes decided matches. If you never seen him playing, don't worry too much - his pupil and fellow defensive midfielder '''Xavi''' plays ''a lot'' like him.
* '''Michael Laudrup''': A player who isn't recognized as being one of the best ever, despite having the early 90's Barcelona dream team built around him ([[Word of God|the manager, Johan Cruyff, said so]]). A complete second to none eye for finding his teammates with his perfect passes. A gentleman on the pitch too, as he never recieved a red card.
* '''Wayne Rooney''': is a gifted player from Everton who made career records at a very young age. Widely noted today at the new star of Manchester United after Beckham left the squad. Made the National team at the age of 17, but is still yet to lead England to a European Title or a World Cup. He's done it a lot for United though.
* '''Javier Hernandez Balcazar''': or just '''Chicharito'''<ref> Spanish for "Little Pea", a derogatory word turned badge of honor for the puny guy when he was a child; he is an average 5'9" today though</ref>, following Latin American custom of using nicknames for football jerseys. Star of Mexican club CD Guadalajara (more known as Chivas), until he was signed by Manchester United in 2010 as it's new center forward and counterpart for Rooney. The very first Mexican to play for Manchester United.
* '''Frank Lampard''': [[Generation Xerox|son of]] [[British Footy Teams|West Ham United's]] [[Generation Xerox|Frank Richard Lampard]] and current star of Chelsea; known more for his playmaking skills at the midfield than his scoring ability (any cross coming from Lampard is sure to find its mark), although he can rise to the occasion if the team needs an additional striker. One of the mainstays of the English National Team, usually playing [[The Lancer]] to Gerrard and Rooney.
* '''Steven Gerrard''': Second Striker/Midfielder who spent his youth and professional career for his hometown club Liverpool, which [[Promoted Fanboy|he supported growing up]]. He has a very close personal relationship with the club, especially as his cousin was one of the victims of the Hillsborough disaster, and he [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|laces his boots every match in memory of him.]] He is currently the captain and longest running player of the Merseyside Reds and Vice-Captain of the English Team.
* '''John Terry''': or "Mr. Chelsea" to you. Defender and captain of the famous London side and intermittent captain of the English National Team, the reason behind is his record of scandals on and off the pitch. A very polarizing character in English Football, most people hold two opposing views about him: A personable captain and great defender who reads the game well and leads his teammates by example, or an arrogant, racist, and egoistical primadonna whose behavior does not deserve the respect accorded to a football great.
* '''Zico''': or Arthur Antunes Coimbra by birth. Second only to Pelé in popularity among Brazilians, Zico used to play for Flamengo when not in Japan (he also had a stint for italian side Udinese in the mid-80s). Aside from his lethal free kicks, Zico is known for increasing soccer's popularity among Japanese people, lobbying for the creation of the J. League along with other footballers who made the move from Brazil to Japan, like Alcindo and Bismarck.
** In the final episode of the second season of [[School Rumble]]; Karasuma was involved in an "accident" which worried both Tenma and Harima out of their underpants. Turns out that he accidentally met Zico on a match with the Japanese national team (which Zico managed at that time).
* '''Didier Drogba''': Chelsea legend who holds the record for most goals scored by a foreign player for the team (his last game for Chelsea--and his last kick of the ball for Chelsea, no less--brought the club its first-ever Champions League title). Most goals scored for the Ivory Coast National Team. But more than that, how many football players can officially say they ''[[Big Damn Hero|helped stop a civil war]]'' just by asking the combatants to lay down their arms?
* '''Carles Puyol''': Defender and Captain of Barcelona and Vice Captain of the Spanish National Team, easily recognizable for his burly yet stocky build and long, shaggy hair. Although very much known for his defensive capabilities (Valdes rarely does keeping work as it is very hard to breach Puyol), his claim to fame is his headers off corners and crosses, most of them crucial game-winning goals. Some of his most memorable headers came from two ''El Clasico'' Matches against Madrid in 2009 and 2012 (both after Madrid had taken an early lead), and the 2010 World Cup semifinals against tough opponents Germany, where he scored the ''only'' goal of the match and ensured their entry to the finals, which they later won.
* '''Clint Dempsey''': Fulham midfielder, he's the first American to score 50 goals in the Premier League.
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* '''José Reina''': Aka "Pepe" Reina. Second vice captain for Liverpool FC. Also widely considered one of the finest goalkeepers in the league and, indeed, the world. He is known for his exceptional shot-stopping and ball distribution and has won several league golden gloves awards. Surprisingly he isn't first-choice keeper for his country. However that is only because he is unfortunate enough to be Spanish, and consequently is competing for a place with...
* '''Iker Casillas''': Real Madrid keeper. Most capped goalkeeper in the Champions League. Has been included as the goalkeeper for the UEFA team of the year for four consecutive years at the time of writing. One of the very few players to have won EVERY major club and national championship title. Captain of Spain, easily one of best teams in the world at the moment.
* '''Victor Valdes''': Goalkeeper for FC Barcelona and [[Replacement Goldfish|third fiddle]] for Casillas and Pepe Reina in the Spanish National Squad. Four-time winner of the Zamora Trophy (Spain's golden glove, even Casillas only won this trophy ONCE), he holds the record of being the only Goalkeeper never to be substituted in a La Liga Season and a Club record in 2006 for not conceding a goal for 466 minutes of play. Though many atribute this achievements to his team ,Barcelona, impressive defense.
* '''Oliver Kahn''': His record - eight German championships, six German cups, UEFA Cup in 1996, Champions League and Intercontinental Cup in 2001. Received four UEFA Best European Goalkeeper awards, three IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper awards, and two German Footballer of the Year awards. At the 2002 FIFA World Cup, he became the first and only goalkeeper in the tournament's history to win the Golden Ball. His record of most clean sheets at Bayern Munich was recently broken by...
* '''Manuel Neuer''', considered one of the best active keepers in the world. In large part thanks to his skills, Schalke 04 reached the semifinals of the 2010-2011 Champions League with a clean sheet. His performance in the two matches against Manchester United must be seen to be believed.
* '''Petr Cech''': Czech goalkeeper playing for Chelsea. He is currently a Premier league record holder for attaining 100 clean sheets at the least number of games possible (180), and previously held the record for the longest time without conceding a goal (1,025 minutes of play) before it was beaten by Van der Sar. A [[Game-Breaking Injury|life-threatening skull fracture]] saw him out of action ''[[He's Okay|for only three months]]'' before returning and [[The Determinator|keeping 810 minutes of play without conceding a goal.]] Owing to the nature of his injury, he is now required to wear a rugby cap every game as protective headgear, leading fans to nickname him "[[Batman]]".
* '''Gianluigi Buffon''': Currently plays for the Italian club Juventus. Buffon was declared by Pelé to be one of the 125 greatest living footballers in the world. He has been named the Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year a record eight times and he has also been named the IFFHS goalkeeper of the decade.
* '''Rene Higuita''': a retired Colombian Goalkeeper who played for many teams in South America, most notably in Atletico Nacional. [[Cloudcuckoolander|Highly eccentric]], he was known to fans as ''El Loco'' (The crazy one/The Madman) because of his unkempt appearance, his frequent attempts to score (leaving the net open and unguarded) and his goalsaving techniques, most especially the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvylCDpGPuk&feature=fvwrel "Scorpion Kick"] which was considered one of the greatest moves in Football when he pulled it on 1995 in a friendly against England in Wembley. Also had issues around drugs and politics, like his good old buddy Diego Maradona.
* '''Jorge Campos''': in a nutshell, he was the Mexican counterpart to Higuita: acrobatic, charismatic, attacking-prone (he has scored 34 goals throughout his career) and, most of all, eccentric (he himself designed the garish kits he wore on the pitch). He played on a slew of North American teams, but made his name for Pumas UNAM, LA Galaxy (in the early days of the MLS) and, obviously, the Mexican team.
* '''David Seaman''' retired English goalkeeper who played for Arsenal between 1990 and 2003. Was Englands number one through most of his career and regarded as one of the greatest English goalkeepers to grace the game alongside Banks and Shilton and regarded as an integral part of the famous Arsenal defense of Dixon, Winterburn, Bould, Keown and Adams. In his first season he played ever game and only conceded 18 goals! Won 3 league titles, 4 FA Cups, 1 League Cup, 3 Community Shields and a Cup Winners Cup (the precursor to the current UEFA Europa League) while at Arsenal. In his later years he was known for his ponytail and some silly mistakes in goal, but was still able to make saves [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEXlrQlR28M like this] despite nearing 40!
* '''Peter Schmeichel''' Often considered the best keeper in the world ever (at least by anyone not old enough to know of Yashin,) Schmeichel defined the idea of a "Stronghold Guardian," a keeper who marshalled his defense meticulously and without second thought for anyone who didn't live up to his expectations. He is also the first keeper to score in the Premier League and holds the highest clean sheets to games ratio in the league ever.
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{{reflist}}
[[Category:Sporting Event]]
[[Category:index]]
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