World Soccer - March 2016

March 2016
COLLECTORS EDITION
The
class of
2016
Heroes
Villains
Future stars
Chinas
revolution
Euro 2016
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March 2016
20
SI
IN
THE WORLD THIS MONTH

People in the news...on and off the pitch
DE
4 In pictures
10
14
15
16
From the Editor

Ins & Outs people on the move
Keir Radnedge video is on its way
Paul Gardner IFAB prune rule book
18 Jim Holden Pep gets union backing

20 Brian Glanville why not go with Giggs?
24
SPECIAL FEATURE
24 China a football revolution is under way
TACTICS
96 The rise of Leicester City
Heroes, villains and

future stars
31
FACE TO FACE
96
98 Bob Bradley
ARCHIVES
102 March 1988
EURO 2016 PREVIEW

111
108 Hungary, Rep Ireland, Sweden & Ukraine
GREAT MATCHES
130 West Germany v Holland, 1990
Follow World Soccer online
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112
Like World Soccer Magazine
112 USA MLS season preview

117 Italy Juventus are back on top
118 Republic of Ireland Dundalk seek hat-trick
120 Japan J1 League campaign gets underway
122 Gambia national coach needs new talent
Exclusive news & results from our worldwide

network of correspondents
P L U S
116 Global diary 124 Golden Shoe 125 ESM XI 126 Results, tables, xtures
WORLD SOCCER
THE WORLD
THIS MONTH
The global game caught on camera
WORLD SOCCER
SPAINfans are scattered among rows

of empty seats at Valencias 55,000capacity Mestalla Stadium as they
watch the second leg of the Spanish
Cup semi-final against Barcelona. A
crowd of 16,296 saw a 1-1 draw after
Gary Nevilles side had lost the first leg
7-0 at Camp Nou
WORLD SOCCER
THE WORLD
THIS MONTH
VENEZUELAmembers of the
Venezuelan national guard observe
the wreckage of the upturned
Huracan team bus following a road
accident en route to the airport after
the Argentinian clubs Libertadores
Cup game against Caracas
AUSTRALIANewcastle Jets
fans show their support in
the sun during an A-League
game against Perth Glory
USAMexicos
Hirving Lozano
(left) competes
with Senegals
Matar Kante
during a friendly
in Miami
PICTURES OF THE
MONTH QR CODE
6
WORLD SOCCER
To see more of the best photos from the month, scan the QR code using any free QR reader that can
be downloaded to your smartphone. You can also see the images by logging on to http://po.st/j9imAM
GLOBAL FOOTBALL INTELLIGENCE

ITALYGenoas
Leonardo Pavoletti
fights for the ball with
Gonzalo Rodriguez of
Fiorentina
EGYPTa Zamalek follower

holds a flare during a rally in
Cairo to commemorate the 22
people killed in clashes with
local police last year
ENGLANDEvertons Romelu Lukaku

competes with Manchester Citys
Nicolas Otamendi and Fernandinho in
the League Cup semi-final second leg
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THE WORLD
The footballing revolution in China (page 24) is not a new

phenomenon. We have reported on big-money transfers to
the Chinese league before. But the recent urry of activity
feels like a game-changer. Footballers have always followed
the money and there is potentially more money in China
than any other country on the planet.
Perhaps we should have known that
Sven Goran Eriksson would be ahead
of the curve. He and the likes of
The sheer size
Asamoah Gyan had been in China
and wealth
for some time before the recent spate
of China
of transfers. But it would be wrong to
begs us to
dismiss the Chinese league as a mere
take them
retirement home for those reaching
seriously
the end of their careers in Europe. The
sheer size and wealth of China begs
us to take them seriously.
Last years edition of the well-received WS500 (page
33) featured a number of players hired by the Chinese
league. More are sure to follow.
The rise of the Chinese Super League will have an impact
way beyond the transfer gossip columns. Major League
Soccer (preview on page 112) has
potentially the most to lose
though judging by the leagues
latest arrivals any takers for
Ashley Cole and Nigel De
Jong? it is already losing out.
Gavin Hamilton, Editor
Juventus beat Napoli to go top of Serie A ..............................................................page 117

Major League Soccer kicks off ......................................................................................page 112
Alex Teixeira leads the inux of overseas players in China .................................. page 24
J.League season gets under way ...............................................................................page 120
Former Bulgaria international Trifon Ivanov dies ......................................................page 13
IFAB set to approve video assistance ..........................................................................page 15
Hoffenheim appoint Bundesligas youngest-ever coach .........................................page 14
Mourinho in pole position to take over at Manchester United ............................ page 20
Higuain leads the ESM Golden Shoe rankings .......................................................page 124
Guardiola conrmed as new Man City boss .............................................................. page 18
10
WORLD SOCCER
THIS MONTH
In Cyprus...
Cristian Manea
ROMANIA
Confusion over
status of teenage
Chelsea loanee
Cristian Manea, the 18-year-old Romanian
full-back who was widely reported as having
signed for Chelsea last summer, never joined
the English side and his registration was instead
transferred to Cypriot club Apollon Limassol.
According to an investigation by Romanian
newspaper ProSport, Manea was sold by Viitorul
Constanta, the club owned and coached by
Gheorghe Hagi, to Apollon in June 2014. Apollon
are owned by former agent Nicos Kirzis, who is a
close associate of superagent Pini Zahavi.
In March 2015, it was said that Viitorul had
agreed a deal of between 2m-3m for the teen
to move to Chelsea. He would then be loaned to
Belgian club Mouscron. In July 2015, Zahavi
stepped in to save Mouscron from bankruptcy.
On Mouscrons official website, Manea is listed
as being on loan from Chelsea. However, Manea
has never appeared on Chelseas list of loanedout players. Instead, according to ProSport, his
registration was sold to Apollon in a deal agreed
with Hagi back in June 2014.
In recent weeks, Apollon have been involved in
other controversial deals. In January 2016, highly
rated Serb teen Luka Jovic, whose registration had
been sold to Apollon by Red Star Belgrade, joined
Benfica in a deal reported to be worth 5m.
Apollon were also reported to be involved in a
dispute between another Serbian starlet, Andriija
Zivkovic, and Partizan Belgrade (see page 92).
The deals are widely seen as ways for the
owners of Apollon to bypass strict new regulations
on Third Party Ownership.
John Holmesdale
Dutch football officially

has lost its innocence
Dutch FA director Gijs De Jong sums it up
perfectly after confirming that a game between
Utrecht and Willem II in 2009 was fixed
HOLLAND
Dutch FA confirms
leagues first case
of match-fixing
Attempts to fix the result of a Dutch league match
seven years ago have been uncovered by a Dutch
FA (KNVB) investigation.
It is the first time such a case has been
established in Holland. The probe uncovered a bid
by Ibrahim Kargbo, then a player at Willem II, to fix
the outcome of a league match against Utrecht in
August 2009 in co-operation with convicted
Singaporean fraudster Wilson Raj Perumal.
We have long warned this could happen in
the Dutch league, said KNVB operational director
Gijs De Jong. But it is still difficult to swallow now
that this has been established.
The KNVB said Kargbo had promised
the then-captain Michael Aerts and a third,
unidentified player would work together with him
to throw the match against Utrecht in return for
25,000 each.
Accused...
Ibrahim Kargbo
HEROES
VILLAINS
ANIS BEN-HATIRA
Sold by Hertha Berlin to Eintracht Frankfurt in
the transfer window after he attacked teammate Mitchell Weiser on the Hertha team bus
following a 3-3 draw away to Werder Bremen
in the Bundesliga.
Protest...players in a Greek second division game
LARISSA & ACHARNAIKOS

Players and coaching staff of the two sides
staged a sit-down protest at the start of their
Greek second-tier game in memory of refugees
who have lost heir lives in the Aegean Sea.
SALOMON KALOU
The Ivorian striker became the first player to
score 10 goals or more in a single season in
the top flights of England (Chelsea), France
(Lille) and Germany (Hertha Berlin).
ALVARO BRACHI
Row...Anis Ben-Hatira attacked a Hertha team-mate
Signed for Slovenian top-tier side Domzale after

answering an advert seeking for an attacking
right-back on social networking site LinkedIn.
LAZIO FANS
CLAUDIO PIZARRO
The Peruvian became the first foreigner to
make 400 Bundesliga appearances. Pizarro
has played his games for just two German
clubs: Werder Bremen and Bayern Munich.
Referee Massimiliano Irrati had to stop Lazios

game against Napoli for three minutes after
home supporters booed the visitors Senegalese
defender Kalidou Koulibaly whenever he
touched the ball.
BOCA JUNIORS AND RIVER PLATE

During a pre-season friendly between the two
arch Buenos Aires rivals, five players were sent
off three from Boca, two from River. Boca also
had two players dismissed in their previous
friendly, against
Racing Club.
SERGE AURIER
Historic...Werder Bremens Claudio Pizarro
The Ivorian defender

was banned indefinitely
by Paris SaintGermain after
making homophobic
comments about his
coach, Laurent Blanc,
in an online video.
No defence...Serge Aurier
is caught on camera
WORLD SOCCER
11
THE WORLD
THIS MONTH
PAOK is my team now and

I fight for my team, even if it
means a red card sometimes
After being sent off for the first time in his career,
Dimitar Berbatov interviews himself on Facebook
PARIS SAINTGERMAIN
Set a new record
of 33 consecutive
Ligue 1 games
unbeaten with
a 3-1 victory
over Lorient.
To see video footage of these goals, and many more that we

have selected, scan the QR code using any free QR reader
that can be downloaded to your smartphone. You can also
see the videos by logging on to http://po.st/0DiVDN
5
DR CONGO
African Nations
Championship
winners for a
second time,
they beat Mali
3-0 in the Final
of the tournament
that features only
players who are
based in Africa.
GARY NEVILLE
At the 10th
time of asking,
the Valencia
coach finally
won a game
in La Liga as
his side beat
Espanyol 2-1.
DELE ALLI
Tottenham Hotspur
v Crystal Palace
Controlling the ball with one touch
from Christian Eriksens cushioned
header, he flicks it over the head
of his opponent before swivelling
to volley home into the bottom
corner of the net.
FEYENOORD
Seven straight
league defeats
for the Rotterdam
club was their
worst run of
all time.
GUILLERMO
BARROS
SCHELOTTO
ALVARO CEJUDO
Real Betis v Real Madrid
A swift break from Betis
appears to break down when a
goal-bound shot balloons into
the air. However, when the ball
is then nodded back to Cejudo,
he hammers home a stunning
effort on the volley.
Stood down as
boss of Palermo
as he was unable
to gain the
necessary UEFA
coaching licence.
MIDO
2
ANASS ACHAHBAR
Feyenoord v Heerenveen
A spectacular bicycle kick in
the middle of a packed penalty area
flies into the roof of the net.
YAO SERGE NGUESSAN

Ivory Coast v Cameroon
Runs from inside his own half
before unleashing a dipping shot
from inside the centre circle that
clears the keeper.
12
WORLD SOCCER
JAMIE VARDY
Leicester City v Liverpool
Stunning first-time effort that
dips over the goalkeeper and into
the net.
MILOS STOJCEV
Atromitos v Panathinaikos
Some fantastic touchline
trickery, followed by a pin-point
cross to the far post is volleyed
home in this Greek Cup match.
Sacked after
just 37 days as
coach of Egyptian
champions
Zamalek following
a 2-0 loss to
arch-rivals Al Ahly.
You always looked grim-faced, but

you had the biggest heart and always
was prepared to listen to others
Ex-Neuchatel Xamax forward Petar Aleksandrov
(right) pays tribute to his friend Trifon Ivanov
Showman
Ivanov in
a medieval
kings robes
DeterminedTrifon Ivanov
battles with Germanys Rudi
Voller in the 1994 World Cup
quarter-finals
OBITUARIES
Enfield in 1952 and later managed Durban

United in South Africa.
in 278 league appearances between 1952

and 1964.
Anatoli ILYIN (1931-2016)
Ray POINTER (1936-2016)
A Soviet Top League title winner five times

with Spartak Moscow, he scored the only
goal of the game as the Soviet Union beat
Yugoslavia to win Olympic gold in 1956.
He was capped 31 times by his country
between 1952 and 1969, scoring 16 times,
and was also credited with scoring the
first-ever European Championship
qualifying goal, in a 3-1 victory
over Hungary in 1958.
Burnleys second-highest scorer of all

time with 132 goals, he played a big part
in the clubs 1960 title success and was
an FA Cup runner-up two years later. Won
three caps for England, scoring twice.
Trifon IVANOV (1965-2016)

Centre-half in the Bulgaria side that made
the semi-finals of the 1994 World Cup,
he won 77 caps for his country and was
a Cup-winners Cup runner-up with Rapid
Vienna in 1996. He died suddenly from
a heart attack, aged 50, and his funeral
in the northern Bulgarian city of Veliko
Tarnovo was attended by team-mates
from the 1994 national team, including
Hristo Stoichkov.
WinnerPeter Baker
(third left) joins in
Spurs 1961 FA Cup
Final celebration
Peter BAKER (1931-2016)

Right-back in Tottenham Hotspurs 1961
double-winning side, he was also an
FA Cup winner in 1962 and a
European Cup-winners Cup
winner the following year.
Played 299 league
games for Spurs
after being
signed from
League champion
Ray Pointer
non-league
Suat MAMAT (1930-2016)

Scored Turkeys first-ever
goal at the World Cup
finals, in a 4-1 defeat by
West Germany in 1954.
He played a total of 27
times for his country and
spent much of his career
at Galatasaray, where
he scored 95 times
WORLD SOCCER
13
THE WORLD
THIS MONTH
I was told by the coach that he was

a Ferrari, only for him to end up being
the Ferrari which stays in the garage
Porto president Pinto Da Costa offers an automotive take on the short,
unhappy stint of French midfielder Giannelli Imbula (left) at the club
PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

EUROPE
SOUTH AMERICA
To the surprise of no one, it was

confirmed that PEP GUARDIOLA
will replace Manuel Pellegrini and
become head coach of Manchester
City when he leaves Bayern Munich
at the end of the season.
Brazil striker ROBINHO returned

home after leaving Chinas
Guangzhou Evergrande and signed
a two-year deal with Atletico Mineiro.
BEPPE IACHINI was reinstated

as Serie A side Palermos seventh
coach of the season.
Club role...Ruud
Van Nistelrooy
will join PSV
Appointments, sackings and loans
Russia captain ROMAN

SHIROKOV joined CSKA Moscow
on a six-month deal after the
midfielders contract with Spartak
Moscow was ended by mutual
consent in January.
RUUD VAN NISTELROOY will
leave his post as assistant to Holland
boss Danny Blind in the summer and
join the coaching staff at PSV.
Chile appointed JUAN ANTONIO

PIZZI as national coach Jorge
Sampaolis replacement.
JORGE DA SILVA replaced Pablo
Bengoechea as coach of Penarol
ahead of the start of the new
Uruguayan clausura.
CONCACAF
New York Cosmos signed
midfielder JUAN ARANGO, who
is Venezuelas most-capped player
and leading goalscorer, from Tijuana
of Mexico
AFRICA
FREDERIC HANTZ was put
in charge of Montpellier following
the departure of Rolland Courbis.
FRANCOIS CICCOLINI replaced
Ghislain Printant as coach of Bastia
until the end of the Ligue 1 season.
Former Zambia and Ivory Coast

boss HERVE RENARD replaced
Badou Zaki as coach of Morocco.
Belgian coach HUGO BROOS
was named coach of Cameroon,
replacing Volker Fink, who was
sacked in October.
Former Portugal defender ABEL
XAVIER was appointed boss of
Mozambique, while SANG NDONG
took charge of Gambia for a second
time (see page 122).
MOHAMED SALAH was
appointed interim coach of Egyptian
champions Zamalek after they
sacked Ahmed Mido Hossam.
Resigned...Zdravko Mamic has quit Dinamo Zagreb
Mystery over Mamic departure

ZDRAVKO MAMIC, who is under investigation
over profits made from transfers, resigned
as chief executive of Croatian league leaders
Dinamo Zagreb.
However, it was unclear who would replace him,
or whether he would continue to run the club
under another guise.
EUROPE
Sunderland sacked former
England winger ADAM JOHNSON,
who they signed from Manchester
City for 10m in 2012, after he
pleaded guilty to one count of sexual
activity with a child and one charge
of grooming.
Internazionale and Serbia
defender NEMANJA VIDIC, who
won the 2008 Champions League
and five Premier League titles with
Manchester United, announced his
retirement at the age of 34. Ajaxs
former Holland defender JOHN
HEITINGA, 32, also retired.
ASIA
Record...at 28, Julian Nagelsmann has made history
Youngest Bundesliga boss

Bundesliga strugglers Hoffenheim confirmed
28-year-old JULIAN NAGELSMANN as coach to
replace Huub Stevens, 62, who resigned because
of ill health. Nagelsmann had been due to take
over at the end of the season.
Hoffenheim were second from bottom of the
table with 15 points from 21 games.
14
WORLD SOCCER
Chinese side Jiangsu Suning

signed ALEX TEIXEIRA from
Shakhtar Donetsk of Ukraine
for an Asian record of 50m.
TOTCHTAWAN SRIPAN, who won
109 caps for Thailand, was named
coach of Muangthong United ahead
of their AFC Champions League
qualifying campaign.
ERIK HAMREN will leave his post

as Sweden coach when his contract
expires at the end of Euro 2016.
ASIA
Italys World Cup winning captain
in 2006, FABIO CANNAVARO was
sacked after just four months as
coach of defending Saudi Arabian
champions Al Nassr.
Over...Nemanja
Vidic has retired
Keir
RADNEDGE
THE INSIDER
Point at issueBrazils Thiago Silva appears to handle during a Copa America quarter-final against Paraguay
The cameras are coming: video

assistance set for landmark decision
Never a weekend goes by in the Premier
League maelstrom without one manager
or another raging over a referees decision.
Managers will never cease chasing excuses
for themselves or their players, but the
opportunities to blame everything on the
man with the whistle
will be significantly
reduced if the games
lawmakers take a
decisive step towards
a brave new world.
On March 5, delegates of the four British
home nations and the tottering FIFA meet in
Cardiff, as the International Football Association
Board (IFAB), to consider approving a two-year
experiment in video assistance for referees.
Six of the eight votes are needed for
approval. Given the home nations all expressed
conditional approval at the lawmakers annual
meeting in London in January and that the
refereeing advisers are all in favour any
further hold-up is highly unlikely.
FIFA holds four votes, hence obstructive
potential, and the new president may have
his own views. But none of the candidates to

the presidential succession of disgraced Sepp
Blatter have spoken up in opposition to video
assistance, so it would demand a piece of
deliberate mischief to throw a spanner in the
works at this stage. Once video assistance has
been tested, refined
and then approved
in, say, three years
time football would
fall into line with
a string of other
sports that have wrestled with the unexpected
challenges of technological innovation.
Footballs loyalty to the original Laws of the
Game has been a strength, providing priceless
continuity and stability down the decades, on
all pitches from the World Cup to the local rec.
Of course, these relate to how the game is
played; video technology relates to the manner
in which it is played. Restrictions will be drawn
around action points such as goals, red cards,
penalties and identification issues. Inevitably,
pressure will build to extend the range of
issues. At every point, on and off the pitch,
Several federations
have hinted they are
willing to experiment
players and managers push the boundaries

and live technology will be no exception.
This was the root of Michel Platinis original
objection to the introduction of goal-line
technology. When still president of UEFA,
he once told me: I do not oppose goal-line
technology for its own sake. I oppose all
technology. If we allow goal-line technology
then it will be the first step on a slippery slope.
People will always want more and then more.
Platini was correct. Goal-line technology
made its World Cup debut in 2014 and video
assistance is likely to appear at the finals in
2022. Indeed, it may even play a role at the
European Championship in 2020.
Not that video assistance will be failproof
as several incidents at the Rugby World Cup
in England last autumn proved. Some decisions
will always remain a matter of subjective
opinion. Inside or outside the penalty area?
Foul or dive? Deliberate handball or accidental?
The initial impetus behind video assistance
came from Holland, with the Dutch federation
leading the way in an unofficial experimentation.
Last spring, IFAB delayed a decision on official
trials pending the further discussion which has
now been undertaken.
The decision-makers pushing for history
in January were Jonathan Ford, chief executive
of the Football Association of Wales, Stewart
Regan (Scottish FA), Patrick Nelson (Irish FA),
Martin Glenn (chief executive of the Football
Association) and Markus Kattner (acting FIFA
secretary-general), advised by former FIFA
referee David Elleray, a member of IFABs
technical sub-committee.
One key issue is whether a video check can
be made only at a break in play or during an
active phase of play. Also open for experiment
is whether the referee is supported by a video
assistant at pitch-side or up in the stand. This
is likely to be one of the variations for the trials.
The need to consider extensive data from at
least two seasons means the earliest possible
date for an IFAB yes would be the spring of
2018. Since IFAB decisions are generally
enacted in July, video assistance will not be
applicable at the World Cup finals in Russia.
Hence the summer of 2019 is more likely.
Several national federations have hinted they
are willing to experiment. The FA may propose
next seasons FA Cup but the Premier League
may be more ambitious, particularly with the
Bundesliga having thrown its hat into the ring.
The Germans, left behind in the rush to
domestic goal-line technology, have no wish
to be seen playing catch-up again. WS
WORLD SOCCER
15
THE WORLD
THIS MONTH
Paul
GARDNER
THE WORLDWIDE VIEW
Still farce and slapstick as

IFAB prune the rule book
Change for the bettera fourth substitute may be allowed in extra time
I have never considered any meeting of the

International Football Association Board (IFAB)
to be one of the worlds great news events
because so little actually happens or gets done.
But things may be changing. We shall find
out at IFABs March
AGM in Cardiff. After
that, I may have
to eat my words
because it seems that
IFAB will be eating a
whole mountain of its own. We are promised
a revised, and much less wordy, revision of the
rule book.
In fact, it is a reduction in wordage so
drastic that I still cannot see how it can be
accomplished. Theyre telling us the current
rule book contains some 22,000 words, and
that 10,000 of them will bite the dust.
The actual rules, all 17 of them, contain only
about 8,000 words. So they must also be
including the subsidiary Interpretations and
Guidelines sections that would get us up to
22,000. There is, for sure, some overlap and
repetition among the rules and those sections,

but nowhere near enough to account for the
10,000 words being killed off.
Weve had hints from David Elleray, the
former Premier League referee overseeing the
slaughter, and who
said We have tried
to use much clearer
language. We tried
to avoid a lot
of unnecessary
repetition and tried to make it up to date.
Worthy intentions, of course. We shall see.
In the meantime, there are a few specific
changes that definitely will be made in Cardiff
and they do not do anything to change my
mind that IFAB is simply not a with it body.
There is, for instance, to be a change in
the procedure for the shoot-out tie-breaker
(officially kicks from the penalty mark).
About time, say I only to discover that this
is the wrong change. Theyre saying that if a
player gets red carded during the shoot-out...
and they might as well stop right there. How
A corner kick taken by

the goalkeeper? When
did you last see that?
16
WORLD SOCCER
many times does that happen? I dont recall

ever seeing it.
So theyre fussing over a rare occurrence
when they should be revising the order in
which the kicks are taken. Reliable research
has shown that the current AB AB AB AB
AB sequence gives something like a 60-40
advantage to the team kicking first. Which
means winning the toss and electing to kick
first is a huge factor. Clearly, that makes the
shoot-out, already a questionable procedure,
even more dubious. An alternative, fairer,
sequence AB BA AB BA AB, as used in the
tennis tie-break has been suggested. But
IFAB seems never to have heard of any of this.
Word has finally got through to IFAB
possibly from this column, Ive been banging
on about it for years that it makes no sense
at all to insist that the ball has to move forward
at a kick-off. The requirement will be dropped.
Another suggestion that I first made 12 years
ago reappears in that a fourth substitute be
allowed in extra-time. It was turned down last
year, as usual without explanation.
And now for the comic ending. An episode
of high farce that IFAB has orchestrated and
been hiding in the rules for 20 years. Hiding in
full view. It happens to be the very last item in
the current rules, and inevitably it involves the
goalkeeper. Rule 17 ends with an item headed
Corner kick taken by the goalkeeper.
Eh? When did you last see that? Im quite
sure Ive never seen it, and Ive been football
gazing since the 1940s. The farce quickly turns
into hilarious slapstick. We get this: If, after
the ball is in play, the goalkeeper deliberately
handles the ball before it is touched by another
player...an indirect free kick is awarded to the
opposing team if the infringement occurred
inside the goalkeepers penalty area...
So, the goalkeeper deliberately aims the
corner kick back to his own goal, 100 yards
away or maybe makes the most spectacular
miskick in the history of football then races
the length of the field back to his area, beating
any opponent who also gives chase (and who
would certainly have a yard or two advantage)...
then gives up a free kick by handling the ball.
And there was I thinking that IFAB were a
humourless bunch. My apologies guys. But how
sad that your joke will now be cut, part of the
10,000 words to be eliminated. This hilarity will
surely go. I mean, it will, wont it...?
THE WORLD
THIS MONTH
Jim
HOLDEN
AT THE HEART OF THE GAME
Rugby coach offers

impressive Pep talk
Eddie Jones, the vastly experienced coach of
The master...Pep
Englands rugby union team, is full of awe for
Guardiola at work
the sporting manager he admires above all
others: Pep Guardiola.
Normally, the two codes are uneasy
bedfellows which only serves to emphasise
the reverence across the world of sport for
Guardiola as he prepares to become the
manager of Manchester City next season.
Jones has spoken of how he had gone to
Bayern Munich to study the work of the master
of soccer. It was absolutely fascinating to
watch Guardiola doing a training session, he
explained. He was so bloody brilliant; and
watching him work I was embarrassed by the
standard of my own coaching.
I had an hour and a half with Guardiola,
talking about his philosophy, about how you
move the football in space. Rugby is like
football. You want to have a formation so that
the players know where to go how to move
in relation to where the ball is, how the ball
moves and what the defence does.
Guardiola told me he is a big rugby fan. He
studies rugby and handball to look at how you
move the ball into space.
The sentiments reveal why Manchester City
are so thrilled to have secured the services of
Guardiola. They also reveal why highclass current boss Manuel Pellegrini
anything was the intensity of the
has accepted his exit with such dignity,
training he witnessed, the buckets of
and why the rest of the Premier
sweat pouring from the bodies of the
League giants are so anxious about
World Cup-winning superstars such as
the Spaniards arrival.
Thomas Muller.
Guardiola is simply the best. He has
Will Guardiola prove a success at
proved it at Barcelona and Bayern,
Manchester City? Of course he will.
and it is the wishful
The real question is how
thinking of fools to
Citys rivals in the
believe that his brilliance
Premier League respond
will be dulled by the
particularly Chelsea,
nature of English football.
after a dismal campaign,
How will he cope
and Manchester United,
with demands of a heavy
who have struggled
and relentless fixture
under the cautious
schedule? Well, just
martinet management
the same way he did
of Louis Van Gaal.
at Barca, where the
Arsenal will trust for
Eddie Jones
pressure to succeed was
a 20th year in Arsene
even more ferocious.
Wenger. That we know. They did not covet
The essence of Guardiolas regime is not
Guardiola; it was the wrong moment for them.
so much the style though that is forever
Chelsea did want Guardiola, but found him
magnificent but energy, work rate and
out of reach and are now searching for the
discipline. What transfixed Jones more than
next best, debating the merits and availability
He was so
bloody brilliant; and
watching him work I
was embarrassed by
the standard of my
own coaching
18
WORLD SOCCER
of a fine cast including Massimiliano Allegri,

Jorge Sampaoli, Diego Simeone and Mauricio
Pochettino. For the first time since oil billionaire
Roman Abramovich bought the club, they
appear uncertain of their direction.
The smart money seems to suggest that
United will respond to Guardiolas arrival by
employing Jose Mourinho to replay the intense
battles these two fought in Spain while at
Barcelona and Real Madrid. It would certainly
give United equal billing in the publicity stakes
which would boost the clubs precious share
price even if it could not bring parity or
superiority on the field of play.
It would also be a captivating spectacle for
the neutral for as long as Mourinho could keep
from self-combusting.
Whether it would be in the best interests of
Manchester United is quite another matter.
Mourinhos brand of managerial mayhem
is not in the style of the club and surely they
would be better served by the appointment of
one of their own in Ryan Giggs. That, after all,
is how Pep Guardiola began at Barcelona.
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Brian
GLANVILLE
THE VOICE OF FOOTBALL
Why does it have

to be Mourinho?
Why not Giggs?
On the face of it, the question must seem
bizarre. Yet I dont think it is, even though
Louis Van Gaal insists he may be staying,
and Ed Woodward the foremost executive,
who admires him, wont confirm the
Dutchman is on his way.
Jose Mourinho himself seems
convinced that his deal is virtually done
and dusted. He will take over Manchester
United next season. But would it work?
There can be no doubt that he is
always potentially a divisive figure and
at Chelsea this season he emphatically
lost the commitment of his players. That
is ominous since the chief criticism of
20
WORLD SOCCER
Van Gaals reign this season has been that

United have betrayed their great tradition
of attacking football, with all their huge
expenditure on players looking all too
often prosaic and oddly ineffective.
Mourinho, despite his past glittering
success with so many clubs, is hardly the
architect of teams which play with flair,
adventure and panache. If indeed he does
come to Old Trafford, will the teams style
satisfy the fans who warmed to Alex
Fergusons committed teams?
Plainly enough, United must be worried
by the fact that Manchester City have
acquired Pep Guardiola to manage them
next season and would thus be fearful of
opposing him with any but a manager of
similar stature. But Mourinho just might
no longer be that man.
Ryan Giggs would be a gamble, but one
which might come off. After all, he has
Mourinho, despite his past glittering

success, is hardly the architect of teams
which play with flair and panache
ContendersJose
Mourinho (left) and
Ryan Giggs
already run the team for short periods,

not without success. He is imbued with
the trust of Manchester United, to which,
as an outstanding talent, he so greatly
contributed. A gamble? No doubt, but
what would Mourinhos appointment be?
And after his success at the World Cup
with Holland, didnt Van Gaals look like
a sound and reliable choice?
Meanwhile, we still dont know whether
United will scrape into the European
Champions Cup. If they dont, all those
promised millions for the transfer market
will make it difficult to buy the stars they
covet, Mourinho or no Mourinho.
Valcke warning was

there for all to see
Chinese follow America as footballs latest Pied Piper

In football terms, at least, China is a
study in parasitism. Its own footballers are
largely anonymous but the leading clubs
are colossally rich. And so we have a
succession of star players, both European
and South American, responding to the
Pied Piper lure of dizzying contracts.
The richest Chinese clubs have moved
on alarmingly from the botched transfers
of Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba, who
joined Shanghai Shenhua for supposed
fortunes which didnt even, it seems, get
paid. They were soon away.
But now Corinthians of Sao Paulo, to
their bitter resentment, have lost no fewer
than four of the players who helped them
win the Brazilian league last year. Chelsea
were paid a fortune for transferring
another Brazilian international, Ramires,
though in his case he was no longer an
essential first-team player.
There are comparisons with what
happened in the earlier era of United
Different classPele
(right) and Franz
Beckenbauer helped
New York Cosmos rule
the roost in US soccer
States soccer, when with the coruscating

exception of the New York Cosmos of
Pele, Beckenbauer, Carlos Alberto and
Chinaglia the league was accurately
termed an elephants graveyard, where
burnt-out players went to end their
careers. Not so now, when the leading
American clubs are producing plenty of
talent of their own, even if the USAs 2014
World Cup team had many players of
American fathers but German mothers,
having cut their teeth on German football.
It seems the Chinese president, Xi
Jinping, is encouraging the development
of the game, if development it can be.
Certainly there is no comparison
with Japanese football, where the level
is high and gifted players emerge in high
numbers, many of them coming to Europe.
Japan has a resourceful national team,
Chinas is feeble. But Chinese money talks
and now there is a big amount of it
invested in Manchester City.
Premier League greed: something has to give

When the Premier League was formed,
I immediately christened it The Greed
Is Good league, and after recent
encouraging events among disenchanted
fans I see no reason to change my mind.
The Premier League is, as we know,
about to receive the vast benets of
the new 8.3billion television contract.
Players salaries, already vertiginously high,
are in increasingly stark contrast with the
grasping treatment of the fans, whose
financial contribution, it has now been
surmised, has become almost irrelevant.
In such circumstances, all hail to
the Liverpool supporters who marched out
of Anfield during a recent match against
Sunderland after 77 minutes, the 77 per
ticket for next seasons dearest seats being
the last straw. And this in a city which has
been down on its economic luck for so
SuccessLiverpool
fans forced the club
into a climbdown
over ticket prices
many blighted years.

Liverpools American owners grovelled
in surrender to the bold fans almost
immediately, issuing a long, cringing
statement of self-abasing apology. The
predictable sequel has been that fans from
other clubs have been agitating too, not
least those at Arsenal, where the prices
are breathlessly high.
It is known that the average age of
fans in the Premier League is somewhere
in the 40s, which could point to a bleak
future for the clubs even if the television
money could enable them to weather
future falls in crowd numbers.
For the moment, clubs such as Arsenal
can get away with their excessive prices,
but the natives there are increasingly
restless.
Something, surely, has got to give.
FIFA has extended substantially the

ban on Jerome Valcke for his various
malfeasances. But cast your mind back
a few years to the New York court where
Valcke, then a medium executive, and
greedy Chuck Blazer were admonished by
the female judge for their false evidence
against MasterCard, to the World Cup
benefit of Visa.
Remember, too, that Valcke went back
to Switzerland, was briefly demoted, then
popped up as number two to Sepp Blatter.
Nobody among FIFAs member nations
objected. But then Joao Havelange
stayed in presidential office for those
24 villainous years.
Meanwhile, corrupt Russia are still
putting on the next World Cup and
repellent little Qatar still so far have the
next one. Its not just FIFA; alas, the
problem is football itself.
In disgraceJerome Valcke
Garde deserves
our sympathy
Not for the first time have Aston Villa
lost at home by a six-goal margin. But at
least when Arsenal crushed them there in
December 1935 they managed to score in
a 7-1 defeat, with all seven Arsenal goals
going to their centre-forward Ted Drake,
who also hit the crossbar.
Some sympathy is in order for the
ex-Gunner now obliged to manage Villa,
Remi Garde. He was perhaps ill advised
to take the job, but his attempts to
strengthen his ailing team have met with
obduracy by the Villa hierarchy. The word is
that the hierarchy of this American-owned
club are unwilling to spend money when it
seems bound for the second division, alias
the Championship.
So the likes of Debuchy and Doumbia
have been denied Garde. They and the
other possible arrivals might indeed not
have been able to save Villa from going
down, but they could well have helped
them to go up again, something which
could well be beyond the present squad.
ORead Brian Glanvilles

exclusive online column
at worldsoccer.com
WORLD SOCCER
21
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China
24
WORLD SOCCER
SPECIAL
FEATURE
The great leap forward

John Duerden reports
A revolution is taking place in Chinese football. A combination of government

ambition and private finance has produced a series of high-profile, recordbreaking transfers as clubs compete to hire big-name players
n 2012, Nicolas Anelka and

Didier Drogba signed for Shanghai
Shenhua amid great fanfare in
China and everywhere else. Yet
majority owner Zhu Jun had an online
game to promote, and a power battle
Backingfans
of Beijing Guoan
with other shareholders to engage in, and

he struggled to pay the stars who swiftly
returned west. For some it was proof that
the Middle Kingdom was not yet a place
for the big stars.
This time, it is different. Thats not to
say that there will not be individual issues

in the much larger and more recent influx
Gervinho and Ezequiel Lavezzi may
find that the far northeastern city of
Qinhuangdao is much tougher to settle
in compared with the cosmopolitan and
WORLD SOCCER
25
SPECIAL FEATURE
modern metropolis that is Shanghai but
this is a more sustained and sustainable
wave of spending by Chinese Super
League clubs.
It is also no standing start. Even a
decade ago the league was nowhere
near as bad as has been made out, and
in recent years it has improved. With an
average attendance of over 22,000 in
2015, it was already one of the most
watched in the world and only just behind
France and Italy. Those countries will
surely be overtaken in the coming season.
The facilities are often fantastic, the
stadiums large and modern, and the
passion for the game palpable. Football
is already the most popular sport, though
basketball buoyed by the success of Yao
Ming, a Shenhua fan has run it close in
recent years.
But that is mainly because the country
has been starved of success by its true
love. If the worlds most populous nation
could actually be a global football force...
well, nobody knows what would happen,
but the spending is part of a wider push
to provide that opportunity.
The amounts paid for some players
make Premier League clubs look
restrained. But when you are an emerging
league far from the traditional centres of
football power, you have to pay over the
odds to attract talent.
It remains to be seen whether Jiangsu
Suning paying Chelsea 25million for
Ramires and over 35m
to outbid Liverpool
for Alex Teixiera,
and Guangzhou
Evergrande
winner of the
last five league
Foreign stars
titles spending
in Chinas Super
32m on
League
Jackson Martinez
from Atletico Madrid
(a Chinese team buying a
player from a part-Chinese owned team)
is good business.
And then there are Shanghai Shenhua
landing Fredy Guarin from Internazionale
and chasing Wesley Sneijder; Shanghai
SIPG with 35m-plus strike force in
Asamoah Gyan and Elkeson; and even
newly promoted teams like Hebei raiding
European giants such as Roma and Paris
Saint-Germain. The likelihood is that some
The big
players
SuccessGuangzhou
Evergrande celebrate
their Club World Cup
quarter-final win over
Mexicos Club America
stars will shine and others will not,

especially as the likes of Jiangsu have
taken a scatter-gun approach to transfers.
The spending is not likely to slow down
and the fire had already spread to the
domestic transfer market. In January,
second-tier Tianjin paid around 7m to
Jiangsu for Sun Ke, a 26-year-old winger.
Not only is China paying more than other
countries for overseas talent only the
English Premier League outbid even the
Middle Kingdoms second tier in the winter
transfer window their clubs are paying
JIANGSU SUNING
Alex Teixeira
Ramires
Jo
Sammir
Trent Sainsbury
GUANGZHOU
EVERGRANDE
Jackson Martinez
Paulinho
Ricardo Goulart
Alan Carvalho
HEBEI CHINA
FORTUNE
Gervinho
Gael Kakuta
Stephane Mbia
Ezequiel Lavezzi
more for domestic players. This is partly

because with each squad allowed to have
only five foreign players (of which four can
play at any one time), having the best
Chinese talent, as Guangzhou have had
over the years, is also crucial.
The money comes from various sources:
private, public, provincial and national.
Many clubs in the Chinese Super League
are backed by companies that made their
money in the property market, such as
Evergrande and Greenland, who own
Shanghai Shenhua. With the real estate
SHANGHAI SIPG
Asamoah Gyan
Elkeson
Dario Conca
Beach life
Jackson Martinez
in Dubai for preseason training
Welcomenew signing Ramires is greeted by Jiangsu Suning supporters after his move from Chelsea
26
WORLD SOCCER
SHANGHAI
SHENHUA
Demba Ba
Momo Sissoko
Giovanni Moreno
Fredy Guarin
Avraam
Papadopoulos
Obafemi Martins
China
Night actionBeijing
Guoan take on Tianjin
Teda in the Super League
SHANDONG LUNENG
Gil
Diego Tardelli
Walter Montillo
BEIJING GUOAN
Burak Yilmaz
Renato Augusto
Ralf
boom a thing of the past, most companies

are now big enough and diverse enough
not to be seriously affected by downturns.
Suning took over Jiangsu late in 2015 and
the retail group, with over 1,000 stores
across the country, has been hugely
active. Hebei is owned by an industrial
park construction company.
Off the pitch, too, there is greater
Chinese involvement in football businesses
and not just the recent 275m
purchase of a 13 per cent stake in
Manchester Citys parent company City
Football Group. In February 2015, Wanda,
a massive company owned by Atletico
Madrid part-owner Wang Jianlian, bought
Swiss sports marketing company Infront
Sports & Media. Gestifute, the company
CHANGCHUN YATAI
Marcelo Martins
Moreno
LIAONING
Ibrahima Toure
James Troisi
CHONGQING LIFAN
Emmanuel Gigliotti
TIANJIN TEDA
Fredy Montero
Wagner
of Portuguese super agent Jorge Mendes,

is now 50 per cent Chinese owned.
Investment off the pitch at home is
growing. Television rights for the 2015
Chinese Super League season went for
just over 1m. In 2016, that will be around
170m as part of a new five-year deal
worth in the region of 850m, amounts
unheard of in all of Asia and most of the
world. More and more wealth will slide
down the ladder. It also gives the league a
lustre in the eyes of the brand-conscious
youth who had turned to other sports,
leagues or pastimes. It gives a greater
profile (the domestic media has had a
great time repeating every vague
Chinese-related transfer rumour to appear
in the UK press) and will help to forge a
Man City is not a random buy. They have the Etihad

Campus, the model the Chinese want to follow
Simon Chadwick of Coventry University Business School
HANGZHOU
GREENTOWN
Anselmo Ramon
Matthew Spiranovic
HENAN JIANYE
Ryan McGowan
EagerXi Jinping
SHIJIAZHUANG
EVER BRIGHT
Mario Rondon
Ruben Micael
SECOND DIVISION
Jadson
(Tianjin Quanjian)
Luis Fabiano
(Tianjin Quanjian)
Zvjezdan Misimovic
(Beijing Renhe)
Nikica Jelavic
(Beijing Renhe)
genuine football culture that has been

lacking in the past.
Why the private sector has become
involved is partly explained by the fact that
president Xi Jinping made it clear even
before he took the top job in 2013 that
more failure on the world stage (the nation
has appeared in one World Cup and all
WORLD SOCCER
27
China
three games in 2002
OpportunityShanghai SIPG
were lost) was not
coach Sven Goran Eriksson
an option. With the
government starting
to get behind
Chinese football, it
can be expedient for
the private sector
to do their bit too. It
is not just that. The
transfer market has
taken on a life of
its own with clubs
competing to outdo
each other and all
striving to catch Guangzhou Evergrande
Goulart. As well as securing domestic
and stop the Cantonese club making it
dominance, the signings also fired the
six successive domestic titles.
team to a second Asian Champions
Guangzhou were the first Super League
League in three years. Rivals such as
club to spend heavily. Even before January,
Shanghai SIPG brought in Sven Goran
it had spent more than 100m in five
Eriksson to oversee their challenge
years on coaches, first Marcello Lippi and
while Shandong Luneng, Beijing Guoan,
now Luiz Felipe Scolari, and players such
Shenhua, and now Jiangsu and Hebei
as Robinho, Paulinho and Ricardo
are all trying to emulate Gunagzhou. But
Chinese
takeover
The clubs and football businesses
bought by Chinese finance
The time has come to start another stage of my

career. I have talked with Atletico a lot and we
realise this is best for both of us
Jackson Martinez on his 32m move to Guangzhou Evergrande
ChallengeShandong
Lunengs Diego Tardelli
1
2
3
4
5
GESTIFUTE
(Portugal)
Jorge Mendes (left)
agent to Cristiano
Ronaldo and Jose
Mourinho was
reported to have sold
a stake in his Gestifute
agency to Foyo Culture,
a company controlled
by Guo Guangchang,
chairman of
investment
company Fosun.
28
WORLD SOCCER
LIGAPRO (Portugal)
Chinese LED light
manufacturer Ledman
agreed to sponsor
Portugals second tier
but backed down from
a demand that 10
Chinese players be
included in the line-ups
of the leagues top 10
clubs. Ledman also
agreed to send three
assistant coaches to
work with the clubs.
SPECIAL FEATURE
DEN HAAG
(Holland)
Chinese businessman
Wang Hui bought the
Eredivisie club for a
reported $8.9m in
2014 but has since run
into problems over his
financing of the club.
MANCHESTER
CITY (England)
The cash-rich, statebacked China Media
Capital (CMC) paid
$400m (265m) for
a 13 per cent share
in the City Football
Group holding
company that owns
Manchester City on
behalf of Sheikh
Mansours Abu Dhabi
investment vehicle.
SLAVIA PRAGUE
(Czech Republic)
Shanghai-based CEFC
China Energy Company
Limited acquired a 59
per cent stake in the
Czech club in 2015.
CEFC, Chinas sixthlargest private
company, also bought
a stake in the Czech
airline Travel Services
and the brewery
Pivovary Lobkowicz.
SOCHAUX
(France)
Tech Pro, a Hong
Kong-listed electrical
manufacturer, bought
the French club, which
was previously owned
by Peugeot for 66
years, in 2015.
Sochaux have since
dropped into the Ligue
2 relegation zone.
INFRONT
(Switzerland)
Wanda Group bought
Swiss sports marketing
company Infront
Sports & Media for
889m. Infronts
businesses include
producing the World
Cup TV broadcasts
for FIFA through its
subsidiary HBS. Its
president and CEO
is Philippe Blatter,
nephew of Sepp.
CHINA
ESPANYOL
(Spain)
Chen Yansheng
(below), 46-year-old
millionaire owner of
toy-car makers Rastar,
became the clubs
majority shareholder,
paying 65m for a 56
per cent stake last
November.
ATLETICO MADRID
(Spain)
In January 2015,
Chinese billionaire
Wang Jianlin (above)
bought a 20 per cent
stake in the Spanish
club for 34m. Wang

heads the Wanda
group, Chinas biggest
property company,
and was owner of
Dalian Wanda, which
became Dalian Shide.
WORLD SOCCER
29
SPECIAL FEATURE
Foreign
coaches in
Chinese Super
League
Chang Woe-Ryong
(SKo)
Chongqing Lifan
Sven Goran Eriksson
(Swe)
Shanghai SIPG
Hong Myung-bo
(SKo)
Hangzhou Greentown
Gregorio Manzano
(Spa, above)
Shanghai Shenhua
Mano Menezes
(Bra)
Shandong Luneng
Dragan Okuka
(Ser)
Tianjin Teda
Futureyoung talent
in a training match
at the Evergrande
academy in Qingyuan
Chinese and Asian glory is no longer

enough for Guangzhou, who now want
to win the Club World Cup and become
a global power. Whether it is possible
remains to be seen, but the effects of the
investment have already been clear in
continental terms. Until Guangzhou, a
Chinese team had not won the Asian title
since 1990. With a bit more luck, the two
Champions Leagues in the last three years
could have been four from four. After years
of Japanese and especially South Korean
ex-Brazilian boss Mano Menezes, Alberto

Zaccheroni and Dragan Stojkovic are an
improvement on many of the domestic
tacticians especially given the traditional
lack of coaching education.
Better coaching of coaches is being
addressed along with many other things.
The Ministry of Education has been
working for the past three years on rolling
out a programme that will see 20,000
schools teach kids football at least once
a week by next year. There are plans to
Chinese football is progressing, but we need the

experience of playing in competitions like the Club
World Cup and the Asian Champions League.
players in the world will choose China may

depend on what happens to the growing
number of Brazilian stars now in the
country. At the moment, given the
geographic practicalities and Chinas
reputation, Brazilians put their national
team place in doubt if they make the
move but as more go, there could be
a point when that changes.
If other stars see that China does not
damage national team chances while
offering big money, a vibrant league and
a fascinating experience then genuine
A-listers could be on their way. And that
really could be a game changer.
Park Tae-ha
(SKo)
Yanbian Fude
Dan Petrescu
(Rom)
Jiangsu Suning
Yasen Petrov (Bul)
Shijiazhuang
Ever Bright
Luis Felipe Scolari
(Bra)
Guangzhou Evergrande
Slavisa Stojanovic
(Sln)
Changchun Yatai
Dragan Stojkovic
(Ser)
Guangzhou R&F
Alberto Zaccheroni
(Ita)
Beijing Guoan
Luiz Felipe Scolari

domination, Guangzhou are Asias
premier club.
These improvements come directly from
transfer spending and the accumulation
of much of the national team. For Chinese
football to improve across the board the
standard of the domestic players has to
rise. This is more difficult. It has been
argued the arrival of talented foreigners
helps the locals and there have been signs
of this. Better coaches make a difference
too, hence the signing of experienced men
like Scolari and Lippi. The likes of Eriksson,
30
WORLD SOCCER
expand that and reverse the countrywide

trend that does not see youngsters playing
the game. Throw in private academies like
the one built by Guangzhou Evergrande
and Real Madrid, reportedly the biggest
in the world, and the hope is that the
increase in money, brand and profile of
Chinese football will encourage more kids
to aim for professional careers, the lack
of which in the past has been a major
problem for the country.
Continuing to attract top foreign talent
is also important. Whether the very best
Moveex-Brazil coach Mano Menezes has taken charge at Shandong Luneng
WORLD SOCCER 500
PROFILE
CONTENTS
Heroes, villains
& future stars
INTRODUCTION
Aritz ADURIZ
Dele ALLI
ARDA Turan
Michy BATSHUAYI
Hatem BEN ARFA
Kingsley COMAN
Vladimir DARIDA
Laurent DEPOITRE
Angel DI MARIA
Gianluigi DONNARUMMA
Paulo DYBALA
Artyom DZYUBA
Andre-Pierre GIGNAC
Matthias GINTER
Paulo GUERRERO
Gonzalo HIGUAIN
JOAO MARIO
Ahmed KHALIL
Pierre-Michel LASOGGA
Riyad MAHREZ
Marlos MORENO
Jordan MORRIS
Oumar NIASSE
Nemanja NIKOLIC
Dominic SOLANKE
Lars STINDL
Yaya TOURE
Inaki WILLIAMS
ZHANG Linpeng
Andrija ZIVKOVIC
INDEX
P32
p34
p37
p38
p40
P42
p45
p46
p48
p50
p52
p54
p57
p58
p60
p62
p64
p67
p68
p70
p72
p75
p76
p78
p80
p82
p84
p86
p89
p90
P92
P94
WORLD SOCCER
31
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Five hundred
to debate and
discuss...
Northern Ireland
4
Republic
of Ireland
3
Hungary
6
4
Morocco
2
1
Senegal
Venezuela
Costa Rica
15
Mexico
Guinea
8
Colombia
Home boyCarlos Tevez,

back with Boca Juniors,
takes on River Plate in
Argentinas Superclasico
34
Ecuador
Peru
Bolivia
Brazil
4
Paraguay
WS500 by club
13
Uruguay
BARCELONA HAVE THE MOST PLAYERS
46
Argentina
8
Chile
P
O
N
15
13
13
13
13
12
11
10
9
8
8
8
7
7
7
6
5
5
5
Barcelona
Bayern Munich
Juventus
Paris Saint-Germain
Real Madrid
Atletico Madrid
Manchester City
Arsenal
Chelsea
Borussia Dortmund
Napoli
Roma
Bayer Leverkusen
Porto
Tottenham Hotspur
Sporting Lisbon
Manchester United
Monaco
Wolfsburg
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)
F)
G)
H)
I)
J)
K)
L)
M)
N)
O)
P)
Q)
R)
S)
WORLD SOCCER
1
Bosnia
USA
32
Wales
Canada
How and why we selected

the World Soccer 500 for 2016
welve months on from its first
incarnation, the World Soccer 500 is
back. It is not intended to be a list of
the best 500 players in the world.
Its impossible to compare players from different
leagues and continents; any list is inevitably
subjective. We have endeavoured to compile
a list of the worlds most talked-about players
the most newsworthy who, by definition, are
the most important.
As with last year, we began by drawing up a list
of the key players by league starting with 50
each for the leading leagues in Europe (England,
Germany, Spain), 40 for France and Italy, between
15 and 25 for middle-ranking leagues, and ending
with between five and 10 for smaller leagues.
We tried to include players who fell into
five different categories:
1 In-form players who have been making
headlines in the 2015-16 season.
2 The young talents who have earned rave reviews
in the past year.
3 The internationals who are key figures for their
respective national sides.
4 The headline-makers who have made news for
their actions off the pitch.
5 Those genuine world-class players who
regularly feature in World Xls.
Reaching the final list was not
easy. There are many players who
TELL US WHAT
missed the final cut but who came
YOU THINK
very close. For example, Obafemi
#WS500
Martins, a regular scorer for Seattle
Sounders in Major League Soccer, did
not make the 500, following his late switch to
China, but we did include Jackson Martinez, a flop
at Atletico Madrid, because his move to China
generated headlines around the world.
We have also tried to include at least three
players from each of the teams at Euro 2016, the
major footballing event of the year. So we included
Jonathan Walters, scorer of the goals that took
the Republic of Ireland to the finals but not Edin
Dzeko, mostly on the bench for Roma and whose
Bosnia side was beaten by the Republic in the
play-offs. We also included players who are likely
to feature in the Copa America and Rio Olympics.
Join the debate about the WS500 at
worldsoccer.com and #WS500.
WS500 by nationality
7
3
20
Iceland
Belgium Norway
THERE ARE 46 ARGENTINIANS ON THE LIST
Sweden
Poland
14
34
Holland
Germany
Czech
Republic
12
England
Denmark
Romania
7
Russia
Serbia Montenegro
Ukraine Slovakia
30
39
10
Spain
Croatia
France
17
21
Portugal
Switzerland
Italy
Greece Turkey
Algeria
2
1
Iran
UAE
Armenia
Iraq
Thailand
Austria
Qatar
India
Nigeria
Chad
Ivory
Coast
Cameroon
DR Congo
Israel
Albania Palestine
2
South
Korea
Slovenia Egypt
China
6
Japan
Saudi
Arabia
Gabon
Kenya
Tanzania
Ghana
1
Australia
New Zealand
South Africa
WS500 by league
19
18
17
13
11
10
Germany
Italy
France
Portugal
Holland
Russia, USA
Argentina, Brazil, Mexico
Belgium
China
Turkey
Chile, Hungary, Qatar, Serbia, Sweden, UAE
44
Ecuador, Japan, Ukraine
51
Croatia, Paraguay
56
Colombia, Uruguay
66
Greece
69
Spain
80
England
ENGLANDS PREMIER LEAGUE LEADS THE WAY WITH 69 PLAYERS, FOLLOWED BY SPAINS LIGA
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
Austria, Bolivia, Czech Rep, Denmark, India, Iraq, Peru,

Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Thailand, Venezuela
75
70
5
Impact playersSergio Aguero (blue) and Dele Alli
WORLD SOCCER
33
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0 # WS50 0
Aritz ADURIZ
Age 35, Athletic Bilbao & Spain
Age is just a number, says the Athletic Bilbao

front man. And when it comes to him, the
numbers get better with age.
He has 25 goals in his first 34 games this
season which, added to the 26 in 47 games that
he amassed last season, would be impressive
enough anyway. However, it is even more striking
when you consider that he recently celebrated his
35th birthday.
Last summer Aduriz renewed his contract at
San Mames not out of some sense of loyalty to
the club, but because the team needs him and
that means he will almost certainly now end his
34
WORLD SOCCER
the clubs second team, a season later aged 19.

But this is not the tale of a one-club man, even if
he would have liked it to be. Twice he departed, a
sense of disappointment accompanying him as he
career where he started it.
reluctantly did so, and twice he returned.
His is a curious case as he admits he was not
Following spells at Burgos, Valladolid, Mallorca
much of a football fan as a kid; or at least
and Valencia, Aduriz is back again and better
that he was not raised on the game as
than ever before. He was always good
his parents were more into skiing,
once described by Xavi as the best
TELL US WHAT
mountaineering and trekking. At the age
header of a ball I have ever seen, but
YOU THINK
of nine he was runner-up in the national
he was never this good.
#WS500
cross-country skiing championships.
Up to the age of 31, he averaged
Then theres the fact that he is from San
0.29 goals a game but since his 31st
Sebastian, which is home to Athletics great rivals,
birthday, he has averaged 0.54.
Real Sociedad.
There is no secret, he says. I like training
Aduriz began his career at Second Division B
every morning. I enjoy it. He looks after himself
club Aurrera Vitoria before joining Bilbao Athletic,
and has come to appreciate his career perhaps
G OA L K E E P E R D E F E N D E R M I D F I E L D E R
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Ab-As
KEY
more than ever before. Others have come to

appreciate him too. He has just one cap for Spain
and most now agree that he should get a call-up
for the European Championship in France, not
least because he offers something different to all
the other options and, apart from Luis Suarez, no
striker in Spain has scored more goals this season
in all competitions.
While national coach Vicente Del Bosque has
much to ponder, Adurizs team-mates have no
doubts. At the end of last seasons Spanish Cup
semi-final, it was suggested to midfielder Mikel
Rico that someone might have to build a statue
in honour of Aduriz, who had just taken them to
the Final. Give me the spatula and Ill build it
myself, he replied.
Sid Lowe
Aymen
ABDENNOUR
Omar
ABDULRAHMAN
Vincent
ABOUBAKAR
Age 26, Valencia (Spa) & Tunisia
Age 24, Al Ain & UAE
Age 24, Porto (Por) & Cameroon
New Entry Defender

who replaced Nicolas
Otamendi last summer
amid claims that agent
Jorge Mendes had
arranged all the deals.
One of the great hopes

of Asian football. The
playmaker signed a
new four-year deal last
year and will move to
Europe at some stage.
Powerful striker who

has not flourished as
hoped at Porto this
season in place of
Jackson Martinez, but
the potential is there.
Sebastian ABREU
Age 39, Sol de America (Par)
& Uruguay
New Entry Big,

charismatic centre
forward, known as
El Loco, now with his
21st club in his ninth
different country.
ADRIEN SILVA
David ALABA
Age 26, Sporting Lisbon

& Portugal
Age 23, Bayern Munich (Ger)

& Austria
New Entry Central

midfielder who has
played a key role in
Sportings 2016 title
challenge. Rejected
Chelsea as a teenager.
One of the worlds leading strikers holds the key to

Citys chances of silverware this season. If he stays
fit, they will score goals and stay in contention.
More than just Bayerns

left-back, he is a key,
goalscoring midfielder
for Austria and their
Footballer of the Year
for the past five seasons.
Jordi ALBA
Paco ALCACER
ALEX TEIXEIRA
Age 26, Barcelona & Spain
Age 22, Valencia & Spain
Attacking left-back
for club and country.
Consistently brilliant
for Barca since joining
from Valencia. Scored
Spains second goal in
the Euro 2012 Final.
Striker who has played

his way into Spains
starting line-up with
five goals in the Euro
2016 qualifiers. Named
Valencia captain by
Gary Neville.
ALISSON
ANDRE ANDRE
Age 23, Internacional & Brazil
Age 26, Porto & Portugal
Sergio AGUERO
Age 27, Manchester City (Eng) & Argentina
Toby
ALDERWEIRELD
Age 26, Tottenham Hotspur
(Eng) & Belgium
New Entry Impressive

in central defence for
Spurs since joining
last summer. Plays
right-back for Belgium.
Marko
ARNAUTOVIC
New Entry A rising

Goalscoring midfielder
Age 26, Stoke City (Eng) & Austria
New Entry Has hit the
star, displacing his
who left Guimaraes in
ground running at
brother Muriel at
the summer and has
Stoke. Will
club level,
impressed
PROFILED
PROFILED
be a key
now rst
since his
Dele ALLI
ARDA Turan figure at
choice for
move to
ON PAGE 37
ON PAGE 38
his country.
the Euros.
Porto.
Age 26, Jiangsu Suning (Chn)

& Brazil
Versatile goalscorer
who left Shakhtar
Donetsk for China in
February 2016 for an
Asian record transfer
fee of 50m.
Takuma ASANO
Age 21, Sanfrecce Hiroshima
& Japan
New Entry Striker

whose goals helped
Japan claim the Asian
Under-23 title and
qualify for the Rio
2016 Olympics.
WORLD SOCCER
35
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Pierre-Emerick
AUBAMEYANG
Serge AURIER
Andre AYEW
Sardar AZMOUN
Age 23, Paris Saint-Germain

(Fra) & Ivory Coast
Age 26, Swansea City (Eng)

& Ghana
Age 21, Rostov (Rus, on loan

from Rubin Kazan, Rus) & Iran
Reigning African
Footballer of the Year,
in prolific scoring form
for Dortmund. Insists
he is happy in Germany.
Attacking right-back,
suspended indefinitely
by PSG in February
after criticising coach
Laurent Blanc in an
online video.
One of Africas leading

forwards, he joined
Swansea on a free
transfer last summer.
Son of former Ghana
great Abedi Pele.
Irans brightest prospect

continues to impress in
Russia and has become
a regular in his national
team over the past
year.
Carlos BACCA
Eric BAILLY
Cedric BAKAMBU
Gareth BALE
Age 29, Milan (Ita) & Colombia
Late bloomer who

sold fish and was a
bus conductor before
Colombian top-flight
debut aged 23. Goals
for Sevilla earned move
to Milan last summer.
Age 21, Villarreal (Spa)

& Ivory Coast

& DR Congo
Age 26, Real Madrid (Spa)

& Wales
New Entry Promising

young centreback who made his
international debut
when Ivory Coast won
the 2015 Nations Cup.
New Entry Former

French youth
international who
is impressing in his
first season in La Liga
after a spell in Turkey.
The worlds most

expensive footballer,
his goals and
leadership propelled
Wales to their first
finals since 1958.
Ever BANEGA
Ross BARKLEY
Abdel BARRADA
Diego BARRETO
Age 27, Sevilla (Spa)

& Argentina
Age 22, Everton & England
Age 26, Marseille (Fra)

& Morocco
Age 34, Olimpia & Paraguay
Age 26, Borussia Dortmund

(Ger) & Gabon
36
New Entry Midfielder

who put a controversial
past behind him to
play an integral part in
Sevillas Europa League
success last season.
One of the great hopes

of English football and
a contender to start at
Euro 2016. Has added
spectacular goals to his
game in 2016 but may
have outgrown Everton.
New Entry The

French-born Moroccan
international has
excelled under Spanish
coach Michel at
Marseille this season.
New Entry Olympic

silver medallist (2004)
who won league titles
with two different clubs
last season; first with
Cerro Porteno, then
moved to rivals Olimpia.
Wilmar BARRIOS
Augusto BATALLA
Claudio BEAUVUE
Karim BELLARABI
Age 22, Tolima & Colombia
Age 19, River Plate & Argentina
New Entry Little

central midfielder
with pace, bite in
the tackle and the
ability to use the ball.
On the fringes of the
national team squad.
Age 27, Celta Vigo (Spa)

& France
Highly-rated under-20
Ex-Guingamp striker
keeper who turned
who moved to Celta
down a move to
in January after
Real Madrid
PROFILED
a frustrating
last summer.
MICHY
six months
Set to play at
BATSHUAYI
at Lyon.
the Olympics.
ON PAGE 40
Age 25, Bayer Leverkusen

& Germany
WORLD SOCCER
Speedy winger who

scored the Bundesligas
fastest goal (nine
seconds) last year
and is now a German
national team regular.
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Au-Be
KEY
Dele ALLI
Age 19, Tottenham Hotspur & England
New Entry Ten months ago, Dele Alli was playing

in the third tier of English football for his local club
MK Dons as they won promotion to the English
Championship. He had been signed by Tottenham
on the last day of the January 2015 transfer
window but was loaned back to the League One
side for the remainder of the season.
Less than a year later, he is the talk of English
football, fast-tracked into the senior national side
and hailed as the scorer of a contender for Goal
of the Season.
In January, England manager Roy Hodgson
was among those who saw Alli line up in Spurs
midfield against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
Receiving the ball on the edge of the penalty
area, he flicked the ball over his own head, leaving
Palace captain Mile Jedinak thrashing at thin air,
caught the ball on the volley and aimed a welldirected shot past Palace goalkeeper Wayne
Hennessey.
Alli demonstrated poise, technique and
audacity in a single movement that has probably
changed his career for good.
Thats proper talent, said Matt Le Tissier,
scorer of some spectacular goals himself. Its not
something that you practise on the training ground.
Its something that happens very instinctively.
Le Tissier, who watched the game as a studio
pundit for Sky, added: It was pretty special. Its
not very often a goal gets a massive round
of applause from all the pundits.
TELL US WHAT
When we all saw it, it was a
YOU THINK
spontaneous
Oh my goodness. It was
#WS500
brilliant skill and the fact he has the
confidence to even try that is fantastic.
After making his debut for MK Dons as a 16year-old in 2012, Alli quickly appeared on the
radar of Premier League scouts. Liverpool had the
opportunity to sign him in January 2015 but the
player rejected their offer of 4,000 a week.
Tottenham, where manager Mauricio Pochettino
has not been afraid to blood young English
players, stepped in with a better offer.
But the rush to praise Alli must be tempered by
a recognition that there is also a physical side to
his game that needs to be carefully channelled.
Earlier in the game against Palace, he kicked
out at French midfielder Yohan Cabaye in an
off-the-ball incident that, had it been witnessed
by officials, would have seen him sent off and the
wonder goal would never have happened.
A few weeks later, Alli was booked and should
have been sent off for a sly but clearly deliberate
kick at Nenad Tomovic as the Fiorentina defender
lay on the ground in a Europa League tie.
Allis supporters were quick to point out
that many of the finest players have channelled
their aggression to good use not least David
Beckham, whose career hardly suffered following
his red card at the 1998 World Cup.
For the moment, though, Dele Alli is enjoying
a honeymoon period as the bright young thing of
English football.
John Holmesdale
WORLD SOCCER
37
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Lars BENDER
Dario BENEDETTO
Martin BENITEZ
Karim BENZEMA

& Germany
Age 25, America & Mexico
Born in Argentina
but now a naturalised
Mexican after some
strong performances
in the Liga MX and
the CONCACAF
Champions League.
Age 21, Independiente

& Argentina

& France
New Entry Impressive

form in a deeper
attacking role prompted
his coach Mauricio
Pellegrino to compare
him to Sergio Aguero.
Still prolific for his

club but his place
at Euro 2016 is in
doubt because of
his involvement in
a blackmail case.
Domenico
BERARDI
BERNARDO SILVA
Lucas BIGLIA
Age 21, Monaco (Fra) & Portugal
Age 30, Lazio (Ita) & Argentina
Birkir
BJARNASON
Age 21, Sassuolo & Italy
One of Italian footballs

brightest prospects.
Juventus sold their
stake last summer
though they retain the
right to re-sign him.
Versatile creator,
usually on the right
flank. Slipped through
Benficas net as a kid
but was picked up by
Monaco. Now a key
figure for Portugal.
Lazios captain is an
experienced enforcer
and was a starter for
Argentina at last years
Copa America.
Regularly linked with
a move to England.
New Entry An
influential figure in
Icelands qualification
for Euro 2016, Thor
can play on either flank
or centrally.
Jerome BOATENG
Daniel BODE
Miler BOLANOS
Yannick BOLASIE
Age 27, Bayern Munich

& Germany
Age 29, Ferencvaros & Hungary
Age 25, Gremio (Bra) & Ecuador
New Entry One of

the heroes of Hungarys
Euro qualifying play-off
victory over Norway.
Tall striker who has
played his whole career
in the Hungarian league.
Strong, versatile, quick

and skilful support
striker. The outstanding
player in Ecuador for
the past two years, he
joined Gremio in
February 2016.
Age 26, Crystal Palace (Eng)

& DR Congo
Hit by injury this

term but the
Leverkusen
PROFILED
HATEM BEN captain is
still a clever
ARFA
ON PAGE 42
operator.
Now recognised as a
hugely important figure
for club and country,
but a groin injury has
put his Euro 2016
place in doubt.
Age 27, Basle (Swi) & Iceland
Speedy wideman
with a showreel of
unpredictable tricks.
Used in a more central
attacking role by DR
Congo.
A R DA Tu ra n
Age 29, Barcelona (Spa) & Turkey
38
Giacomo
BONAVENTURA
Leonardo
BONUCCI
Age 26, Milan & Italy
Age 28, Juventus & Italy
Now firmly established

at Milan, his industry
and flexibility has seen
him recognised as an
influential figure under
coach Sinisa Mihajlovic.
New Entry One of

Serie As best defenders,
his partnership with
Giorgio Chiellini has
been key to the revival
of Juventus in 2016.
WORLD SOCCER
Alberto BOTIA
Gustavo BOU
Age 27, Olympiakos (Gre)

& Spain
Age 26, Racing & Argentina
Former Barcelona
trainee and Spain
under-23 cap who has
been troubled by injury
since moving to Greece
in summer 2014.
Released by River
Plate as a youngster,
he made it the hard
way, loaned to lower
leagues. Was top
scorer when Racing
won the 2015 title.
Not long after he arrived at Barcelona, Arda Turan

was asked if he knew whether his new teammates had started to take the mickey out of him
yet. No, he replied, laughing. Theyre too scared
that Ill throw a boot at them.
He had done it to a linesman before against
Barcelona, in fact but it says something about
the Turks character that it became something
to laugh about more than lament. When he
celebrated his birthday that year, friends gave
him a cake decorated with a boot on top.
Arda is different, alright. Theres something
about him that fascinates, and the fact that he
KEY
still does not speak Spanish or does not admit

to speaking Spanish only increases that sense
of mystique.
From the gloriously bushy beard to shaving his
hair when Atletico Madrid won the Spanish Cup
because a promise is a promise, from buying his
dad a petrol station to paying the electricity bill for
the entire block of flats where he used to live in
Istanbul, fans find it hard not to fall for him.
Just ask the biographer who called him a
hipsters Jesus Christ or the Atletico-supporting
reporter who likened him to Lou Reed.
Hes different, special...you have to understand
him the way he is, wrote Picu Diaz in AS.
Which is what Atletico supporters did until
he left. Then they could not understand it; they
understood still less the way it happened. For
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Be-Bo
once, they accused him of not managing the

the same as all the rest; because he had that
situation well.
moments pause, the calm and cleverness that
It was what he wanted, though. So much so
others lacked.
that despite having to wait six months to actually
All of which is not to say that he wont have to
play for Barca, because of the clubs transfer ban,
run at Barcelona. But it will be more about the
he insisted it was worth it, saying: Id wait
ball there.
longer if I had to.
At the Camp Nou, it will be his role to
His idol is Andres Iniesta, even
fill in for any of the front three and to
TELL US WHAT
though theyre not so far away in age,
provide a more technical alternative in
YOU THINK
and says that he always felt a bit bad
midfield should Luis Enrique want to
#WS500
when he kicked the Spain playmaker
vary the approach.
during his Atletico days. But then, he
Arda once claimed he would rather give
added, thats what he had to do.
a pass than score a goal. Once a Galatasaray
What he has to do now is much more his style.
ballboy who was obsessed with Gheorghe Hagi,
He says he found the physical demands made of
he claims: My football is the football of the
him by Diego Simeone hard to take, even though
streets of Istanbul. Now he plays it in Barcelona.
his coach liked him precisely because he was not
Sid Lowe
WORLD SOCCER
39
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Despite the abundance of footballing talent

in Belgium at present, Batshuayi has been quick
to make his mark on the international stage,
notching an impressive seven goals in just 13
June 2014. Since arriving in France, he has quickly
games for the under-21 side. Aware of his dual
established himself as a fan favourite thanks to his
nationality, DR Congo coach Florent Ibenge
lightning-quick feet and ultra-cool
made overtures to the player all to no
temperament in front of goal.
avail. Batshuayi threw his hat in with
Twenty-five goals in his first 60
Belgium and was rewarded with a
TELL US WHAT
appearances suggests a player who
first senior call-up for the European
YOU THINK
doesnt lose his head when the net
Championship
qualifier against Cyprus
#WS500
looms large and the tackles are flying in.
in March of 2015.
But as he himself says: It doesnt make
In what can only be called a fairy-tale
much difference if I score 20 goals in a season if
debut, he scored with his very first touch of the
the team doesnt get the right results and we end
ball in senior international football as Belgium won
up in mid-table. If we lose and I score, well Im not
5-0, and followed that up with another goal,
happy. Im a really bad loser.
against Italy, in his next appearance.
M i c hy B AT S H U AY I
Age 22, Marseille (Fra) & Belgium
New Entry Born in Brussels, he was snapped up

by Anderlecht at just 13, but his career was almost
torpedoed before it had begun when the Belgian
outfit cut ties with the youngster because of his
bad attitude.
Luckily, a growing maturity, not to mention his
extraordinary talent, saw him offered
a second chance by Standard Liege in 2008
and he hasnt looked back since.
After making his debut in February 2011, a haul
of 44 goals in 120 games had a number of top
European sides sniffing around before Marseille
signed him on a five-year deal for 7 million in
40
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Bo-Ca
KEY
Nobody is suggesting that he is the finished

article just yet. His first touch can sometimes let
him down and he sometimes plays too much as
an individual, which is why he wasnt picked for
Belgiums World Cup squad in Brazil in 2014. But
there is no denying his raw talent and his goals
record speaks for itself.
Rumours abounded that a host of English clubs
including Tottenham Hotspur, Crystal Palace and
Newcastle United were after him in the January
transfer window, but Batshuayi signed a contract
extension with Marseille that tied him to the club
until 2020.
While that wont deter clubs from coming after
him this summer, at least Marseille will be able to
bag a much bigger fee.
Howard Johnson
Sofiane BOUFAL
Michael BRADLEY
Robbie BRADY
Yacine BRAHIMI
Age 22, Lille & France
Age 28, Toronto & USA
Age 26, Porto (Por) & Algeria
New Entry Lively wide

man who has starred
for Lille since joining
from Angers in 2015.
Reportedly scouted by
PSG and a number of
English clubs.
A similar story to Clint

Dempsey: he moved
back to MLS from
Roma in 2014 on a
huge salary ($6.5m)
but has yet to win
anything with Toronto.
Age 24, Norwich City (Eng)

& Republic of Ireland
New Entry Former

Manchester United
trainee who played
an important role in
Irelands qualification
for Euro 2016.
Brilliant dribbler with

an eye for goal. Tipped
to be Portos next big
sale but the club are
keen to earn as close
as possible to his
buyout clause (60m).
Martin
BRAITHWAITE
BRUNO Soriano
Age 24, Toulouse (Fra)

& Denmark
Age 31, Villarreal & Spain
New Entry Born

in Denmark to a
Guyanese father and
now scoring regularly
for Toulouse in Ligue 1.
Claudio BRAVO
New Entry Captain of Chiles 2015 Copa
America-winning side and first choice for
Barcelona in Liga matches.
New Entry Longserving captain of his

boyhood club. Stayed
with Villarreal after
relegation in 2013 and
now challenging for
the Champions League.
Constantin
BUDESCU
Gianluigi BUFFON
BURAK Yilmaz
Sergio BUSQUETS
Age 30, Galatasaray & Turkey
Age 26, Dalian Yifang (Chn)

& Romania
New Entry Romanian

leagues best player in
2015. Recently moved
to the Chinese second
division.
Juve captain and Italys

record cap holder (154
and counting). Says
he will probably retire
after competing in a
record sixth World
Cup in 2018.
A prolific scorer for

Galatasaray and the
national side. Began his
career as a midfielder
and often linked with a
transfer abroad (most
recently West Ham).
Vital central lynchpin

of Barcelonas midfield.
A quiet enabler who is
highly valued by his
team-mates. Son of
former Barca keeper
Carles Busquets.
Yohan CABAYE
Tim CAHILL
CAIO
Age 30, Crystal Palace (Eng)

& France
Age 36, unattached & Australia
Age 29, Grasshoppers (Swi)

& Brazil
Hakan
CALHANOGLU
New Entry Rebuilding

his career after a spell
on the sidelines at PSG.
Plays in a deeper role
for Palace than for the
French national team.
Age 32, Barcelona (Spa) & Chile
Australias all-time
top scorer is without
a club after leaving
Chinese side Shanghai
Shenhua in February,
just three months after
joining them.
New Entry Attacking

midfielder who has
found his scoring
feet in Switzerland
after four seasons in
Germany at Eintracht.

(Ger) & Turkey
Exciting German-born
free-kick specialist
tipped to star for
Turkey at Euro 2016.
Linked with top clubs.
WORLD SOCCER
41
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Hatem
B E N A R FA
Age 28, Nice & France
New Entry Born in the suburbs of Paris, Ben

Arfa has long been recognised as one of Frances
most naturally gifted footballers. Back in 1999,
aged 13, he was already known as one of the most
precocious talents featured in a TV documentary
that followed 24 hopefuls selected from 800
candidates to join the French Football Federations
elite youth programme.
Yet this may surprise English football fans, who
most likely only remember his unsuccessful stints
with Newcastle United and on loan at Hull City,
where he failed to rip up any trees and fell out
with managers and fans alike.
However, since returning to France with Nice in
August 2015, things have been on the up and up
for the 15-times capped international in a season
that has seen the attacking midfielder produce
some extraordinary performances.
Of course, Ben Arfa being Ben Arfa, it hasnt
all been plain sailing since he arrived back in his
native country.
Having signed for Nice in January 2015 after
Newcastle ripped up his contract, the former Lyon
and Marseille man was left in limbo for six months
when FIFA confirmed that the rules do not allow
for a player to appear for three clubs in the same
season, Ben Arfa having already turned out for
Newcastle and Hull.
After initially threatening to quit the
TELL US WHAT
game entirely, he finally made his debut
YOU THINK
for Nice in a 2-1 defeat at home to
#WS500
Monaco at the start of this season. A
week later he was off the mark goals-wise,
scoring a penalty in a 3-3 draw with Troyes and
since then has been the key driver as Nice fight
for one of the top four spots in Ligue 1.
I felt like I was locked in a dark room with no
door, he says of his time in England. When I
signed for Nice, I felt like I was getting out of hell.
Much of the credit for his renaissance must go
to Nice coach Claude Puel, who has opted to
focus on what the player does well giving
defenders twisted blood rather than the fact
that he often comes across as a guy who can start
an argument in an empty room.
A lot of the good things that are happening to
me right now are directly down to Puel, says Ben
Arfa. He doesnt try to turn me into something
Im not. He doesnt go on and on about my
weaknesses, but tries to improve my strengths.
Such has been Ben Arfas form that France
coach Didier Deschamps brought him back in
from the cold after more than three years out
of the international arena and picked him for
the games against Germany and England in
November last year.
Ben Arfas talent has never been in doubt, but
could his head at last be screwed on properly?
With the Euros taking place in France this summer,
it would be a mighty fine time for him, finally, to
grow up.
Howard Johnson
42
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Ca-Ch
KEY
Jose CALLEJON
Ignacio CAMACHO
Age 29, Napoli (Ita) & Spain
Age 25, Malaga & Spain
Thriving in Italy after

a 2013 move from
Real Madrid, where
opportunities were
limited. Playing in a
number of roles for
title-chasing Napoli.
Young defensive
midfielder who has
been troubled by
injuries over the past
year. On the fringes of
the Spain squad and
linked with bigger clubs.
Lorik CANA
Antonio
CANDREVA
Age 32, Nantes (Fra) & Albania
Esteban
CAMBIASSO
& Argentina
Emre CAN
Age 22, Liverpool (Eng)
& Germany
New Entry Veteran

extending his career
in Greece after a
productive season in
England with Leicester.
Powerful box-to-box
operator who can
play in a number of
positions but has yet
to establish himself
in one specific role.
Facundo CARDOZO
Edinson CAVANI
Age 20, Bolivar (Bol, loan from

Velez Sarsfield) & Argentina

(Fra) & Uruguay
New Entry Kosovoborn captain of the

Albania side that will
compete at Euro 2016.
Has played in the top
divisions of France, Italy,
England and Turkey.
Right-sided wide man

who has been a key
attacking outlet for
club and country.
Valued at 25m by
Lazio to deter suitors.
New Entry Under-20

defender who is set to
play at the 2016 Rio
Olympics. Currently on
loan in Bolivia after a
fallout with Velez.
El Matador appeared
to have patched things
up with Laurent Blanc
but has been dropped
to the PSG bench since
the start of 2016.
Juan CAZARES
Santi CAZORLA
Petr CECH
Jose CEVALLOS
Age 23, Atletico Mineiro

(Bra) & Ecuador
Age 31, Arsenal (Eng) & Spain
Age 33, Arsenal (Eng)

& Czech Rep
Age 21, LDU Quito & Ecuador
Age 28, Lazio & Italy
New Entry Little

playmaker, clever
and speedy. Used as
a late substitute by the
national team to punish
tired defences.
His 2015-16 season

has been disrupted by
a knee injury but, when
fit, his deep-lying
playmaking skills have
been important for
both club and country.
New Entry Thriving

at Arsenal since being
allowed to leave
Chelsea by owner
Roman Abramovich.
Czech Republic captain.
Charyl CHAPPUIS
Sunil CHHETRI
Giorgio CHIELLINI
Age 24, Suphanburi & Thailand
Age 31, Bengaluru (loan from

Mumbai City) & India
New Entry Born in

Switzerland and played
in the 2009 Under-17
world title win. Now,
through his Thai mother,
he is helping Thailand
improve in the rankings.
Indias captain and alltime top scorer. First

Indian to score a hattrick in the fledgling
ISL; also contracted to
play in the I-League.
Centre-back or leftback who remains the

unquestionable power
behind the Juventus
defence. The victim
of Luis Suarezs bite at
the World Cup.
New Entry Elegant

but languid playmaker.
Son of Juan Francisco,
former national team
keeper and current
president of Barcelona
(Guayaquil).
Yassine
CHIKHAOUI
Age 29, Al Gharafa (Qat)
& Tunisia
New Entry Tunisias

captain may have left
Europe for Qatar but
he remains a key figure
for his country.
WORLD SOCCER
43
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Vlad CHIRICHES
Age 26, Napoli (Ita) & Romania
Jasper CILLESSEN
Viktor CLAESSON
Age 26, Ajax & Holland
Age 24, Elfsborg & Sweden
Age 24, The Strongest & Bolivia
New Entry Left-sided

set-piece specialist
who has been one
of the strongest
performers in the
Swedish league over
the past few seasons.
New Entry Centreback who has yet to

convince at Napoli
following a move from
Tottenham but is still
an important figure for
Romanias national side.
New Entry Nicknamed

Chuma-steiger for a
supposed likeness to
Bastian Schweinsteiger,
he is a dynamic figure
A level-headed keeper
regarded as the best in
the Dutch league. First
choice for club and
country. Contracted until
2018 but often linked
with a move abroad.
German CONTI
Ante CORIC
Angel CORREA
Diego COSTA
Age 21, Colon & Argentina
Age 20, Atletico Madrid (Spa)

& Argentina
Age 27, Chelsea (Eng) & Spain
New Entry Tall

centre-back who
top clubs in Argentina
are chasing to sign.
Likely to be part of
Argentinas squad for
the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Age 18, Dinamo Zagreb

& Croatia
Hailed as Croatias
next big star. Yet to be
capped at senior level
but has already denied
deals to join Milan, Real
Madrid and Chelsea.
Former under-20
star whose arrival at
Atletico was delayed by
a heart problem. Scored
on his senior Argentina
debut in 2015.
Benoit COSTIL
Thibaut COURTOIS
Age 23, Chelsea (Eng) & Belgium
Philippe
COUTINHO
Adrian CUBAS
Age 28, Rennes & France
New Entry Former

Under-21 keeper
whose form for Rennes
resulted in a call-up
to the senior France
squad. Linked with a
move to Marseille.
Probably the most

successful product of
Chelseas multiple loan
system, having spent
three years at Atletico
Madrid. From a family
of volleyball players.
Age 23, Liverpool (Eng) & Brazil
Back in the Brazil

squad after a
resurgence at Liverpool
but finding it hard to
win a starting berth
alongside Neymar.
New Entry Has

caught the eye as a
defensive midfielder for
Boca and made it to
Argentinas under-20
side. Set to feature at
the 2016 Olympics.
Moanes DABOUR
Mahmoud
DAHOUD
Jurgen DAMM
DANI ALVES
Age 23, Tigres & Mexico
Age 32, Barcelona (Spa) & Brazil
Age 20, Borussia Mgladbach

& Germany
Speedy wide man

who was tipped to
move to Europe last
summer but instead
joined Tigres and won
the Mexican title in
the autumn.
Nominally a right-back
but far more effective
going forward. Agreed
a new contract until
2017 after signs of
tension with the club
last season.
Age 23, Grasshoppers (Swi)

& Israel
A prolific scorer in the

Swiss league and a
leading figure among
Arab-Israeli footballers,
having debuted for
Israel in 2014.
44
Alejandro
CHUMACERO
WORLD SOCCER
New Entry Born in

Syria but capped by
Germany under-19s.
Has broken through at
Gladbach this season.
Boisterous, unruly but

highly effective. His loss
of form mirrored Jose
Mourinhos demise at
Chelsea. Brazil-born
but will play for Spain
at Euro 2016.
Age 19, Boca Juniors & Argentina
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Ch-Da
KEY
K i n g s l ey
COMAN
Age 19, Bayern Munich (Ger, loan from Juventus, Ita) & France
It speaks volumes for the outrageous ability of the

teenager that he has already worn the colours of
three of Europes biggest clubs: his Paris SaintGermain alma mater; Juventus, where he featured
last season, and now Bayern Munich.
A true speed merchant so much so that he
recently was clocked as the fastest player in the
Bundesliga at 21.78mph the young Parisian has
been making a mad dash for stardom for as long
as he can remember. Having invariably been used
by PSG in higher youth age-groups, in February
2013 he became the capital clubs youngest-ever
first-teamer at the age of 16 years, eight months
and four days.
The trouble for PSG was that the youngster was
also in a prodigious hurry to move
his career along. After just two Ligue 1 substitute
appearances during the 2013-14 campaign, he
decided enough was enough and refused to
turn pro with the club, instead signing a lucrative
five-year deal with Juventus. And whats more, he
did not cost a penny.
Although dubbed a potential phenomenon by
Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri early last term,
Coman generally found the Italian game
too tough a nut to crack and was often
TELL US WHAT
criticised for his lack of tactical
YOU THINK
understanding and defensive work-rate.
#WS500
Despite the considerable amount of
time and effort the Italian clubs management
expended on courting him, he started on a
handful of occasions in Serie A. And with Bayern
pressing hard to enrol him, Juventus simply could
not resist the chance to make what they thought
to be a killing, agreeing a 7million fee for a twoseason loan deal, with a 21m option to buy.
Unlike Juve, the German champions and
in particular coach Pep Guardiola genuinely
intended to play him as much as possible. And
that is exactly what they have done, regularly
using him as an alternative to the oft-injured
Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben.
His speed, spontaneity and assertiveness are
tailor-made for the wide open spaces of the
Bundesliga and equally important to Guardiola,
he has adapted remarkably quickly to the many
and varied demands of the Bayern collective.
Im the type of player who can make a
difference at any moment in a game, declared
a thoroughly unabashed Coman on his arrival at
Bayern in September. No idle boast, obviously.
Nick Bidwell
WORLD SOCCER
45
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
born with these legs. In my position you have to

get around the pitch. Backwards and forwards.
Left and right.
Nor is he just a gritty and industrious marathon
more ground than him during this campaign,
man. He is intelligent, technically sound, can pick
averaging over 13km per game, and when it
out a pass and generally does an excellent job of
comes to diligence and die-hard spirit, he is
linking defence and attack. Work ethic
in a league of his own.
juxtaposed with strategic good sense.
Im often asked why I run so much
Daridas qualities were precisely what
TELL US WHAT
and I honestly dont really know myself,
we needed in the heart of our midfield,
YOU THINK
says Darida, who only last spring was
explains Preetz.
#WS500
relegated from the Bundesliga with his
We had to fight long and hard to
previous club, Freiburg.
bring him in from Freiburg last summer. But
Ive always had a thing about being
it was worth it.
a step quicker than the opposition.
One of our main weaknesses in recent times
Its a gift I probably had in the cradle. I was
was the lack of a good quality number six/eight
V l a d i m i r DA R I DA
Age 25, Hertha Berlin (Ger) & Czech Rep
New Entry Hertha Berlin general manager

Michael Preetz never tires of calling his sides
Czech central midfielder the heart and lungs
of our team. And who would dare argue?
The driving force behind Herthas surprisingly
persistent assault on a Champions League
qualifying spot, he has been nothing less than
engine-room gold this season, his boundless
energy, ball-winning bite, strong running and
never-sated desire filling up the Berliner tank
week in and week out.
No other player in the Bundesliga has covered
46
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Da-De
KEY
and Vladimir has filled that vacuum superbly. Hes

a full international and plays with that class. Hes
made an immediate impact here.
Preetz certainly earned his corn with the Darida
deal, not only jumping the queue ahead of several
other interested parties including Anderlecht,
Stuttgart, Werder Bremen and a few English sides
but also securing his services relatively cheaply,
successfully knocking 1.2million off the original
5m asking price.
Twice a Czech league winner with Viktoria
Plzen in 2010-11 and 2012-13 Darida has
to religiously stick to a non-gluten diet and,
by the look of him, he is equally intolerant
of underachievement.
Nick Bidwell
DANILO Pereira
DAVID LUIZ
Steven DAVIS
Kevin DE BRUYNE

(Fra) & Brazil
Age 31, Southampton (Eng)

& Northern Ireland
Age 24, Manchester City (Eng)

& Belgium
Worlds most expensive

defender following his
50m move from
Chelsea to PSG in
summer 2014. Still
first choice for Brazil.
New Entry Captain

of the Northern Ireland
side that reached Euro
2016 and scorer of
crucial goals in the
Citys record signing at

54m has flourished
since joining from
Wolfsburg last year, 18
months after being sold
by Chelsea for 18m.
Defensive midfielder
who has excelled since
joining from Maritimo
in 2015, keeping bigger
names out of the side.
On Benficas books as
a teenager.
David DE GEA
Daniele DE ROSSI
Age 25, Manchester United

(Eng) & Spain
Age 32, Roma & Italy
One of the worlds

top goalkeepers. He
quadrupled his wages
when agreeing a new
four-year contract with
United last autumn.
Luuk DE JONG
Age 25, PSV & Holland
New Entry Rebuilding his career back in Holland

after failing at Borussia Monchengladbach and
Newcastle. A title winner last term with PSV.
The Italy international

has stayed loyal to
Roma, helped by Serie
As highest salary of
6.5m per season,
despite plenty of
interest from England.
Brecht
DEJAEGERE
Nicolas
DELGADILLO
Matias DELGADO
Andy DELORT
Age 33, Basle (Swi) & Argentina
Age 24, Caen & France
Age 24, Gent & Belgium
Age 18, Velez Sarsfield

& Argentina
New Entry Basle

captain and veteran
who is playing some of
the best football of his
career in his second
spell with the Swiss
champions.
New Entry The

former beach soccer
player has excelled
at Caen this season,
rebuilding his career
after an ill-fated move
to Wigan in 2014.
Memphis DEPAY
Olivier
DESCHACHT
New Entry A key

figure in Gents recent
success. Rejected as a
teenage goalkeeper by
Club Brugge for being
too small.
Clint DEMPSEY
Age 32, Seattle Sounders & USA
The highest paid

player in MLS ($6.7m
a year) moved back to
the USA in 2014 to
boost Seattles titlewinning aims so far
unsuccessfully.
New Entry Youngster

who made headlines
in Argentina and Spain
after being spotted by
agent Jorge Mendes.
Leander
DENDONCKER
Age 20, Anderlecht & Belgium
New Entry Powerful

defensive holder who
has also played centreback for Belgiums
under-21s. Already
capped at senior level.

(Eng) & Holland
Yet to sparkle for

New Entry Left-back
and club captain
United despite
being handed
who has
PROFILED
the famous
played his way
LAURENT
number seven
back into the
DEPOITRE
shirt.
national side.
ON PAGE 49
WORLD SOCCER
47
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Lassana DIARRA
Marcelo DIAZ
Mauro DIAZ
Sergio DIAZ
Age 30, Marseille & France
Age 29, Celta Vigo (Spa) & Chile
Age 24, Dallas (USA) & Argentina
New Entry Excelling

at Marseille, he has
forced his way
back into
PROFILED
the French
ANGEL DI
national
MARIA
ON PAGE 50
squad.
A key figure in Chiles

2015 Copa America
triumph, the Chilean
Xavi recently moved
to Spains Celta to
replace Atletico-bound
Augusto Fernandez.
New Entry One of the

youngest Designated
Players in MLS, he
enjoyed a good first
year and many feel
should be targeted
instead of the vets.
Age 17, Cerro Porteno

& Paraguay
New Entry Paraguays

answer to Sergio
Aguero, a little striker
of audacious talent
who was perhaps
over-played last year.
Daniel DIDAVI
Famara DIEDHIOU
DIOGO JOTA
Nabil DIRAR
Age 26, Stuttgart & Germany
Age 23, Clermont (Fra, loan

from Sochaux, Fra) & Senegal
Age 19, Pacos Ferreira & Portugal
Age 30, Monaco (Fra) & Morocco
New Entry His goals

have taken the French
second tier by storm
this season, scoring a
goal a game to top the
scoring charts.
New Entry Attackminded teenager who

is attracting interest
from Portugals leading
clubs, notably Benfica,
and is set to move at
the end of the season.
New Entry Moroccan

who has matured into
a talented wide man
in Monaco, starring
against Arsenal in last
seasons Champions
League knockout stage.
Alejandro
DOMINGUEZ
Giovanni
DOS SANTOS
Jonathan
DOS SANTOS

& Argentina
Age 26, LA Galaxy (USA)

& Mexico

& Mexico
New Entry Gifted

playmaker behind
much of Stuttgarts best
moves. His contract
expires this summer; a
number of Bundesliga
clubs are on alert.
Borek DOCKAL
Age 27, Sparta Prague
& Czech Republic
48
Attacking schemer who

has been the Czech
leagues best player
and been a key figure
for the national side
en route to Euro 2016.
Former World
Youth Cup
winner enjoying
a late flourish
in Greece.
Bas DOST
DOUGLAS COSTA
Julian DRAXLER
Jimmy DURMAZ
Age 26, Wolfsburg (Ger)

& Holland

& Brazil
Age 22, Wolfsburg & Germany

& Sweden
One of Europes most

in-form marksmen in
2015, the Dutchman
has stayed at Wolfsburg
despite interest from
English clubs.
Brilliant wide man

who has given Bayern
a new attacking
dimension this season
following his 2015
move from Shakhtar.
WORLD SOCCER
Provider of air
in a team that
looks to be
GIANLUIGI
DONNARUMMA increasingly
ON PAGE 52
about power.
PROFILED
Gifted attacker
who was signed by
Wolfsburg last summer
as a replacement for
Kevin De Bruyne. A
strong contender for
Germanys Euro squad.
Emerging from the

shadow of elder
brother Giovanni
to make his mark
in La Liga.
New Entry Born

in Sweden to Syriac
(Assyrian) parents and
taking a starring role in
the Greek league this
season.
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Di-Du
KEY
Laurent
DEPOITRE
For someone who used to prioritise engineering

studies over football, and who was playing in the
Belgian third tier as recently as 2011, the bustling
centre-forward is enjoying an astonishing amount
of success.
Having played his part in Gents domestic
league triumph last term, and their subsequent
surprise qualification for the knockout stage of
the current Champions League, he won his first
cap for the national side earlier this season and
was second in his countrys player of the year
ballot for 2015.
A native of the Hainaut region of western
Belgium, he played the game solely for fun
as a teenager and young adult. Yet almost
without realising it, he was climbing the league
ladder step by step, picking up the tricks
of the trade in regional competition with
Association Montkainoise and RFC Tournai,
before moving on to bigger and better things
in the national pyramid.
Twelve months after helping Eendracht Aalst
clinch the 2010-11 third division title, he left to
turn professional at second-tier Oostende and
with only one year left of his university course,
he no longer had the time to keep up with his
classroom studies and reluctantly had to put
his degree on ice.
Not that he has been short-changed
TELL US WHAT
of sporting recompense since.
YOU THINK
In 2012-13, he was Oostendes top
#WS500
scorer as they ran away with the seconddivision crown, and since joining Gent in the
summer of 2014 he has got down to business
with a vengeance, proving insatiable in his pursuit
of goals and assists.
Especially impressive in Gents extraordinarily
strong Champions League campaign in which
he tormented defenders from Valencia, Lyon and
Zenit along the way he is the sort of player who
should not be judged on first impressions.
With his towering height and dockers build,
the automatic assumption is that he is a onedimensional target man, only useful for his aerial
prowess and an ability to play with his back to
goal. In reality, however, he boasts a far wider
skill-set: a delicate touch on the ball, good vision,
intelligent movement and far more speed than
he is given credit for.
And while not particularly quick over the first
couple of yards, he is very hard to stop when
barrelling forward.
It should come as no shock that Belgium boss
Marc Wilmots is an admirer. In his own playing
days as a front runner, Wilmots was guts and
single-mindedness personified and Depoitre
has those same core values.
He will fight for you all match, says Wilmots.
His development has been remarkable.
Thats the way of the world for a late bloomer
who is keen to make every moment count.
Nick Bidwell
WORLD SOCCER
49
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Angel
DI MARIA
Age 28, Paris Saint-Germain (Fra) & Argentina
The most expensive footballer ever to play in the

Premier League may have suffered something of
a nightmare during his season-long ride at
Manchester United, but moving to France to join
Paris Saint-Germain in August 2015 has seen Di
Maria finally playing with a smile on his face again.
And after a worryingly difficult first few months in
the capital, he is once again finding the kind of
form that made him one of the worlds hottest
football properties.
Having been forced out of Real Madrid in
August 2014, the 59.7million that United paid
the Spanish side for his services seemed like
a terrible piece of business as the Argentinian
looked out of sorts and desperately unhappy
in the north of England. But as things have turned
out, Uniteds loss has proved to be very much
PSGs gain.
Having moved to Paris for 63m, Di Maria has
the fans purring with pleasure once more.
Born in Rosario, he made just 39 appearances
for his home-town club before being snapped up
by Portuguese outfit Benfica for 3m in 2007.
Within three years his market value had shot up to
30m as Real Madrid took him to Spain.
It would be overly harsh to suggest that his
career then stalled at the Bernabeu he was,
after all, a Champions League winner with
Real but its only since hes found his
TELL US WHAT
feet in France that hes truly been back
YOU THINK
to his best form.
#WS500
Acting both as a devastating supply line
and an ice-cool finisher, he has been setting
Ligue 1 alight on a weekly basis this term as
PSG march to a seemingly unstoppable fourth
consecutive league title.
While all the talk in France about El Fideo
(the spaghetti) remains positive, there is some
debate among observers as to whether hes most
effective on the right flank or in the middle of the
pitch. The player himself, however, has no such
concerns, explaining: I really like playing on the
right. Its where I feel most at ease, even more so
when Im alongside two such great players as
Ibrahimovic and Cavani.
When Im really involved in the game and I can
get crosses in to them, its perfect. I think its
where Im best at PSG.
Thoroughly enjoying his time in Paris, he adds:
You learn something every day, particularly here
where youve got players of the quality of
Ibrahimovic, Verratti, Thiago Silva, Cavani. The list
goes on.
Im sure theres still plenty for me to learn here
and Ill carry on improving as a player.
With Paris Saint-Germains sights firmly set
on glory in the Champions League this season,
coach Laurent Blanc will have high expectations
of Di Maria as one of the clubs major creative
forces in their drive to the very top of the
European game.
Howard Johnson
50
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Dz-Fe
KEY
Balazs
DZSUDZSAK
Age 29, Bursaspor (Tur)
& Hungary
New Entry Pacy

left-winger and
experienced
Hungary
captain.
EDER
Mohamed ELNENY
Breel EMBOLO
Age 29, Internazionale (loan

from Sampdoria) & Italy
Age 23, Arsenal (Eng) & Egypt
Age 19, Basle & Switzerland
Energetic box-to-box
operator who moved
from Basle to Arsenal
in January 2016. One
of the stars of Basles
Europa League
campaign in 2015.
Cameroon-born,
fast, powerful, skilful
forward who made his
Swiss league debut
while still at school and
is already a regular for
the Swiss senior side.
New Entry Brazilianborn, he qualified

to play for
PROFILED
Italy through
ARTYOM
his great
DZYUBA
ON PAGE 57
grandfather.
Vincent ENYEAMA
Christian ERIKSEN
Cristian ESPINOZA
Jonny EVANS
Age 33, Lille (Fra) & Nigeria

(Eng) & Denmark
Age 20, Huracan & Argentina
Age 28, West Bromwich Albion

(Eng) & Northern Ireland
Former Ajax star who

is now an important
figure at Spurs. A
set-piece specialist and
the most skilful Danish
player of his generation.
New Entry Young

striker aiming for a
place in Argentinas Rio
2016 Olympics squad
after impressing in
Huracans run in the
Sudamericana Cup.

key figures in Northern
Irelands Euro 2016
qualification. An
experienced Premier
League campaigner.
Frank FABRA
Cesc FABREGAS
Diego FAGUNDEZ
Ralf FAHRMANN
Age 25, Boca Juniors (Arg)

& Colombia
Age 28, Chelsea (Eng) & Spain
Age 21, New England Revolution

(USA) & Uruguay
Age 27, Schalke & Germany
One of Ligue 1s
best keepers, he
quit Nigerias national
side last autumn when
coach Sunday Oliseh
stripped him of the
captaincy.
New Entry Strong,

speedy left-back who
has come into the
national team since the
Copa America, starring
in World Cup qualifiers.
One of the big names

who allegedly fell out
with Jose Mourinho
earlier in the season
but he is still preparing
to play a key role for
Spain at Euro 2016.
New Entry Uruguayborn, Boston-raised.

A great example of a
home-grown player
whos made it in Major
League Soccer.
New Entry Now well

established as the
long-term successor
to Manuel Neuer at
Schalke. Recently
extended his contract
until 2020.
Sofiane FEGHOULI
Nabil FEKIR
FELIPE ANDERSON
FERNANDAO
Age 26, Valencia (Spa) & Algeria
Age 22, Lyon & France
Age 22, Lazio (Ita) & Brazil
French under-21 cap

who opted to play for
Algeria. A quick-witted
playmaker who was
recently voted La Ligas
top African. His contract
expires this summer.
Lyon academy
graduate who chose to
play for France ahead
of Algeria. Was earning
rave reviews until he
suffered a serious knee
injury last autumn.
Speedy attacker who

was one of the stars
of the 2014-15 Serie
A season. Last summer
Lazio rejected a major
bid from Manchester
United for the Brazilian.
Age 28, Fenerbahce (Tur)

& Brazil
New Entry Tall,

powerful striker who
was loaned to eight
different clubs in Brazil
before finding success
in Turkey.
WORLD SOCCER
51
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Lopez, who had been less than impressive in the

previous game, a 1-1 draw with Torino.
The rest is history. Even if his debut was by
no means perfect he was perhaps at fault
The Rovers cartoon legend. In October, at the age
for Domenico Berardis second-half free-kick
of 16 years and eight months, he made the
equaliser Donnarumma came through. And he
youngest-ever Serie A goalkeeping debut in
has not been out of the team since, with
a 2-1 home win against Sassuolo.
Lopez seemingly destined to leave at
That fixture had been something of
the end of the season.
TELL US WHAT
a watershed match for Milans Serb
Reserve keeper Christian Abbiati, 38,
YOU THINK
coach, Sinisa Mihajlovic. Milan had
who
will probably retire at the end of the
#WS500
picked up just one point in their three
campaign, was full of praise for his
previous games and were sitting in an
young rival, saying: Youve seen his qualities.
ignominious 12th place. With his position
The Good Lord has looked down on him and said
seemingly at risk, Mihajlovic made a bold move,
you have got to be a goalkeeper.
When he saved a penalty against Real Madrids
naming 6ft 5in Donnarumma as his first choice
German midfielder Tony Kroos in a July friendly,
instead of former Real Madrid goalkeeper Diego
Gianluigi DONNARUMMA
Age 17, Milan & Italy
New Entry When Milan goalkeeper Gianluigi

Donnarumma lined up in under-12 and under-13
games in his native Campania, he always caused
problems as the youngster was so tall that people
regularly accused his team, Club Napoli
Castellammare, of fielding an overage player.
It got to be that his mother, Marinella, always
made sure she had her sons birth certificate with
her when she accompanied him to matches so
that the referee could scrutinise the documents
before the game began.
Gigio Donnarummas explosion on the Italian
football scene this season is the stuff of Roy Of
52
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Fe-Ge
KEY
Augusto
FERNANDEZ
& Argentina
New Entry Star of

Velez Sarsfields 2011
Argentinian title success.
Recently joined Atletico
from Celta Vigo.
FERNANDINHO
Roberto FIRMINO

& Brazil
Age 24, Liverpool (Eng) & Brazil
Has played more

minutes than any other
Man City player this
season. Humiliated at
the 2014 World Cup
but still in Brazils squad.
Took time to settle at

Liverpool following a
29m transfer from
Hoffenheim last
summer but has
recently displayed signs
of his undoubted talent.
Diego FORLAN
GABI
Age 32, Atletico Madrid & Spain
after being brought on for the last 15 minutes,

people began to take note. Agile, and cool beyond
his years, Donnarumma appears unfazed by his
sudden arrival in Serie A.
Confident enough to boss his defence around,
notwithstanding the age and experience
difference, he looks the real thing; so much so that
he has already been compared with the most
iconic goalkeeper in modern Italian football, Gigi
Buffon. He too was something of a boy wonder,
making his Serie A debut for Parma against Milan
as a 17-year-old in 1995.
It may be premature but already many
observers are suggesting that when Italy need to
go looking for a replacement for Buffon, then
Donnarumma might be the ready-made solution.
Paddy Agnew
New Entry Energetic

right-sided operator
who has emerged
as an exciting option
Rome born and bred.
Manolo
GABBIADINI
Age 36, Penarol & Uruguay
New Entry The

outstanding player of
the 2010 World Cup is
now rounding off his
career in the land of
his birth with a debut in
the Libertadores Cup.
Alessandro
FLORENZI
Age 24, Napoli & Italy
Kostas FORTOUNIS
Age 23, Olympiakos & Greece
New Entry Speedy attacker who can play wide or

centrally. Star of his clubs defeat of Arsenal in the
Champions League and a key figure for Greece.
Versatile right-sided
attacker who is mostly
used from the bench.
Prolific for Italys under21s, he still hopes to
make Euro 2016.
GABRIEL
BARBOSA
GABRIEL JESUS
Nico GAITAN
Age 18, Palmeiras & Brazil
Age 19, Santos & Brazil
Age 28, Benfica (Por)

& Argentina
Attacking midfielder
who is now in his sixth
season at Benfica
despite regularly being
linked with a move
away from Lisbon.
Atletico club captain

and midfield lynchpin
in his second spell at
the club. Once admitted
to being asked to fix a
league match while
playing for Zaragoza.
New Entry The latest

Santos wonderkid,
Gabi-gol has had his
ups and downs but
should feature at the
2016 Rio Olympics.
New Entry Tricky

support striker who
did well at last years
Under-20 World Cup
and was promoted to
the under-23 Olympic
squad.
Kevin GAMEIRO
Ezequiel GARAY
Shkelzen GASHI
Valere GERMAIN
Age 28, Sevilla (Spa) & France
Age 29, Zenit (Rus) & Argentina
New Entry Former

PSG man who is in fine
form for Sevilla this
season. On course for
his highest goals tally
since his free-scoring
days at Lorient.
Experienced centreback who featured for

Argentina in the 2014
World Cup Final. Knee
problems scuppered
an early spell at Real
Madrid.
Age 27, Colorado Rapids (USA)

& Albania
Age 25, Nice (loan from

Monaco) & France
Swiss leagues top

scorer for the past two
years who recently
switched to MLS.
Swiss-born but a key
figure for Albania.
New Entry Monacoraised striker who is

impressing on loan at
Nice. Son of former
Marseille player Bruno
Germain.
WORLD SOCCER
53
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Pa u l o
DY B A L A
Age 22, Juventus (Ita) & Argentina
Jose GIMENEZ
& Uruguay
Sebastian
GIOVINCO
Olivier GIROUD
Diego GODIN
Age 29, Arsenal (Eng) & France
Age 29, Toronto (USA) & Italy
Centre-forward who
is now in his fourth
season at Arsenal and
remains first choice
in spite of criticism that
he is not a truly worldclass marksman.

& Uruguay
Highly-rated young
The little Italian won a
centre-back who
string of awards
is already a
in his first
PROFILED
regular for
MLS season,
MATTHIAS
club and
including MVP
GINTER
ON PAGE 60
and top scorer.
country.
54
GOKHAN Tore
Andre GOMES
Age 24, Besiktas & Turkey
Age 22, Valencia (Spa)

& Portugal
Powerful centre-back
who has arguably
been the worlds best
defender for the past
two years. Contracted
to Atletico until 2019.
Maxime
GONALONS
GONCALO GUEDES
Age 19, Benfica & Portugal
New Entry Germanborn wide man who

has represented Turkey
at all levels and is set
to be a starter at Euro
2016. On Chelseas
books as a teenager.
New Entry Playmaker

who has shone despite
Valencias poor season.
Brought to the club by
Jorge Mendes, so could
be sold on soon.
Midfield enforcer raised

at Lyon and now club
captain. On the fringes
of the French squad
and linked with a
move to England.
New Entry Youngster

who has dazzled in his
first season in Benficas
first team, scoring in
the Champions League
and making his senior
debut for Portugal.
Cesar GONZALEZ
Mark GONZALEZ
Mario GOTZE
Ricardo GOULART
Age 33, Deportivo Tachira

& Venezuela
Age 31, Sport (Bra) & Chile
Age 24, Guangzhou Evergrande

(Chn) & Brazil
New Entry Creative

midfielder, known as
El Maestrico, and
currently the most
high-profile player in
the Venezuelan league.
Won an international
recall after moving
back to Chile before
recently joining Recife
in the north-east
of Brazil. Born in
South Africa.
Age 23, Bayern Munich &

Germany
Scorer of Germanys
2014 World Cupwinning goal and the
most expensive German
ever when he cost
Bayern 37m in 2013.
The most expensive

signing in China last
year 12m from
Cruzeiro after
winning the 2014
Brazilian championship.
Andreas
GRANQVIST
Antoine
GRIEZMANN
Andres
GUARDADO
Nemanja GUDELJ
Age 30, Krasnodar (Rus)

& Sweden

& France
Age 29, PSV (Hol) & Mexico
New Entry Centreback and now the

stalwart of the Swedish
national side. Playing
well in Russia.
Has thrived in Madrid

since 2014 move from
Sociedad. Atletico have
reportedly increased his
buyout clause to 60m.
Dynamic central
midfielder who was
linked with a move
away from Holland last
year but instead went
from AZ to Ajax where
he has settled well.
WORLD SOCCER
Versatile national-team
veteran (125 caps). One
of the top performers
in the Dutch league
since a move from
Valencia in 2014.
Age 24, Ajax (Hol) & Serbia
Last autumn, media reports indicated that a

Barcelona scout was in attendance at a series of
Juventus Champions League and Serie A games.
In theory, the scout was there to keep an eye on
Juves talented Frenchman, Paul Pogba, believed
by many to be destined for a 100million move to
Catalonia at the end of this season.
Yet it could be that Barca have discovered
another equally expensive object of their desire in
KEY
the shape of Dybala. His development in the

classic inside-forward or number 10 role this
season has been breathtaking and Barcelona
arent the only ones to have shown interest.
Intelligently handled by coach Massimiliano
Allegri, Dybala was introduced gradually into
the first team last autumn, having arrived from
Palermo for 32m. Initially, this policy earned
Allegri plenty of criticism for making scant use
of his outstandingly gifted signing, but it proved
a wise move.
After two successful seasons at Palermo,
Dybala found himself at a new-look Juventus still
trying to come to terms with the departures of
Carlos Tevez, Arturo Vidal and Andrea Pirlo. The
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Gi-Gu
club began the season poorly and Dybala often

the front man whether that is Mario Mandzukic,
started from the bench as Allegri knew only too
Alvaro Morata or Simone Zaza Dybala has the
well that many players Michel Platini in 1982,
ability to set up chances for his team-mate or find
for example struggle on arrival at Juve.
the net himself.
Allegris instincts were proved correct. When
If his compatriot Gonzalo Higuain at Napoli can
eventually given his head in the role that
fairly lay claim to being the outstanding
was once graced by such as Alessandro
striker in Serie A this term, there is no
Del Piero and Roberto Baggio, Dybala
denying the phenomenal improvement
TELL US WHAT
finally exploded. In recent times, only
made by Dybala in the last two seasons.
YOU THINK
Pietro Anastasi in the 1968-69 season
And while many believe Juventus
#WS500
has made a better start than Dybala,
will opt to take the money for Pogba
who after 24 days had scored 13 goals. And as
sooner or later, Juventus can be secure in the
he progressed, so Juventus got their season back
knowledge that they still have a class act on their
on track.
books in the shape of Dybala.
With his ability to float and sting just behind
Paddy Agnew
WORLD SOCCER
55
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
John GUIDETTI
Ilkay GUNDOGAN
Age 23, Celta Vigo (Spa)

& Sweden

& Germany
New Entry Finally

realising his
talent in
PROFILED
Spain after
PAULO
a series of
GUERRERO
ON PAGE 62
false starts.
Asamoah GYAN
Age 30, Shanghai SIPG (Chn)
& Ghana
Hugely talented but

progress has been
disrupted by injuries in
recent years. Contract
runs until 2017, so he
could move this summer.
New Entry Calm, agile

keeper who was a
success in Uruguays
2015 under-20 side.
Tipped to be promoted
to the seniors.
Captain of Ghana
despite eschewing
European football
for the Middle East
and now a lucrative
contract in China.
Sebastien HALLER
Marek HAMSIK
Age 28, Napoli (Ita) & Slovakia
Samir
HANDANOVIC
Martin HANSEN
Age 21, Utrecht (Hol) & France
New Entry French

under-21 striker who
is enjoying a prolific
season in the Dutch
league. Linked with
a number of Premier
League clubs.
Spiky-haired captain
of club and country.
Slovakias top scorer in
the Euro qualifiers and
now playing a key role
in Napolis bid for the
Serie A title.
Jack HARRISON
Age 19, New York City (USA)
& England
Age 31, Internazionale (Ita)

& Slovenia
Age 25, Den Haag (Hol)

& Denmark
One of Europes top

keepers, a penalty
expert who recently
signed a new contract
to stay at Inter til 2019.
New Entry Former

Liverpool trainee who
returned to Denmark
to launch his career
and is now excelling in
the Dutch league.
Joe HART
Eden HAZARD
Jonas HECTOR
Age 28, Manchester City

& England
Age 25, Chelsea (Eng) &

Belgium
Age 25, Cologne & Germany
New Entry Number

one choice in the 2016
MLS draft. Born in
England but moved to
New York aged 14 and
played college soccer.
The worlds highestpaid goalkeeper has

responded well to dips
in form to consolidate
his position as
Englands first choice.
Player of the 2014-15

season in England
but his loss of form
in 2015-16 has
mirrored Chelseas
poor campaign.
Markus
HENRIKSEN
Angelo
HENRIQUEZ
Javier
HERNANDEZ
Hector HERRERA
Age 23, AZ (Hol) & Norway
Age 21, Dinamo Zagreb (Cro)

& Chile
Age 27, Bayer Leverkusen (Ger)

& Mexico
New Entry Failed

to break through at
Manchester United but
thriving in Croatia and
in the Chile squad.
New Entry Discarded

by Manchester United
last summer but
scoring regularly
in the Bundesliga.
One of the brightest

Mexican talents of
recent times, a 2012
Olympic gold medal
winner who has
recovered from a dip
in form to star at Porto.
New Entry Clever

box-to-box operator
who is tipped to move
to a bigger club. Son
of former Rosenborg
player Trond Henriksen.
56
Gaston
GURUCEAGA
WORLD SOCCER
New Entry Left-back

who has enjoyed a
rapid rise over the past
18 months, becoming
one of the new faces in
Germanys post-World
Cup squad.
Age 25, Porto (Por) & Mexico
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Gu-He
KEY
A r t yo m
DZYUBA
Age 27, Zenit & Russia
Russias top scorer in qualification for this

summers European Championship with eight
goals and equally productive as Zenit topped
their group in this seasons Champions League
netting six goals in total against Lyon, Valencia
and Gent 6ft 5in target man Artyom Dzyuba
has earned a reputation for rising to the occasion
when he has a point to prove.
And the Muscovite loves nothing more than
making his critics eat their words something
that he has certainly managed to do since
controversially swapping Spartak Moscow
for Zenit last July.
As soon as the move had been announced,
the centre-forward came under heavy media fire.
Slammed for a supposed lack of consistency
and for his unfulfilled potential, he was also angrily
disowned by hard-core Zenit supporters because
of his long association with Spartak, who are their
bitter rivals.
Rumours of him earning a kings ransom in
St Petersburg said to be 3.6million a year
only heaped on even more pressure. But how
splendidly he would respond, scoring 16 goals
in his first 24 games for the Russian champions
and generally proving himself to be a perfect,
muscular complement to the incisive runs
of attack-conscious new teammates in the shape of Hulk, Danny
TELL US WHAT
and Oleg Shatov.
YOU THINK
While not the quickest, Dzyuba
#WS500
certainly has all manner of attributes with
which to redress the balance not least his
aerial dominance, physical presence and strong
work ethic, clever positioning, subtlety on the ball
and an instinctive ability to be in the right place at
the right time in the box.
Artyom has a rare ability to attract the ball,
says Zenits Portuguese coach Andre Villas-Boas.
And you cant do that without great intelligence
and understanding of the game.
Winning over the doubters and naysayers
has also been a theme of the strikers fiveyear international career.
After being omitted from the squads for
Russias Euro 2012 and 2014 World Cup
campaigns, he found himself in the role of being
merely a back-up option for much of Fabio
Capellos reign as the national sides head coach.
What he needed was something or someone to
break the log-jam and he duly had his wish
granted last summer.
When Capello was fired for poor results,
replacement boss Leonid Slutsky came in and
made Dzyuba his first-choice striker. And an
avalanche of European Championship qualifying
goals followed, with the winner against Austria,
four in the 7-0 dismantling of Liechtenstein and
another in a 2-1 victory in Moldova.
Im having the best spell of my career to date,
says Dzyuba. Everything I try is coming off.
Nick Bidwell
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His form did not go unnoticed back home and

he was recalled by Didier Deschamps for last
Novembers friendlies against Germany and
England. It was significant because the pair had
summer, the clubs need for savings forcing him
fallen out when Deschamps, then Marseille coach,
out after five years and 59 goals.
dropped him for a Champions League match, with
He had offers from Lyon, Newcastle United
Gignac reportedly chucking a bottle across
and West Bromwich Albion, among
the dressing room.
others. So Tigres of Monterrey was
It shows that it wasnt all that bad a
TELL US WHAT
something of a surprise destination,
decision to exile myself a bit, 10,000km
YOU THINK
although becoming Liga MXs best-paid
away from France, said Gignac.
#WS500
player may well have persuaded him.
The Mexican league is one where
The cynics have been silenced by his
at the back theyre very tough. There are
form in Mexico. His goals lots of them
stubborn players from Argentina, Colombia
helped Tigres reach the Libertadores Cup Final
and Brazil.
only the third Mexican side to do so and win
In midfield there are some lively smaller
the apertura championship on penalties.
players and in attack there are some good
A n d r e - P i e r r e G I G N AC
Age 30, Tigres (Mex) & France
The Mexican Liga MX is one of the worlds most

self-sufficient leagues. TV revenue and gate
money are high enough to keep the most talented
young Mexican players in the country. Foreign
players, if they do join the league, tend to be
Latino-Americans making the relatively short
journey from MLS or South Americans who
have outgrown the financial restrictions of their
domestic championships.
It makes the recent experiences of AndrePierre Gignac all the most extraordinary. The
former Lorient and Toulouse striker, a member of
Frances 2010 World Cup squad, left Marseille last
58
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Hi-Is
KEY
goalscorers, whether theyre from Mexico, Brazil

or Argentina.
When you see the Mexican national team
playing you say to yourself that the Mexican
Martin
league is not all that bad.
HINTEREGGER
And I really think that too because from what
Ive seen every weekend theyre every bit as good
(Ger, loan from Red Bull
as some Ligue 1 clubs.
Salzburg) & Austria
Gignac may have been one of the first
New Entry
Europeans to succeed in Mexico but he
PROFILED
Highly rated
may not be the last.
GONZALO
Austria
I think Ive opened a few doors, he
HIGUAIN
ON PAGE 64
stalwart.
said. Without naming names, of course,
some players have called me to ask me
to talk about them with my club. So I feel
I can be a trailblazer.
John Holmesdale
Pierre HOJBJERG
Keisuke HONDA
HULK
Age 20, Schalke (Ger, loan from

Bayern Munich) & Denmark
Age 29, Milan (Ita) & Japan
Age 29, Zenit (Rus) & Brazil
Still Japanese footballs

biggest star but his
Milan future remains
in doubt after being
dropped to the bench
by coach Sinisa
Mihajlovic last autumn.
Powerful striker who

is back in the Brazil
squad after the
humiliation of the 2014
World Cup. Big wages
at Zenit have deterred
clubs in west Europe.
Zlatan
IBRAHIMOVIC
Mauro ICARDI
One of the big new

hopes of Danish
football, creative
midfielder loaned out
by Bayern to gain
first-team action.
Mats HUMMELS
Khalfan IBRAHIM

& Germany
Age 27, Al Sadd & Qatar

& Argentina
One of the worlds

top centre-backs and a
key figure in Germanys
2014 World Cup
triumph. Contracted to
Dortmund until 2017.
The leading figure

in domestic Qatari
football, a former Asian
Footballer of the Year
who has played more
than 80 times for his
country.
The enigmatic Swede

divides opinion but
he is on course to win
a 13th league title of
his career.
Exciting forward who

was developed at
Barcelonas academy
but has found success
in Italy. On the fringes
of the Argentina squad.
Odion IGHALO
Josip ILICIC
Andres INIESTA
INIGO Martinez
Age 26, Watford (Eng) & Nigeria
Age 28, Fiorentina (Ita)

& Slovenia
Age 24, Real Sociedad & Spain
The World Cupwinning star remains a

world-class talent - as
proven by his brilliant
performance when
Barca thrashed Real
Madrid last autumn.
Highly-rated centreback who remains

a Sociedad player
a number of other
clubs. His release
clause is set at 30m.
Andreas
ISAKSSON
ISCO
Dhurgham ISMAIL
Age 23, Real Madrid & Spain
Age 34, Kasimpasa (Tur)

& Sweden
whose form dipped
under Rafa Benitez
but has started more
games under new
coach Zinedine Zidane.
Age 21, Caykur Rizespor (Tur)

& Iraq
New Entry Striker

in great form for
promoted Watford
this season. Previously
with the Pozzo familys
other clubs, Granada
and Udinese.
Lorenzo INSIGNE
Age 24, Napoli & Italy
Diminutive left-winger
born and raised in
Naples. Linking well
with Gonzalo Higuain
as Napoli push for the
Serie A title.
New Entry Skilful

playmaker who has
played an important
role in Fiorentinas
impressive form
this season.
Swedens first-choice
keeper since 2004
and their most capped
current international.

(Fra) & Sweden
Left-winger who
recently moved to
Turkey. The leading
talent in the Iraqi
national side.
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WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Matthias
GINTER
Age 22, Borussia Dortmund & Germany
New Entry Since joining Borussia Dortmund

from Freiburg in a 10million deal in the summer
of 2014, this versatile defender has run the whole
gamut of human emotions. He has known pride
and excitement, frustration and heartache. And
now he has experienced the ultimate satisfaction
of coming back from the brink.
A non-playing member of Germanys World
Cup-winning squad of 2014, Ginter surprisingly
found it hard to settle in at Dortmund. Whether
used as a centre-back or holding midfielder by
the Schwarz-Gelben (black and yellows) he was,
more often than not, seen as something of a
liability, eventually losing his place in Jurgen
Klopps side and spending most of the campaign
on the bench.
Throughout the 2015 off-season, rumours
circulated thick and fast that the Dortmund
management would cut their losses and sell him
to Borussia Monchengladbach or Stuttgart. Even
Ginter himself admits he was contemplating a
fresh start away from the Westfalenstadion. But
as luck would have it, new coach Thomas Tuchel
had another plan in mind.
With his hand forced by the unavailability of
right-back Lukasz Piszczek with a long-term
hip complaint, Tuchel opted to fill the void with
Ginter. And what a success the switch has
proved as he instantly got to grips with his
TELL US WHAT
new position and is emerging as arguably
YOU THINK
the best attacking full-back in the
#WS500
Bundesliga.
Obviously relishing the wider scope of his
new role, he made no fewer than seven league
goals in the first half of this season, and if that
was not enough he also scored two of his own,
including a header in a 3-2 Ruhr derby victory
over Schalke in November.
If Id known how much fun I was going to have
as a right-back, I would have asked permission to
play there a long time ago, said Ginter, who was
a product of the Freiburg academy and a firstteamer there at the age of 18.
I wasnt expecting to have this much licence
to push forward and Ive so much more freedom
when were in possession. Im pleased Im now a
right-back and will remain so in the near future.
His makeover is good news for Germany
as well. Ever since Philipp Lahm retired from
international football 18 months ago, the rightback slot has been parched terrain for national
team coach Joachim Low.
And with the likes of Sebastian Rudy, Antonio
Rudiger and Emre Can all flattering to deceive, it
was only a matter of time before the reborn and
realigned Ginter was slotted in, appearing in
each of the Nationalmannschafts last three
fixtures of 2015.
Tuchel is not merely inspiring Ginter and
Dortmund at the moment; he solves German
national team problems too.
Nick Bidwell
60
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
It-Ka
KEY
Ander ITURRASPE
Marc JANKO
JEMERSON
Roberto JIMENEZ
Age 32, Basle (Swi) & Austria
Age 23, Monaco (Fra) & Brazil
Defensive midfielder
whose form has been
hit by injuries over the
past year, dropping out
of the national-team
picture, but is still a key
figure for Athletic.
New Entry Tall,

much-travelled striker
who is back in Europe
and scoring in the
Swiss league and keen
to feature for Austria at
the Euros.
New Entry Strapping

centre-back who did
well in the last two
Brazilian championships,
winning an international
call-up last year before
a 2016 move to Europe.

& Spain
New Entry Keeper

also known as Roberto.
His 2010 transfer from
Benfica to Zaragoza
was controversial due
to a third-party deal.
JOAO MOUTINHO
Andreas
JOHANSSON
JONAS
Stevan JOVETIC
Age 31, Benfica (Por) & Brazil
Age 33, Norrkoping & Sweden
New Entry Last years

player of the season in
Portugal has continued
his scoring feats this
campaign, challenging
Gonzalo Higuain for
the ESM Golden Shoe.

& Montenegro
New Entry Versatile

second striker who has
got his career back on
track in Serie A after
a poor spell at
Manchester City.
Zlatko
JUNUZOVIC
Pavel
KADERABEK
Age 29, Monaco (Fra) & Portugal
Playmaker who will

be invaluable at Euro
2016 as an
experienced
PROFILED
head in an
JOAO MARIO exciting young
ON PAGE 67
Portugal side.
New Entry Central

defender who played
an important role in
Norrkopings first
Swedish title success
for 23 years.
Luka JOVIC
JUANFRAN
Age 18, Benfica (Por) & Serbia
Serbian wonderkid who

signed a five-and-ahalf-year deal with
Benfica in January. Was
Red Stars youngest
goalscorer after making
his debut aged 16.
Consistently excellent
right-back who came
through the ranks at
Real Madrid but made
his name at Osasuna
before a switch to
Atletico in 2011.
Age 28, Werder Bremen (Ger)

& Austria
Age 23, Hoffenheim (Ger)

& Czech Rep
Free-kick wizard born

in Yugoslavia, raised in
Austria. Likely to take a
central attacking role
for Austria at Euro 2016.
New Entry Attacking

right-back who was the
Czech leagues hottest
player before a move
to Germany in 2015.
Shinji KAGAWA
KAKA
Lovre KALINIC
Nikola KALINIC

(Ger) & Japan
Age 33, Orlando City (USA)

& Brazil
Age 25, Hajduk Split & Croatia

& Croatia
Back at Dortmund
after his disappointing
spell at Manchester
United and playing
as a creator rather
than as a goalscorer.
Former World Player of

the Year is enjoying life
in MLS, making and
scoring goals. Very
popular with the local
Latino population.
New Entry One

of Europes most
promising young
keepers. A recent
move to Aston Villa fell
through after he was
refused a work permit.
New Entry One-time

Blackburn Rovers
reject who starred for
Dnipro in the Europa
League and has been a
revelation at Fiorentina.
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61
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
at the 2015 Copa America in Chile, he joined

Flamengo a signal that, despite the local game
losing its best players to China, let alone Europe,
Brazilian football continues to enjoy a financial
Corinthians, scoring the winning goal in that
advantage over the rest of the continent.
Decembers Club World Cup Final in Japan. His
So far, he has hardly lived up to expectations in
importance to the cause can be gauged
Rio. Injuries have been a problem, and three
by the fact that his two headed goals
league goals in 15 games for his new
during the tournament, against Al Alhy
club was a disappointing return.
TELL US WHAT
and then Chelsea in the Final, were the
With the club president, Eduardo
YOU THINK
only efforts on target that Corinthians
Bandeira, making it his priority to reduce
#WS500
managed in their two games.
Flamengos debt and get their finances
But having established an undisputed
in order, the fans have been understanding
place in the clubs history, Guerrero went looking
and even re-elected him despite some lean years
for one last pay day and fell out with the club over
on the pitch.
the terms of a new contract. After playing for Peru
This year, however, those supporters are
Pa u l o G U E R R E R O
Age 32, Flamengo (Bra) & Peru
When Corinthians signed the Peruvian centreforward from Hamburg in July 2012, it was a real
coup. This was an international striker of genuine
pedigree, at the peak of his powers, rather than
a veteran looking for a late-career adventure,
swapping European club football for the Brazilian
game. Could this be a portent of the future?
With the Brazilian economy moving quickly
from recession to fully fledged depression, and the
currency weakening, that dream turned out to be
nothing more than a brief flicker.
Guerrero, however, quickly became an idol at
62
WORLD SOCCER
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ST R I K E R
Ka-Ko
KEY
Kevin KAMPL
Harry KANE
NGolo KANTE
Robbie KEANE
Age 25, Bayer Leverkusen (Ger)

& Slovenia

& England
Age 24, Leicester City (Eng)

& France
Age 35, LA Galaxy (USA)

Dynamic attacker who

impressed in six months
at Dortmund before a
summer 2015 switch
to Leverkusen. German
born, raised in Slovenia.
One of English footballs

great success stories of
recent times. National
team regular two years
after being loaned out
to the Championship.
New Entry One of

the revelations of
the season, a midfield
dynamo who has been
crucial to Leicesters
unlikely title challenge.
An example of an
ageing Designated
Player who has done
exceptionally well in
MLS, with 73 goals in
108 games since 2011.
Neeskens
KEBANO
Wahbi KHAZRI
Sami KHEDIRA
Joshua KIMMICH
Age 25, Sunderland (Eng)

& Tunisia
Age 28, Juventus (Ita)

& Germany

& Germany

New Entry Attacking
Belgian leagues
schemer who
most exciting
starred for
PROFILED
players. Ex
Bordeaux
AHMED
French youth
before a move
KHALIL
ON PAGE 68
international.
to Sunderland.
New Entry Back in

business - for Juve and
the German national
side - after a number
of injury-hit seasons
at Real Madrid.
German under-21 cap

who has settled well
at Bayern following a
summer transfer. The
long-term successor
to Xabi Alonso.
Gabor KIRALY
Davy KLAASSEN
KOKE
Age 39, Szombathelyi Haladas

& Hungary
Aleksandr
KOKORIN
New Entry Veteran

keeper, famous for his
baggy grey tracksuit
bottoms. One of the
stars of Hungarys
Euro 2016 qualification.
Attacking midfielder,
captain of Ajax and
Holland regular who
has played for his
country at all levels
from under-16. Tipped
to leave this summer.
Creative midfielder who

has come through the
ranks at Atletico to be
a major figure in the
clubs recent success.
An important fixture
for Spain, too.
Vincent
KOMPANY
Yevhen
KONOPLYANKA
Julian KORB

& Belgium
Age 26, Sevilla (Spa) & Ukraine
Age 23, Genk (Blg) & DR Congo
expecting to see results. There will be pressure

on coach Muricy Ramalhos side to perform in
the Brazilian championship and their star striker
to live up to his billing.
It is a big year for Guerreros international
career. He performed magnificently during the
last two Copa Americas, but where Peru really
want him to shine is in their 2018 World Cup
qualification campaign, where the team got off
to a disappointing start.
Guerrero will be 34 by the time things get
under way in Russia, and probably past his best.
But in this years eight rounds of qualifiers his
country will look to him to lead the line and claim
a place at the finals for the first time since 1982.
Tim Vickery
Powerful, dominant
centre-back whose
absence through injury
has disrupted his clubs
league campaign.
New Entry Star

of Dnipros Europa
League run last year.
Opted to join the more
technical Spanish Liga
over England.

& Germany
New Entry Right-back

tipped to make the
step up to Germanys
seniors after playing at
last summers Euro
under-21 tournament.
Versatile attacker
- striker, winger or
playmaker who will
be a key figure for
Russia at Euro 2016
if he can stay fit.
Laurent
KOSCIELNY
Age 30, Arsenal (Eng) & France
New Entry Centreback who has been a

reassuring presence at
the heart of Arsenals
title challenge this
season.
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WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Gonzalo
H I G UA I N
Age 28, Napoli (Ita) & Argentina
During a holiday in Ibiza last July, Napoli and

Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain had an
altercation with a supporter, early one morning
outside a nightclub.
Ah, come on, you cant even take a penalty
properly, said the fan, annoyed that Higuain would
not stop for the ritual selfie.
Higuains annoyance was most untypical for
a player whose off-the-field behaviour in three
seasons in Italy has always been impeccable. Yet,
there was no denying that a particularly sore point
had been touched.
Last season, the prolific Higuain missed two
vital spot-kicks: one for Argentina in their Copa
America Final loss to Chile and the other in a
last-day Napoli v Lazio Champions League
decider, eventually won 4-2 by Lazio.
By the beginning of this campaign, critics
were beginning to wonder if the Higuain-Napoli
connection was about to end, given his troubled
moment. It says much about the overall quality of
this seasons Napoli and Higuains understanding
with new coach Maurizio Sarri that the Argentinian
has thus far had a stupendous season, realising an
average of a goal per game.
By the beginning of February, in only 23
games, he had already scored more goals
than the 22 that last seasons joint-top
scorers Mauro Icardi of Internazionale and
TELL US WHAT
Luca Toni of Verona managed in 36 and
YOU THINK
38 matches respectively. If he keeps on
#WS500
at this rate, he risks becoming the highest
seasonal goalscorer of the Italian post-war
era, a record currently held by Antonio Angelillo,
who scored 33 for Inter in the 1958-59 season.
Asked to evaluate Higuain recently, former
Juventus, Milan, England and Russia coach Fabio
Capello pronounced: You want to ask me about
Higuain? Im the guy who brought him to Real
Madrid as an 18-year-old. He was already very
good but he got better with me.
Hes a fantastic player, one of the best pure
centre-forwards around, because that is his game.
He is powerful, determined, he gets in front of
goal and he scores.
Having arrived at Napoli three summers ago,
after six seasons in Madrid, Higuain was very much
the finished product, who had no difficulty in
assuming an inspirational role. That has increased
to such an extent this term that he has prompted
comparisons with his famous compatriot at Napoli
30 years ago, Diego Maradona.
He is, of course, a totally different player, but
like Maradona, he is a great team player, a class
act whose genius always fits into the team context.
Able to play off either foot, gifted with a powerful
shot, Higuain is the prototype modern striker, one
who not only scores but who also works hard, wins
possession and lays on the final, winning pass.
If Napoli do win this seasons Serie A title, that
trophy will have Higuain written large all over it.
Paddy Agnew
64
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Ko-La
KEY
Kalidou
KOULIBALY
Age 24, Napoli (Ita) & Senegal
Tough, imposing
centre-back who has
proved to be an adept
signing for title-chasing
Napoli. Can also play at
full-back and midfield.
Mateo KOVACIC
& Croatia
New Entry Elegant

midfielder who has
yet to hold down a
first-team place in
Madrid but a regular
starter for Croatia.
Christoph
KRAMER
Matias
KRANEVITTER

& Germany

& Argentina
Played on for 14
minutes after suffering
concussion in the 2014
World Cup Final before
being subbed.
One of the stars of

River Plates 2015
Libertadores success.
Moved to Atletico in
January 2016.
Toni KROOS
Grzegorz
KRYCHOWIAK

& Germany
Complete midfielder
who joined Real Madrid
in a 25m deal from
Bayern Munich after
winning the 2014
World Cup.
Age 26, Sevilla (Spa) & Poland
New Entry Quick, technically-gifted striker who

left Monchengladbach for Wolfsburg last summer.
Late developer who broke through at St Pauli.
Touch-tackling central
midfielder who can
also play in defence.
Nicknamed the
plumber because he
does the dirty work.
Juraj KUCKA
Sven KUMS
Layvin KURZAWA
Dirk KUYT
Age 29, Milan (Ita) & Slovakia
Age 35, Feyenoord & Holland
New Entry Energetic

defensive midfielder
who scored crucial
goals, notably against
Spain, in Slovakias
successful Euro 2016
New Entry Captain

of Champions League
surprise package Gent,
a midfield organiser
who once failed to
make the grade at
Anderlecht.

& France
KWON Chang-hoon
Alexandre
LACAZETTE
Age 21, Suwon Bluewings

& South Korea
New Entry Attacking

midfielder who was
one of the stars of
South Koreas success
at the Asian under-23
championship.
Max KRUSE
Goalscorer who has

not repeated his prolific
form of 2014-15 in this
campaign but is still
likely to feature for
France at Euro 2016.
Left-back who made a

surprise switch to PSG
from Monaco last
summer but has had
a big impact in the
French capital.
Veteran forward who

has enjoyed an Indian
summer in Rotterdam
during a second spell
at Feyenoord. Scored
13 goals in the first half
of the Dutch season.
Kyle LAFFERTY
Philipp LAHM
Age 28, Norwich City (Eng)

& Northern Ireland

& Germany
New Entry Muchtravelled centreforward whose

goals were crucial
to Northern Irelands
Euro 2016 qualification.
Germanys 2014 World

Cup-winning captain
who is playing at rightback for Bayern after
a switch to central
midfield last season.
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WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Erik LAMELA
Aymeric LAPORTE
Cyle LARIN
Ezequiel LAVEZZI

(Eng) & Argentina
Age 21, Athletic Bilbao (Spa)

& France
Age 20, Orlando City (USA)

& Canada
Age 30, Hebei China Fortune

(Chn) & Argentina
One of Argentinas
brightest talents and
scorer of spectacular
rabona goals. More
first-team starts with
Spurs this season.
Highly rated France

under-21 centre-back.
Only the second
Frenchman, after
Bixente Lizarazu, to
play for Athletic.
New Entry The

big surprise of
the 2015 MLS
season, with
17 goals in his
first campaign.
Miguel LAYUN
LEE Dong-gook
Age 27, Porto (Por, loan from

Watford, Eng) & Mexico
Age 36, Jeonbuk Motors

& South Korea
Robert
LEWANDOWSKI
Stephan
LICHTSTEINER
Attack-minded
left-back or wingback who is thriving
in Portugal after an
uncertain time at
promoted Watford.
New Entry Veteran

striker who struggled at
Middlesbrough but is
now the all-time top
scorer in the Asian
Champions League.

& Poland

& Switzerland
Brilliant finisher who

has flourished at Bayern
this season with more
service from the flanks.
Key man for Poland, too.
New Entry Dynamic

right-back who had
minor heart surgery
last year but is back
Damian LIZIO
Fernando
LLORENTE
Hugo LLORIS
Carlos LOBATON

(Eng) & France
Age 36, Sporting Cristal & Peru
Age 26, Botafogo (Bra, loan

from Bolivar) & Bolivia
66
Right-sided forward
who left PSG
PROFILED
in February
PIERREand joined
MICHEL
the exodus
LASOGGA
to China.
ON PAGE 70
New Entry Naturalised

Bolivian capped by
Argentina under-20s.
A busy little midfielder,
much-travelled, who
now plays in Brazil.
New Entry Former

Athletic Bilbao and
Spain striker who is
back in his country
after two indifferent
seasons at Juventus.
Captain of both club

and country. Has been
in exceptional form in
Tottenhams challenge
for a Champions
League spot.
New Entry Central

midfielder who has
improved with age. A
fine striker of the ball,
useful from set-pieces.
Picked in the team of
last years Copa America.
Nicolas LODEIRO
Shane LONG
Brian LOZANO
Hirving LOZANO
Age 26, Boca Juniors (Arg) &

Uruguay
Age 29, Southampton (Eng) &

Rep Ireland
Age 22, Club America (Mex) &

Uruguay
Age 20, Pachuca & Mexico
who enjoyed a title
success last autumn
with Boca Juniors after
less successful spells
in Brazil and Holland.
New Entry Striker

who will play a key role
for Eire at Euro 2016.
A willing runner but
often accused of
lacking real quality.
New Entry Shone

as Uruguay won gold
last year in the PanAmerican Games and
was promoted to the
senior squad.
WORLD SOCCER
Age 31, Sevilla & Spain
Tricky young winger

who has shone for
Mexicos under-20s,
earning a call-up to
the senior side and
a likely place at the
2016 Rio Olympics.
WINGER
ST R I K E R
La-Lo
KEY
J OAO M A R I O
Age 23, Sporting Lisbon & Portugal
In an age when strength, speed and stamina are

attributes many coaches consider indispensable
in their midfield players, watching the elegant Joao
Mario dominate matches is an absolute delight
for fans of the more artistic exponents of the
beautiful game.
Having impressed from the moment he made
his senior debut on loan at Primeira Liga club
Vitoria Setubal in the second half of the 2013-14
season, he was recalled by his parent club, seized
his opportunity at Sporting early the following
term and has not been out of the side since.
Some feared for his development upon the
appointment of Jorge Jesus at the Alvalade as
the charismatic coach had developed a reputation
for mistrusting Portuguese talent in his time at
Benfica. But those concerns have been firmly
quelled as Joao Mario has taken his game to the
next level in dazzling style, becoming a key player
for the title-chasers.
Gliding gracefully around the pitch, he is always
available for the ball but never dwells on it. One,
two or three sure touches with either foot are
sufficient to quicken his teams momentum,
opening up defences with a perfectly weighted
through ball or ensuring that possession is
shielded from the opposition.
Most impressive of all is his football intelligence,
instantaneously taking the correct option no
matter how limited the time and space.
Throw in a generous work rate and
TELL US WHAT
a temperament that enables him to
YOU THINK
remain composed in the most frenetic
#WS500
of environments and its no surprise that
Joao Mario has been many peoples choice as
the outstanding performer in Portugal this season.
And he is a player who increasingly looks primed
to hit the heady heights.
Its said that from the neck downwards they
are all good players, but from the neck upwards
only some are, says Sportings youth coach Tiago
Capaz, who was the first coach at the club to work
with him. Joao has superb ability to read the
game. At Sporting we would do exercises when
we gave clues and strategies, and the kids had to
find the solution. Joao often found solutions even
better than those we had thought of.
A highly promising generation of Portuguese
midfielders are beginning to make a name for
themselves around Europe. Should Joao Mario
sustain his current progress, he may take a
place in the pantheon of Portuguese midfield
royalty alongside Mario Coluna, Paulo Sousa
and Rui Costa.
Ive no idea what his limit is, says Capaz.
Week by week he gets better and better. Hes
standing out in a team thats top of the table,
plays good football and scores lots of goals..
Barring injury, it is reasonable to expect Joao
Mario to shine in France at Euro 2016 and
Sporting will no doubt have Europes biggest
clubs knocking on their door with chequebook
in hand.
Tom Kundert
WORLD SOCCER
67
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Ahmed
KHALIL
Age 24, Al Ahli & UAE
New Entry His older brother, UAE international

Faisal Khalil, may have once been arrested for
allegedly employing a witch doctor to curse a
rival for a starting spot, but there have been no
such controversies for the 2015 Asian Player of
the Year, who has defenders seeking divine
intervention whenever he takes to the pitch.
Having seemingly been around for years
despite being only 24, Ahmed Khalil is still not
yet at the peak of his powers. There is, however,
a sense that he is shifting towards top gear
as 13 international goals in 11 games last
year suggests.
His purple patch started at the 2015 Asian Cup
in January when he helped UAE to third place,
eliminating defending champions Japan along
the way. He finished the tournament in Australia
as the second-top scorer and he occupies the
same position in the charts in qualification for
the 2018 World Cup.
Last year was a decent one for his club too, as
Khalil scored six goals in the Asian Champions
League, helping Al Ahli to the Final. Unfortunately
the Dubai side did not do themselves justice
against Chinas Guangzhou Evergrande and they
never really looked like scoring in 180 minutes
of football.
For the national team, Khalil
benefits from playing in front of Omar
TELL US WHAT
Abdulrahman, who is probably the best
YOU THINK
playmaker in Asia, and alongside the
#WS500
talented Ali Mabkhout, but he is also
capable of making chances for himself. His
movement in the box is top notch, and even in
tight areas he is usually able to get a shot on
goal. Not only that, he also takes a mean freekick you only have to look at the one he scored
against Saudi Arabia in Octobers World Cup
qualifier for evidence.
Very much part of the UAEs so-called golden
generation that has emerged over the last few
years, coming up together through the various
youth teams and taking part in the 2012
Olympics, Khalil is now an established member
of the senior side, who hope to go to Russia
and add to their solitary World Cup finals
appearance in 1990.
Supporters are also keen to see at least one of
that group head to Europe and Khalil would be
better suited to the move than most.
While club owners in West Asia are reluctant to
let their well-paid stars leave, older brother Faisal
was one of the few to make the move, travelling
to France in 2008. However, the UAE FA refused
to release his international registration and Al
Ahlis president, who also happened to be the
Crown Prince of Dubai, got involved and the
player returned home.
Things have changed a lot in UAE football
since then and Ahmed Khalil has what it takes
to show the world exactly how much.
John Duerden
68
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Lu-Ma
KEY
LUAN
LUCAS LIMA
LUCAS MOURA
Diego LUGANO
Age 22, Gremio & Brazil
New Entry Elegant

support striker with a
big year ahead. He will
lead the Gremio attack
in the Libertadores Cup
and may well make the
Olympic team.
New Entry Late

developer who
blossomed in 2015.
Left-footed midfielder
with the capacity to
organise the game and
play a killer pass.

(Fra) & Brazil
Age 35, Sao Paulo (Bra) &

Uruguay
The Brazilian has been

forced down the PSG
pecking order by the
arrival of Di Maria but
his form last term saw
him recalled by Brazil.
New Entry Giant

centre-back, former
Uruguay captain now
back at the club where
he made his name over
a decade ago.
Romelu LUKAKU
Phakamani
MAHLAMBI
Yunus MALLI
Pavel MAMAEV
Age 24, Mainz (Ger) & Turkey
Age 27, Krasnodar & Russia
Age 22, Everton (Eng) & Belgium
New Entry Attacking

midfielder capped at
all levels up to
under-21 by
PROFILED
Germany but
RIYAD
opted to play
MAHREZ
ON PAGE 72
for Turkey.
New Entry Strong

form this season for
Krasnodar has seen
the deep-lying
midfielder called up
to the national side
ahead of Euro 2016.
Powerful striker who is

enjoying a fine season
at Everton, justifying
the 28m paid to
Chelsea in 2014. Will
be a central figure for
Belgium at Euro 2016.
Age 18, Bidvest Wits & South

Africa
Federico
MANCUELLO
Mario
MANDZUKIC
Kostas MANOLAS
MARCELO
Age 24, Roma (Ita) & Greece
Age 26, Flamengo (Bra)

& Argentina
Age 29, Juventus (Ita) & Croatia

& Brazil
Ex Bayern and Atletico

striker whose move to
Juventus last summer
was the third time he
had joined a Champions
League Final runner-up.
Greek international
centre-back who has
quickly established
himself as one of the
best defenders in Serie
A since a move from
Olympiakos in 2014.
MARQUINHOS
Anthony MARTIAL
Fidel MARTINEZ

(Fra) & Brazil

(Eng) & France
Age 26, Pumas (Mex)

& Ecuador
Talented young centreback, viewed as the

future of PSG by
Laurent Blanc and
already a regular in the
senior Brazil squad.
Exciting youngster cost

Manchester United
50m last summer
and has been one of
the few positive aspects
of a poor season.
New Entry Winger or

support striker dubbed
The Ecuadorian
Neymar. Increasingly
important part of the
national team squad.
New Entry Left-footed

midfielder just signed
by Flamengo. Exploded
in 2014 after taking a
more central role.
Claudio
MARCHISIO
Turin-born, a
cornerstone of the
Juventus midfield for
the past eight seasons
and also a regular for
the national side.
New Entry
One of South
Africas
most exciting
prospects.
Left-back and Madrid

stalwart (since 2007)
who was blamed for
Brazils 2014 World
Cup humiliation but is
now back in the squad.
WORLD SOCCER
69
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Pierre - Michel
LASOGGA
Age 24, Hamburg & Germany
Jackson
MARTINEZ
Javier
MASCHERANO
Nemanja MATIC
Joel MATIP
Age 27, Chelsea (Eng) & Serbia

(Chn) & Colombia
Age 31, Barcelona (Spa)

& Argentina
Age 24, Schalke (Ger)

& Cameroon
A revelation at Porto
but stalled at Atletico
Madrid. Now gambling
on a high-profile
transfer to China.
One of Barcelonas
captains, a leader
at the back, though
he plays in midfield
for his country.
A vital component of
Chelseas league title
win in 2015, his form
has stumbled in the
first half of this season,
along with many of his
team-mates.
Blaise MATUIDI
MEHMET Topal

& France
Age 29, Fenerbahce & Turkey
New Entry The Brazilian left-back has won three

titles with PSG but may move on at the end of the
season when his contract expires.
New Entry Defensive

midfielder and
mainstay of the Turkish
national side. Survived
a shooting while driving
home from training in
Istanbul last year.
Alexander MEIER
Angel MENA
Dries MERTENS
Lionel MESSI
Age 33, Eintracht Frankfurt &

Germany
Age 28, Emelec & Ecuador
Age 28, Napoli (Ita) & Belgium
Clever wide man or

attacker who was once
rejected by Anderlecht
for being too small.
Currently enjoying
success in Italy after
starring in Holland.

& Argentina
Veteran striker
in his 12th season
at Eintracht. The
Bundesligas top scorer
in 2014-15, with 19
goals in 26 games.
New Entry Tricky left

winger and sometime
full-back. Has played
a big part in Emelecs
recent success. If Miler
Bolanos is sold, can he
step up?
The world bests player

has put concerns over
his tax affairs aside to
play some wonderful
football with Neymar
and Luis Suarez.
Thomas MEUNIER
Jon Obi MIKEL
Arkadiusz MILIK
Yerry MINA
Age 24, Club Brugge & Belgium
Age 28, Chelsea (Eng) & Nigeria
Age 21, Ajax (Hol) & Poland
Age 21, Santa Fe & Colombia
Right-back who has

been one of the
consistent performers
in the Belgian league.
Signed a new contract
until 2019 to deter
transfer interest.
New Entry Looked

to be heading out of
Chelsea under Jose
Mourinho but has
played an important
role in midfield under
Guus Hiddink.
One of the brightest

stars of the Dutch
league, he made
his loan move from
Bayer Leverkusen
to Ajax permanent
last summer.
New Entry Hulking,

centre-back who excels
in the air. Has already
picked up considerable
experience in South
Americas club
competitions.
Consistently excellent
Won every domestic
trophy with PSG last
season and voted
footballer of the year.
70
Strong, composed
centre-back. Out
of contract this
summer, he has
signed a pre-contract
to join Liverpool.
WORLD SOCCER
MAXWELL
Age 34, Paris Saint-Germain (Fra) & Brazil
New Entry Thirty odd years ago, virtually every

Bundesliga club possessed a crash-bang-wallop
front-line spearhead. Now only one of the species
remains: Hamburgs Lasogga.
Combative, physical, robust, powerful in the air
and a guarantee of 90 minutes of acute irritation
for centre-backs, the 6ft 2in, 14st Lasogga might
be a throwback but that does not make him any
less effective.
KEY
With his battering-ram style and indomitable

spirit, he is hugely popular with Hamburg fans and
is effectively a new millennium reincarnation of
Horst Hrubesch, the colossus whose goals
underpinned the clubs European and domestic
glory years of the 1980s.
Born and brought up in the German football
heartland that is the Ruhr, Lasogga is the classic
example of a player from that largely blue-collar
area: uncomplicated, raw-boned, wholehearted
and unstinting in his efforts.
The irony is, though, that he is anything but a
typical football character.
Most unusually for the professional game, his
mother, Kerstin, serves as his agent. During his
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Ma-Mi
formative years he never seemed able to settle,

always a model sportsman either. After the clubs
flitting from one academy to the next at Schalke,
victory over second-tier Greuther Furth in the
Rot-Weiss Essen, Wattenscheid, Wolfsburg and
relegation/promotion play-off in 2014 a game
Bayer Leverkusen.
in which he powered home a memorable header
As he piled up the goals for Leverkusens
his post-match celebrations in front of the
under-19 side, club director of sport Rudi
opposition bench were totally uncalled for
Voller had no hesitation predicting the
and he was criticised widely for it.
brightest of futures for him. But even
Another fault line is a certain
TELL US WHAT
with a German all-time great in his
susceptibility to injury. Lasogga spent
YOU THINK
corner, he once again got itchy feet,
the best part of nine months on the
#WS500
bidding farewell to the BayArena after
sidelines in 2012 and 2013 recovering
just 12 months and signing in 2010 for Hertha
from torn cruciate ligaments, and this term
Berlin, where he would promptly break into the
he has been constantly troubled by a problem
elite mainstream.
with his right shoulder.
Now in his third season at Hamburg, he is not
Nick Bidwell
WORLD SOCCER
71
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
R i ya d
MAHREZ
Age 25, Leicester City (Eng) & Algeria
New Entry No one player typifies the remarkable

rise of Leicester City than their Algerian winger.
Two years ago he was playing in the French
second division; now he is on the brink of a
remarkable league triumph and is coveted by
some of Europes top clubs.
Mahrez has sparkled as one of Leicesters main
attacking outlets, with his pace and trickery
helping the team to spring defence into an attack
spearheaded by Jamie Vardy. His brilliant goal
against Chelsea, when he bamboozled
experienced full-back Cesar Azpilicueta and
struck a powerful shot with little backlift, was one
of the moments of the season. It also solidified his
case for being voted player of the season.
Mahrez was born in Sarcelles in the northern
suburbs of Paris to an Algerian father and
Moroccan mother. Dismissed as too slight by
French club academies, he played for his local
club, Sarcelles, in the sixth division of French
football until the age of 17.
Even when he stepped up to fourth-tier
Quimper, and still as an amateur, a number of
top-flight clubs Lens, PSG and Lyon looked at
him but decided against taking him, even for their
reserve sides. But Le Havre took the plunge and
Mahrez signed his first professional contract at
the age of 19.
The Normandy club has a strong
TELL US WHAT
history of developing talent and famously
YOU THINK
clashed with Manchester United over the
#WS500
poaching of a teenage Paul Pogba.
Despite impressing at Le Havre and being
dubbed the Algerian Di Maria, Mahrez remained
under the radar of most European clubs. But
Leicester were one of the few that were tracking
him as his contract with Le Havre entered its final
year in 2014. An offer of 400,000 to Le Havre
was enough to seal a deal in January 2014.
In his first 18 months at Leicester, as they won
promotion to the Premier League and then pulled
off a miraculous escape last season, Mahrez did
little to suggest he would play such an important
role this year. He was on the bench as often as he
was a starter for manager Nigel Pearsons side.
However, a number of factors changed last
summer. The arrival of Claudio Ranieri, replacing
Pearson in a surprise move from Leicesters Thai
owners, gave the team a new game plan which
has played to Mahrezs strengths. NGolo Kante,
a new signing from Caen, has given Leicesters
midfield extra dynamism and allowed Mahrezs
maverick skills to flourish. And Mahrez has
matured as an individual, marrying his English
girlfriend and living a more stable home life.
There has been international recognition, too,
beating Yacine Brahimi to the Algerian Player of
the Year award. Europes big guns are said to be
circling and a new 35,000-a-week, four-year
deal signed last year may not be enough for
Leicester to see off suitors this summer.
John Holmesdale
72
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Mi-Na
KEY
MIRANDA
& Brazil
Outstanding centreback who made the

switch from Spain to
Serie A last summer.
Increasingly important
to Brazils national side.
Henrikh
MKHITARYAN
(Ger) & Armenia
Luka MODRIC
& Croatia
Jefferson
MONTERO
& Ecuador
New Entry Struggled

in his first season at
Dortmund but now
back to his best under
coach Thomas Tuchel.
Outstanding playmaker
Says he will see out his
Madrid contract until
2018 despite rumours
of a move to Bayern.
Cesar MONTES
Javier MORALES
Alvaro MORATA
Hector MORENO
Age 19, Monterrey & Mexico
Age 36, Real Salt Lake (USA)

& Argentina
Age 23, Juventus (Ita) & Spain
Age 28, PSV (Hol) & Mexico
Striker who was

pushed out of Real
Madrid but then helped
Juventus to the 2015
Champions League
Final and the Italian
league title.
Tough-tackling
centre-back who
broke the leg
of English
PROFILED
defender
MARLOS
Luke Shaw
MORENO
ON PAGE 75
last year.
Thomas MULLER
Moises MUNOZ

& Germany
Age 36, America & Mexico
New Entry One of

Mexican footballs
outstanding young
prospects. Has been
watched by a number
of European clubs,
including Roma.
Thiago MOTTA
(Fra) & Italy
New Entry One of

the best-ever signings
in MLS. Inspirational
playmaker and
goalscorer who was
a title winner in 2009.
Benjamin
MOUKANDJO
In and out of the

Swansea side after
starring in Mexico but
a crucial personality
for his national side.
New Entry Cameroon

international in great
form for Lorient in
Ligue 1 after a summer
switch from Reims.
Arguably the biggest

star of German football,
a brilliantly effective
goalscorer. Recently
extended his Bayern
contract until 2021.
New Entry Veteran

keeper who has been
an important figure
in Americas recent
success. Recovered
from a serious car
accident in 2012.
Luis MURIEL
Ahmed MUSA
Yvon MVOGO
Elmir NABIULLIN
Age 24, Sampdoria (Ita)

& Colombia
Age 23, CSKA Moscow (Rus)

& Nigeria
Age 21, Young Boys &

Switzerland
Age 20, Rubin Kazan & Russia
Stocky South American

striker brought to
Europe by Udinese.
Now at Sampdoria
but linked with a
summer transfer away.
Pacy, tricky wide man

who can play on either
flank. Has thrived in
Russia this season
and a move to a major
league is on the cards.
New Entry Highly

rated Cameroon-born
keeper who has played
for Swiss under-21s and
has since been called
up by the seniors.
Combative midfielder
who won two
caps for Brazil
PROFILED
then switched
JORDAN
allegiance to
MORRIS
ON PAGE 76
Italy.
Age 27, Lorient (Fra) &

Cameroon
Highly promising leftback who made his

senior international
debut for Russia last
year. Tipped to make
a move to a western
European league soon.
WORLD SOCCER
73
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Radja
NAINGGOLAN
NALDO
Nahitan NANDEZ
Jesus NAVAS
Age 33, Wolfsburg (Ger) & Brazil
Age 27, Roma (Ita) & Belgium
New Entry Combative,

dynamic under-20
central midfielder who
is already important for
his club and may well
soon be in the national
team, too.

& Spain
All-action midfielder,
nicknamed The Ninja,
who moved to Italy as
a teenager and is now
well established in the
Roma side.
Tall, commanding
centre-back who has
played an important
role in Wolfsburgs
recent success. In
his 11th Bundesliga
season.
Still an important
player for City but has
fallen out of contention
for the Spanish
national side. Could
move on this summer.
Keylor NAVAS
Cheikh NDOYE
Manuel NEUER
NEYMAR

& Costa Rica
Age 29, Angers (Fra) & Senegal

& Germany
Age 24, Barcelona (Spa) & Brazil
New Entry Agile

shot-stopper who has
been in terrific form for
Real Madrid since their
attempts to sign David
De Gea failed.
New Entry Combative,

goalscoring central
midfielder who has
been the stand-out
performer in Angers
rise up the ranks of
French football.
Rated the worlds best

No1, he became the
top-earning keeper
when signing a contract
that ties him to Bayern
until 2019.
Dazzling alongside
Messi and Suarez in
Barcas brilliant
front line,
PROFILED
but his
OUMAR
future is
NIASSE
ON PAGE 78
uncertain.
Casimir NINGA
Nicolas NKOULOU
Christian NOBOA
NOLITO
Age 22, Montpellier (Fra) & Chad
Age 25, Marseille (Fra)

& Cameroon
Age 30, Rostov (Rus) & Ecuador
Age 29, Celta Vigo & Spain
Popular centre-back,
captain of Cameroon.
Out of contract this
summer and being
watched by a number
of Premier League clubs.
Important figure in the

Ecuador national side.
Back in Russia after a
brief spell in Greece,
earned on the back of
his performances at
the 2014 World Cup.
Late developer who

was prolific in the first
half of the Liga season.
Linked with Barcelona
and a reunion with his
former Barca B coach
Luis Enrique.
Paul-Georges
NTEP
Ashraf NUMAN
Shinji OKAZAKI
Karim ONISIWO
Age 29, Hajer (Sau) & Palestine
Age 23, Mainz (Ger) & Austria
Age 23, Rennes & France
New Entry Leading

scorer for the Palestine
national side that made
its debut in the 2018
World Cup qualifiers.
Currently playing in
Saudi Arabia.
Age 29, Leicester City (Eng)

& Japan
New Entry One of

the discoveries of the
French season.
Signed
PROFILED
from the
NEMANJA
Gabonese
NIKOLIC
ON PAGE 80
league.
Cameroon-born striker
who made his senior
France debut last year
after making a big
impact in Ligue 1
with Rennes.
74
WORLD SOCCER
Japanese striker who

was mediocre during a
spell in the Bundesliga
but has starred in
Leicesters remarkable
league campaign.
New Entry One of

Austrian footballs
brightest prospects,
he moved to the
German Bundesliga
in the January 2016
transfer window.
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Na-On
KEY
M a rl o s M O R E N O
Age 19, Atletico Nacional & Colombia
New Entry After the promise and the

performances of 2014, when they reached their
first World Cup quarter-finals, Colombias national
team seemed to lose its way last year. The good
news, though, was that the local championship
threw up an interesting crop of youngsters of
which Moreno is one of the leading lights.
Having appeared in cup games, and one league
win in which Atletico Nacional fielded a reserve
side, the teenager made his genuine debut until
September 2015 just 10 days before his 19th
birthday and marked the occasion with a goal
against Deportivo Cali.
By this time Nacional were coached by
Reinaldo Rueda, who took Ecuador to the last
World Cup, but it was his predecessor, Juan Carlos
Osorio, currently in charge of Mexico, who left
a lasting impression on Moreno. I was a
centre-forward, he recalls, and it was
professor Osorio, because of my speed
TELL US WHAT
and skill, who put me out wide.
YOU THINK
Osorio is well known for his love of
#WS500
attacking down the flanks and he saw
that the youngster had the attributes to run
at defenders, cutting in from the left on to his

stronger right foot.
Moreno was also handy in and around the
penalty area and he scored a vital goal in
Decembers second leg of the Torneo Finalizacion
play-off Final against Junior of Barranquilla,
taking the game to penalties and eventual success
for Atletico.
Winning the league title means Moreno now
has a Libertadores Cup campaign to look forward
to this year and there is also the possibility that
he could compete in the summers Olympic
tournament, providing Colombia can get past
the USA in a play-off.
These are heady days for someone who is still
getting used to being recognised in the street, and
it will be interesting to see how he copes with the
changes in his life.
An administrative error meant that he was
registered as Marlos rather than the intended
Marlon. But if he can build on what he achieved
in the last few months of 2015, few will have
trouble remembering his name.
Tim Vickery
WORLD SOCCER
75
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Jordan MORRIS
Age 21, Seattle Sounders & USA
New Entry Jordan Morris is a phenomenon in

American soccer. The Seattle-born youngster
was the first college player called up to the US
national team since 1999, then in January 2016
he signed the most lucrative Homegrown player
contract ever offered to an American when he
agreed to join Seattle Sounders.
It was a significant moment for Major League
Soccer. Morris had been heavily courted by
Bundesliga side Werder Bremen encouraged,
it seems, by Andi Herzog, the former Austria
international who is now Jurgen Klinsmanns
number two with the US national side. If the
76
WORLD SOCCER
same time he knows his path is a different one.

We see the talent.
Klinsmann, conscious that the world of college
soccer is a wholly different one to that of the
league cant secure one of the most talented
professional game, encouraged Morris to turn pro.
players of his generation, who can it sign?
Morris spent a week in January 2016 training with
Morris first entered the national-team
Werder Bremen during the Bundesliga winter
picture when Klinsmann spotted him at
break. That had been set up by Herzog,
Stanford University and invited him to
who would later backtrack and claim he
TELL US WHAT
train with the national team when they
had been misquoted when local paper
YOU THINK
used Stanford as a training camp ahead
Kreiszeitung reported him as saying the
#WS500
of the 2014 World Cup.
goal of the national team was to bring
Hes a forward, very simple, Klinsmann
as many players as possible to Europe.
said after calling up Morris to the senior squad
The decision by Morris to instead sign a deal
in August 2014. He reads the game very well
with Seattle has been interpreted by some as a
ahead, he sees the space in front of him and
rejection of the pro-Bundesliga line advocated, in
can take people on one against one. At the
private at least, by Klinsmann and Herzog.
WINGER
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Os-Pe
KEY
OSCAR
Victor OSIMHEN
Dani OSVALDO
Age 24, Chelsea (Eng) & Brazil
Age 16, Ultimate Strikers

& Nigeria
Age 30, Boca Juniors (Arg)

& Italy
New Entry The

10-goal star of
Nigerias Under-17
World Cup win last
autumn. Set to reject
Arsenal for Wolfsburg.
After flopping at Porto

and Southampton, the
temperamental striker
linked well with Carlos
Tevez in Bocas recent
title victory.
Came under fire from

Jose Mourinho during
Chelseas poor autumn
run but he has been
revived under Guus
Hiddink. Still a key
figure for Brazil.

& Argentina
Has struggled at times

to adapt to the pace
of the Premier League
but still a regular
choice for Argentina.
Mesut OZIL
Thomas PARTEY
Age 27, Arsenal (Eng) &

Germany

& Ghana
Former Boca starlet who has impressed on loan

at Empoli this season. Set to return to parent club
Roma this summer but others are also interested.
New Entry Box-tobox midfielder who

has been likened to
Yaya Toure following
his impact from the
bench this season.
Javier PASTORE
PAULO OLIVEIRA
Dimitri PAYET
Carlos PENA

(Fra) & Argentina

& Portugal
Age 28, West Ham United (Eng)

& France
Age 25, Guadalajara & Mexico
Mercurial talent hailed

by Eric Cantona as
the worlds best player.
His impact at PSG
this season has been
restricted by injuries.
Highly-rated young
centre-back who
made his senior
Portugal debut last
year. Impressed at last
years Under-21 Euros.
Clever attacker who

has excelled at West
Ham since his summer
switch from Marseille,
earning a new contract
after just six months.
New Entry National

team midfielder,
nicknamed Gullit,
who was sold,
reluctantly he says,
by Leon to Guadalajara
in January.
PEPE
Roberto
PEREYRA
Ivan PERISIC
Diego PEROTTI

& Croatia
Age 27, Roma (Ita, loan from

Genoa, Ita) & Argentina
New Entry Lively

attacker enjoying life
in Italy after the switch
from Germany last
year. Likely starter for
Croatia at Euro 2016.
New Entry Clever but

temperamental winger
or playmaker who
made the January
2016 loan switch to
Roma from Genoa.
One of the stars of

the Premier League
season, the German
has been in outstanding
form as Arsenals chief
creative influence.
Morris now has a chance to establish himself in

MLS and is likely to take the place of China-bound
Obafemi Martins in an attacking partnership with
Clint Dempsey at Sounders.
He has some qualities that you cant teach,
said Sounders coach Sigi Schmid. When you find
players who have that, he has an ability to shield
the ball off defenders, he has really good balance
and he has an ability to finish. When you have that,
and the commitment and dedication to go with it,
you can go a long way.
His local connection with Sounders he played
for their youth teams and his father Michael is the
clubs chief medical director could also prove
useful in the coming months and years as Morris
seeks to live up to his immense potential.
John Holmesdale
Nicolas
OTAMENDI

& Portugal
Powerful Brazil-born
centre-back whose
cynical gamesmanship
often detracts from his
excellent footballing
qualities.
Leandro PAREDES
Age 21, Empoli (Ita, loan from Roma, Ita) & Argentina

& Argentina
Versatile, dynamic
former River Plate
starlet who offers
Juventus another
attacking option.
WORLD SOCCER
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WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Loic PERRIN
Gerard PIQUE
Guido PIZARRO
Marko PJACA
Age 30, Saint-Etienne & France
New Entry Centreback and captain of

Saint-Etienne who has
played his whole career
with the club and is
now on the fringes
of the France squad.
One-time Manchester
United trainee widely
recognised as one
of the worlds top
defenders. Eloquent
off the pitch, with a big
social media following.
Age 26, Tigres (Mex)

& Argentina
Age 20, Dinamo Zagreb

& Croatia
Key figure in Tigres

recent success. Has
become a naturalised
Mexican citizen since
his move from
Argentina in 2013.

young star to emerge
from Dinamo. Made his
senior Croatia debut
aged 19 and set to
feature at Euro 2016.
Miralem PJANIC
Paul POGBA
Diego POLENTA
Dennis PRAET
Age 25, Roma (Ita) & Bosnia
Age 22, Juventus (Ita) & France
Much-coveted Bosnian
playmaker who played
for Luxembourgs youth
teams when his family
settled there after the
Yugoslav war. Tied to
Roma until 2018.
The complete modern

footballer: dynamic,
skilful, tough. Excelling
in the no10 shirt for
Juve this season but
speculation is rife that
he is Barcelona-bound.
Age 24, Nacional (loan from

Genoa, Ita) & Uruguay
New Entry Leftfooted defender who

has the talent to have
achieved much more.
Back home from Italy,
he now has the chance.
Former teenage starlet

who has long been
tipped to make the
step up to the top level
of the European game.
May soon be on his
way from Anderlecht.
Lucas PRATTO
Harold PRECIADO
Quincy PROMES
RAFA SILVA
Age 27, Atletico Mineiro (Bra)

& Argentina
Age 21, Deportivo Cali &

Colombia
Age 24, Spartak Moscow (Rus)

& Holland
Age 22, Braga & Portugal
Much-travelled striker
who is now starring in
Brazil after spells in
Mexico, Norway, Chile,
Italy as well as his
native Argentina.
New Entry Rangy

striker who enjoyed a
wonderful 2015, scoring
25 goals in 43 league
games and winning the
league championship.
New Entry Dutch

starlet who has shone
in the Russian league,
prompting Spartak to
place a 40m price
tag on his head.
Tricky youngster,
likened to Eden
Hazard, who has come
through the ranks at
northern Portuguese
club Braga to feature
for Portugals seniors.
Ou m a r
NIASSE
Age 25, Everton (Eng) & Senegal
78
RAFFAEL
Ivan RAKITIC
RAMIRES
Sergio RAMOS

(Ger) & Brazil

& Croatia
Age 28, Jiangsu Suning (Chn)

& Brazil
Age 29, Real Madrid & Spain
New Entry Attacking

midfielder who has
been in Europe for
more than a decade
and now enjoying
success with Gladbach.
One of Barcelonas
most consistent
performers under
coach Luis Enrique.
Will play a central role
for Croatia at Euro 2016.
Hard-running Brazilian
who was sold by
Chelsea to Jiangsu
for 25m in one of
the January transfer
windows biggest moves.
WORLD SOCCER
Spanish football royalty.

Captain of Real Madrid.
(in his 11th season) and
130 caps for Spain.
Centre-back who
can also play as an
attacking right-back.
New Entry While some hard-to-please Russian

critics make the rather uncharitable claim that
Evertons new Senegal front runner, recently
signed for 13.5million from Lokomotiv Moscow,
spurns as many chances as he converts, all
those defenders he has terrorised out east
might beg to differ.
With 13 goals in 23 games for Lokomotiv in
all competitions this term, the force-of-nature
KEY
second striker or wide man indubitably kept his

part of the marksmanship bargain. And as every
Russian league adversary of his knows, he has
several other strings to his bow: his physicality
and ability to bully, his energy and commitment,
his penetrative qualities and a good dollop of
selflessness, racking up 10 assists in 2015-16.
Voted the Russian Premier Leagues player
of the year for 2015 by readers of the Sovetskiy
Sport newspaper picking up nearly half the total
votes Niasses style of play has much more
of the wild stallion about it than the polished
technician. Unpredictable and unconventional,
his default setting is to insist on forcing the issue,
and whether galloping forward with the ball or
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Pe-Ra
shooting on sight, its his instincts plotting the

inaugural season in the Super Lig, with 12 goals
course. Wind him up and let him rip.
and a half-dozen assists to earn a 4.5 million
Rock-hard self-belief and steely determination
move to Lokomotiv.
are two of his most precious commodities, and
In his first season in the Russian capital, he was
such fortitude has served him well at various
mainly on half-rations, starting only infrequently
stages of his career. During his first
and netting just four elite goals. But then
European posting, a six-month loan deal
he scored the opener in the 3-1 victory
in 2012 with Norwegian club Brann,
over Kuban Krasnodar in the 2015 Cup
TELL US WHAT
Niasse made no impact at all before
Final and within a few months he would
YOU THINK
being discarded. He also had an
be a first-team regular, the focal point of
#WS500
unsuccessful screen test the following
coach Igor Cherevchenkos counteryear in France with Saint-Etienne.
attacking strategy.
He was eventually bought by Turkish club
Tenacious, tough and talented, Niasse should fit
Akhisarspor for 250,000 and everything
in admirably at Goodison Park.
suddenly clicked. He enjoyed an excellent
Nick Bidwell
WORLD SOCCER
79
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Neman ja
N I KO L I C
Age 28, Legia Warsaw (Pol) & Hungary
New Entry Talk about a Magnificent Magyar. Ever

since pitching up at Legia Warsaw last summer,
the Hungarian international striker has barely
paused for breath in his sold-out, one-man show,
netting 21 goals in his first 21 games in the Polish
top flight and deservedly being voted Ekstraklasa
Player of 2015 by his fellow professionals.
Acquired for only 500,000 from Hungarian
club Videoton, where he was twice a domestic
champion, he is described by Legia director of
recruitment Michal Zewlakow as having goals in
his blood and that is no word of a lie.
In five years leading the Videoton line, he
amassed no fewer than 87 Hungarian league
goals, twice finished as the championships top
scorer in seasons 2009-10 and 2014-15
and last term made headlines by scoring in each
of his first 12 starts.
Responsible for exactly half of Legias firstdivision goals, Nikolic may not dazzle aesthetically,
yet is nonetheless an extremely effective
practitioner of the point-of-attack craft, excellent
at playing on the shoulder of the last defender,
hard to derail when bearing down on goal, good
in the air and capable of finishing coolly with
either foot.
While some cynics inevitably will argue
that goal upon goal in Poland is no reason
to go overboard, Nikolics exploits this
TELL US WHAT
term should not be devalued. If he keeps
YOU THINK
up his current strike rate he will smash
#WS500
the single-season Polish league scoring
record of Wisla Krakows Henryk Reyman (37
goals in 1927) and it is worth noting that even
the superstar likes of Robert Lewandowski was
never so prolific in his Ekstraklasa days with
Lech Poznan.
The son of a Serb father and Hungarian
mother, Nikolic was born and brought up in the
northern Serbia town of Senta, a community
where ethnic Hungarians were very much in the
majority. But he has had no split loyalties as a
footballer, spending his entire senior career in
Hungary, initially starting out in the lower leagues
with Barcs and Kaposvolgye, then bursting into life
in the top flight at Kaposvar and Videoton.
Early in 2011 Nikolic successfully applied for
Hungarian citizenship, though he would have to
wait patiently for his first national team call-up,
making his debut for the Magyars as a late
substitute in an 8-1 World Cup qualifying thrashing
in Holland in the autumn of 2013.
International life was certainly to prove a
wake-up call and despite appearing in nine
of Hungarys games as his countrymen booked
their ticket to Euro 2016 four as a starter, five in
cameo mode he still has a lot to prove at the
highest level.
But dont bet against Nikolic letting up in his
goal spree with Legia which will surely give him
the impetus to make those extra yards.
Nick Bidwell
80
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Ra-Ru
KEY
Aaron RAMSEY
Pepe REINA
RENATO SANCHES
Marco REUS
Age 25, Arsenal (Eng) & Wales
Age 33, Napoli (Ita) & Spain
Age 18, Benfica & Portugal
Dynamic midfielder
who has been unlucky
with injuries. On his
day, one of the best
midfielders in Europe.
Will be a pivotal figure
for Wales at Euro 2016.
New Entry Former

Liverpool no 1 who
opted to join Bayern
as Manuel Neuers
understudy but is
now starring in Napolis
Serie A title challenge.
New Entry Teenage

attacking starlet taking
Portuguese football
by storm this season.
The subject of a
reported 60m bid
by Manchester United.

& Germany
Jose Antonio
REYES
RICARDO
OLIVEIRA
Arjen ROBBEN
RODRIGO CAIO
Age 22, Sao Paulo & Brazil
Age 32, Sevilla & Spain

& Holland
Veteran winger who is

back at first club Sevilla
where he is captain,
having led them to
Europa League success
last year.
New Entry Veteran

centre-forward who
returned from the
Middle East to be the
top scorer of last years
Brazilian Championship.
Injury-prone, missing
the business end of
last season, but still
a major figure for
Bayern, capable of
changing games.
James
RODRIGUEZ
Martin
RODRIGUEZ
Cristiano
RONALDO

& Colombia
Age 21, Colo Colo & Chile

& Portugal
Talented attacker who

missed the 2014 World
Cup through injury
but is now playing
and starring regularly
again for Dortmund.
New Entry Technically

gifted centre-back or
defensive midfielder,
voted player of the 2014
Toulon tournament.
Must be in contention
for the Olympics.
Wayne ROONEY
& England
Star of the 2014 World

Cup who fell out of
favour at Rafa Benitezs
Real Madrid but recalled
by Zinedine Zidane.
New Entry Bright little

attacking player who
will be expected to
give some spark to an
ageing Colo Colo side
this year.
Still the equal of Messi

but approaching the
beginning of the end at
Madrid. Will Euro 2016
be his last hurrah?
Under par this season

in a poor Manchester
United side but still
likely to lead Englands
forward line at the
Euros in France.
Cristian RIVEROS
RUBEN NEVES
RUI PATRICIO
Victor RUIZ
Age 33, Olimpia & Paraguay
Moved back home in

2015 after seven years
away. Retains an eye
for goal, and his steady
hand was an important
factor in his sides 2015
championship win.
Assured midfielder
tipped as Portos next
big thing. It remains to
be seen whether he
will be affected by
the clubs mid-season
change of coach.
Age 28, Sporting Lisbon &

Portugal
New Entry Ever

present for Sporting in
their title challenge this
season and will also
start for Portugal at
Euro 2016.
New Entry Former

under-21 centre-back
who has excelled for
Villarreal this term as
the Yellow Submarine
seek a return to the
Champions League.
WORLD SOCCER
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WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Dominic SOLANKE
Age 18, Vitesse (Hol, loan from Chelsea) & England
New Entry The latest in a long line of young

Chelsea hopefuls to be farmed out to Vitesse,
teenage front-runner Dominic Solanke must now
decide whether to remain in Holland for another
term or go back to England next season and stake
his claim for a Premier League spot.
With his pace and eye for goal, Solanke has
made quite an impact in Arnhem, with pundit and
former Dutch international Rene Van der Gijp
believing there is only one logical choice.
For his career it would be better to spend a
few more years at Vitesse, says Van der Gijp.
After playing one year in Holland its impossible
to get much playing time at Chelsea. The gap is
immense.
Van der Gijps argument is supported by the
fate of other Chelsea youngsters such as
Wallace, Gael Kakuta and Tomas Kala who
returned home after experiencing the Eredivisie
but still failed to make the grade at Stamford
Bridge.
In fact, the only player who went on to become
anything like a first-team regular with the Blues
is Nemanja Matic and even the Serb midfielder
had to take a detour to Benfica before being
re-signed by the club.
82
WORLD SOCCER
Born in England of Nigerian descent, Solankes

pedigree is impressive. With Chelsea since 2005,
he scored 20 goals in 25 games for their under18s and won the UEFA Youth League, finishing
the competition as top scorer with 12 goals in nine
matches. He was also tournament joint-top scorer
as England won the 2014 European Under-17
Championship, and his performances on the
international stage earned him the chance to train
with Roy Hodgsons senior squad.
In October 2014, Jose Mourinho made him
Chelseas youngest Champions League debutant
when he sent him on as a substitute against
Maribor, and the Portuguese would later say
that Solanke would only have himself to blame
if he did not become an England
international under his management.
TELL US WHAT
While everyone knows how that ended,
YOU THINK
Solanke is also having to adapt to a new
#WS500
coach at Vitesse after Peter Bosz left for
Maccabi Haifa during the winter break. And
until a permanent new boss is installed at Chelsea,
Solanke is likely to remain in limbo. As he himself
says: Normally, I would stay until next summer.
But its up to Chelsea.
Klaas-Jan Droppert
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Sa-Se
KEY
Mohamed SALAH
Carlos SALCEDO
Mbwana SAMATTA
Alexis SANCHEZ
Age 23, Roma (Ita) & Egypt
Age 22, Guadalajara & Mexico
Age 23, Genk (Blg) & Tanzania
Age 27, Arsenal (Eng) & Chile
Livewire Egyptian
attacker who has
overcome the setback
of being frozen out
by Chelsea to thrive
in Serie A, first at
Fiorentina, now Roma.
New Entry Left-sided

centre-back who has
emerged as one of
Mexican footballs
Played two seasons in
Major League Soccer.
New Entry Striker

who was crowned
CAFs best Africanbased player in 2015
when playing for TP
Mazembe. Recently
joined Genk.
Copa America winner

with Chile in 2015 and
Arsenals hero in the
2015 FA Cup Final.
Injuries permitting, he
will play a key role in
the title race.
Leroy SANE
Hisato SATO
Age 20, Schalke & Germany
Age 33, Sanfrecce Hiroshima

& Japan

stars of the Bundesliga
season, a youngster
who can play in various
attacking roles. Made
his senior Germany
debut in autumn 2015.
New Entry Uncomplicated striker, quick and

strong, who was part of Uruguays gold medal
winning Pan-American Games team.
New Entry Veteran

striker whose goals,
often spectacular, have
helped Sanfrecce win
three J.League titles in
the past four years.
SAUL Niguez
Andre SCHURRLE
Luis Manuel SEIJAS
Highly prized starlet

who can play in
defensive midfield or
wide. Agreed a new
Atletico contract until
2020 in the face of
interest from Man Utd.
A member of
Germanys 2014 World
Cup-winning squad.
Struggling to command
a starting place back at
Wolfsburg but still in
the Germany squad.
SELCUK Inan
New Entry Scorer of

the goal, a stunning
last-minute free-kick
against Iceland, that
sealed Turkeys place,
against the odds, at
Euro 2016.
Michael SANTOS
Age 22, River Plate & Uruguay
Bastian
SCHWEINSTEIGER
(Eng) & Germany
Age 29, Santa Fe (Col)

& Venezuela
Vastly experienced
central midfielder.
Starter for United,
injuries permitting, and
captain of Germany.
New Entry Crafty

left-footed midfielder
who was his countrys
most successful export
in 2015, winning the
Sudamericana Cup.
Yevhen
SELEZNYOV
Matz SELS
SEMIH Kaya
Age 30, Dnipro & Ukraine
New Entry Former

under-21 keeper who
is on the fringes of the
senior Belgian side.
Was recently voted
Belgiums best keeper
for his role in Gents rise.
New Entry Central

defender who has
been linked with
a number of top
European clubs but
remains contracted to
Galatasaray until 2018.
New Entry Tenacious,

hard-working striker
who helped Dnipro
to the 2015 Europa
League Final and
Ukraine to Euro 2016.
WORLD SOCCER
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WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Lars STINDL
Age 27, Borussia Monchengladbach & Germany
New Entry Of all the uncapped German players

still harbouring hopes of forcing their way into
the Euro 2016 reckoning, the Gladbach attacker
is arguably the most deserving of the waitingroom candidates.
His form this season for his club, who he joined
from Hanover for 8.5million last summer, has
verged on the sensational, scoring 13 goals in
all competitions and creating 11 more. And if
Bundestrainer Joachim Low really does operate a
meritocracy, the 27-year-old should, as a matter
of course, be inducted.
Not that his new life at Borussia Park started
particularly auspiciously.
On the losing side in each of his first five
Bundesliga fixtures, he struggled to make an
impact and, for his pains, came in for much
criticism, most of it unwarranted.
After five years with Hanover, two of them as
skipper, he was always going to need a little time
to adapt to a different setting. And he was
certainly not helped in those dark early days by
coach Lucien Favres apparent uncertainty as to
his best position, one moment using him as a
defensive midfielder, the next out wide on the
right or as a lone front-man.
The turning point came in late September,
when Favre resigned and, crucially for Stindl, the
new man in charge, former reserve-team boss
Andre Schubert, would be much more
specific in what he wanted, turning him
TELL US WHAT
loose in a free-wheeling, slightly
YOU THINK
withdrawn striking role.
#WS500
Schubert had cracked the code and
the front-line combo of Stindl and Raffael
immediately clicked into high gear as Borussia
surged up the table on the back of a 10-game
unbeaten run.
Schuberts decision to use him in the hole
makes total sense. With Stindls technical ability,
movement and finishing skills, the role of flexible
front runner fits him like a glove.
Lars is an amazingly intelligent player and
weve a great understanding, says his Brazilian
team-mate Raffael.
Its a pleasure to watch him in action, adds
keeper Yann Sommer. He always seems to find
the right solution to problems.
Stindl also has a fan in Gladbachs technical
director of sport, Max Eberl, who says: Id been
following his progress since he was a youth-team
player with Karlsruhe and was delighted to finally
get him to sign for me. Hes been producing
outstanding performances for years.
Whether successfully fighting relegation with
Hanover or playing in the Champions League for
us, hes someone who delivers under pressure.
Three times on target in this terms Champions
League getting Gladbachs first-ever goal in the
competition in a 2-1 home loss to Manchester
City and grabbing two more in the 4-2 victory
over Sevilla - Stindl is living proof that good things,
sometimes, take time.
Nick Bidwell
84
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Se-So
KEY
SERGI Roberto
Xherdan SHAQIRI
Oleg SHATOV
Age 24, Stoke City (Eng)

& Switzerland
New Entry Barcelona

academy product
whose versatility has
proved invaluable for
a squad restricted by
the FIFA-enforced
transfer embargo.
Kolbeinn
SIGTHORSSON
New Entry Midfield

all-rounder who is
likely to start for Russia
at Euro 2016. Key
performer in Zenits
unbeaten Champions
League group stage.
Age 25, Nantes (Fra) & Iceland
Clever attacker whose

signing was a coup for
Stoke. Will be one of
Switzerlands most
important players
at Euro 2016.
David SILVA
Jonathan SILVA
Gio SIMEONE

& Spain
Age 21, Boca Juniors (loan from

Sporting Lisbon, Por) & Argentina
Age 20, Banfield (loan from

River Plate) & Argentina
The brains behind Man

Citys best attacking
moves and increasingly
important to Spain in
the post-Xavi era. Can
play in various positions.
New Entry Left-back

who is set to feature
for Argentina at the Rio
Olympics. Back home
after a disappointing
spell in Lisbon.
Son of Atletico Madrid

coach Diego and top
scorer at the 2015
South American
Under-20s, now on
loan at Banfield.
Daley
SINKGRAVEN
Pione SISTO
Martin SKRTEL
Islam SLIMANI
Age 21, Midtjylland & Denmark
Age 27, Sporting Lisbon (Por)

& Algeria
Highly-rated attacking
midfielder who has
been in and out of the
Ajax side since a 7m
move from Heerenveen
in January 2015.
The biggest talent

in Danish domestic
football. Born in
Uganda to Southern
Sudanese parents.
Made his senior Danish
debut last year.
Age 31, Liverpool (Eng) &

Slovakia
New Entry Toughlooking but injuryprone centre-half.

Captain of the Slovakia
side that qualified for
Euro 2016.
New Entry Striker

whose goals have been
central to Sportings
title challenge this
season. Contract has a
30m release clause.
Igor SMOLNIKOV
Fyodor SMOLOV
Wesley SNEIJDER
Roberto SOLDADO
Age 26, Krasnodar & Russia
New Entry
Goalscoring, attackminded right-back or
wing-back who will
most likely start for
Russia at the Euros
this summer.
New Entry Tall striker

who has begun to
realise his potential
at Krasnodar after a
series of disappointing
loan spells while at
Dynamo Moscow.
Age 31, Galatasaray (Tur)

& Holland
Gylfi
SIGURDSSON
& Iceland
Set-piece specialist
and Icelands main
source of creativity.
Scored six goals in the
Euro 2016 qualifiers.
New Entry Icelands

main striker, with an
impressive scoring
record. Now in France
after four injuryplagued years at Ajax.
New Entry Striker

who is rediscovering
who has been a
his scoring touch
in Spain after
regular maker
PROFILED
and taker of
a frustrating
DOMINIC
spell in
chances in the
SOLANKE
Turkish league.
England.
ON PAGE 82
WORLD SOCCER
85
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
SOKRATIS
Papastathopoulos
Yann SOMMER
(Ger) & Switzerland
Jonathan
SORIANO
Roberto SORIANO
Age 30, RB Salzburg (Aut)

& Spain
Age 25, Sampdoria & Italy
New Entry Established

at the heart of the
Dortmund defence.
Recently extended his
contract until 2019.
Swiss international
number one who has
developed into one of
the Bundesligas top
keepers since moving
from Basle in 2014.
One of the most

successful Spanish
playing exports. A
prolific scorer in five
seasons at Salzburg.
New Entry Versatile

attacking midfielder
who made his Italy
debut during the
Euro 2016 qualifiers.
Sampdoria captain but
may move on soon.
Ismael SOSA
Darijo SRNA
Raheem STERLING
John STONES
Age 29, Pumas (Mex)

& Argentina
Age 33, Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukr)

& Croatia
Age 21, Manchester City

& England
Age 21, Everton & England
New Entry Speedy

striker who led the
Pumas attack that
reached the Final of
the recent Mexican
apertura championship.
Veteran right-back and

captain of Croatia. Still
at Shakhtar despite the
clubs relocation but his
contract is set to expire
this summer.
The most promising

Pacy, gifted attacker.
young English defender
to emerge for
Has coped
many years.
well with the
PROFILED
Wanted by
49m fee
LARS STINDL Chelsea last
paid by City
ON PAGE 84
summer.
last summer.
Stefano STURARO
Luis SUAREZ
Jonathan TAH

& Uruguay

& Germany
Ciprian
TATARUSANU
Bounced back from

his 2014 ban to play
wonderful football as
one of Barcas three
amigos alongside
Messi and Neymar.
New Entry One of

the brightest young
centre-backs in the
Bundesliga, a towering
presence in his debut
season for Leverkusen.

(Ger) & Greece
Italian under-21 cap

who is fast maturing
into an important
figure in the Juventus
midfield, covering for
the injured Sami
Khedira.

& Romania
New Entry Likely

first-choice for
Romania at Euro 2016
after seven clean
sheets in qualifying.
Yaya TO U R E
Age 32, Manchester City (Eng) & Ivory Coast
Marc-Andre
TER STEGEN
& Germany
New Entry German

under-21 cap who
features for Barca in
cup and Champions
League games.
86
WORLD SOCCER
Carlos TEVEZ
Age 32, Boca Juniors
& Argentina
Won league titles in

two different countries
in 2015. First the Serie
A crown with Juventus;
then with Boca on his
return to Argentina.
.
THIAGO
ALCANTARA
& Spain
Gifted attacker who

is finally displaying
his talents in the
Bundesliga after a
dreadful run of injuries.
THIAGO SILVA
(Fra) & Brazil
One of the worlds

best defenders but
has not been called
up by Brazil since
last summers Copa
America.
The past 12 months have been full of

contradictions for Yaya Toure. He was captain of
the winning Ivory Coast side at the African Nations
Cup, making him a strong contender to be voted
CAF African Footballer of the Year, an award he
had won for the four previous years. Yet the prize
went instead to Borussia Dortmund striker PierreEmerick Aubameyang, prompting Toure to dismiss
the poll of African journalists as pathetic and
indecent.
Aubameyang amassed 143 points, with Toure
coming second with 136 points and Ghanas Andre
Ayew, top scorer at the Nations Cup, third with 112
KEY
points. At the CAF ceremony. Toure appeared

gracious, paying tribute to Aubameyang, a prolific
scorer in the Bundesliga and the first Gabonese
player to win the award. However, later, when
speaking to French radio, Toure admitted: Im
very, very disappointed. Its sad to see Africa
react this way, that they dont think African
achievements are important.
I think this is what brings shame to Africa,
because to act in that way is indecent. But what
can we do about it? Us Africans, we dont show
that Africa is important in our eyes.
We favour more whats abroad than our own
continent. That is pathetic.
Timing is in crucial such awards. Aubameyangs
goals for Dortmund were fresh in the minds of
the voters, while memories of Toures achievement
WINGER
ST R I K E R
So-Th
in winning a second Nations Cup with Ivory Coast

is unlikely to help Toures cause. The Spaniard,
in February 2015 he scored a penalty in the
when Barcelona coach, preferred Sergio Busquets
Final shootout has long since faded.
as his midfield general and sanctioned the sale of
Toures status as the leading African player
Toure to City for 25million in July 2010.
of the past decade is not in dispute. But his
It is hard to see how Toure, who will be 33 in
performances over the past 12 months for
May, can play a central role in Guardiolas
Manchester City have been mixed. The
demanding heavy-pressing game. After
big Ivorian is not helped by his
a European club career that has taken in
TELL US WHAT
deceptive, ambling gait, which
Beveren, Metalurh Donetsk, Olympiakos,
YOU THINK
makes him appear disinterested and
Monaco, Barcelona and now City, the
#WS500
disconnected in games in which City do
more gentle demands of the Chinese
not perform. Injuries, too, have not helped the
Super League may prove appealing.
general malaise, as City conceded the 2015
Certainly Toures agent, Dimitry Seluk, is
Premier League title to Chelsea and have fallen
adamant that Yaya will leave the club. With a
behind to Leicester, Arsenal and Tottenham in this
year to run on his City contract that might be the
years increasingly unpredictable race.
best outcome for all concerned parties.
The arrival of Pep Guardiola at City next season
John Holmesdale
WORLD SOCCER
87
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Romain THOMAS
Ryan THOMAS
Youri TIELEMANS
Corentin TOLISSO
Age 27, Angers & France
Age 21, PEC Zwolle (Hol) & New

Zealand
Brussels-born talent
who made his Belgian
league and European
debut for Anderlecht
aged 16 and has been
watched by many of
Europes leading clubs.

talent to emerge from
Lyons youth system. A
midfield controller with
a strong short-passing
game. Ever present for
Lyon this season.
New Entry Giant

6ft 4in defender who
has been one of the
standout performers
for impressive
newcomers Angers
in Ligue 1 this season.
Erick TORRES
Francesco TOTTI
Age 23, Houston Dynamo (USA)

& Mexico
New Entry A flop at Manchester United when

signed as a teenager but has developed into one
of the leading lights in the Russian league.
Romas grand old man

continues to defy the
years and is now
third in the list
PROFILED
of Serie A
YAYA
TOURE
all-time
ON PAGE 86
appearances.
Ibrahima TRAORE
Kevin TRAPP
Takashi USAMI
Jaime VALDES

(Ger) & Guinea

(Fra) & Germany
Age 23, Gamba Osaka & Japan
Age 35, Colo Colo & Chile

stars for Guinea at last
years African Nations
Cup. A regular under
new Gladbach coach
Andre Schubert.
New Entry Former

Germany under-21
cap who has displaced
Salvatore Sirigu as
PSGs number one
this season.
New Entry Attacking

starlet who is back in
Japan after trying his
luck in the Bundesliga
with Bayern Munich.
Scored 19 goals in last
seasons J.League.
New Entry Veteran

midfield organiser who
has had a big impact
since returning from
Europe. The 2016
Libertadores could be
his last shot at glory.
Diego VALERI
Sven VAN BEEK
Robin VAN PERSIE
Leonel VANGIONI
Age 29, Portland Timbers (USA)

& Argentina
Age 32, Fenerbahce (Tur)

& Holland
Age 28, River Plate & Argentina
Talented goalscorer
for Chivas-USA (22
goals in 2014) but has
struggled at Houston
under Scottish coach
Owen Coyle.
New Entry Masterful

playmaker, with 39
assists and 25 goals
in three MLS seasons.
Key player in Portlands
2015 MLS title win.
88
Exciting wide man who

has already established
himself in the Dutch
league and made his
senior debut for New
Zealand.
WORLD SOCCER
Zoran TOSIC
Age 28, CSKA Moscow (Rus) & Serbia

best young defenders
in the Dutch league.
Has benefitted from
key departures at
Feyenoord but could
be the next to leave.
Suffered the ignominy

of Hollands failure to
qualify for Euro 2016.
But still the biggest
personality in the
Turkish league.
New Entry Left-back

or left-sided midfielder
who is set to leave
Libertadores winners
River as a free agent,
following interest from
clubs in Europe.
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Th-Va
KEY
Inaki WILLIAMS
When I saw my name up on the board, I was so

excited. It was February 2015 and 20-year-old
Inaki Williams had just been handed his first start
in European competition for Athletic Bilbao as
they travelled to face Torino in Italy.
Hed already played three times in the first
team but this was different and he admitted that
he felt butterflies in his stomach. If so, it didnt
show. Just eight minutes into the game he scored
the opening goal and the shirt he wore went in a
frame and up on the wall.
The shirt was historic too as Williams had just
become the first black player to score for the club
in its 117-year history, although he was not the first
black player to play for the club: that was Jonas
Ramalho in 2011. In a country where immigration
is a recent phenomenon and still comparatively
limited, few black players have qualified to play
for Athletic Bilbao until now. Not because they
are black but because they are not Basque.
Williams father is from Liberia, his mother from
Ghana, immigrants who had not been in Spain
long when he was born. Raised in Bilbao, he
joined Athletic at 16, the team he had
supported all his life.
He has a Basque name a Basque
first name, anyway and a Spanish passport.

My parents came here over two decades ago
and they did so much for me, he says. I was born
here, Ive been here for 20 years and although
you never forget your roots, I feel Basque.
You hear people say A black player at
Athletic? Weve never seen that before. I just
laugh. My name is Inaki and Im Basque.
He scored in the Final of the Spanish Cup
against Barcelona, and even though that was only
a consolation goal, he is averaging a goal every
other game this season despite not always
playing through the middle and that includes
the winner against Getafe with a flick and volley so
good that it will surely be among the candidates
for goal of the season.
Skilful, quick and bold, he is always ready to
take people on and is one of the most exciting
players to emerge at Athletic for years.
They hope he will remain there for years.
too. Amid interest from Liverpool, Arsenal and
Manchester City, he signed a new contract in
January. The buy-out clause currently stands at
50million and its not unthinkable that some
day someone, somewhere will pay it.
Sid Lowe
TELL US WHAT
YOU THINK
#WS500
WORLD SOCCER
89
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
ZHANG Linpeng
Age 26, Guangzhou Evergrande & China
New Entry With the football world talking about

all the money coming out of China and all the
big, expensive stars going in, there seems to be
an assumption that the opposite is not going to
happen as there is nobody good enough to move
from East Asia to Western Europe.
Well, Zhang Linpeng could be the one to prove
the doubters wrong.
On the last day of the 2015 summer transfer
window, Chelsea made a bid for the Chinese
international and were ready to immediately loan
him out. But the deal was rejected by Guangzhou
Evergrande coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, whohe felt
90
WORLD SOCCER
than this and the 10-time European champions

might have been a step too far too soon, it doesnt
mean that the athletic six-footer, who can play in
the middle of the defence or at right-back, is not
the deal was not right for either the player or his
ready for the big time.
club.
For Guangzhou he usually lines up in the fullThen, a few weeks later, there were
back position and his driving runs down the
rumours in the Cantonese media that
wing have become a favourite of the
Real Madrid had agreed a deal with the
45,000
TELL US WHAT
Asian champions and the famous white
or so fans that regularly pack Tianhe
YOU THINK
shirt with Zhangs name on the back
Stadium. In the second leg of the 2015
#WS500
was already being sold in Spain. It
Asian Champions League Final in
would, perhaps, have been a fitting move for
November, a two-legged affair with
the man who Marcello Lippi his club coach for
the first held in Dubai, Zhang was still streaming
30 months once called our Sergio Ramos in
forward, outpacing the Al Ahli defence and getting
comparison to the long-serving Madrid defender.
crosses into the area, in the closing moments of a
While Chelsea last seasons version rather
long season.
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Va-Wi
KEY
For the national team he has often played in

the middle but under Alain Perrin, who left only
recently, he was given plenty of responsibility for
building as well as stopping attacks. Time after
time, he carried the ball forward from the back,
looking to attract opposition midfielders and then
use his passing ability to exploit the space that
had been created.
It is that skill combined with stamina, a will to
win and leadership that have made him a vital
cog of the all-conquering Guangzhou team. He is
versatile, consistent and determined: the kind of
player that managers love.
With Guangzhou he has won pretty much all he
is going to win and is now ready for the challenge
of a move to Europe. If he picks the right club he
could show that, when it comes to talent, China is
Raphael VARANE
Jamie VARDY
Carlos VELA
Kenneth VERMEER

& France
Age 29, Leicester City

& England
Age 26, Real Sociedad (Spa)

& Mexico
Elegant, speedy
centre-back who has
become increasingly
important to both Real
Madrid and the French
national side.
New Entry Direct and

pacy, he was playing
non-league until four
years ago. A troubled
teen who is now an
England regular.
One of Mexicos most

experienced and
important players.
Controversially signed
by Arsenal in 2006
while aged under 18.
Keeper who crossed

Dutch footballs great
divide in 2014, leaving
Ajax, the club where
he spent the bulk of
his career, to join
Feyenoord.
Marco VERRATTI
Jan VERTONGHEN
Aleix VIDAL
Luciano VIETTO

(Fra) & Italy

(Eng) & Belgium

& Argentina
who has become
increasingly influential
at PSG since a 11m
move from Italys
Pescara as a teenager.
Elegant centre-back
who has played a
crucial role in Spurs
transformation from
outsiders to title
contenders.
New Entry Right-back

signed by Barca as a
long-term replacement
for Dani Alves but
unable to play until
January 2016 due to
a global transfer ban.
Signed by Atletico
last summer after an
impressive first season
in Spain with Villarreal.
Yet to become a
regular starter.
David VILLA
Emanuel VILLA
Brandon VINCENT
Theo WALCOTT
Age 34, New York City (USA)

& Spain
Age 34, Queretaro (Mex)

& Argentina
Age 21, Chicago Fire & USA
Age 26, Arsenal & England
Veteran who was one

of the few bright sparks
in NYCs inaugural MLS
season, with 18 goals
and eight assists in a
poor team.
New Entry Muchtravelled veteran

centre-forward who
was the joint-top
scorer in the Mexican
apertura championship.
New Entry Second

choice in this years
MLS draft behind
Jack Harrison so his
2016 form will give an
indication of the calibre
of college players.
Speedy wide attacker

who is now one of
Arsenals highest-paid
players after signing a
new deal last summer.
Injuries permitting, will
feature at Euro 2016.
Jonathan WALTERS
Victor WANYAMA
Julian WEIGL
Jetro WILLEMS
Age 32, Stoke City (Eng)

Age 24, Southampton (Eng)

& Kenya

& Germany
Age 21, PSV & Holland
New Entry Hardworking front man

enjoying an Indian
summer as an unsung
hero of Irelands Euro
2016 qualification.
Feisty central
midfielder who may
be the next to leave
Southampton, where
he is contracted until
2017. Captain of Kenya.
New Entry Defensive

midfielder who has
been the emerging star
of Dortmunds revival
this season. Signed
from Munich 1860.
Highly-rated left-back
who has returned to
action after damaging
knee ligaments last
summer. His injury
delayed a possible
transfer from PSV.
WORLD SOCCER
91
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
Andri ja
Z I V KOV I C
Age 19, Partizan Belgrade & Serbia
New Entry Not a day seems to go by without

at least one report of a big-beast European
club drooling over Partizan Belgrades teenage
flank virtuoso.
His father, Jovica, claims to have rebuffed
overtures from Real Madrid for his offspring, while
the German tabloid Bild is adamant that Borussia
Dortmund are at the front of the queue for the
young Serb. Elsewhere, heavyweight French daily,
sports paper LEquipe believe Paris Saint-Germain
rival Manchester City and Liverpool as his most
likely destination.
The youngster, whose contract with Partizan
runs out this summer, is absolutely spoilt for
choice. But before he does leave his homeland,
there are all manner of legal and administrative
knots to untie.
Following his refusal to sign a new deal with
Partizan, Zivkovic was recently banned from
training with the first-team and the waters are
being further muddied by some complex
third-party issues.
Zivkovics economic rights are owned by Cypriot
club Apollon Limassol who, like Partizan, have
strong links to the Israeli super agent, Pini Zahavi
and, according to Serb newspaper Vechernye
Novosti, Partizan will have to pay a penalty
clause in excess of 3million to Apollon
if the left-footed right-winger leaves on
TELL US WHAT
a free transfer or fails to extend his
YOU THINK
contract with the Serb champions.
#WS500
All in all, its a very messy business
and an imbroglio which FIFA may well
be forced to adjudicate upon in the not-toodistant future.
The heart and soul of his countrys triumph at
last years World Under-20 finals in New Zealand,
Zivkovic is 100 per cent boy wonder. He dribbles
with the fluidity of a Maradona, is explosive and
elusive on the ball, can turn inside or out, packs
a powerful shot with minimum back-lift, has an
eye for a final pass and, if that was not enough,
he is a free-kick wizard to boot.
The youngster has always been ahead
of the curve in his career, making his first team
bow for Partizan when just 16, in April 2013,
and becoming the clubs youngest-ever captain
less than 12 months later. He is also Serbias
rawest-ever full international, winning his first cap
in October 2013 at the age of only 17 years and
92 days when coming on as a substitute for Zoran
Tosic in a 2-0 home friendly victory over Japan.
Little wonder the much-coveted youngster
often is described as the most talented player
to emerge from Serbia since legendary ex-Red
Star Belgrade playmaker Dragan Stojkovic three
decades ago.
In common with Stojkovic, the new kid on the
block also hails from the southern city of Nis. And
just like the current Guangzhou R&F coach, both
possess crystalline skills to die for.
Nick Bidwell
92
WORLD SOCCER
WINGER
ST R I K E R
Wi-Zu
KEY
WILLIAM
CARVALHO
& Portugal
Dynamic midfielder
contracted until
2020. Still at Sporting
across Europe.
Axel WITSEL
Age 27, Zenit (Rus) & Belgium
Midfield protector
who joined Zenit in
a staggering 40m
deal from Benfica in
2012. Could move on
when his contract ends
in 2017.
Ashley WILLIAMS
WILLIAN
Jack WILSHERE

& Wales
Age 27, Chelsea (Eng) & Brazil
Age 24, Arsenal & England
New Entry
Highly rated
centre-back
who will be
Wales captain
at the Euros.
His clubs most effective

player this term
despite their
PROFILED
poor form.
INAKI
A starter in
WILLIAMS
ON PAGE 89
Brazils World
Cup campaign.
Chris
WONDOLOWSKI
Age 33, San Jose Earthquakes
& USA
New Entry The most

successful Americanborn striker in MLS,
especially since a 2009
move to San Jose.
The great hope of

English football is out
injured again but
will be central to Roy
Hodgsons plans for
Euro 2016 if he can
recover his fitness.
XABI ALONSO
Granit XHAKA

& Spain

(Ger) & Switzerland
Cultured midfield pivot

who has thrived in
Munich after making a
surprise switch to the
Bundesliga from Real
Madrid in 2014.
The little Einstein is

one of Switzerlands
Swiss-born to Kosovan
Albanian parents.
Brother of Taulant.
Taulant XHAKA
Pablo ZABALETA
Age 24, Basle (Swi) & Albania

& Argentina
New Entry Brother

of Granit who opted
to play for Albanias
senior national side
after representing
Switzerland at various
youth levels.
Left-sided attacker dubbed the new Shevchenko.

Signed a new five-year contract with Dynamo last
autumn but is still tipped to move to the West.
Attacking right-back
who has recovered
from injury to reclaim
his place at City. Played
for Argentina in the
2014 World Cup Final.
Simone ZAZA
ZHENG zhi
Hakim ZIYECH
Luca ZUFFI

& China
Age 22, Twente (Hol) & Morocco
Age 25, Basle & Switzerland
Creative playmaker
who is being watched
by many leading
scouts. Though capped
by Holland at under-21
level, he opted to play
for Moroccos seniors.
New Entry Central

midfielder who has
played a big role for
Basle over the past two
seasons and is growing
in importance for the
Swiss national side.
Andriy YARMOLENKO
Age 26, Dynamo Kiev & Ukraine
Striker who is not

Veteran national-team
always first choice for
captain and star
Juventus but still
has a knack of
for Chinas
PROFILED
leading club
chipping in
ZHANG
with some
Guangzhou
LINPENG
Evergrande.
crucial goals.
ON PAGE 90
WORLD SOCCER
93
WORLD SOCCE R 50 0
T H E C O M P L E T E L I S T. . .
P34
P36
P38
P40
P42
94
Aymen ABDENNOUR .............. Valencia & Tunisia*

Omar ABDULRAHMAN .................... Al Ain & UAE
Vincent ABOUBAKAR .............Porto & Cameroon
Sebastian ABREU ....Sol de America & Uruguay*
ADRIEN SILVA ...........Sporting Lisbon & Portugal*
Aritz ADURIZ ...................... Athletic Bilbao & Spain
Sergio AGUERO..... Manchester City & Argentina
David ALABA .................. Bayern Munich & Austria
Jordi ALBA .....................................Barcelona & Spain
Paco ALCACER ...............................Valencia & Spain
Toby ALDERWEIRELD .Tottenham H & Belgium*
ALEX TEIXEIRA ................. Jiangsu Suning & Brazil
ALISSON .................................Internacional
& Brazil*
.........
P37 Tottenham H & England*
Dele ALLI.......................
........
ANDRE ANDRE ..............................Porto
& Portugal
.........
P38
Arda TURAN ..............................
Barcelona & Turkey
.........
Marko ARNAUTOVIC
I ........... Stoke City & Austria*
Takuma ASANO ..Sanfrecce Hiroshima & Japan*
Pierre-Emerick AUBAMEYANG . Dortmund & Gab
Serge AURIER ..............................PSG & Ivory Coast
Andre AYEW ................................. Swansea & Ghana
Sardar AZMOUN . Rostov (loan from Rubin) & Iran
Carlos BACCA................................ Milan & Colombia
Eric BAILLY ......................... Villarreal & Ivory Coast*
Cedric BAKAMBU ..............Villarreal & DR Congo*
Gareth BALE ............................Real Madrid & Wales
Ever BANEGA ............................ Sevilla & Argentina*
Ross BARKLEY ........................... Everton & England
Abdel BARRADA ...................Marseille & Morocco*
Diego BARRETO..................... Olimpia & Paraguay*
Wilmar BARRIOS .....................Tolima & Colombia*
Augusto BATALLA ...........
......... River Plate & Argentina
P40
Michy BATSHUAYI .................Marseille
& Belgium*
..........
Claudio BEAUVUE ...................Celta Vigo & France
Karim BELLARABI .........
..... B Leverkusen & Germany
P42
Hatem BEN ARFA ............................
..........
Nice & France*
Lars BENDER........Bayer
er Leverkusen & Germany
Dario BENEDETTO .....................America & Mexico
Martin BENITEZ ....... Independiente & Argentina*
Karim BENZEMA ..................Real Madrid & France
Domenico BERARDI ....................... Sassuolo & Italy
BERNARDO SILVA ...................Monaco & Portugal
Lucas BIGLIA ................................. Lazio & Argentina
Birkir BJARNASON........................ Basle & Iceland*
Jerome BOATENG ....Bayern Munich & Germany
Daniel BODE .....................Ferencvaros & Hungary*
Miler BOLANOS ..........................Gremio & Ecuador
Yannick BOLASIE .....Crystal Palace & DR Congo
Giacomo BONAVENTURA ................. Milan & Italy
Leonardo BONUCCI ......................Juventus & Italy*
Alberto BOTIA.......................... Olympiakos & Spain
Gustavo BOU ..............................Racing & Argentina
Sofiane BOUFAL ................................. Lille & France*
Michael BRADLEY ............................. Toronto & USA
Robbie BRADY......... Norwich City & Rep Ireland*
Yacine BRAHIMI ................................Porto & Algeria
Martin BRAITHWAITE ........Toulouse & Denmark*
Claudio BRAVO........................... Barcelona & Chile*
BRUNO Soriano ...........................Villarreal & Spain*
Constantin BUDESCU . Dalian Yifang & Romania*
Gigi BUFFON ..................................... Juventus & Italy
BURAK Yilmaz .................. Beijing Guoan & Turkey
Sergio BUSQUETS .....................Barcelona & Spain
Yohan CABAYE ............... Crystal Palace & France*
Tim CAHILL ..........................unattached & Australia
CAIO ........................................Grasshoppers & Brazil*
Hakan CALHANOGLU .......B Leverkusen & Turkey
Jose CALLEJON ................................. Napoli & Spain
Ignacio CAMACHO ..........................Malaga & Spain
Esteban CAMBIASSO ... Olympiakos & Argentina*
Emre CAN ................................Liverpool & Germany
Lorik CANA .....................................Nantes & Albania*
Antonio CANDREVA...............................Lazio & Italy
Facundo CARDOZO ..... Bolivar (loan Velez) & Arg*
Edinson CAVANI............................... PSG & Uruguay
Juan CAZARES .........Atletico Mineiro & Ecuador*
Santi CAZORLA ................................Arsenal & Spain
Petr CECH .............................. Arsenal & Czech Rep*
Jose Francisco CEVALLOS ......... LDU & Ecuador*
Charyl CHAPPUIS ...........Suphanburi & Thailand*
Sunil CHHETRI . Bengaluru (loan Mumbai) & Ind
WORLD SOCCER
P44
P46
P48
P50
P52
Giorgio CHIELLINI ........................... Juventus & Italy

Yassine CHIKHAOUI .............Al Gharafa & Tunisia*
Vlad CHIRICHES ........................Napoli & Romania*
Alejandro CHUMACERO ...... Strongest & Bolivia*
Jasper CILLESSEN ............................Ajax & Holland
Viktor CLAESSON ................... Elfsborg & Sweden*
Kingsley COMAN ........... Bayern (loan Juve) & Fra
German CONTI ...........................Colon & Argentina*
Ante CORIC .................... Dinamo Zagreb & Croatia
Angel CORREA ........ Atletico Madrid & Argentina
Diego COSTA ....................................Chelsea & Spain
Benoit COSTIL...............................Rennes & France*
Thibaut COURTOIS .................. Chelsea & Belgium
Philippe COUTINHO....................Liverpool & Brazil
Adrian CUBAS.............. Boca Juniors & Argentina*
Moanes DABOUR ................Grasshoppers & Israel
Mahmoud DAHOUD .........Gladbach & Germany*
Jurgen DAMM ...................................Tigres & Mexico
DANI ALVES ..................................Barcelona & Brazil
DANILO Pereira ..............................Porto & Portugal
Vladimir DARIDA ..................Hertha & Czech Rep*
DAVID LUIZ............................................... PSG & Brazil
Steven DAVIS .............. Southampton & N Ireland*
Kevin DE BRUYNE .. Manchester City & Belgium
David DE GEA ........... Manchester United & Spain
Luuk DE JONG ...................................PSV & Holland*
Daniele DE ROSSI ................................. Roma & Italy
Brecht DEJAEGERE ...................... Gent & Belgium*
Nicolas DELGADILLO ............... Velez & Argentina*
Mattias DELGADO ..................... Basle & Argentina*
Andy DELORT.....................................Caen & France*
Clint DEMPSEY ...............Seattle Sounders & USA
Leander DENDONCKER .. Anderlecht & Belgium*
Memphis DEPAY .................Man
.......
United & Holland
P49
Laurent DEPOITRE .........................Gent
& Belgium
..........
Olivier DESCHACHTT ........ Anderlecht & Belgium*
P50
Angel DI MARIA .............................PSG
& Argentina
.........
Lassana DIARRA .......................Marseille & France*
Marcelo DIAZ .................................Celta Vigo & Chile
Mauro DIAZ .................................Dallas & Argentina*
Sergio DIAZ .................Cerro Porteno & Paraguay*
Daniel DIDAVI ....................... Stuttgart & Germany*
Famara DIEDHIOU .Clermont (loan Sochaux) & Sen*
DIOGO JOTA ................ Pacos Ferreira & Portugal*
Nabil DIRAR ..............................Monaco & Morocco*
Borek DOCKAL ........................Sparta & Czech Rep
Alejandro DOMINGUEZ ..............Olympiakos
........O
& Arg
P52
Gianluigi DONNARUMMA .................Milan
.........
& Italy*
Giovanni DOS SANTOS ....... LA
A Galaxy & Mexico
Jonathan DOS SANTOS ......... Villarreal & Mexico
Bas DOST ................................. Wolfsburg & Holland
DOUGLAS COSTA ........... Bayern Munich & Brazil
Julian DRAXLER .................. Wolfsburg & Germany
Jimmy DURMAZ................Olympiakos
& Sweden*
........
P54
Paulo DYBALA .......................Juventus
& Argentina
..........
Balazs DZSUDZSAK ..........Bursaspor
& Hungary*
.........
P57
Artyom DZYUBA..................................Zenit
& Russia
........
EDER .................... Inter (loan Sampdoria) & Italy*
Mohamed ELNENY .........................Arsenal & Egypt
Breel EMBOLO..........................Basle & Switzerland
Vincent ENYEAMA ..............................Lille & Nigeria
Christian ERIKSEN ............Tottenham & Denmark
Cristian ESPINOZA ............. Huracan & Argentina*
Jonny EVANS .....West Brom & Northern Ireland*
Frank FABRA .................Boca Juniors & Colombia*
Cesc FABREGAS .............................Chelsea & Spain
Diego FAGUNDEZ ..New England Rev & Uruguay*
Ralf FAHRMANN....................Schalke & Germany*
Sofiane FEGHOULI ....................Valencia & Algeria
Nabil FEKIR ........................................... Lyon & France
FELIPE ANDERSON ............................Lazio & Brazil
FERNANDAO .......................... Fenerbahce & Brazil*
Augusto FERNANDEZ..... At Madrid & Argentina*
FERNANDINHO ..............Manchester City & Brazil
Roberto FIRMINO ........................Liverpool & Brazil
Alessandro FLORENZI ........................Roma & Italy*
Diego FORLAN .........................Penarol & Uruguay*
Kostas FORTOUNIS .......... Olympiakos & Greece*
Manolo GABBIADINI .......................... Napoli & Italy
GABI ......................................Atletico Madrid & Spain
GABRIEL BARBOSA.......................Santos & Brazil*
P54
P56
P58
P60
P62
GABRIEL JESUS .........................Palmeiras & Brazil*

Nico GAITAN ............................. Benfica & Argentina
Kevin GAMEIRO ............................. Sevilla & France*
Ezequiel GARAY ........................Zenit and Argentina
Shkelzen GASHI .........Colorado Rapids & Albania
Valere GERMAIN........ Nicee ((loan Monaco) & Fra*
Andre-Pierre GIGNAC ....................Tigres
& France
..........
.......
P58
Jose GIMENEZ .......................
At Madrid & Uruguay
....... A
P60
Matthias GINTER ...............Dortmund
& Germany*
.........
Sebastian GIOVINCO
O ........................Toronto & Italy
Olivier GIROUD ............................. Arsenal & France
Diego GODIN...............Atletico Madrid & Uruguay
Gokhan TORE ...............................Besiktas & Turkey*
Andre GOMES ......................... Valencia & Portugal*
Maxime GONALONS ......................... Lyon & France
Goncalo GUEDES .................... Benfica & Portugal*
Cesar GONZALEZ ....... Dep Tachira & Venezuela*
Mark GONZALEZ .................................. Sport & Chile
Mario GOTZE ..............Bayern Munich & Germany
Ricardo GOULART ............Guangzhou Ev & Brazil
Andreas GRANQVIST.........Krasnodar & Sweden*
Antoine GRIEZMANN .............At Madrid & France
Andres GUARDADO ...........................PSV & Mexico
Nemanja GUDELJ ................................Ajax
& Serbia
.........
P62
Paulo GUERRERO ......................Flamengo
& Peru*
.........
John GUIDETTI ................................Celta & Sweden*
Ilkay GUNDOGAN ... Bor Dortmund & Germany
Gaston GURUCEAGA .............Penarol & Uruguay*
Asamoah GYAN.............. Shanghai SIPG & Ghana
Sebastien HALLER ......................Utrecht & France*
Marek HAMSIK ..............................Napoli & Slovakia
Samir HANDANOVIC ..................... Inter & Slovenia
Martin HANSEN ................ Den Haag & Denmark*
Jack HARRISON...........New York City & England*
Joe HART......................Manchester City & England
Eden HAZARD ........................... Chelsea & Belgium
Jonas HECTOR ....................... Cologne & Germany*
Markus HENRIKSEN ........................... AZ & Norway*
Angelo HENRIQUEZ ...... Dinamo Zagreb & Chile*
Javier HERNANDEZ.......B Leverkusen & Mexico*
Hector HERRERA ..............................Porto
& Mexico
.........
P64
Gonzalo HIGUAIN......................Napoli
& Argentina
.........
Martin HINTEREGGER .Gladbach
b (loan Salzburg) & Aut*
Pierre HOJBJERG Augsburg (loan Schalke) & Den
Keisuke HONDA ...................................Milan & Japan
HULK .......................................................... Zenit & Brazil
Mats HUMMELS ................. Dortmund & Germany
Khalfan IBRAHIM............................Al Sadd & Qatar
Zlatan IBRAHIMOVIC...................... PSG & Sweden
Mauro ICARDI ............ Internazionale & Argentina
Odion IGHALO ............................ Watford & Nigeria*
Josip ILICIC .............................Fiorentina & Slovenia*
Andres INIESTA ...........................Barcelona & Spain
INIGO Martinez ..................Real Sociedad & Spain
Lorenzo INSIGNE ................................. Napoli & Italy
Andreas ISAKSSON ............ Kasimpasa & Sweden
ISCO ..............................................Real Madrid & Spain
Dhurgam ISMAIL .............. Caykur Rizespor & Iraq
Ander ITURRASPE ........... Athletic Bilbao & Spain
Marc JANKO .......................................Basle & Austria*
JEMERSON ...................................... Monaco & Brazil*
Roberto JIMENEZ ..................Olympiakos
& Spain*
.......
P67
JOAO MARIO .........................
Sp Lisbon & Portugal
..........
JOAO MOUTINHO ...................Monaco & Portugal
Andreas JOHANSSON.....Norrkoping & Sweden*
JONAS .................................................Benfica & Brazil*
Stevan JOVETIC ...Internazionale & Montenegro*
Luka JOVIC ....................................... Benfica & Serbia
JUANFRAN .........................Atletico Madrid & Spain
Zlatko JUNUZOVIC ....Werder Bremen & Austria*
Pavel KADERABEK ....Hoffenheim & Czech Rep*
Shinji KAGAWA ....... Borussia Dortmund & Japan
KAKA .......................................... Orlando City & Brazil
Lovre KALINIC ............................... Hajduk & Croatia*
Nikola KALINIC ....................... Fiorentina & Croatia*
Kevin KAMPL ..........Bayer Leverkusen & Slovenia
Harry KANE ....................... Tottenham H & England
NGolo KANTE ...................Leicester City & France*
Robbie KEANE ................ LA Galaxy & Rep Ireland
Neeskens KEBANO..................
Genk & DR Congo*
......
P68
Ahmed KHALIL ....................................
Al Ahli & UAE*
..........
Wahbi KHAZRI ......................Sunderland & Tunisia*
Sami KHEDIRA......................Juventus & Germany*
Joshua KIMMICH ......Bayern Munich & Germany
Gabor KIRALY ............. Szom Haladas & Hungary*
P64
P66
P68
P70
P72
Davy KLAASSEN ................................Ajax & Holland

KOKE .....................................Atletico Madrid & Spain
Aleksandr KOKORIN ..........................Zenit & Russia
Vincent KOMPANY .................Man City & Belgium
Yevhen KONOPLYANKA........... Sevilla & Ukraine*
Julian KORB ........ Bor Mgladbach and Germany*
Laurent KOSCIELNY ................... Arsenal & France
Kalidou KOULIBALY .......................Napoli & France
Mateo KOVACIC .................Real Madrid & Croatia*
Christoph KRAMER .... B Leverkusen & Germany
Matias KRANEVITTER ......At Madrid & Argentina
Toni KROOS ......................Real Madrid & Germany
Max KRUSE ..................... Wolfsburg and Germany*
Grzegorz KRYCHOWIAK ............ Sevilla & Poland
Juraj KUCKA.....................................Milan & Slovakia*
Sven KUMS ....................................... Gent & Belgium*
Layvin KURZAWA ................................PSG & France
Dirk KUYT ................................ Feyenoord & Holland
KWON Chang-hoon .........Suwon & South Korea*
Alexandre LACAZETTE..................... Lyon & France
Kyle LAFFERTY............. Norwich City & N Ireland*
Philipp LAHM .............Bayern Munich & Germany
Erik LAMELA .......................Tottenham & Argentina
Aymeric LAPORTE .........Athletic Bilbao & France
Cyle LARIN ..................................Orlando
& Canada*
....O
P70
Pierre-Michel LASOGGA .........
............Hamburg
& Ger*
.......
Ezequiel LAVEZZI .......................Hebei & Argentina
Miguel LAYUN .....Porto (loan Watford) & Mexico
LEE Dong-gook ............................Jeonbuk & Korea*
Robert LEWANDOWSKI .............Bayern & Poland
Stephane LICHTSTEINER ..........Juventus & Switz*
Damian LIZIO Botafogo (loan Bolivar) & Bolivia*
Fernando LLORENTE ......................Sevilla & Spain*
Hugo LLORIS ....................... Tottenham H & France
Carlos LOBATON..............Sporting Cristal & Peru*
Nicolas LODEIRO............Boca Juniors & Uruguay
Shane LONG ........... Southampton & Rep Ireland*
Brian LOZANO .........................America & Uruguay*
Hirving LOZANO .........................Pachuca & Mexico
LUAN ....................................................Gremio & Brazil*
LUCAS LIMA.......................................Santos & Brazil*
LUCAS MOURA ...................................... PSG & Brazil
Diego LUGANO....................Sao Paulo & Uruguay*
Romelu LUKAKU ........................Everton & Belgium
Phakamani MAHLAMBI......
.........Bidvest Wits & SAf*
P72 Leicester & Algeria*
Riyad MAHREZ .........................
.........
Yunus MALLI ......................................Mainz & Turkey*
Pavel MAMAEV ....................Krasnodar and Russia*
Federico MANCUELLO...Flamengo & Argentina*
Mario MANDZUKIC ................... Juventus & Croatia
Kostas MANOLAS............................Roma & Greece
MARCELO...................................Real Madrid & Brazil
Claudio MARCHISIO ...................... Juventus & Italy
MARQUINHOS ....................................... PSG & Brazil
Anthony MARTIAL ...............Man United & France
Fidel MARTINEZ ......................... Pumas & Ecuador*
Jackson MARTINEZ .............. Guangzhou Ev & Col
Javier MASCHERANO .....Barcelona & Argentina
Nemanja MATIC............................. Chelsea & Serbia
Joel MATIP ...............................Schalke & Cameroon
Blaise MATUIDI .....................................PSG & France
MAXWELL ................................................PSG & Brazil*
MEHMET Topal..................... Fenerbahce & Turkey*
Alexander MEIER .........Eint Frankfurt & Germany
Angel MENA ................................Emelec & Ecuador*
Dries MERTENS .............................Napoli & Belgium
Lionel MESSI ........................Barcelona & Argentina
Thomas MEUNIER ...........Club Brugge & Belgium
Jon Obi MIKEL ............................ Chelsea & Nigeria*
Arkadiusz MILIK ...................................Ajax & Poland
Yerry MINA .............................Santa Fe & Colombia*
MIRANDA ..............................Internazionale & Brazil
Henrikh MKHITARYAN .... Dortmund & Armenia*
Luka MODRIC....................... Real Madrid & Croatia
Jefferson MONTERO .............Swansea & Ecuador
Cesar MONTES .......................Monterrey & Mexico*
Javier MORALES ......Real Salt Lake & Argentina*
Alvaro MORATA ............................. Juventus & Spain
Hector MORENO .................................PSV
& Mexico
.........
P75
Marlos MORENO ........
........................At
Nacional & Col*
.........
P76
Jordan MORRIS.............Seattle
Sounders & USA*
..........
Thiago MOTTA............................................ PSG & Italy
Benjamin MOUKANDJO ... Lorient & Cameroon*
Thomas MULLER ...................... Bayern & Germany
Moises MUNOZ .......................... America & Mexico*
P74
P76
P78
P80
P82
Luis MURIEL ........................Sampdoria & Colombia

Ahmed MUSA..................CSKA Moscow & Nigeria
Yvon MVOGO ..............Young Bots & Switzerland*
Elmir NABIULLIN .................Rubin Kazan & Russia
Radja NAINGGOLAN ...................Roma & Belgium
NALDO ............................................Wolfsburg & Brazil
Nahitan NANDEZ .....................Penarol & Uruguay*
Jesus NAVAS....................Manchester City & Spain
Keylor NAVAS ...............Real Madrid & Costa Rica*
Cheikh NDOYE .......................... Angers & Senegal*
Manuel NEUER ..........Bayern Munich & Germany
NEYMAR .........................................Barcelona
& Brazil
.........
P78 ....
Oumar NIASSE ..........................Everton
& Senegal*
.........
Nemanja NIKOLIC ........................Legia
& Hungary*
P80
..........
.......
........
Casimir NINGA .........................Montpellier & Chad*
Nicolas NKOULOU .............Marseille & Cameroon
Christian NOBOA......................... Rostov & Ecuador
NOLITO ............................................Celta Vigo & Spain
Paul-Georges NTEP..................... Rennes & France
Ashraf NUMAN ............................Hajer & Palestine*
Shinji OKAZAKI .................... Leicester City & Japan
Karim ONISIWO ..............................Mainz & Austria*
OSCAR.................................................Chelsea & Brazil
Victor OSIMHEN ........ Ultimate Striker & Nigeria*
Dani OSVALDO......................... Boca Juniors & Italy
Nicolas OTAMENDI ..............Man City & Argentina
Mesut OZIL .................................Arsenal & Germany
Leandro PAREDES .....Empoli (loan Roma) & Arg
Thomas PARTEY .......... Atletico Madrid & Ghana*
Javier PASTORE .............................PSG & Argentina
PAULO OLIVEIRA .....Sporting Lisbon & Portugal
Dimitri PAYET ............................West Ham & France
Carlos PENA.....................................Chivas & Mexico*
PEPE ...................................... Real Madrid & Portugal
Roberto PEREYRA ...............Juventus & Argentina
Ivan PERISIC ....................................... Inter & Croatia*
Diego PEROTTI ...........Roma (loan Genoa) & Arg*
Loic PERRIN ...................... Saint-Etienne & France*
Gerard PIQUE...............................Barcelona & Spain
Guido PIZARRO ..........................Tigres & Argentina
Marko PJACA ................................Dinamo & Croatia*
Miralem PJANIC ................................Roma & Bosnia
Paul POGBA..................................Juventus & France
Diego POLENTA .. Nacional (loan Genoa) & Uru*
Dennis PRAET ......................Anderlecht & Belgium
Lucas PRATTO ..........Atletico Mineiro & Argentina
Harold PRECIADO....Deportivo Cali & Colombia*
Quincy PROMES .........................Spartak & Holland
RAFA SILVA ..................................... Braga & Portugal
RAFFAEL ............................... B Mgladbach & Brazil*
Ivan RAKITIC ............................. Barcelona & Croatia
RAMIRES ............................. Jiangsu Suning & Brazil
Sergio RAMOS .........................Real Madrid & Spain
Aaron RAMSEY ................................Arsenal & Wales
Pepe REINA.........................................Napoli & Spain*
RENATO SANCHES ................. Benfica & Portugal*
Marco REUS ......................... Dortmund & Germany
Jose Antonio REYES ........................ Sevilla & Spain
RICARDO OLIVEIRA ......................Santos & Brazil*
Arjen ROBBEN ............................. Bayern & Holland
RODRIGO CAIO ........................ Sao Paulo & Brazil*
James RODRIGUEZ ...... Real Madrid & Colombia
Martin RODRIGUEZ................... Colo Colo & Chile*
Cristiano RONALDO ....... Real Madrid & Portugal
Wayne ROONEY ................ Man United & England
Cristian RIVEROS ....................Olimpia & Paraguay
RUBEN NEVES................................Porto & Portugal
RUI PATRICIO............Sporting Lisbon & Portugal*
Victor RUIZ ....................................Villarreal & Spain*
Mohamed SALAH ............................... Roma & Egypt
Carlos SALCEDO ............................Chivas & Mexico*
Mbwana SAMATTA.......................Genk & Tanzania*
Alexis SANCHEZ ...............................Arsenal & Chile
Leroy SANE...............................Schalke & Germany*
Michael SANTOS............... River Plate & Uruguay*
Hisato SATO ..........Sanfrecce Hiroshima & Japan*
SAUL Niguez ......................Atletico Madrid & Spain
Andre SCHURRLE ................ Wolfsburg & German
Bastian SCHWEINSTEIGER .......... Man Utd & Ger
Luis Manuel SEIJAS ......... Santa Fe & Venezuela*
SELCUK Inan ..........................Galatasaray & Turkey*
Yevhen SELEZNYOV ..................Dnipro & Ukraine*
Matz SELS ......................................... Gent & Belgium*
SEMIH Kaya ............................Galatasaray & Turkey*
SERGI Roberto........................... Barcelona & Spain*
P84
P86
P88
P90
P92
Xherdan SHAQIRI ......... Stoke City & Switzerland

Oleg SHATOV ...................................... Zenit & Russia*
Kolbeinn SIGTHORSSON .........Nantes & Iceland*
Gylfi SIGURDSSON................. Swansea & Iceland*
David SILVA ......................Manchester City & Spain
Jonathan SILVA .....Boca (loan Sp Lisbon) & Arg*
Gio SIMEONE .........Banfield (loan R Plate) & Arg
Daley SINKGRAVEN .........Heerenveen & Holland
Pione SISTO ........................ Midtjylland & Denmark
Martin SKRTEL ....................... LIverpool & Slovakia*
Islam SLIMANI .............................Sporting & Algeria
Igor SMOLNIKOV .............................. Zenit & Russia*
Fyodor SMOLOV ..................... Krasnodar & Russia*
Wesley SNEIJDER ..............Galatasaray
& Holland
.........
P82 Vitesse (Chelsea) & Eng*
Dominic SOLANKE ..........
.........
Roberto SOLDADO ....................Villarreal & Spain*
SOKRATIS Papastathopoulos ..Dortmund & Gre*
Yann SOMMER ....... B Mgladbach & Switzerland
Jonathan SORIANO .............RB Salzburg & Spain
Roberto SORIANO.................... Sampdoria & Italy*
Ismael SOSA ............................. Pumas & Argentina*
Darijo SRNA ..............Shakhtar Donetsk & Croatia
.....
Raheem STERLING .................
Man City & England
P84
.........
Lars STINDL ..............................B
Mgladbach & Ger
John STONES .............................. Everton & England
Stefano STURARO .......................... Juventus & Italy
Luis SUAREZ .......................... Barcelona & Uruguay
Jonathan TAH ...................Leverkusen & Germany*
Ciprian TATARUSANU .......Fiorentina & Romania*
Marc-Andre TER STEGEN .........Barcelona & Ger*
Carlos TEVEZ ................................. Boca & Argentina
THIAGO ALCANTARA .....................Bayern & Spain
THIAGO SILVA......................................... PSG & Brazil
Inaki WILLIAMS ................. Athletic Bilbao & Spain
Romain THOMAS .........................Angers & France*
Ryan THOMAS ...........PEC Zwolle & New Zealand
Youri TIELEMANS ...............Anderlecht & Belgium
Corentin TOLISSO .............................Lyon & France*
Erick TORRES ........... Houston Dynamo & Mexico
Zoran TOSIC .....................CSKA Moscow & Serbia*
......
Francesco TOTTI.....................................
Roma & Italy
P86
..........
Yaya TOURE ........................Man
City & Ivory Coast
Ibrahima TRAORE.......... B Mgladbach & Guinea*
Kevin TRAPP ................................... PSG & Germany*
Takashia USAMI................ Gamba Osaka & Japan*
Jaime VALDES ............................. Colo Colo & Chile*
Diego VALERI ..... Portland Timbers & Argentina*
Sven VAN BEEK ...................Feyenoord & Holland*
Robin VAN PERSIE ........... Fenerbahce & Holland
Leonel VANGIONI ..........River Plate & Argentina*
Raphael VARANE ................Real Madrid & France
Jamie VARDY .................Leicester City & England*
Carlos VELA ......................Real Sociedad & Mexico
Kenneth VERMEER .............Feyenoord & Holland*
Marco VERRATTI ....................................... PSG & Italy
Jan VERTONGHEN ......... Tottenham H & Belgium
Aleix VIDAL .................................Barcelona & Spain*
Luciano VIETTO ....... Atletico Madrid & Argentina
David VILLA ......................... New York City & Spain
Emmanuel VILLA ............. Queretaro & Argentina*
Brandon VINCENT ................ Chicago Fire & USA*
Theo WALCOTT .......................... Arsenal & England
Jonathan WALTERS ..............Stoke & Rep Ireland*
Victor WANYAMA.............. Southampton & Kenya
Julian WEIGL ......................Dortmund & Germany*
Jetro WILLEMS ................................... PSV & Holland
WILLIAM CARVALHO ......... Sp Lisbon & Portugal
.........
Ashley WILLIAMS ..............Swansea
City & Wales*
P89 Athletic Bilbao & Spain
.........
Inaki WILLIAMS .................
WILLIAN ..............................................Chelsea & Brazil
Jack WILSHERE .......................... Arsenal & England
Axel WITSEL .......................................Zenit & Belgium
Chris WONDOLOWSKI ...........San Jose E & USA*
XABI ALONSO .................. Bayern Munich & Spain
Granit XHAKA.......... B Mgladbach & Switzerland
Taulant XHAKA ................................Basle & Albania*
Andriy YARMOLENKO ............... D Kiev & Ukraine
Pablo ZABALETA...................Man City & Argentina
.........
Simone ZAZA ....................................
Juventus & Italy
P90
.........
ZHANG Linpeng ...............Guangzhou
Ev & China*
ZHENG Zhi ........................... Guangzhou Ev & China
Andrija ZIVKOVIC .... Partizan Belgrade & Serbia*
Hakim ZIYECH .............................. Twente & Holland
Luca ZUFFI ................................ Basle & Switzerland*
WORLD SOCCER
95
The secret behind Leicester:

freaks with a simple system
Premier League upstarts rely on doing what they are good at, says Jonathan Wilson
When Leicester City beat Manchester City
3-1 in February and made everybody
wake up to the fact they might actually be
serious title contenders after all they
had 36.1 per cent possession and their
pass completion rate was just 64 per cent.
Previously there had been a consensus
of opinion, informed by the success of
Barcelona under Pep Guardiola, that
possession was key. Johan Cruyff kept
telling everybody that if you have the ball,
the opposition cant score. Dominate
possession; pass, pass, pass; grind the
opposition down with the attrition of
constant movement and exploit the spaces
when they occurred. It was what the best
teams did, celebrating their mastery by
hogging the ball. Football, it seemed, had
moved into a new phase.
Ever since the 6-3 defeat to Hungary
in 1953 Englands first defeat at home
to non-British or Irish opposition there
has been a tendency to blame failure
on, initially, a lack of passion and desire,
and then, in a more considered way, a
lack of technique.
English players, columnists and coaches
Leicester have the third-lowest possession stats

in the Premier League and the lowest pass success
rate of any team in Europes top five leagues
agree, arent good enough on the ball,
dont practise technique enough early in
life, play on pitches that are too big, and
prioritise pace and stamina.
The cry went up after the 3-1 beating
by West Germany in 1972, after the
2-0 loss to Holland in 1977, after the
embarrassments of the early 1990s and
Euro 2000, after the 3-2 defeat to Croatia
in 2007. But while this may have some
basis in fact, it doesnt explain how
England, with such supposedly inferior
technique, were able to win the World Cup
in 1966. Or why English sides were able to
dominate European competition in the
1970s and the 1980s. Or why two English
clubs were able to contest the Champions
League Final in 2008 a game that, for
all the influx of foreign players, kicked off
with 10 Englishmen on the pitch.
The truth may simply be that there are
96
WORLD SOCCER
many ways of playing football and that,

when things go wrong, all countries have
a tendency to believe they should adopt
the qualities of their vanquishers. Brazil,
for example, was obsessed throughout the
1970s and 1980s by the notion that its
football needed to
be more physical
something it
has achieved
with dismal results.
After Barcelonas
thesis of radical
possession came
Jose Mourinhos
antithesis of radical
non-possession,
exemplified by
Internazionales
1-0 defeat and
3-2 aggregate
Pressure...Leicester
give Manchester
Uniteds Anthony
Martial little space
Target man...
Marouane Fellaini
win with 19 per cent possession at Camp

Nou in the Champions League semi-final
in 2010. What European football is seeing
now is the synthesis, a consensus based
on hard-pressing and rapid transitions.
Even Barcelona have begun to counterattack more.
Leicester, as perhaps is fitting for a
smaller club, lie at the radical end of that.
There has been much talk in the
Premier League of the rise of the middle,
how the incredible wealth of the new
television deals means that being
inordinately rich, in the way of Roman
Abramovich or Sheikh Mansour are, is
no longer the advantage it once was.
Leicesters average possession this
season has been 43.7 per cent: the
third-lowest figure in the Premier League.
Their pass success rate is 69.3 per cent
which is not merely the lowest in the
Premier League but the fifth-lowest of any
team in the top tier of any of Europes
major five leagues.
Leicesters pass completion rate is
low not because of any technical failing,
rather because of the way they play: the
much-circulated rat-a-tat of passes in the
TACTICS
Impressive...Riyad Mahrez
celebrates scoring Leicesters
second goal at Manchester City
win over Liverpool is proof of that. Their

game plan is relatively simple. They sit
deep and look to draw the opposition on.
The two central midfielders, NGolo Kante
and Danny Drinkwater, shield the back
four. The two wide midfielders, Riyad
Mahrez and Marc Albrighton, drop back
when required to form the classic two
banks of four, and the second striker, Shinji
Okazaki, falls back to add an additional
man when necessary.
When they get the ball, they spring
forward at pace. Sometimes that involves
running with the ball, as Kante and Mahrez
did so thrillingly for the second goal
against City, but more commonly it means
hitting quick passes towards Jamie Vardy,
who is not merely rapid but has become
increasingly intelligent in his movement
over the past couple of seasons. Those
passes offer high reward Vardy either
being set clean through against the
goalkeeper or getting a run at a defender
but they also risk losing possession. The
point is that its a risk worth taking.
Theres perhaps a broader lesson here:
just because its simple doesnt mean it
cant be effective. Jurgen Klopp mentioned
LEICESTER CITY 2015-16

Schmeichel
Huth
Morgan
Simpson
Fuchs
Drinkwater
Kante
Mahrez
Albrighton
Okazaki
Vardy
Game plan...Leicester sit

deep before counter-attacking
after Liverpools league defeat to West

Ham United in January that his defence
couldnt handle Andy Carroll and
suggested his side could have achieved
something similar by focusing on crossing
to Christian Benteke. Hes trying, of course,
to shape the club to his philosophy but it
did rather raise the question, why not?
Many Manchester United fans, similarly,
seem to feel a little uneasy about the
tactic of long diagonals towards Marouane
Fellaini, as though such a tactic doesnt
quite befit a club of their stature.
Leicesters rise is slightly freakish, an
extremely rare coincidence of almost an
entire team hitting the form of their lives
simultaneously. And they have benefited
from the fact that big sides seem not
to have taken them seriously enough
to make real efforts to counter their
strengths. But they also offer hope
to smaller teams, showing that having
big-name players on big wages isnt the
only way to prosper.
Sometimes, having decent players
working to a system that gets the best out
of them, that makes them greater than
the sum of their parts, can be enough.
WORLD SOCCER
97
BOB BRADLEY
Ive accepted challenges

to prove myself
One of the few American coaches in Europe, the
57-year-old hopes to take Le Havre into Ligue 1
You were so close to taking
Egypt to the 2014 World
Cup. Do you still think about
what might have been?
Well, the experience in
Egypt was still incredible in all ways. The
idea that we could win seven out of eight
World Cup qualifiers and not get there...the
disappointment of getting so close. The terrible
loss in Kumasi [a 6-1 defeat away to Ghana].
These are things that stick with you forever.
Do you still speak to the Egyptian players?
The experience with those players during that
historic period; the idea that we came together
and all tried to find a way to find something
special for the country during that time. When
you share this, no one can take that away. I still
stay in touch with Aboutrika, Hossam Ghaly,
Mohamed Salah, El Neny, Hegazi. And my
friends. I love Egypt, I love the people and I
am proud of what we did there. Ill forever be
disappointed we didnt make it to Brazil.
Your next job was very different, taking
over at Norwegian club Stabaek...
It is a small club. I said it a million times: it is a
small club with a big heart. There were a group
of people who had an idea to take the club
from the third or fourth league and they did it.
But the club hit hard days financially, hit rock
bottom. When I went to visit, what I loved was
that most of the original group was there. They
stayed strong.
It is probably as far away from the
pressure-cooker atmosphere of revolution
and African football that you could
possibly get
It was a team that surprised everyone in
Norway. The first season, everyone said we
would go down. We finished mid table and
made the semi-finals of the cup. We lost
many of those players, yet in the second year
we picked up some exciting attacking players.
Adama Diomande scored 17 goals in 22
games. If you have that success someone
98
WORLD SOCCER
notices, and Hull snapped him up and it hurt

our final run to compete with Rosenborg. But
we finished third and made Europa League
qualification. It was a team and a club you
could really be proud of. Every week, on
the website we had Bobs Corner. Id speak
for one to three minutes, unscripted about
whatever was on my mind. Mostly football, but
also other interesting things. I started throwing
in some music. It started in the locker room.
The players were blasting their music. And I
asked who picks the music. Have you heard
of Springsteen, U2, The Who, Tom Waits
or Creedence Clearwater Revival? I played
David Bowies Heroes. None of them knew it.
I thought, what world are you living in! So
for my final Bobs Corner I talked about a
Springsteen song, The Ties That Bind. I used
to speak to the players about the ties that
bind. In life, when you work with people,
when you get to know people, when you are
in something together you cannot break the
ties that bind. I have been to more than 50
Springsteen shows...
Did you not think about staying?
There was discussions about staying, but it was
a two-year project. I could feel good leaving
things at that point and see if there was a good
challenge. Everyone knows my name gets
mentioned time to time with the bigger
leagues. But it has never led to a bigger
team in a bigger league.
Why do you think that is?
I dont know, Im tired of answering that. In
England, they talk about Premier League
experience. That is fair. I dont have it. In all
countries there are very good candidates.
There are some very good coaches. But a lot
of coaches, I think, are not great and get jobs
over and over. When the decision-makers look
over things you dont know how they make
decisions. But I am the same with every job. I
put my heart and soul into it, show what I am
all about. If someone takes the time to get to
know me it might fit with a project. If they dont
think that, you keep working and hope

someone, somewhere along the line, works
it out. There was nothing in the Premier
League but there was interest in Le Havre,
which is owned by [American businessman]
Vincent Volpe. All the years he has lived here
he felt strongly the club was important to the
city, as a socio-economic project. I felt it was
an exciting project.
You are very much in contention for
promotion to Ligue 1. How have you been
coping with the language barrier?
When you work through football details it
is more important to establish a mission, an
identity and purpose. When you walk on the
pitch, what are we all about? We are trying to
make sure that within our group the identity is
a group of guys that has a special connection
and passion for the club and the game and the
challenge. The coaches that were here would
always talk about the French mentality being
different. I would listen and ask myself what
does that mean? In every place I have
worked, every place, I dont come with the
answers. I listen and observe. Im trying to
figure that out every day.
There havent been many American
coaches in Europe. How have you been
received in France?
When Ive arrived here in the city, when I walk
around, its positive. The results so far have
been alright. But everyone in Le Havre dreams
of Ligue 1. Im getting to know them, they are
getting to know me. The connection between
the team and city, the players and fans, this is
what counts the most. I spoke to some of the
players and supporters and they said I should
move to Honfleur, where Monet used to live. It
is a beautiful town. But I told the supporters,
to coach LHAC you have to live in the city and
need to feel everyday the spirit of the people
and see if you can try to make a connection.
To coach the Egyptian national team you
needed to understand the people and their
culture. You wouldnt figure it out living in a
gated community. It was important to live in
Cairo. The team represents the city.
Have you missed the international game
I am the same with

every job. I put my heart
and soul into it, show
what I am all about
WORLD SOCCER
99
Hopeful...promotionchasing Le Havre
and do you miss home?

After I finished Egypt, Ive always considered
myself a club coach. I love the day-to-day
approach. You see the players every day. Sure,
I miss my family. When I talk about the ties
that bind in the football context, it is the
experiences that you share. But it is a song we
have always felt strongly about it in our family.
You need a strong connection. We might not
always be together but the closeness of the
family will never go away.
Do you still believe that the big job, maybe
in the Premier League, will happen?
I always believed in the work, my ability to lead.
To make them play as a team. Ive accepted
challenges to prove myself. When I was in
Egypt, after Port Said [where 72 fans of Al
Ahly were killed after a league match] people
asked why I didnt leave. Then I went to
Norway, to this small team and people would
ask why come here. At the end of it, what
it amounts to is this part of you on the inside
you want to show people what you can do, you
want to prove yourself, you want a chance.
That part has never diminished. Maybe
someone will notice. Down the road I might
get a chance. You can look at any sport. I
went to college with [basketball coach] Dave
Blatt. He wasnt good enough to play in the
NBA but played in Israel and coached in
Europe. And he was successful in Israel,
Italy, Russia. During that time he didnt get
opportunities at the NBA. He was on the
outside looking in. But his reputation was
growing and he gets hired for the Cleveland
Cavaliers. Obviously they lost [the 2015 NBA
100
WORLD SOCCER
Final] but he got his chance because someone

recognised his work.
The USA national side had a great 2014
World Cup and the game is booming in
the States. Are you surprised?
Im not surprised. I think people outside think
it has happened overnight; in reality it is the
result of efforts for so many people on so
many different levels. It has taken hold, it has
roots. Go back to 1994 and every World Cup
has got more people excited. But also the
start of the MLS in 1996 and the push for
the league to get bigger. The way the league
went after some of the big US players to get
them back. Theyve gone out and brought
Example...Cleveland Cavaliers coach Dave Blatt
some big international talents. It has been

a great effort. But whether you are a club
or a national team, you cant ever think youve
made it.
One of your former players, Egyptian
international Mohamed El Neny recently
signed for Arsenal from Swiss club Basle.
Do you think he will be a success in the
Premier League?
Im really excited for Neny, proud of him. The
one guy that doesnt get mentioned enough
when I went to Egypt was Dia El Sayed. He was
coach of the under-20s in 2011. He brought
through Salah, Neny, Hegazi. I still call him
my brother. He was like a father to these guys.
After Port Said we didnt have a league so
that was our chance to look at the young
players. He had done an incredible job, how
quickly Salah, Neny and Hegazi developed.
I remember a meeting with some Basle
people. I told them that Neny will continue
to grow. Basle took him and he did grow in
a great way. And to see this young kid from
[the Egyptian city of] Mahalla have the chance
at Arsenal is incredible.
Finally, back to Le Havre. Is it essential to
get promotion this season?
Thats the goal. When I spoke to Mr Volpe and
spend time in the city, the aim is Ligue 1. From
a coaching standpoint you need points and
results, you need to become
a better team. That is the part
I focus on. But I dont lose sight
of the end result.
Interview by James Montague
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28
March 1988
Each month we look back at the
talking points of the decades
s the UEFA club competitions

approached the business end
of the season, one team taking
the continent by storm were
PSV. Guus Hiddinks side were strolling
towards the Dutch title after recording
17 consecutive wins from the start of the
season and were due to meet Bordeaux in
the quarter-finals of the European Cup.
Jim Holden reported on two Danish
players, in the twilight of their careers,
who were playing a major role in shaping
PSVs season.
It is entirely fitting that Frank Arnesen
and Soren Lerby, brothers in boots, should
be finishing their careers as they begun
them, together, he wrote.
Fifteen years ago, Arnesen and Lerby
were rough and ready teenagers with
Copenhagen club Fremad Amager, full
of enthusiasm and natural ability. Lerby,
indeed, needed only 12 first-team matches
We never have to talk to each

other during a game. Its as if
we can read each others minds
Frank Arnesen on his PSV and Denmark
team-mate Soren Lerby
to convince Ajax, then European
champions in the era of Cruyff the player,
to take him along with Arnesen on
professional terms.
Arnesen was 17, Lerby 16, when they
packed their boots for football fame and
fortune overseas.
Arnesen spent six years in Amsterdam,
before joining
Valencia in 1981
and later moving
on to Anderlecht.
Lerby stayed
another year
before Bayern
Munich came
calling. The pair
were reunited
at PSV, with
Arnesen arriving
in November 1985
102
WORLD SOCCER
FROM THE ARCHIVES
Also in this issue...

p8-9 Following a training
ground bust-up with Ajax coach
Johan Cruyff several months
earlier, Frank Rijkaard is, at last,
coming back in from the cold,
wrote Simon Kuper. After months
of uncertainty, he has signed for
Sporting Lisbon and can at last
train again with team-mates
instead of on his own at Dutch
federation headquarters at Zeist.
Cultured...Soren
Lerby in the 1988
European Cup Final
and Lerby following from Monaco in 1987.

Holden continued: Arnesen says: Soren
and I have always had a special something
on the pitch even though we are very
different as players and people. We never
have to talk to each other during a game.
Its as if we can read each others minds.
They complement each other, Lerby
defensive by nature whereas Arnesen
plays a more attacking role, scavenging
down the wings.
Arnesens enthusiasm sometimes lets
his fiery temperament get the better of
him. He was sent off against West
Germany in the World Cup finals in Mexico
and missed the 5-1 defeat against Spain
which saw Denmark eliminated. It was
p14-15 In a six-page special

on the forthcoming African
Nations Cup in Morocco, Mark
Gleeson noted of the hosts:
The North Africans, who were
surprisingly knocked out of the
Olympic Games qualifiers by
Tunisia in late January, face
some formidable opposition
from holders Egypt, neighbours
Algeria and charismatic
Cameroon, but home
advantage gives them
the edge over the seven
other finalists.
ar
ag
ag
A dog called
Pickles found
the World Cup
trophy after it
had been stolen while
on display at a stamp
exhibition at Westminster
Central Hall in London, just
months before the start of the
1966 tournament in England.
The trophy was discovered in
a hedgerow in south London.
ye
50
ar
ag
In English
football,
Queens Park
Rangers, who
were unbeaten since
January, led the league by
a point with five games
remaining, while third-tier
Crystal Palace, managed
by Malcolm Allison, beat
Sunderland 1-0 away to reach
the FA Cup semi-finals.
ye
40
ar
ag
Welsh coach
Mike Smith
led Egypt to the
African Nations
title in front of 95,000
fans in Cairo. They beat
Cameroon 5-4 on penalties
in the Final after a 0-0 draw to
secure their third continental
championship. Cameroons
Roger Milla scored in every
game apart from the Final.
ye
ag
30
ar
A Bordeaux
side featuring
Zinedine Zidane
overturned a 2-0
first-leg deficit to beat
Milan 3-2 on aggregate in
the UEFA Cup quarter-finals.
Didier Tholot scored an early
goal for the French club before
Christophe Dugarry added
two more in the space of six
second-half minutes.
ye
ar
20
ye
10
In the
inaugural
A-League
season, Dwight
Yorke captained
Sydney to a Grand Final
victory over Central Coast
Mariners. Steve Corica scored
the winning goal for the team
coached by former West
German World Cup winner
Pierre Littbarski.
significant because Arnesen provides the

drive to lift team-mates if or when things
go wrong.
Lerby is more cultured. He is the
epitome of the modern European star;
always in control on the ball, precise in the
pass, and with an eye for a goal.
Now he and Arnesen are together
again in the little Denmark that is PSV,
where national team stars Ivan Neilsen and
Jan Heintze are also club colleagues.
Lerby says: Weve a good squad who
are all international players and we have
a chance of winning the European Cup.
And thats exactly what they did, getting
past Bordeaux and then Real Madrid
before beating Benfica in the Final.
p10-11 Duncan Shaw reported

on the exploits of an unfancied
club who were making a name
for themselves in Europe,
explaining: Espanyols progress
in the UEFA Cup has been little
short of sensational. The first to
be humbled by the little-known
men, splendidly coached by
the aggressive young Javier
Clemente, were Borussia
Monchengladbach. After
winning 5-1 on aggregate,
the Spaniards turned the
same trick in the second round
against Milan Gullit, Van
Basten et al. Following a 2-0
aggregate win, it was back
to Italy to face an Inter team
packed with ageing heroes.
A further 2-1 aggregate
win, set up a quarter-final
showdown with Vitkovice
of Czechoslovakia.
p32-33 Brian Clough, who

had been turned down for
the England managers job
on more than one occasion
in the past, had his latest hopes
of international management
dashed. Derick Allsop gave
his opinion on the situation,
commenting: For a long time,
it has been obvious that Brian
Clough would never be manager
of England. Now it seems, the
consolation prize of one of
the other home country
managements is barred as well,
following Nottingham Forests
refusal to allow him a few days
off every now and again to
manage Wales.
WORLD SOCCER
103
in association with:
R views
EURO 2016 KITS
We take a look at some of the shirts that will feature
at this summers European Championship
SPAIN
CZECH REP
WALES
Classic red and yellow for the

defending champions.
Go-faster stripes for the Czechs.
Classic adidas trim for the Welsh.
59.99
54.99
54.99
SLOVAKIA
SWITZERLAND
GERMANY
Sharp blue trim for the tournament debutants.
Red and white all night for

the Swiss.
Retro black-and-white styling for

the world champions.
59.99
54.99
59.99
104
WORLD SOCCER
REVIEWS
ITALY
Classic blue for the
Azzurri, with shocking
fluorescent yellow for
the keepers.
59.99
ITALY
Classic styling for the
Italians tracksuit tops.
59.99
BELGIUM
RUSSIA
A stylish home-andaway double for

Les Diables Rouges.
A move to maroon
for the Russians.
54.99
54.99
To buy these products, visit subsidesports.com
EURO MERCHANDISE
TROPHY MAGNET
The official European
Championship trophy
magnet. Measures
60mm in diameter.
7.99
MATCH BALL
The Beau Jeu ball at
26.99 (right, bottom)
and the Winter Ball
(right, top) made
from 100 per cent
polyurethane leather.
99.99
CITY SPINNER
KEYRING
And, of course, no
tournament would be
complete without the
official keyring,
with host city
spinnner. 7.99
WORLD SOCCER
105
Phone 020 3148 2600 Email richard.torey@timeinc.com

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106
WORLD SOCCER
ULTIMATE NEWS & RESULTS SECTION
RP
l
CO
IN
ba
lo
G
O
TI
RA
N
118
PAUL
GARDNER
USA
120
SEAN
CREEDON
Republic of
Ireland
STEVE
MENARY
Gambia
112
ar
di
Exclusive
reports from
our worldwide
network of
correspondents
MIKE
PLASTOW
Japan
PADDY
AGNEW
Italy
122
117
P L U S
112
124
PREVIEW
108
109
110
111
112
Hungary
Republic of Ireland
Sweden
Ukraine
MLS
DIARY
116
Comprehensive global news
CLUB FOOTBALL
MLS newboy...
Jelle Van Damme
124 ESM Golden Shoe

125 ESM XI
126 Results, tables, xtures
Hit man...Napolis Gonzalo Higuain leads the chart

WORLD SOCCER
107
EURO 2016 COUNTDOWN

HUNGARY
In their rst major tournament since 1986
OOVERVIEW
Hungary qualified for their first major
tournament since the 1986 World Cup
by beating Norway in the play-offs with
a gutsy, well-organised performance.
OHungary changed coaches three times

in the course of the qualifying campaign.
Attila Pinter was sacked in September
2015 after a poor start (a home defeat
by Northern Ireland). He was replaced
by Pal Dardai, coach of Hertha Berlins
youth team. Dardai made steady progress,
drawing away to local rivals Romania,
but when he was made Herthas rstteam coach, the club would not let him
continue and Bernd Storck stepped in.
O Norway were technically superior in the
play-offs but Hungary defended heroically
and scored goals from unlikely sources:
debutant Laszlo Kleinheisler and Tamas
Priskin in his rst game for 14 months.
O Most of the squad play in the domestic
league, with only Dzsudzsak (Turkey) and
Kleinheisler, Stieber, Szalai (Germany)
playing outside Eastern Europe.
STAR MAN
Balazs DZSUDZSAK
Winger (proled
below) is easily
Hungarys most
high-prole player.
COACH
OTACTICS
Storck could stick with play-off heroes
Kleinheisler and Priskin in his defenceminded 4-5-1 formation, but Zoltan
Stieber and Adam Szalai are alternatives
if they can get more action with their
clubs. Veteran Zoltan Gera still pulls the
strings in mideld.
Scramblekeeper Gabor Kiraly thwarts Norway
4-5-1
W
Kiraly
W
W
Guzmics Juhasz W
W
Fiola
Kadar
W
W
Elek W Nagy W
W
Dzsudzsak
Gera
Kleinheisler
W
Priskin
Bernd STORCK
German, a former
national coach of
Kazakhstan. Stepped
up from technical
director role last year.
OPLAYER PROFILE
Catch me if you canHungary will look to Dzsudzsaks mesmerising skills in France
108
WORLD SOCCER
BALAZS DZSUDZSAK
About to spearhead Hungarys rst
international tournament for three
decades, their skipper and wide man will
have an awful lot on his shoulders.
By common consent the teams only
genuine top-notch player, 29-year-old
Dzsudzsaks wonderfully expressive play
and ability on the break are the heart and
soul of the sides creative operation. His
beautifully struck free-kick against
Romania in the qualiers showed he can
match the best for dead-ball potency.
His quick feet and vivid imagination
are not his only means of inuence. After
a spell of celebrity overload, fast cars and
gossip columns, he has matured of late
into a highly effective leader; both a
proud keeper of the cherry red tradition
see his oods of tears on qualication
and a steadying inuence on the
squads younger members, such as Adam
Nagy, Laszlo Kleinheiser and Zsolt Kalmar.
Somewhat out of sight and out of
mind since quitting PSV in 2011 for a
spot of intrepid backpacking four
Russian league campaigns with Anzhi
and Dynamo Moscow, then a move to
Bursaspor in Turkey last year Euro 2016
could not have come at a better time. A
strong tournament and he will be innitely
more marketable.
Nick Bidwell
THE QUALIFIERS
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
Master motivator ONeill oversaw a play-off win over Bosnia
OOVERVIEW
The traditional qualities of hard work and
team spirit have taken the Republic to their
second successive Euro finals.
O The Republic qualified for their second

successive European finals after beating
Bosnia in the play-offs. On paper, Bosnia
had plenty of stars (Dzeko, Pjanic) but
Irish spirit and organisation proved
decisive: a classic case of being greater
than the sum of their parts.
O They enjoyed a bright start to the
qualifying campaign, with wins over
Georgia and Gibraltar and a 1-1 draw with
world champions Germany. But a home
draw with Scotland stalled the campaign
in a tough group where Germany and
Poland came out on top.
O Victory in Dublin over Germany
boosted hopes of automatic qualication,
but defeat to Poland in their nal game
pushed them into the play-offs.
O ONeills biggest strength is as a
motivator, with the volatile Roy Keane
as his assistant.
O All the squad is based in England, with
the exception of Robbie Keane.
STAR MAN
Robbie KEANE
The Republics
record goalscorer
has extended
his career
at Los Angeles
Galaxy.
COACH
Joyous...after the play-off second leg in Dublin

W
Randolph
W
Keogh
W
W
Coleman W
W Brady
Whelan McCarthy
W
W
W
Hendrick
Walters
Hoolahan
W
Long
4-4-1-1
W
OShea
OTACTICS
ONeill has some difcult decisions on
whether to stick with the play-off heroes
or go back to veterans such as Shay
Given, John OShea and Robbie Keane.
Robbie Brady can play in defence or
mideld, while Wes Hoolahan can play
anywhere across mideld.
Martin ONEILL
The former Leicester
City, Celtic and Aston
Villa boss took over in
November 2013.
Assisted by Roy
Keane.
OPLAYER PROFILE
Stand and deliverLong can come up with priceless goals, like his winner in the Euro 2016 qualier against Germany
SHANE LONG
For a player who only started three of
the Republic of Irelands games on the
road to France 2016 and who very rarely
completes a full 90 minutes of competitive
football for his country just once in the
past five years Shane Long remains a
remarkably important figure in coach
Martin ONeills plans.
Indeed, without his outstanding work as
a goalscoring substitute witness his late
equaliser in the 1-1 home draw with Poland
and sensational winner against Germany
in Dublin last October the Irish simply
would not have qualified, those extra
four points were crucial to the sides thirdplace finish in Group D and eventual playoff success.
Over the course of his seven seasons
in the Premier League with Reading, West
Bromwich Albion, Hull City and now
Southampton, the 29-year-old all-action
and aerially-dominant striker from
Tipperary has received more than his
share of unfavourable reviews, most of
them accusing him of a poor first-touch
and wastefulness in front of goal.
Yet does he truly deserve all this
negativity? Fifty-nine caps for the Republic,
25.5million of combined transfer fees
and millions of recommendations in the
Emerald Isle suggest not.
Nick Bidwell
WORLD SOCCER
109
EURO 2016 COUNTDOWN

SWEDEN
Heading to France thanks to Zlatans special moments
OOVERVIEW
Zlatan Ibrahimovic holds the key to
success in France after the Paris SaintGermain striker inspired his fellow
countrymen to victory over neighbours
Denmark in the play-offs.
OSweden are heading to France after a

play-off victory over Scandinavian rivals
Denmark. Zlatan Ibrahimovic proved to be
the difference, scoring an acrobatic volley
from a corner and a brilliant free-kick to
see the Swedes through.
O In truth, Sweden were lucky to have the
safety net of the play-offs after coming
third in a relatively easy qualifying group.
They dropped points with draws against
Austria, Russia and Montenegro, while
defeats to Russia and Austria last
September left them playing catchup for the automatic qualifying places.
OErik Hamrens side have struggled in
defence since the retirement of Olof
Mellberg but there are positive signs,
notably in the under-21 side who won
last summers European Championship.
STAR MAN
Zlatan IBRAHIMOVIC
One of Europes
leading players, the
PSG forward has
undoubted star quality.
COACH
OTACTICS
A tightly organised outt relies on the
brilliance of Ibrahimovic, with a main
striker Marcus Berg or the improving
John Guidetti to unlock defences. In
central defence, European Under-21
champions Filip Helander and Alexander
Milosevic are pressing for selection.
Hopeful...Russias back line is breached
4-4-1-1
W
Isaksson
W
W
Granqvist Johansson
W
W
Lustig
Olsson
W
W
W
Kallstrom Ekdal
W
Durmaz
W
Forsberg
Ibrahimovic
W
Berg
Erik HAMREN
A league title-winner
in Denmark and
Norway, the dapper
58-year-old will stand
down after Euro
2016.
OPLAYER PROFILE
Irresistible forceIsaksson uses his 6ft 6in frame to good effect
110
WORLD SOCCER
ANDREAS ISAKSSON
As far as Swedish national goalkeepers
are concerned, the preferred setting
clearly is for extended play.
Ronnie Hellstrom reigned between
the Blagult (blue and gold) posts for
a decade and Thomas Ravelli for 16
long years, while the current wearer of
the jersey Andreas Isaksson third in
his countrys most-capped list with 127
has been around since 2002 and at
the age of 34 arguably is only just
reaching his peak.
Voted Swedens Goalkeeper of the
Year on no fewer than 10 occasions, the
34-year-old already has appeared in
three European Championships and two
World Cup nals, but up to now he has
enjoyed relatively little big tournament
success, only once making it to the last
eight: the penalty shoot-out defeat
by Holland in the quarter-nals of
Euro 2004.
Composed, commanding, steady and
adept at using every inch of his 6ft 6in
frame, Isaksson also brings considerable
continental club experience to bear,
having played in the top ights of Italy
(Juventus), Sweden (Trelleborg and
Djurgarden), France (Rennes),
England (Manchester City) and
now Turkey with Kasimpasa.
Nick Bidwell
THE QUALIFIERS
UKRAINE
Euro 2012 co-hosts made it through the play-offs
OOVERVIEW
Ukraine put their domestic troubles
behind them to beat Slovenia in the
play-offs, with wingers Yarmolenko
and Konoplyanka leading the way.
OUkraine have qualified for only their

second major finals. Their previous
tournament qualification was for the 2006
World Cup, when Andriy Shevchenko
inspired the team to the quarter-finals.
OThey were co-hosts with Poland in
2012 but losses to England and France
resulted in elimination at the group stage.
OWon the Euro 2016 play-off against
Slovenia after finishing third behind Spain
and Slovakia in their group.
OThey suffered an early setback in
qualifying, losing at home to Slovakia
in their opening game.
OThe current side lacks star quality,
although Yevhen Konoplyanka has
made the switch to Spain and Andriy
Yarmolenko could follow suit.
OThe civil war has had a major impact
on the domestic league but Dnipro
reached last years Europa League Final
with a strict defensive approach.
STAR MAN
Andriy YARMOLENKO
Winger who has been
the star for Dynamo
Kiev and has long
been linked with a
move to western
Europe.
COACH
Deant...keeper Andriy Pyatov keeps out Slovenia

W
Pyatov
W
Rakitskiy
W
W
Fedetskiy
Shevchuk
W
W
Garmash W
Rybalka
Rotan W
W
Konoplyanka
Yarmolenko
W
Seleznyov
4-5-1
W
Khacheridi
OTACTICS
Fomenko has plenty of experience in
the spine of the team, while their biggest
attacking threat comes from the anks in
the form of wingers Andriy Yarmolenko
and Yevhen Konoplyanka. Roman Zozulya
is an alternative to Yevhen Seleznyov in
the lone striker role.
Mykhaylo FOMENKO
The 67-year-old
veteran has been
in charge since
2012 following
the resignation of
Oleh Blokhin.
OPLAYER PROFILE
Late developerthere is much more to Seleznyovs game now than pure penalty-area predator
YEVHEN SELEZNYOV
The indestructible Dnipro striker is the
unsung hero of the Ukraine attack. While
ve-star wingers Andriy Yarmolenko and
Yevhen Konoplyanka provide the air,
zap and star quality, Seleznyov does an
excellent job as the workhorse through
the middle, the perfect counterpoint to
the velvety skills out wide.
Renowned for his physical presence,
relentless work-rate and never-say-die
spirit, the 30-year-old, who graduated
from the Shakhtar Donetsk academy, not
only is a competitive beast, but in the last
season or two has improved considerably
as a footballer. He has transformed
himself from pure penalty-box loiterer
to mobile frontrunner, one much more
likely to come deep and join the linkup party.
A UEFA Cup winner with Shakhtar
Donetsk in 2008-09 and a Europa
League runner-up with Dnipro last
season, Seleznyov is in the form of his
life at the moment, rattling in the goals
for his club and on the score-sheet in the
rst-leg victory over Slovenia in the Euro
2016 play-offs.
After spending all of the 2012
European Championship on the bench,
no one in the Ukraine camp will be
hungrier this summer.
Nick Bidwell
WORLD SOCCER
111
USA
PAUL GARDNER
Tales of the unexpected

MLS gets ready for new season
f expecting the unexpected means
excitement, then quite definitely
Major League Soccer has to be one
of the more exciting football leagues
in the world.
The 2015 season, for instance,
ushered in Portland Timbers as champions a team
who were surely not on anyones likely list. Playing only
their fifth season in the league, Timbers were coming
off a poor 2014 in which they failed to make the playoffs. And it wasnt until half way through the 2015
campaign that Timbers, under their young American
coach Caleb Porter, arriving straight from college
soccer, started to mow down their opponents.
Part of the early problem had been an injury to key
Argentinian midfielder Diego Valeri. Once he regained
fitness, Timbers swept through to the Final and a 2-1
win over Columbus Crew. Unexpected yes, but certainly
deserved.
Glamour was on the MLS menu in 2015, with two
new clubs, New York City FC, and Orlando City SC.
Expansion teams are not supposed to do well for a year
or two and both duly failed to make the play-offs
but this was not seen as a major tragedy, mostly
because both were drawing big crowds, with season
averages of 29,016 in New York and 32,847 in
Orlando.
But the NYC owners the Sheikhs who also
own Manchester City reacted sharply and fired the
coach, Jason Kreis. It looked like a hurried, almost
panic, move. Kreis left quietly, but many observers,
remembering his astute player signings during his
days as coach of Real Salt Lake, found it impossible
to believe that he had been responsible for bringing
in some of the truly poor players fielded by the club.
In his place came Patrick Vieira, whose appointment
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WORLD SOCCER
carried with it a suggestion that the job is an

apprenticeship, training for a future appointment
with Manchester City.
NYCs most important signing, David Villa, had a
good season, scoring 18 goals for a weak team. His
opposite number for Orlando, Kaka, also sparkled,
with 10 goals and seven assists. The two joined forces in
mid-season and proved a sprightly duo, playing for the
MLS All Star team that beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-1.
Kaka scored one goal and assisted Villa for the other.
Beating international opposition is always welcome
news to MLS biggies, among whom commissioner
Don Garber repeatedly assures everyone that it will
be one of the worlds major leagues
by 2022. There are plenty of
I dont think many encouraging signs to support that
positive thinking; from the building
would argue the
of new stadiums to new attendance
American player
and television contracts, to
isnt getting better records
the continued arrival of star players.
MLS Commissioner
However, that last fact remains
Don Garber
something of a double-edged
sword because the vast majority
of the famous arrivals are at the end of their careers
and the last thing MLS wants is to be known as is an
elephants graveyard.
Sometimes the elephants showed they were far
from over the hill, with Robbie Keane still scoring goals
for LA Galaxy (94 in 141 games since arriving as a
30-year-old in 2011). Representing a more positive
approach was Torontos signing of Italian striker
Sebastian Giovinco, in his prime at 28. With 22 goals
Fireworks
many of them in the spectacular class Giovinco
Orlando City
was the leagues top scorer. He also won both the
put on a show
Newcomer of the Year and the Most Valuable Player
for New York
Citys visit
awards. In addition, his signing got the leagues seal
of approval as the Best Transaction of the year.
The best transaction for 2016 may already have
happened, with Seattle Sounders securing Jordan
Morris (see page 76). It seemed likely that Morris at
20, widely considered to be the most promising young
American player would, after just two years at
Stanford University, join a European club. But following
a trial with Germanys Werder Bremen, who were keen
to sign him, Morris returned to the USA to join Seattle,
the club with which he has grown up. Seattles part of
the deal was a $225,000 annual salary: the largest
ever offered by an MLS club to a home-grown player.
Whether the deal with Morris marks a new era for
MLS, in which its clubs will be willing to pay big money
to sign young Americans, seems unlikely. While Morris
was opting for Seattle, another American youngster,
17-year-old Christian Pulisic, was breaking into the
Borussia Dortmund first team.
Any move towards signing young domestic players
certainly does not seem to be part of coach Bruce
WORLD SERVICE
ev
Pr
w
ie
VeteranJelle Van Damme (in
white) has joined the brigade of
thirtysomethings at LA Galaxy
WORLD SOCCER
113
Arenas plans for Los Angeles Galaxy. Arena has sold the
27-year-old American international Omar Gonzalez to
Pachuca in Mexico, while bringing in four Europeans:
Englands Steven Gerrard (age 35) and Ashley Cole (35),
Belgiums Jelle Van Damme (32), and Dutch midfielder
Nigel De Jong (31), plus a combative American
midfielder in Jeff Larentowicz (32). De Jongs name has
not been well received. On top of his well established
reputation as a violent player, he is well remembered
by US fans as the player who broke the leg of Stuart
Holden, a popular young American now retired the
broken leg was a factor and working as a TV analyst.
While NYC FC struggled in 2015, Red Bulls their
rivals in New Jersey across the Hudson River were
having an exceptional season under new coach Jesse
Marsch. While their high-pressure game was not
scintillating, the results were mostly in the win column.
Red Bulls won the leagues Supporters Shield for the
team with the most points in the regular season and
by the time the play-offs came around, they found
themselves in the unprecedented position of favourites
to take the MLS title. The dreams came unstuck with a
semi-final loss to Columbus, but the Bulls management,
evidently satisfied with Marschs system of play, have
made few changes for 2016 and Bulls continue to be
a club that spends cautiously.
The one big move was the transfer of young American
defender Matt Miazga to Chelsea for a reported
$5million really an enforced change, as Miazga would
be a free agent at the end of the MLS 2016 season.
Another surprising move came in Denver where
Colorado Rapids, never known as a team that makes
big moves, announced the arrival of a Designated Player,
albeit a rather obscure one Basles Albanian forward
Shkelzen Gashi.
Chicago Fire finished the 2015 season as the club with
the leagues worst record. New general manager Nelson
Rodriguez reacted by making an unexpected move in
announcing the new coach would be Veljko Paunovic,
who led Serbia to victory in the 2015 Under-20 World
Cup. Paunovic says his intention is to go with as many
young presumably American players as he can.
The development of young players is clearly
something that MLS clubs want to accelerate. All 20
clubs now have fully funded academies and the league
has entered into a partnership with the French Football
Federation, under which MLS coaches those working in
USA : MLS 2016

19
16
13
8
18
1
14
10
12
3
17
15
7
4
6
11
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
114
Chicago Fire
Colorado Rapids
Columbus Crew
Dallas
DC United
Houston Dynamo
LA Galaxy
WORLD SOCCER
8 Montreal Impact
9 New England Rev
10 New York RB
New York City
11 Orlando City
12 Philadelphia Union
13 Portland Timbers
14 Real Salt Lake

17 Sporting Kansas City
15 San Jose Equakes 18 Toronto
16 Seattle Sounders 19 Vancouver Wcaps
KEY DATES
Season starts: March 6, 2016
Season ends: October 23, 2016
the academies can take the lengthy and stringent

courses that the FFF conducts for its Elite Formation
Coaching licence.
Victoriano Melero, deputy director general of the
French Federation, says: The idea behind all this is to
improve the training of young American players and, at
the end, it will benefit of course, MLS, but in particular
the national selection.
But there is a problem with that of course MLS.
Because it is not at all certain that promising starlets
will opt for MLS clubs in preference to joining a team
in Europe.
Another possibly unexpected MLS event in
2016 will be the leagues decision to take a pause in its
expansion programme. It will go with the 20 teams that
played in 2015. However, the plans are to add two more
teams in 2017: Atlanta United and Los Angeles FC. The
LA club will be, in effect, a replacement for Chivas-USA
which went out of business in 2014.
The big and intriguing question hanging over MLS
expansion continues to be the fate of David Beckhams
group and its bid for a club to operate in Miami. Finding
a site for a suitable stadium has proved mighty difficult.
At the moment, the group is working on its third attempt.
If successful, it is expected a Beckham-operated Miami
franchise will join MLS in 2018, probably along with
Minnesota United, bringing the league up to 24 teams.
Success
Sebastian
Giovinco was
voted MLS Most
Valuable Player
last season
WORLD SERVICE
MAJOR PRE-SEASON MOVES

New England exit
Jermaine Jones
Colorado recruit
Shkelzen Gashi
CHICAGO FIRE
In: Johan Kappelhof (Groningen,
Hol), Joao Meira (Belenenses, Por)
Out: -
MLS A-listersDavid
Villa (left) and Kaka
COLORADO RAPIDS
In: Shkelzen Gashi (Basle, Swi),
Mekeil Williams (Antigua GFC, Gtm)
Out: Maynor Figueroa (Dallas), Marcelo
Sarvas (DC United)
COLUMBUS CREW
In: Ola Kamara (Austria Vienna,
Aut), Emil Larsen (Odense, Den), Amro
Tarek (Real Betis, Spa, loan)
Out: Kevan George (released), Emanuel
Pogatetz (Union Berlin, Ger)
DALLAS
In: Maynor Figueroa (Colorado
Rapids), Carlos Gruezo (Stuttgart, Ger),
Juan Esteban Ortiz (Atletico Huila, Col)
Out: DC UNITED
In: Marcelo Sarvas (Colorado Rapids)
Out: HOUSTON DYNAMO
In: Agustin Garcia (Albacete, Spa),
David Rocha (Gimnastic, Spa)
Out: Brad Davis (Sporting Kansas City)
The short and mid-term prospects for MLS look

good, then. The only problem yet to be worked out is
how much longer the league can continue to operate
under its highly restrictive financial rules the so-called
single-entity system.
While the league continues to find ingenious ways
in which its clubs can spend more money than its own
rules strictly allow, it becomes increasingly clear that if
the dream of MLS as a world power comes to pass, it
will only do so when the league decides it can afford to
match the spending of the major European clubs. The
alternative to that is not an appealing one. A future
already foreshadowed by some of the player deals for
the 2016 season in which MLS loses (often without
being able to get any money for them) its best young
players, and sees its clubs squads filling up with
over-30 players from Europe.
For the moment, the only MLS team showing
pronounced geriatric tendencies is Los Angeles Galaxy,
where as many as seven of the starters are likely to
be over 30.
Maybe all that experience will mean another title for
Arena and his men, but it seems more likely that the
teams that did well in 2015 and which are not making
any sweeping changes will continue to flourish: Red
Bulls, Columbus, Portland, Seattle. And Dallas - the
youngest and the most exciting team in 2015.
Selfie assured
Jordan Morris
subbed European
interest to join
Seattle Sounders
LA GALAXY
In: Ashley Cole (Roma, Ita, free),
Nigel De Jong (Milan, Ita), Jeff
Larentowicz (Chicago Fire), Jelle Van
Damme (Standard Liege, Blg)
Out: Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca, Mex),
Juninho (Tijuana, Mex)
MONTREAL IMPACT
In: Lucas Ontivero (Galatasaray,
Tur, loan)
Out: Nigel Reo-Coker (released)
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION
In: Sambinha (Sp Lisbon, Por)
Out: Jermaine Jones (released)
NEW YORK CITY
In: Frederic Brillant (Oostende,
Blg), Diego Martinez (River Plate, Arg),
Ronald Matarita (Alajuelense, CR)
Out: Ned Grabavoy (Portland Timbers)

NEW YORK RED BULLS
In: Gideon Baah (HJK, Fin)
Out: Matt Miazga (Chelsea, Eng),
Roy Miller (Saprissa, CR)
ORLANDO CITY
In: Antonio Nocerino (Milan, Ita)
Out: PHILADELPHIA UNION
In: Roland Alberg (Den Haag,
Hol), Walter Restrepo (New York
Cosmos)
Out: PORTLAND TIMBERS
In: Out: Will Johnson (Toronto), Jorge
Villafana (Santos Laguna)
REAL SALT LAKE
In: Sunny (Alanyaspor, Tur)
Out: Sebastian Jaime (Universidad
de Chile, Chl), Sebastian Saucedo
(Veracruz, Mex, loan)
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES
In: Out: SEATTLE SOUNDERS
In: Jordan Morris (Stanford
Cardinal)
Out: Obafemi Martins (Shanghai
Shenhua, Chn)
SPORTING KANSAS CITY
In: Out: Krisztian Nemeth (Al Gharafa,
Qat), Erik Palmer-Brown (Porto, Por.
loan)
TORONTO
In: Out: VANCOUVER WHITECAPS
In: Fraser Aird (Rangers, Sco,
loan), Christian Bolanos (Deportivo
Saprissa, CR), Masato Kudo (Kashiwa
Reysol, Jap)
Out: Robert Earnshaw (retired)
Galaxy
import
Ashley
Cole
In at Vancouver
Masato Kudo (right)
WORLD SOCCER
115
JANUARY 20-FEBRUARY 18, 2016
Global diary
A comprehensive record of recent events around the world
Wednesday January 20
ENGLAND: At 18 years and 215
days, Sheyi Ojo becomes Liverpools
youngest-ever FA Cup goalscorer as
they overcome Exeter City 3-0.
FRANCE: Fourth-tier Trelissac beat
Lille on penalties to reach the last 16
of the French Cup for the first time.
ITALY: In a repeat of last years Final,
in which they triumphed 2-1 in extratime, Juventus win 1-0 away to Lazio
and progress to this seasons Italian
Cup semi-finals.
SPAIN: Real Madrid top the Deloitte
Football Money League for the 11th
year in a row after generating income
of 439million for last season.
Thursday January 21
BRAZIL: Despite being without a
contract since leaving Fluminense
in September, Ronaldinho rules out
retirement and says he will look for
a new club in February.
ITALY: Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri is
banned for two Italian Cup matches

for using homophobic language to
Internazionale boss Roberto Mancini
during a touchline row when their
teams met in the quarter-finals.
QATAR: Reigning national champions
Lekhwiya lifted the Qatar Super Cup
for the first time, winning 4-1 against
Al Sadd in the annual game between
the league champions and the
winners of the Emir of Qatar Cup.
SPAIN: Leaked documents reveal
Gareth Bale cost Real Madrid a world
record 100.7m in 2013, compared
to the 96m they paid for Cristiano
Ronaldo in 2009.
Friday January 22
GERMANY: League leaders Bayern
Munich get the Bundesliga underway
again after the winter break with a
2-1 win at Hamburg.
UEFA: It is announced that there
will be no presidential election until
Michel Platinis appeal against his
eight-year ban from all football
activity is complete. It was also

decided that goal-line technology will
be used at the Euro 2016 finals and
the 2016-17 Champions League.
Saturday January 23
ARGENTINA: Five players are sent
off in a friendly between River Plate
and Boca Juniors.
ENGLAND: Adam Lallana scores
a 95th-minute winner as Liverpool
beat Norwich City 5-4. Leicester City
go top with a 3-0 victory over Stoke
City, while Manchester United lose
1-0 at home to Southampton.
USA: Former Chelsea striker Didier
Drogba confirms he will remain with
Montreal Impact next term, rather
than return to London.
Sunday January 24
AUSTRALIA: Perth Glory beat
Newcastle Jets 6-1 to register their
biggest-ever A-League victory.
ENGLAND: Arsenal defender Per
Mertesacker is sent off as his side
Super Cup...Lekhwiya
lose 1-0 at home to Chelsea.

GERMANY: Alexander Meier
completes a second-half hat-trick
in injury time as Eintracht Frankfurt
beat Wolfsburg 3-2.
GREECE: Dimitar Berbatov is sent off
for the first time in 14 years as PAOK
lose 1-0 at AEK. Panathinaikos 2-0
win at Levadiakos is disrupted for 25
minutes as match officials order the
removal of a banner protesting at
sanctions imposed on the Athens
club after disturbances at the derby
against Olympiakos in November.
PORTUGAL: An own goal by
Maritimo keeper Romain Salin gives
new Porto coach Jose Peseiro a 1-0
win in his first game in charge.
SPAIN: Zinedine Zidane drops points
for the first time, in his third game in
charge, as Real Madrid draw 1-1 at
Real Betis.
Monday January 25
ROMANIA: Steaua Bucharest refuse
to release players for the national
teams winter training camp in a blow
to the countrys preparations for this
years European Championship.
USA: Atlanta United, who will join
MLS next year, sign their first player,
bringing in 23-year-old goalkeeper
Alexander Tambakis from Greek side
Panathinaikos.
Tuesday January 26
Finish...Alexander Meier scores the winner, and completes his second-half hat-trick, as Eintracht Frankfurt beat Wolfsburg 3-2
116
WORLD SOCCER
CONMEBOL: Alejandro Dominguez

of Paraguay is elected president of
South American footballs governing
body after the only other candidate,
Wilmar Valdez of Uruguay, withdrew.
ENGLAND: Liverpool, who havent
lost at home to Stoke City since
1959, go down 1-0 in the second
leg of their League Cup semi-final
to draw 1-1 on aggregate before
winning on penalties.
FRANCE: Lille reach the League
Cup Final for the first time with a
5-1 victory over Bordeaux. Frederic
Hantz is appointed Montpellier coach
until the end of the season.
ITALY: Making his first start for
WORLD SERVICE
Italy
PADDY AGNEW
Champions
back on top
Zaza turns the title race in
favour of Juventus
he church is back in the centre of the
village as Juventus beat Napoli 1-0 to
go to the top of Serie A for the first
time this season. And while it may
have been mid-February, with some
14 games still to play, it could well be
the turning point in the defending champions campaign.
Not since the days of Michel Platini v Diego Maradona
had this fixture aroused so much excitement. For the
entire week beforehand, one question turned up in just
about every radio and TV news programme. The issue up
for discussion might have been same-sex civil union
legislation (which is currently going through the Senate)
or the forthcoming mayoral elections in Rome, Milan and
Naples, but eventually another question reared its head:
who is going to win Saturday nights big game?
You have to go back to those Maradona days of the
1980s and early 1990s to find the last time Napoli were
on top, but they travelled to Turin two points clear of
their hosts, and 10 ahead of third-placed Fiorentina.
Curiously, both sides got off to indifferent starts this
term. Napoli picked up just two points in their first three
games. After six games, Juventus were at the bottom end
of the table with just five points. However, since then, little
has gone wrong for either. Napoli went into the game on
the back of eight successive league wins, while Juventus
had won their previous 14.
As so often happens when the pressure is on, JuveNapoli boss Maurizio Sarri
Napoli turned out to be a cautious, tight affair in which
tactical discipline and defensive organisation overcomes
attacking flair and individual genius. In the end, with the
game set for a goalless draw, Juventus snatched the
three points with an 88th-minute deflected goal from
substitute striker Simone Zaza.
Until then, both goalkeepers had
been largely idle bystanders in an
absorbing, evenly balanced game, with
few chances before Zazas goal.
In the first half, the imperious
Leonardo Bonucci had cleared an
inviting cross from Napolis right-back
Elseid Hysaj just as Gonzalo Higuain
was preparing to head home. Then,
midway through the second period,
Paul Pogba controlled a long diagonal
pass on the edge of the visitors area
and set up Paulo Dybala, who hit his
curving shot narrowly over the bar.
Late show...Simone Zaza fires home Juventus winner
Some will argue that, given that
If you turned
off your TV in
the 87th minute,
you would have
found it hard to
believe we lost
Super sub...Zaza
Juventus were without at least one key player in injured

defender Giorgio Chiellini and Bonucci had to limp off
early in the second half, this game represented an
unrepeatable opportunity for Napoli. There was also
criticism that Napolis Gonzalo Higuain had failed to
perform on the big day, but that was to overlook the fact
the Argentinian received little service and was effectively
shut out by Andrea Barzagli and Bonucci when he did
get the ball.
Which brings us to the goal. When Juve brought on
Brazilian defender Alex Sandro in place of striker Dybala
in the 86th minute, it seemed coach Massimiliano Allegri
had settled for a draw. But within two minutes, Sandro
was in action, winning a high punt out of defence that
found its way to Zaza on the edge of the area.
As Napolis French defender Kalidou Koulibaly stood
off perhaps making his only mistake of the entire game
Italy international Zaza took three steps and let loose
with a speculative, left-foot blast that was deflected by
defender Raul Albiol beyond keeper Pepe Reina.
This was a game that Napoli probably could and
should have drawn. The big question now concerns just
what psychological impact this defeat will have.
After the game, Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri, while
clearly disappointed, did not sound like a man in the grip
of desperation, saying: It was a very tight game and we
gave nothing away. On the contrary, we had one more
chance than Juventus.
The game was evenly balanced, decided by one
episode. If you were watching on TV and turned off your
set in the 87th minute, you would have found it hard to
believe that we lost...
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117
Milan since September, Mario

Balotelli scores the only goal
of the game against third-tier
Alessandria in the away leg of
their Italian Cup semi-final.
SCOTLAND: Linlithgow Rose become
the first junior team ever to reach the
last 16 of the Scottish Cup, beating
Forfar Athletic 1-0.
Wednesday January 27
ENGLAND: Having gone a goal down
on the night to trail 3-1 on aggregate,
Manchester City score three times
against Everton to claim their place
in the League Cup Final.
FRANCE: Paris Saint-Germain set
a club record with a 12th successive
win, beating Toulouse 2-0 to reach
a third successive League Cup Final.
ITALY: Jeison Murillo is sent off as
Internazionale lose 3-0 at Juventus
in the first leg of their Italian Cup
semi-final.
Thursday January 28
COLOMBIA: Atletico Nacional beat
Deportivo Cali 3-0, to win 5-0 on
aggregate, in the play-off between
the winners of the Finalizacion and
apertura tournaments, and qualify for
the 2016 Sudamericana Cup.
SPAIN: Valencia and Sevilla beat Las
Palmas and Mirandes respectively in
the Spanish Cup quarter-finals and
join Barcelona and Celta Vigo in the
last four.
Friday January 29
AUSTRALIA: Western Sydney
Wanderers open up a five-point lead
at the top of the table by beating
second-place Melbourne City 4-3.
SPAIN: FIFA provisionally suspends
the transfer bans imposed on Real
Madrid and Atletico Madrid after the
two clubs appeal.
Saturday January 30
AFC UNDER-23 CHAMP: Japan
beat South Korea 3-2 in the Final as
both sides qualify for the Olympics,
along with third-place Iraq.
ITALY: Francesco Totti surpasses
Gianluca Pagliucas 592 Serie A
games to move into third place in the
all-time appearance list as Roma
beat Frosinone 3-1.
SPAIN: Barcelona come from a goal
down to win 2-1 at home to Atletico
Madrid who finish with 10 men
as the top two clash.
Republic
of Ireland
SEAN CREEDON
Dundalk eye
three-in-a-row
Thirty years since last Irish hat-trick
hile the Republic of Irelands national
team is well supported, there remains
only limited interest in a domestic
league that has provided several
players for the international side over
the years, with 10 of the 25 players
used by Martin ONeill in the Euro qualifying campaign
starting their careers with League of Ireland clubs.
The latest to try his luck over the water is last years
domestic player of the year, Richie Towell, with the
former Celtic and Hibernian striker joining Brighton
& Hove Albion after scoring 25 goals in 32 league
games for champions Dundalk.
And Dundalk boss Stephen Kenny will miss Towells
goalscoring touch as he bids to lead the club to a hattrick of titles for the first time in their history.
Its going to be a difficult task to win three in-a-row;
its now 30 years since Jim McLaughlin did it with
Shamrock Rovers [who won four consecutive crowns],
says Kenny. Naturally we are going to miss Richie Towell,
but Im confident that my two new signings, Patrick
McEleney from Derry City and Robbie Benson from
UCD, will blend into the team.
The previous season we lost centre-forward Patrick
Hoban to Oxford and pushed David McMillan up front
last season and he did very well for us.
Kenny expects the biggest threat to his title aspirations
to come from Cork City, who finished second in 2014 and
2015, and lost the FAI Cup Final to Dundalk last term.
Cork manager John Caulfield has signed six new
players, and apart from Cork I expect Shamrock Rovers,
St Patricks Athletic and Bohemians will also be hoping to
New goal...
striker Richie
Towell (in
white) has
moved from
Dundalk to
Brighton
Sunday January 31
ARGENTINA: Estudiantes and
Gimnasias pre-season friendly is
abandoned after a brawl between
the teams near the end of a game
in which three players are sent off.
HOLLAND: Ajax are held to a 2-2
118
WORLD SOCCER
Posh boss...former Peterborough manager Dave Robertson is now in charge of Sligo
WORLD SERVICE
LEAGUE OF IRELAND:
PREMIER DIVISION 2016
4
6
9
5
8
1
10
3
1 Bohemians (Dublin)
Shamrock Rovers
St Patricks Athletic
2 Bray Wanderers
3 Cork City
4 Derry City
5 Dundalk
6 Finn Harps (Ballybofey)
7 Galway United
8 Longford Town
9 Sligo Rovers
10 Wexford Youths
KEY DATES
deny us the hat-trick, adds Kenny.

Shamrock will be without Damien Duff, who has been
forced to retire after a brief spell at Rovers last term, with
the 37-year-old confessing: My heart wanted me to
continue playing, but my body won the battle and told
me to stop.
Another former Irish international, Liam Miller, who
like Duff returned home after a spell in Australia, also
looks to have played in the competition for the last time,
having been released by Cork after just one season at
Turners Cross.
There were two managerial changes in pre-season,
with Kenny Shiels joining Derry City and Sligo Rovers
taking on ex-Peterborough manager Dave Robertson,
whose last job was with Southend United under-21s.
Only formed in 2007, Wexford Youths will play in the
top flight for the first time after winning the First Division
and they are joined by Finn Harps.
OTHER LEAGUES
GETTING UNDERWAY
KAZAKHSTAN: PREMIER LEAGUE
Defending champions: Astana
Season ends: November 2016
ESTONIA: MEISTRILIIGA
Defending champions: Flora
Season ends: November 5, 2016
Kazakh kings...Astana
FAROES ISLANDS: PREMIER

LEAGUE
Defending champions: B36 Torshavn
Norwegian number one...Rosenborg
NORWAY: TIPPELIGAEN
Defending champions: Rosenborg
Season ends: November 5, 2016
WORLD SOCCER
119
draw at Roda and fail to regain

top spot from PSV, who beat De
Graafschap 4-2 the day before.
ITALY: Internazionale coach Roberto
Mancini is sent off and Mauro Icardi
misses a penalty as they lose 3-0
to city rivals Milan.
SCOTLAND: Ross County beat Celtic
3-1 to reach the Scottish League
Cup Final for the first time, where
they will face Hibernian.
SPAIN: Cristiano Ronaldo takes his
league tally against Espanyol this
season to eight with a hat-trick in
Real Madrids 6-0 win.
Monday February 1
ENGLAND: Manchester City confirm
Pep Guardiola will replace Manuel
Pellegrini as head coach at the end
of the season. The transfer window
closes with Premier League clubs
having spent a record 1.045billion
for the season.
Tuesday February 2
CONMEBOL: Adrian Leiza, the
Uruguayan vice-president of the
South American confederation,
resigns after what he calls a politically
motivated ruling to reduce Boca
Juniors stadium ban for crowd
violence in last years Libertadores
Cup from eight games to two.
ENGLAND: Tottenham Hotspur win
3-0 at Norwich City to go third,
above Arsenal who draw 0-0 at
home to Southampton. Leicester City
stay top by beating Liverpool 2-0.
FRANCE: Florian Thauvin, who
rejoined Marseille on loan from
Newcastle United two days earlier, is
sent off 10 minutes after appearing
as a sub following a wild challenge on
Montpelliers Hilton in OMs 1-0 win.
Wednesday February 3
BELGIUM: In the Belgian Cup, Club
Brugge beat Gent 1-0 on the night to
draw 2-2 on aggregate and win on
away goals. They will face Standard
Liege, who beat Genk, in the Final.
CHINA: Guangzhou Evergrande sign
Jackson Martinez from Atletico
Madrid for 31m.
FRANCE: Paris Saint-Germain set
a new Ligue 1 record of 33 games
unbeaten with a 3-1 victory over
Lorient in Laurent Blancs 100th
league game as PSG coach.
HOLLAND: VVSB, from the seaside
resort of Noordwijkerhout, become
the first amateur side to reach the
semi-finals of the Dutch Cup since
1975 with a 3-2 win at Den Bosch.
The third-tier side had trailed 2-0.
ITALY: At the 23rd time of asking,
Verona finally win a league game
this season, beating Atalanta 2-1.
Napoli stay top with a 2-0 victory
120
WORLD SOCCER
Japan
MIKE PLASTOW
Youth set to
lead the way
High hopes for Rio as new season kicks off
hile the new J.League season kicks
off with intense focus on last years
big three of Sanfrecce Hiroshima,
Urawa Reds and Gamba Osaka,
plus resurgent Kashima Antlers,
Japans qualification for the Rio
Olympics secured by winning every match at the
Asian Under-23 Championship in January has given
the media and fans the opportunity to keep tabs on a
new generation of stars.
Sanfrecce Hiroshima are again the team to beat
after winning a third J.League title in four years in
December. Hiroshima hasnt seen anything like it since
Toyo Kogyo the club which became Sanfrecce won
five titles in the amateur Japan Soccer Leagues first six
seasons from 1965 to 1970.
Sanfrecces third-place finish at the Club World
Cup following a 2-1 win over Chinas Guangzhou
Evergrande reconfirmed what a good side they are
and Toshihiro Aoyama, the 2015 J.League Player of the
Year, even allowed himself the luxury of saying he felt
they should have gone higher.
The big change at Sanfrecce this season is the
departure of Brazilian striker Douglas, their top scorer
with 21 goals last season, to Al Ain in the UAE. Peter
Utaka, on loan from just relegated Shimizu S-Pulse, has
the difficult task of filling his shoes. The Nigerian scored
nine times last term and will fancy his chances of doing
considerably better at the top of the table.
Coach Hajime Moriyasu, now in his fifth season at
the helm, is otherwise standing by his proven squad
and with players such as J.League Young Player of
the Year Takuma Asano coming through, who can
blame him?
At Urawa Reds, former Sanfrecce boss Mihailo
Petrovic is also starting his fifth year in charge. Urawa
will again mount a mighty challenge after finishing
HappySanfrecce celebrate third place at the Club World Cup
On target
Shinzo Koroki
scores for Urawa
Reds in their 2-1
Emperors Cup
Final defeat by
Gamba Osaka
To be competitive at the
Olympics we have to improve
every aspect of the team
Japan under-23 coach Makoto Teguramori
runners-up in 2014 and second overall again in last
seasons new two-stage system. It has been a decade
since Japans best-supported club won their only
championship, in 2006, and they have added to their
squad by bringing in Slovenian full-back Branko Ilic
from Astana of Kazakhstan.
Urawas current nemesis are 2014 treble winners
Gamba Osaka, who not only beat them in the first
and last domestic games of last season the Super
Cup and Emperors Cup Final but also ended
Reds title hopes in last terms championship playoff semi-final.
Gamba finished last season on a high, only falling
narrowly to Sanfrecce in the championship Final and
then defeating the champions 3-0 in the Emperors
Cup semi-final in December,.
Gamba should gain momentum from starting the
new season in their handsome new 40,000-capacity
Suita City Football Stadium. Kenta Hasegawa has won
silverware in all three years at the helm so far and his
team will again be hard to beat.
Kashima Antlers, League Cup winners and runnersup in last seasons second stage, look ready to rise
back to the top. The J.Leagues most crowned club with
seven championships, they havent won the league
since 2009 but may have emerged from the doldrums
under Masatada Ishii, the former Antlers defender.
WORLD SERVICE
at Lazio, while Juventus set a club

record of 13 straight Serie A wins
with a 1-0 victory over Genoa.
SCOTLAND: The day after being
bitten by his own dog, Jonny Hayes
scores for Aberdeen as they beat
Celtic 2-1 and close the gap at the
top of the table to three points.
SPAIN: Four goals from Luis Suarez
and a Lionel Messi hat-trick sees
Valencia fall to their heaviest Spanish
Cup defeat since 1928 as they are
thrashed 7-0 at Barcelona in the first
leg of their semi-final tie.
Thursday February 4
ARGENTINA: Estudiantes Mariano
Andujar and Nicolas Mazzola of
Gimnasia, along with Alvaro Pereira
who has since left Estudiantes to
join Malaga on loan in Spain are
handed eight-game bans for their
part in a brawl that saw a friendly
between the two rivals from La Plata
abandoned on Sunday. Twelve other
players are suspended for between
one and five matches.
CHINA: The Chinese transfer record
is broken for the third time in eight
days as Jiangsu Suning pay 38.4m
for Alex Teixeira of Shakhtar Donetsk.
SPAIN: Sevilla beat Celta Vigo 4-0 in
the home leg of their Spanish Cup
semi-final.
Friday February 5
Antlers promising squad includes three of Japans

heroes from the Asian Under-23 Championship in
Doha: goalkeeper Masatoshi Kushibiki, midfielder
Kento Misao and defender Naomichi Ueda, whose
all-important fifth-minute goal gave Japan a 1-0 victory
in their opening match against North Korea.
The Japan under-23s have given the domestic league
a welcome boost at just the right time as, unlike the
senior national squad, almost all of the team still play in
the country, including skipper Wataru Endo, who has just
moved from Shonan Bellmare to Reds, FC Tokyos Shoya
Nakajima, Kawasaki Frontales Ryota Oshima and
Gambas Yosuke Ideguchi.
FC Tokyo, the club Gamba leap-frogged into third
place on the final day of the season, must also be
watched. Hiroshi Jofuku, who led the club from 2008-10,
returns to the helm now that Massimo Ficcadenti has
moved to Sagan Tosu.
Erick Mombaerts Yokohama F-Marinos, where
Shunsuke Nakamura captains a richly experienced
squad, and Kawasaki Frontale, where Yoshito Okubu has
been the leagues top scorer for three seasons in a row,
should also be in the thick of things.
There will be strong interest, too, in seeing how newly
promoted Omiya Ardija, Jubilo Iwata and Avispa Fukuoka
fare back in the top flight after all three enjoyed a
spectacular season last year in the second tier.
JAPAN: J1 LEAGUE 2016
PORTUGAL: Kostas Mitroglou scores

a hat-trick as Benfica win 5-0 at
Belenenses to go top of the table.
SOUTH AFRICA: Ajax Cape Town
withdraw from the Confederation Cup
due to travel concerns over Saturdays
game away to Angolan side Sagrada
Esperanca. Late withdrawals from
CAF competitions automatically
invoke a three-year ban.
Saturday February 6
10
6 5
12
3 7 4 11
8 2
1
2
3
4
5
6
Albirex Niigata
Avispa Fukuoka
Gamba Osaka
Jubilo Iwata
Kashima Antlers
Kashiwa Reysol (Gt Tokyo)
Kawasaki Frontale
Omiya Ardija
Shonan Bellmare
Tokyo
Urawa Red Diamonds
Yokohama F-Marinos
7 Nagoya Grampus
8 Sagan Tosu
9 Sanfrecce Hiroshima
10 Vegalta Sendai
11 Ventforet Kofu
12 Vissel Kobe
KEY DATES
League season starts: February 27, 2016
League season ends: November 3, 2016
ENGLAND: Leicester City extend

their lead at the top of the league
with a 3-1 win at second-place
Manchester City. Tottenham Hotspur
move above Man City later in the day
with a 1-0 victory at home to Watford.
GERMANY: Xabi Alonso is sent off as
Bayern Munich draw 0-0 at Bayer
Leverkusen.
SPAIN: Fernando Torres scores his
100th goal for Atletico Madrid as
they beat Eibar 3-1.
Sunday February 7
AFRICAN NATIONS CHAMP: DR
Congo win the tournament for
home-based players for a second
time, beating Mali 3-0 in the Final.
Ivory Coast take third place with a
2-1 victory over Guinea.
ENGLAND: Diego Costas injurytime equaliser denies Manchester
WORLD SOCCER
121
United victory in a 1-1 draw away

at Chelsea.
FRANCE: Paris Saint-Germain win
2-1 away to arch-rivals Marseille.
Saint-Etienne move into fourth place
with a 4-1 victory at Bordeaux.
ITALY: Napoli beat Carpi 1-0 to claim
a club-record eighth consecutive
league victory and maintain a twopoint lead over Juventus, who win
2-0 at Frosinone.
SCOTLAND: Paul Hanlon scores in
injury time as Hibernian come from
2-0 down to draw 2-2 at local rivals
Hearts in the Scottish Cup fifth round.
Monday February 8
PORTUGAL: Sporting Lisbon are held
to a goalless draw at home by Rio Ave
and miss the chance to go top.
Tuesday February 9
ARGENTINA: Hours after his injurytime goal puts Huracan into the group
stage of the Libertadores Cup, Diego
Mendoza is one of five players taken
to hospital after their team bus
crashes in Venezuela. The Argentinian
side lost 2-1 to Caracas but went
through on away goals after winning
their home leg 1-0.
AUSTRALIA: Marcelo Carrusca
misses a second-half penalty as
Adelaide United lose at home in
continental competition for the first
time in six years, going down 2-1 to
10-man Chinese side Shandong
Luneng in the AFC Champions
League qualifying play-off round.
EGYPT: Al Ahly beat Zamalek 2-0 in
the 154th derby meeting between the
Cairo rivals to go seven points clear of
their visitors at the top of the league.
FRANCE: Sochaux, who are second
bottom in Ligue 2, beat Monaco 2-1
in the last 16 of the French Cup. GFC
Ajaccio come from behind to win 2-1
at fourth-tier Saint Malo, while fifth
division Granville progress with a 1-0
victory over Bourg-Peronnas.
URUGUAY: River Plate of Montevideo,
in their debut Libertadores campaign,
draw 0-0 away to Universidad de
Chile to win 2-0 on aggregate and
qualify for the group stage.
Gambia
STEVE MENARY
Home search
under way
New coach seeks new players
ang Ndong has returned to the
Gambia hot seat and will draw
on players closer to home for the
forthcoming African Nations Cup
double-header with Mauritania.
A former Gambian international,
Ndong was coaching club side Banjul Hawks and
replaces Swiss Raoul Savoy, who left at the end of
2015 claiming his departure was linked to the
withdrawal of a dark sponsor.
Savoy, who has previously been in charge of the
Central African Republic, said: That made things very
difficult to proceed, to bring in overseas players and
play friendly games. Without money in Africa, it is
difficult. It was a shame as the project was going well.
The players are good. The local football is not very
developed but Gambia has a lot of players outside the
country. There is no reason they cannot do well with a
local coach.
Under Savoy, Gambia were knocked out of the 2018
World Cup qualifiers by Namibia. Ranked 69 in the
FIFA rankings in 2009, they have since slumped to
165 close to their all-time low of 169.
Gambia under-17s coach Matt Mboge, who was part
of Savoys coaching team and will work with Ndong,
says: The resources didnt come [for Savoy] but if you
are paying someone a lot of money in Gambian terms
ENGLAND: Liverpool scrap plans to
introduce a top-price 77 ticket in
their new main stand after thousands
of fans left Anfield after 77 minutes of
Saturdays 2-2 home draw against
Sunderland in protest.
FRANCE: Bordeaux suspend defender
Lamine Sane and keeper Jerome Prior
indefinitely for what the club call a
serious incident after their 4-3
extra-time loss to Nantes in the
French Cup.
GERMANY: Huub Stevens steps
122
WORLD SOCCER
Success abroadSanna Nyassi plays for San Jose Earthquakes
AcrobaticPa
Modou Jagne
controls a high
ball in an African
Nations Cup
qualifier against
South Africa
If you are paying someone

a lot of money in Gambian
terms you have to deliver
Matt Mboge, part of the national coaching set-up
you have to deliver. It all snowballed and people were
saying they didnt want to keep paying. Expectations
are high when you have a foreign coach. Sang will look
to a lot of home-based players as he knows the league.
Winger Alhaji Momodo Nije, known as Biri Biri,
scored 32 goals in 99 league games for Sevilla in
the 1970s, but no Gambian has since scaled those
heights overseas.
Modou Barrow joined English Premier League side
Swansea City in 2014, but has spent most of his time
on loan, while Pa Modo Jagne plays for Swiss side Sion.
Most Gambians play in places such as China, Finland,
Hungary and Israel.
A combination of reduced playing time at their clubs
and a long journey home Bubacarr Trawally plays for
Chinese club Yanbian Fude and it takes him 25 hours
to reach Banjul are behind Ndongs shift in focus.
Im watching these overseas players and some are
barely getting games, says Mboge. We have to be
realistic. We have players here and there, but what are
they contributing?
As Gambians speak English, a soccer scholarship in
the United States has been a route out for the likes of
Abdoulie Mansally and Sanna Nyassi, who play at Real
Salt Lake and San Jose Earthquakes respectively.
WORLD SERVICE
down as Hoffenheim coach and

announces his retirement, saying:
I suffer from cardiac arrhythmia
and probably have to undergo
surgery in the near future.
MOROCCO: The Royal Moroccan
Football Federation says national
coach Badou Zaki has left his post by
mutual consent after 20 months of
instability and inconsistent results.
SOUTH AFRICA: Ajax Cape Town
reverse their decision and will now
travel to Angola at the weekend to
play Sagrada Esperanca in the African
Confederation Cup after the South
Africa Football Association threatened
the club with severe sanctions.
SPAIN: Barcelona draw 1-1 at
Valencia in the Spanish Cup to make
it a club-record 29 consecutive
games unbeaten in all competitions.
Thursday February 11
AUSTRALIA: A-League leaders
Western Sydney Wanderers are
handed a suspended three-point
deduction after fans let off flares and
sound bombs during the 1-1 draw
away to defending champions
Melbourne Victory at the weekend.
ENGLAND: Ex-England winger Adam
Johnson is sacked by Sunderland
after pleading guilty to one count of
sexual activity with a 15-year-old girl
and one charge of grooming.
FRANCE: Laurent Blanc signs a new
two-year deal to carry on as coach of
Paris Saint-Germain.
SPAIN: Sevilla will meet Barcelona
in the Spanish Cup Final after a 2-2
draw at Celta Vigo sees them progress
6-2 on aggregate.
Friday February 12
After making his breakthrough at Portland Timbers,
Division are only around $30 a month, while Gambians
Mamadou Futty Danso now plays for Carolina
in the Senegalese top flight earn a minimum of $200.
Railhawks in the NASL.
In contrast, despite entry costing little more than 20
College is a way out because you
cents, the Gambian league struggles
get an education too, says Danso. If
WHERE IN THE WORLD? to compete and crowds are low.
you are good enough at college you
Qualification for the 2017 African
can be good enough to play in the
Nations Cup finals would be a major
MLS or NASL. But when I was at
fillip. Cameroon are expected to win
Portland, the travelling time home
the group, but Gambia could qualify
was 22 hours. You have to by
as one of the best group runners-up.
physically and mentally ready
There is still a chance to qualify.
for the international break.
Our backs are against the wall so
we need to win both games against
The journey from the east coast is
Mauritania, says Danso, who remains
less but, under Ndong, Danso could
keen to be involved.
be spared the trek.
However, if Gambia do make it
Overseas players will not be
through, that success may be brief.
shunned completely and Ndong
Located on the coast of West Africa,
the Gambia is a former British colony,
will certainly look to the burgeoning
Even if we qualify, I dont think
which gained independence in 1965.
its sustainable with the players we
professional league in neighbouring
have, admits Mboge. Some have
Senegal. Mboge adds: There are 14
Size: 11,300 sq km
been playing for the national team
Gambians in the first division and
Population: 2 million
Capital: Banjul
for 10 years and theres hardly any
more in the second. Even Gambians
Languages: English, Mandinka,
players coming through.
playing in the second tier would get
Wolof and Fula
Just one more reason why Ndong
four times more games than at home.
Religion: Muslim
will look closer to home in future.
Wages in the Gambian First
FIFA: Former general-secretary

Jerome Valcke is banned from all
footballing activities for 12 years.
PORTUGAL: Porto come from behind
to win 2-1 at bitter rivals Benfica.
Saturday February 13
FRANCE: Paris Saint-Germains
run of 16 consecutive wins in all
competitions comes to an end with
a goalless draw at home to Lille.
GREECE: AEK end Olympiakos 21game unbeaten start to the season
with a 1-0 win, in which three players
are sent off.
ITALY: Juventus go top of Serie A for
the first time this term with a 1-0 win
at home to previous leaders Napoli.
Substitute Simone Zazas goal two
minutes from time gives Juve a 15th
successive league success. Frosinone
win away in the top flight for the first
time ever, beating Empoli 2-1.
MALAYSIA: Johor Darul Tazim beat
Selangor on penalties to win the
Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Cup after
WORLD SOCCER
123
a 1-1 draw. The traditional curtainraiser to the season, between the

reigning Super League champions
and the Malaysian Cup holders, also
counts as a league match, so both
sides start the new campaign with
a point each.
NORTHERN IRELAND: Cliftonville
become the first team to win four
League Cups in a row, with a 3-0
victory over Ards, who were only the
second club from outside the top
flight to reach the Final.
SPAIN: At the 10th attempt, Gary
Neville wins his first Liga game as
coach of Valencia with a 2-1 victory
over Espanyol.
Sunday February 14
ENGLAND: As the top four clubs all
meet, Arsenal beat table-toppers
Leicester City 2-1, while Tottenham
Hotspur go second with a 2-1 win at
Manchester City, who drop to fourth.
Aston Villas 6-0 loss to Liverpool is
their heaviest at home since 1935.
FRANCE: Ivorian defender Serge
Aurier is suspended indefinitely

by Paris Saint-Germain for making
homophobic comments about coach
Laurent Blanc in an online video.
HOLLAND: Feyenoords 3-1 loss at
PEC Zwolle is a club-record seventh
straight league defeat.
Monday February 15
HOLLAND: The Dutch FA confirms
that there was an attempt to fix the
Eredivisie game between Willem II
and Utrecht in 2009.
ZAMBIA: Fighton Simukonda, who
coached the national team at last
years African Under-23 Nations Cup
in Senegal, passes away on his 58th
birthday following an unsuccessful
battle with diabetes.
Tuesday February 16
ENGLAND: Chelsea suffer a first
defeat since caretaker manager Guus
Hiddink took charge in November,
losing 2-1 to Paris Saint-Germain
in the Champions League.
RUSSIA: Lokomotiv Moscows team
bus is pelted with bottles before

the Europa League game in Turkey
against Fenerbahce, which they lost
2-0. Tensions have been high since
Turkey shot down a Russian jet that
violated its airspace near the Syrian
border in November.
SCOTLAND: Hibernian beat Hearts
1-0 in a feisty Edinburgh derby
to reach the quarter-finals of the
Scottish Cup. Goalscorer Jason
Cummings was later sent off, along
with Hearts Blazej Augustyn.
SPAIN: A court in Brazil orders assets,
which include a private jet, worth
45m belonging to Barcelona star
Neymar to be frozen.
UKRAINE: Andriy Shevchenko, who is
the national sides all-time top scorer
with 48 goals, joins Ukraines coaching
staff ahead of Euro 2016.
BOLIVIA: The Strongest win away
in the Libertadores Cup for the first
time since 1982, beating Sao Paulo
1-0 in Brazil.
FRANCE: Bastias home game against

Nantes on Saturday is postponed
following clashes between fans and
police in the Corsican city on Monday
and Tuesday. The violence was said to
be in response to the arrest of eight
fans in Reims following Bastias 1-0
victory the previous weekend.
SPAIN: With the first of his two goals
in Barcelonas 3-1 win at Sporting
Gijon, Lionel Messi becomes the first
player to score 300 times in La Liga.
UZBEKISTAN: Reigning league
champions Pakhtakor lose the
season-opening Super Cup for the
third time in four years, beaten 1-0 by
Uzbek Cup winners Nasaf.
Thursday February 18
AUSTRALIA: Wellington Phoenix are
handed a 10-year licence extension
to play in the A-League by Football
Federation Australia, who had
rejected an application in October.
SPAIN: Valencia match the Europa
Leagues record score, beating Rapid
Vienna 6-0.
Leader
...Gonzalo
Higuain
Impressive...
Riyad Mahrez
Pos NAME
1
2
3
4
6
7
9
10
11
12
13
14
17
18
19
20
25
124
Gonzalo Higuain
Jonas Goncalves
Luis Suarez
Robert Lewandowski
Cristiano Ronaldo
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Karim Benzema
Jamie Vardy
Eran Zahavi
Islam Slimani
Nemanja Nikolic
Neymar
Alex Teixeira
Borja
Harry Kane
Romelu Lukaku
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Thomas Muller
Fernando Cavenaghi
Sergio Aguero
Odion Ighalo
Lucas Perez
Riyad Mahrez
Tomas Radzinevicius
Aritz Aduriz
Carlos Bacca
WORLD SOCCER
Goals Factor Points

Napoli
Benfica
Barcelona
Bayern Munich
Real Madrid
Borussia Dortmund
Real Madrid
Leicester City
Maccabi Tel Aviv
Sporting Lisbon
Legia Warsaw
Barcelona
Shakhtar Donetsk
Eibar
Tottenham Hotspur
Everton
Paris Saint-Germain
Bayern Munich
APOEL
Manchester City
Watford
Deportivo La Coruna
Leicester City
Suduva
Athletic Bilbao
Milan
24
23
23
21
21
20
19
19
25
18
23
17
22
16
16
16
21
15
19
14
14
14
14
28
13
13
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1.5
2
1.5
2
1.5
2
2
2
1.5
2
1.5
2
2
2
2
1
2
2
48
46
46
42
42
40
38
38
37.5
36
34.5
34
33
32
32
32
31.5
30
28.5
28
28
28
28
28
26
26
Pos NAME
33
34
36
44
49
Gareth Bale
Paulo Dybala
Kevin Gameiro
Javier Hernandez
Lionel Messi
Bruno Moreira
Luuk De Jong
David Arshakyan
Richard Towell
Imanol Agirretxe
Eder
Olivier Giroud
Antoine Griezmann
Rafael Martins
Alexander Meier
Konstantinos Mitroglou
Ingemar Teever
Kostas Fortounis
Mario Gomez
Deniss Rakels
Onatan Soriano
Nikolai Yanush
Vincent Aboubakar
Gerard Gohou
Leigh Griffiths
Alexander Soderlund
Goals Factor Points

Real Madrid
Juventus
Sevilla
Bayer Leverkusen
Barcelona
Pacos Ferreira
PSV
Trakai
Dundalk
Real Sociedad
Sampdoria/Internazionale
Arsenal
Atletico Madrid
Moreirense
Eintracht Frankfurt
Benfica
Levadia Tallinn
Olympiakos
Besiktas
Cracovia
Red Bull Salzburg
Shakhtyor Saligorsk
Porto
Kairat Almaty
Celtic
Rosenborg
13
13
13
13
25
25
25
12
12
16
16
12
16
16
12
12
12
12
24
12
12
12
24
12
12
12
2
2
2
2
1
1
1
2
2
1.5
1.5
2
1.5
1.5
2
2
2
2
1
2
2
2
1
2
2
2
26
26
26
26
25
25
25
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
24
Latest standings at 14.02.16
WORLD SERVICE
ESM XI
JANUARY 2016
EUROPEAN SPORTS MEDIA

HOW IT WORKS
Every month, journalists from each
member of the European Sports Media
group select their first Xl based on the
best individual performances from
Europes top competitions. For details of
how each ESM member voted, visit
worldsoccer.com/esm11
SEASON RANKINGS
Cumulative votes through the season
GOALKEEPERS
Keylor NAVAS (Real Madrid)
21 votes
Petr CECH (Arsenal)
8
Claudio BRAVO (Barcelona)
6
Manuel NEUER (Bayern Munich)
5
Gianluigi BUFFON (Juventus)
4
Pepe REINA (Napoli)
4
Gianluigi DONNARUMMA (Milan)
3
Samir HANDANOVIC (Internazionale)
3
Jan OBLAK (Atletico Madrid)
3
Kasper SCHMEICHEL (Leicester City)
2
Thibaut COURTOIS (Chelsea)
1
David DE GEA (Manchester United)
1
Ralf FAHRMANN (Schalke)
1
Joe HART (Manchester City)
1
Marvin HITZ (Augsburg)
1
Carlos KAMENI (Malaga)
1
Fernando MUSLERA (Galatasaray)
1
Hakon OPDAL (Start)
1
Sergio RICO (Sevilla)
1
Victor VALDES (Standard Liege)
1
DEFENDERS
Diego GODIN (Atletico Madrid)
MARCELO (Real Madrid)
Jerome BOATENG (Bayern Munich)
DANI ALVES (Barcelona)
Serge AURIER (Paris Saint-Germain)
Laurent KOSCIELNY (Arsenal)
Philipp LAHM (Bayern Munich)
David ALABA (Bayern Munich)
Gerard PIQUE (Barcelona)
THIAGO SILVA (Paris Saint-Germain)
Toby ALDERWEIRELD (Tottenham Hotspur)
FILIPE LUIS (Atletico Madrid)
Matthias GINTER (Borussia Dortmund)
Mats HUMMELS (Borussia Dortmund)
Nicolas OTAMENDI (Manchester City)
Jeison MURILLO (Internazionale)
Sergio RAMOS (Real Madrid)
Chris SMALLING (Manchester United)
Raphael VARANE (Real Madrid)
ALEX SANDRO (Juventus)
Hector BELLERIN (Arsenal)
Alessandro FLORENZI (Roma)
Nacho MONREAL (Arsenal)
Jordi ALBA (Barcelona)
Andrea BARZAGLI (Juventus)
DANILO (Real Madrid)
Matteo DARMIAN (Manchester United)
JUANFRAN (Atletico Madrid)
Kalidou KOULIBALY (Napoli)
Javi MARTINEZ (Bayern Munich)
Lukasz PISZCZEK (Borussia Dortmund)
Victor RUIZ (Villarreal)
Raul ALBIOL (Napoli)
Leonardo BONUCCI (Juventus)
Giorgio CHIELLINI (Juventus)
Christian FUCHS (Leicester City)
Robert HUTH (Leicester City)
Miguel LAYUN (Porto)
Stephan LICHTSTEINER (Juventus)
MAXWELL (Paris Saint-Germain)
Mateo MUSACCHIO (Villarreal)
21
19
11
10
9
9
9
8
8
8
7
7
6
6
6
5
5
5
5
4
4
4
4
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
Kurt ZOUMA (Chelsea)

Davide ASTORI (Fiorentina)
Juan BERNAT (Bayern Munich)
Daley BLIND (Manchester United)
Olivier BOSCAGLI (Napoli)
Alberto BOTIA (Olympiakos)
Dani CARVAJAL (Real Madrid)
Nathaniel CLYNE (Liverpool)
Patrice EVRA (Juventus)
FABIO COENTRAO (Monaco)
Roderic FILIPPI (GFC Ajaccio)
Branislav IVANOVIC (Chelsea)
Christophe JALLET (Lyon)
Presnel KIMPEMBE (Paris Saint-Germain)
Vincent KOMPANY (Manchester City)
Julian KORB (Borussia Monchengladbach)
Layvin KURZAWA (Paris Saint-Germain)
Sebastian LANGKAMP (Hertha Berlin)
Dejan LOVREN (Liverpool)
MAICON (Roma)
Adam MASINIA (Bologna)
MAURICIO (Lazio)
MIRANDA (Internazionale)
NALDO (Wolfsburg)
Erik PIETERS (Stoke City)
Winston REID (West Ham United)
Gonzalo RODRIGUEZ (Fiorentina)
Bacary SAGNA (Manchester City)
Nelson SEMEDO (Benca)
SERGI Roberto (Barcelona)
Martin SKRTEL (Liverpool)
Aytac SULU (Darmstadt)
Jonathan TAH (Bayer Leverkusen)
Alex TELLES (Internazionale)
John TERRY (Chelsea)
Patrick VAN AANHOLT (Sunderland)
Gregory VAN DER WIEL (Paris Saint-Germain)
Jan VERTONGHEN (Tottenham Hotspur)
Oscar WENDT (Borussia Monchengladbach)
Dries WUYTENS (Willem ll)
MIDFIELDERS
Mesut OZIL (Arsenal)
Riyad MAHREZ (Leicester City)
Kevin DE BRUYNE (Manchester City)
Angel DI MARIA (Paris Saint-Germain)
DOUGLAS COSTA (Bayern Munich)
Thomas MULLER (Bayern Munich)
Paul POGBA (Juventus)
Andres INIESTA (Barcelona)
Philippe COUTINHO (Liverpool)
Dele ALLI (Tottenham Hotspur)
Sergio BUSQUETS (Barcelona)
CASEMIRO (Real Madrid)
Hakan CALHANOGLU (Bayer Leverkusen)
FELIPE MELO (Internazionale)
NGolo KANTE (Leicester City)
Henrykh MKHITARYAN (Borussia Dortmund)
Ivan RAKITIC (Barcelona)
Julian WEIGL (Borussia Dortmund)
Jose CALLEJON (Napoli)
Francis COQUELIN (Arsenal)
JORGINHO (Napoli)
Gary MEDEL (Internazionale)
Luka MODRIC (Real Madrid)
Dmitri PAYET (West Ham United)
Miralem PJANIC (Roma)
TIAGO (Atletico Madrid)
XABI ALONSO (Bayern Munich)
ADRIEN SILVA (Sporting Lisbon)
ANDRE ANDRE (Porto)
Ross BARKLEY (Everton)
Karim BELLARABI (Bayer Leverkusen)
Santi CAZORLA (Arsenal)
Kingsley COMAN (Bayern Munich)
Lassana DIARRA (Marseille)
Daniel DIDAVI (Stuttgart)
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
21
15
14
14
14
14
10
8
6
5
5
4
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
Claudio
Bravo
Andrea
Barzagli
Barcelona
OOO
Juventus
OOO
Marcelo
Dele Alli
Real
Madrid
OOOO
Tottenham
Hotspur
OOO
MARCELO
Gonzalo
Higuain
Napoli
OOOOOO
OOOOO
ALLI
BARZAGLI
HIGUAIN
BRAVO
POGBA
BENZEMA
PIQUE
DYBALA
PISZCZEK
DI MARIA
Gerard
Pique
Lukasz
Piszczek
Paul
Pogba
Angel
Di Maria
Paulo
Dybala
Karim
Benzema
Barcelona
OOOO
Bor Dortmund
OOO
Juventus
OOOOO
OOOO
PSG
OOOO
Juventus
OOOO
OOOO
Real Madrid
OOOO
FELIPE ANDERSON (Lazio)

Matias FERNANDEZ (Fiorentina)
Nicolas GAITAN (Benca)
Fredy GUARIN (Internazionale)
KOKE (Atletico Madrid)
Yevhen KONOPLYANKA (Sevilla)
Erik LAMELA (Tottenham Hotspur)
Juan MATA (Manchester United)
Blaise MATUIDI (Paris Saint-Germain)
James MILNER (Liverpool)
Cheikh NDOYE (Angers)
OSCAR (Chelsea)
Dennis PRAET (Anderlecht)
Adrien RABIOT (Paris Saint-Germain)
Marco REUS (Borussia Dortmund)
James RODRIGUEZ (Real Madrid)
Bryan RUIZ (Sporting Lisbon)
David SILVA (Manchester City)
Marc STENDERA (Eintracht Frankfurt)
THIAGO ALCANTARA (Bayern Munich)
Yaya TOURE (Manchester City)
Borja VALERO (Fiorentina)
Arturo VIDAL (Bayern Munich)
Daniel WASS (Celta Vigo)
Georginio WIJNALDUM (Newcastle United)
FORWARDS
Luis SUAREZ (Barcelona)
NEYMAR (Barcelona)
Robert LEWANDOWSKI (Bayern Munich)
Pierre-Emerick AUBAMEYANG
(Borussia Dortmund)
Gonzalo HIGUAIN (Napoli)
Jamie VARDY (Leicester City)
Paulo DYBALA (Juventus)
Karim BENZEMA (Real Madrid)
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
28
20
19
17
17
17
12
9
Cristiano RONALDO (Real Madrid)
Anthony MARTIAL (Manchester United)
NOLITO (Celta Vigo)
Javier HERNANDEZ (Bayer Leverkusen)
Zlatan IBRAHIMOVIC (Paris Saint-Germain)
Lionel MESSI (Barcelona)
Gareth BALE (Real Madrid)
Olivier GIROUD (Arsenal)
Antoine GRIEZMANN (Atletico Madrid)
JONAS (Benca)
Marko ARNAUTOVIC (Stoke City)
Kevin GAMEIRO (Sevilla)
Odion IGHALO (Watford)
Romelu LUKAKU (Everton)
ALEX TEIXEIRA (Shakhtar Donetsk)
Borja BASTON (Eibar)
Hatem BEN ARFA (Nice)
Roberto FIRMINO (Liverpool)
Rudy GESTEDE (Aston Villa)
Kelechi IHEANACHO (Manchester City)
Lorenzo INSIGNE (Napoli)
Harry KANE (Tottenham Hotspur)
Dirk KUYT (Feyenoord)
Massimo MACCARONE (Empoli)
Mario MANDZUKIC (Juventus)
Wayne ROONEY (Manchester United)
Alexis SANCHEZ (Arsenal)
Leroy SANE (Schalke)
Islam SLIMANI (Sporting Lisbon)
ESM EUROPEAN SPORTS MEDIA

The members of ESM are: A Bola (Portugal), Elf (Holland), Fanatik (Turkey), Frankfurter Allegmeine Zeitung (Germany), Goal News (Greece), Kicker (Germany), Marca (Spain),
Nemzeti Sport (Hungary), So Foot (France), Sport (Belgium), Sport Express (Russia), De Telegraaf (Holland), TIPSbladet (Denmark), World Soccer (England). More details of votes
at worldsoccer.com/votes
WORLD SOCCER
125
RESULTS, TABLES, FIXTURES
Internationals
AFRICAN NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP
(featuring only players playing in the domestic
league of the country they represent)
Played in Rwanda
Group A
Jan 16: Rwanda 1 Ivory Coast 0; Gabon 0
Morocco 0.
Jan 20: Rwanda 2 Gabon 1; Morocco 0
Ivory Coast 1.
Jan 24: Morocco 4 Rwanda 1; Ivory Coast 4
Gabon 1.
AFRICAN NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP GROUP A
P W D L F A Pts
Rwanda (Q)
3
2
0 1 4 5 6
Ivory Coast (Q) 3
2
0 1 5 2 6
Morocco
3
1
1 1 4 2 4
3
0
1 2 2 6 1
Gabon
Group B
Jan 17: DR Congo 3 Ethiopia 0; Angola 0
Cameroon 1.
Jan 21: DR Congo 4 Angola 2; Cameroon 0
Ethiopia 0.
Jan 25: Ethiopia 1 Angola 2; Cameroon 3
DR Congo 1.
AFRICAN NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP GROUP B
P W D L F A Pts
2
1 0 4 1 7
Cameroon (Q) 3
2
0 1 8 5 6
DR Congo (Q) 3
3
1
0 2 4 6 3
Angola
Ethiopia
3
0
1 2 1 5 1
BANGABANDHU GOLD CUP

Played in Bangladesh
Group A
Jan 8 - Jessore
Sri Lanka 2 (Figurado pen 21, Sanjeewa 51)
Bangladesh 4 (Rony 17, 88, Y Khan 22,
Jibon 44)
HT: 1-3
Jan 9 - Jessore
Malaysia XI 0
Nepal 0
Jan13 - Dhaka
Nepal 1 (Magar 4)
Sri Lanka 0
HT: 1-0
Jan13 - Dhaka
Bangladesh 1 (M Chowdhury 76)
Malaysia XI 1 (Hadin 55)
HT: 0-0
Jan15 - Dhaka
Malaysia XI 1 (Nor Fazli 82)
Sri Lanka 2 (Bandara 19, Sanjeewa 63)
HT: 0-1
Jan15 - Dhaka
Bangladesh 0
Nepal 0
BANGABANDHU GOLD CUP GROUP A
P W D L F A Pts
Bangladesh (Q) 3
1
2 0 5 3 5
3
1
2 0 1 0 5
Nepal (Q)
Sri Lanka
3
1
0 2 4 6 3
1
3
0
2 1 2 3 2
Malaysia XI
Group C
Jan 18: Tunisia 2 Guinea 2; Nigeria 4 Niger 1.
Jan 22: Tunisia 1 Nigeria 1; Niger 2 Guinea 2.
Jan 26: Guinea 1 Nigeria 0; Niger 0 Tunisia 5.
1
Malaysia represented by club side Felda United
AFRICAN NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP GROUP C

P W D L F A Pts
Tunisia (Q)
3
1
2 0 8 3 5
Guinea (Q)
3
1
2 0 5 4 5
Nigeria
3
1
1 1 5 3 4
Niger
3
0
1 2 3 11 1
Group D
Jan 19: Zimbabwe 0 Zambia 1; Mali 2 Uganda 2.
Jan 23: Zimbabwe 0 Mali 1; Uganda 0 Zambia 1.
Jan 27: Zambia 0 Mali 0; Uganda 1 Zimbabwe 1.
AFRICAN NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP GROUP D
P W D L F A Pts
Zambia (Q)
3
2
1 0 2 0 7
Mali (Q)
3
1
2 0 3 2 5
Uganda
3
0
2 1 3 4 2
Zimbabwe
3
0
1 2 1 3 1
The top 2 in each group qualied for the

quarter-nals
Quarter-nals
Jan11 - Jessore
Maldives 3 (Easa 4, Naiz 38, 80)
Cambodia 2 (Vandeth 15, Dina 43)
HT: 2-2
Jan14 - Dhaka
Cambodia 0
Bahrain U-23 1 (A Al Shaikh 11)
HT: 0-1
Jan14 - Dhaka
Bangladesh U-23 0
Maldives 2 (Easa 15, Imaz 23)
HT: 0-2
Jan 30: Rwanda 1 DR Congo 2 (aet);

Cameroon 0 Ivory Coast 3 (aet).
Jan 31: Tunisia 1 Mali 2; Zambia 0 Guinea 0 (aet,
Guinea 5-4 on pens).
Jan16 - Dhaka
Bahrain U-23 1 (Ali 58)
Maldives 1 (Imaz 18)
HT: 0-1
Semi-nals
Jan16 - Dhaka
Cambodia 1 (Dina 71)
Bangladesh U-23 0
HT: 0-0
Feb 3: DR Congo 1 Guinea 1 (aet, DR Congo

5-4 on pens).
Feb 4: Mali 1 Ivory Coast 0.
3rd-place match
Feb 7: Guinea 1 Ivory Coast 2.
Final
Feb 7 - Kigali
DR Congo 3 (Meschak 29, 61, Bolingi 73)
Mali 0
HT: 1-0. Ref: Bennett (SAf)
Previous winners
2009 DR Congo
2011
Tunisia
2014
Libya
126
Group B
Jan10 - Jessore
Bahrain U-23 1 (J Al Shaikh 23)
Bangladesh U-23 1 (Sifat 19)
HT: 1-1
Sent off: Ali (Bahrain U-23) 89
WORLD SOCCER
BANGABANDHU GOLD CUP GROUP B

P W D L F A Pts
Maldives (Q) 3
2
1 0 6 3 7
Bahrain U23 (Q) 3
1
2 0 3 2 5
Cambodia
3
1
0 2 3 4 3
Bangdesh U23 3
0
1 2 1 4 1
The top 2 in both groups qualied for the

semi-nals
Semi-nals
Jan18 - Dhaka
Bangladesh 0
Bahrain U-23 1 (Al Hooti 45)
HT: 0-1
Jan19 - Dhaka
Maldives 1 (Nashid 77)
Nepal 4 (N Shrestha 31, 62, 90+1, B Rai 52)
HT: 0-1
Final
Jan 22 - Dhaka
Bahrain U-23 0
Nepal 3 (Magar 5, B Rai 87, N Shrestha 90+1)
HT: 0-1
Sent off: Al Thawai 81, Abdul Aziz 90+2 (both
Bahrain U-23); S Lama (Nepal) 81
FRIENDLIES
Wednesday, January 27
Jan 27 - Aswan
Egypt 0
Jordan 1 (Samir 19)
HT: 0-1
Egypt: Ekramy - Gaber (Hany 75), Rabia,
Dewidar, A Fathy, M Fathy, El Said (Hefny 46),
Ghaly, El Sayed, Sobhy, Raouf (Gamal 61).
Jordan: Sha - Al Dmeiri, Khattab, Bani Yaseen,
Zahran, Abdelrahman, Elias, Al Bakhit, Samir
(Alameh 90+6), Alawneh (Alnaber 67),
Al Rawashdeh (Shishani 90).
Jan 27 - Managua
Nicaragua 1 (Leguias 14)
Honduras 3 (Mendez 57, Alvarado pen 83,
Casco og 89)
HT: 1-0. Att: 5,000. Ref: Davila (Nic)
Nicaragua: D Tellez - Copete, Casco, Quijano,
Rosas, Montiel, B Garcia (Reyes 39; Pavon 69),
Chavarria (Veliz 84), Cuadra (Somarriba 69),
M Lopez (Peralta 88), Leguias (O Lopez 86).
Sent off: Copete 83.
Honduras: Escober - Crisanto, H Figueroa,
Velasquez, Alvarado, Mendez (Oseguera 86),
A Mejia, Morazan (Acosta 55), Andino
(C Mejia 55), Elis (Quioto 65), Tejeda
(Hernandez 71).
Friday, January 29
Jan 29 - Aswan
Egypt 2 (Gabr 31, Morsi 75)
Libya 0
HT: 1-0
Egypt: A El Shenawy - Hany, Hegazy (M Magdy
79), Gabr, Rahil (Nassef 46), I Salah, El Said
(S Soliman 61), Hefny (A Magdy 46), Zakaria,
Kahraba (Mamdouh 67), Mohsen (Morsi 61).
Libya: Nashnoush - Farhat, R Ella
(E M Al Masri 53), Moeen (Chtiba 53), Al Gamal,
El Trbi, Tabal, Al Borki (Essaghir 79), Al Khritli,
Al Badri (Sabbou 68), Al Ghanodi.
Sunday, January 31
Jan 31 - Carson
United States 3 (Altidore 20, Orozco 59,
Birnbaum 90)
Iceland 2 (Steindorsson 13, Sigurdarson 48)
HT: 1-1. Att: 8,803. Ref: Solis (CR)
United States: Robles - Evans (Birnbaum 46),
Orozco, Besler, Acosta, Bradley, Jones
(Tchani 71), Finlay (Nagbe 61), Nguyen, Zardes
(Kiesewetter 75), Altidore (Morris 75).
Iceland: Kristinsson - B Saevarsson, Jonasson
(Hermannsson 46), Fjoluson, A Skulason
(A Johannesson 84), Sigurdarson, Thorarinsson
(D Johannesson 46), R Sigurjonsson,
Steindorsson (Thrandarson 46), Smarason,
Gudjohnsen (Finnbogason 71).
Tuesday, February 2
Feb 2 - Barinas
Venezuela 1 (Angel 89)
Costa Rica 0
HT: 0-0. Ref: Sanchez (Col)
Venezuela: Contreras - Faria, Benitez, Angel,
Villanueva, Flores (Garcia 90+3), Figuera
(Acosta 78), Soteldo, L Gonzalez (Pena 80),
Moreno (Ponce 54), Blanco.
Costa Rica: Madrigal - Mena (Smith 78),
Waston, Acosta, Francis, Miranda, Alvarado
(Sanchez 90+4), Azofeifa (Valle 77), Venegas,
Colindres (Cunningham 56), Ramirez.
Sent off: Venegas 42, Ramirez 65.
Friday, February 5
Feb 5 - Riffa
Bahrain 2 (Eissa 15, Yusuf 45)
Lebanon 0
HT: 2-0
Bahrain: Al Doseri - Mansour (Al Barri 70),
Eissa (Al Asfoor 85), Adnan, Shallal, Ghuloom,
Yusuf (Abdeljabar 70), Al Aswad, Al Hooti,
Adel (Mirza 70), Saeed.
Lebanon: Khalil (Bittar 46) - Moghrabi (Hanineh
46), Siblini (Al Mal 76), Jalloul (Awada 64),
Kojok, Mansour, Chaito (H Oumari 70), Antar
(Abbas Ahmed Atwi 46), M Haidar (Al Zain 87),
Zein Tahan, Y Mohamad.
Feb 5 - Saly
Senegal 2 (Mbengue 69, Gueye 72)
Mauritania 0
HT: 0-0. Ref: Ndiaye (Sen)
Senegal: Thioub (P S Ndiaye 58) - Kante
(E Cisse 80), M Traore (A Mendy 50), A Sylla,
Mbengue, O Thioune, Cissokho (N Mendy 58),
S Sane, Gueye, I Diop (A Mbodj 50), Nguer
(Abdoulaye Ba 53).
Mauritania: Salahdine - Abou Sy, Varajou, Ly,
Wade, Baghayoko (Gueye 72), Denna, Yali,
Moctar (Bella 69), Niass, Abderrahmane Sy
(Ndiaye 66). Sent off: Abou Sy 67.
Feb 5 - Carson
United States 1 (Altidore 90)
Canada 0
HT: 0-0. Att: 9,274. Ref: Mejia (ESv)
United States: Bingham - Birnbaum, Jones,
Besler, Acosta (Vincent 46), Zardes
(Kiesewetter 61), Bradley, Diskerud (Trapp 77),
Nguyen (Nagbe 61), Morris (Finlay 88),
Altidore (Kitchen 90+2).
Canada: Crepeau - Ledgerwood (Bekker 46),
Lefevre (Henry 46), Vitoria, De Jong (Dixon 85),
Straith, De Guzman, Johnson, Froese
(Nakajima-Farran 46), Larin (Adekugbe 78),
Akindele (Hume 72).
Saturday, February 6
Feb 6 - Vieux-Habitants
Guadeloupe 1 (Dan 50)
Martinique 1 (Delem 66)
HT: 0-0. Ref: Antoine (Gdp)
Guadeloupe: Tejou (Julan 4) - Phobere, Valmy
(Tacita 63), Laurence, Babel, Osseux, Romain
(Cesaire-Gedeon 88), Lafortune (Francillonne
70), Dan (Hanany 79), Vouteau (Roche 63),
Annerose (Labuthie 74).
Martinique: Vermignon (Chauvet 76) - Telga
(Zaire 46), Dondon (Jougon 57), Delem, Lepel
(Bodezon 46), Herelle, Cretinoir, Abaul (Boriel
90), Nedra (Saint-Omer 80), Vitulin (Pignet 57),
Joseph-Louis (Pastel 46).
Wednesday, February 10
Feb10 - Guatemala City
Guatemala 3 (Tinoco 20, Marquez 42,
L Martinez 56)
Honduras 1 (Quioto 3)
HT: 2-1. Ref: Cornejo (ESv)
Guatemala: P Motta - Jimenez, H Lopez,
Castrillo (D Lopez 74), Rafael Morales, Icute
(Matta 65), Saravia, Marquez (Samayoa 65),
Longo (F Lopez 71), L Martinez (Arias 71),
Tinoco (O Martinez 78).
Honduras: Valladares - Beckeles, Johnny
Palacios (Mendez 46), H Figueroa, Alvarado
(Oseguera 63), Leveron, Espinoza, Acosta (Claros
61), Andino (Elis 60), Quioto (C Mejia 75),
Hernandez (Colon 31).
Feb10 - Miami, USA
Mexico 2 (Duenas 73, Pizarro 86)
Senegal 0
HT: 0-0
Mexico: J J Corona - Y Corona (Salcedo 46),
Araujo (Rivas 46), Flores (I Jimenez 67), Torres
Nilo, Zavala (Molina 59), Duenas, Montes (Pizarro
46), Damm (Ramirez 72), Lozano, E Herrera.
Senegal: P S Ndiaye - Kante, Mbengue, M Sylla,
O Thioune, Cissokho (N Diallo 63), Mendy,
E Cisse, A Mbodj (I Diop 53), S Sane (Bocande
89), Gueye.
Sunday, February 14
Feb14 - Dubai, UAE
Uzbekistan 2 (Shomurodov 5, Djeparov 40)
Lebanon 0
HT: 2-0
2018 WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS
Group B
SOUTH AMERICA section

4.5 nals places available
2018 WC QUALS SOUTH AMERICA

P W D L F
Ecuador
4
4
0 0 9
Uruguay
4
3
0 1 9
Brazil
4
2
1 1 7
4
2
1 1 3
Paraguay
Chile
4
2
1 1 7
Argentina
4
1
2 1 2
Colombia
4
1
1 2 3
Bolivia
4
1
0 3 5
Peru
4
1
0 3 4
Venezuela
4
0
0 4 4
A Pts
2 12
2 9
4 7
2 7
7 7
3 5
5 4
8 3
9 3
11 0
Each team will play 18 games (9x2)

The top 4 will qualify for the nals; the
5th-placed country will meet the Oceania play-off
round winner in a play-off for a place in the nals
Results to date
2015
Oct 8
Argentina v Ecuador
Bolivia v Uruguay
Chile v Brazil
Colombia v Peru
Venezuela v Paraguay
Oct 13 Brazil v Venezuela
Ecuador v Bolivia
Paraguay v Argentina
Peru v Chile
Uruguay v Colombia
Nov 12 Bolivia v Venezuela
Chile v Colombia
Ecuador v Uruguay
Nov 13 Argentina v Brazil
Peru v Paraguay
Nov 17 Brazil v Peru
Colombia v Argentina
Paraguay v Bolivia
Uruguay v Chile
Venezuela v Ecuador
0-2
0-2
2-0
2-0
0-1
3-1
2-0
0-0
3-4
3-0
4-2
1-1
2-1
1-1
1-0
3-0
0-1
2-1
3-0
1-3
Next 2 rounds of xtures

2016
Mar 24 Bolivia v Colombia
Chile v Argentina
Ecuador v Paraguay
Peru v Venezuela
Mar 25 Brazil v Uruguay
Mar 29 Argentina v Bolivia
Colombia v Ecuador
Paraguay v Brazil
Uruguay v Peru
Venezuela v Chile
Games to be completed by Oct 2017
ASIA section
2nd round
Group A
2018 WC QUALS ASIA 2ND ROUND: GP A
P W D L F A Pts
Saudi Arabia 6
5
1 0 25 3 16
UAE
6
4
1 1 22 3 13
Palestine
6
2
3 1 15 4 9
Malaysia
7
1
1 5 3 28 4
East Timor
7
0
2 5 2 29 2
Full results & xtures

2015
Jun 11 Malaysia v East Timor
1-1
Saudi Arabia v Palestine
3-2
Jun 15 East Timor v UAE
0-1
Malaysia v Palestine
0-6
Sep 3 Saudi Arabia v East Timor
7-0
UAE v Malaysia
10-0
Sep 8 Malaysia v S Arabia (awarded) 0-3
Palestine v UAE
0-0
Oct 8
East Timor v Palestine
1-1
Saudi Arabia v UAE
2-1
Oct 13 East Timor v Malaysia
0-1
Nov 9 Palestine v Saudi Arabia
0-0
Nov 12 Palestine v Malaysia
6-0
UAE v East Timor
8-0
Nov 17 East Timor v Saudi Arabia
0-10
Malaysia v UAE
1-2
2016
Mar 24 Saudi Arabia v Malaysia
UAE v Palestine
Mar 29 Palestine v East Timor
UAE v Saudi Arabia
2018 WC QUALS ASIA 2ND ROUND: GP B

P W D L F A Pts
Australia
6
5
0 1 17 3 15
Jordan
6
4
1 1 12 2 13
Kyrgyzstan
7
3
2 2 9 8 11
Tajikistan
6
1
2 3 9 12 5
Bangladesh
7
0
1 6 2 24 1

2015
Jun 11 Bangladesh v Kyrgyzstan
Tajikistan v Jordan
Jun 16 Bangladesh v Tajikistan
Kyrgyzstan v Australia
Sep 3 Australia v Bangladesh
Jordan v Kyrgyzstan
Sep 8 Bangladesh v Jordan
Tajikistan v Australia
Oct 8
Jordan v Australia
Kyrgyzstan v Tajikistan
Oct 13 Jordan v Tajikistan
Kyrgyzstan v Bangladesh
Nov 12 Australia v Kyrgyzstan
Tajikistan v Bangladesh
Nov 17 Bangladesh v Australia
Kyrgyzstan v Jordan
2016
Mar 24 Australia v Tajikistan
Jordan v Bangladesh
Mar 29 Australia v Jordan
Tajikistan v Kyrgyzstan
1-3
1-3
1-1
1-2
5-0
0-0
0-4
0-3
2-0
2-2
3-0
2-0
3-0
5-0
0-4
1-0
Group C
2018 WC QUALS ASIA 2ND ROUND: GP C
P W D L F A Pts
Qatar (Q)
6
6
0 0 27 2 18
Hong Kong
7
4
2 1 13 3 14
6
3
2 1 21 1 11
China
Maldives
6
1
0 5 4 14 3
Bhutan
7
0
0 7 3 48 0

2015
Jun 11 Hong Kong v Bhutan
Maldives v Qatar
Jun 16 Bhutan v China
Hong Kong v Maldives
Sep 3 China v Hong Kong
Qatar v Bhutan
Sep 8 Hong Kong v Qatar
Maldives v China
Oct 8
Bhutan v Maldives
Qatar v China
Oct 13 Bhutan v Hong Kong
Qatar v Maldives
Nov 12 China v Bhutan
Maldives v Hong Kong
Nov 17 Bhutan v Qatar
Hong Kong v China
2016
Mar 24 China v Maldives
Qatar v Hong Kong
Mar 29 China v Qatar
Maldives v Bhutan
7-0
0-1
0-6
2-0
0-0
15-0
2-3
0-3
3-4
1-0
0-1
4-0
12-0
0-1
0-3
0-0
Group E
2018 WC QUALS ASIA 2ND ROUND: GP E
P W D L F A Pts
Japan
6
5
1 0 17 0 16
Syria
6
5
0 1 20 6 15
Singapore
7
3
1 3 8 7 10
Afghanistan 6
2
0 4 6 18 6
Cambodia
7
0
0 7 1 21 0

2015
Jun 11 Afghanistan v Syria
Cambodia v Singapore
Jun 16 Cambodia v Afghanistan
Japan v Singapore
Sep 3 Japan v Cambodia
Syria v Singapore
Sep 8 Afghanistan v Japan
Cambodia v Syria
Oct 8
Singapore v Afghanistan
Syria v Japan
Oct 13 Singapore v Cambodia
Syria v Afghanistan
Nov 12 Afghanistan v Cambodia
Singapore v Japan
Nov 17 Cambodia v Japan
Singapore v Syria
2016
Mar 24 Japan v Afghanistan
Syria v Cambodia
Mar 29 Afghanistan v Singapore
Japan v Syria
0-6
0-4
0-1
0-0
3-0
1-0
0-6
0-6
1-0
0-3
2-1
5-2
3-0
0-3
0-2
1-2

2015
Jun 11 Philippines v Bahrain
2-1
Yemen v N Korea
(awarded) 0-3
Jun 16 North Korea v Uzbekistan
4-2
Yemen v Philippines
0-2
Sep 3 Bahrain v North Korea
0-1
Uzbekistan v Yemen
1-0
Sep 8 Philippines v Uzbekistan
1-5
Yemen v Bahrain
0-4
Oct 8
Bahrain v Uzbekistan
0-4
North Korea v Philippines
0-0
Oct 13 Bahrain v Philippines
2-0
North Korea v Yemen
1-0
Nov 12 Philippines v Yemen
0-1
Uzbekistan v North Korea
3-1
Nov 17 North Korea v Bahrain
2-0
Yemen v Uzbekistan
1-3
2016
Mar 24 Bahrain v Yemen
Uzbekistan v Philippines
Mar 29 Philippines v North Korea
Uzbekistan v Bahrain
Each team will play 8 games (4x2), except
Group F 6 games (3x2)
The 8 group winners and the 4 runners-up
with the best record will qualify for the 3rd round
Group F
2018 WC QUALS ASIA 2ND ROUND: GP F
P W D L F A Pts
Thailand
5
4
1 0 12 4 13
Iraq
4
2
2 0 10 4 8
4
1
1 2 3 6 4
Vietnam
5
0
0 5 4 15 0
Taiwan
Indonesia excluded after FA was suspended by

FIFA for government interference
2015
May 24 Thailand v Vietnam
Jun 16 Taiwan v Thailand
Sep 3 Iraq v Taiwan
Sep 8 Taiwan v Vietnam
Thailand v Iraq
Oct 8
Vietnam v Iraq
Oct 13 Vietnam v Thailand
Nov 12 Thailand v Taiwan
Nov 17 Taiwan v Iraq
2016
Mar 24 Iraq v Thailand
Vietnam v Taiwan
Mar 29 Iraq v Vietnam
2018 WC QUALS ASIA 2ND ROUND: GP H

P W D L F A Pts
North Korea 7
5
1 1 12 5 16
Uzbekistan
6
5
0 1 18 7 15
Philippines
6
2
1 3 5 9 7
Bahrain
6
2
0 4 7 9 6
Yemen
7
1
0 6 2 14 3
3rd round
The 12 qualiers will be drawn into 2 6-team
groups (games to be played Aug 2016-Sep 2017)
The top 2 in both groups will qualify for the nals;
the 2 3rd-placed countries will meet in the Asia
section play-off, the winner of which will meet the
4th-placed CONCACAF country in a play-off for a
place in the nals
AFRICA section
1-0
0-2
5-1
1-2
2-2
1-1
0-3
4-2
0-2
5 nals places available
3rd round
The 20 qualiers for this round are:
Algeria
Burkina Faso
Cameroon
Cape Verde Islands
Congo
DR Congo
Egypt
Gabon
Ghana
Guinea
Ivory Coast
Libya
Mali
Morocco
Nigeria
Senegal
South Africa
Tunisia
Uganda
Zambia
Group G
Group D
2018 WC QUALS ASIA 2ND ROUND: GP D
P W D L F A Pts
Iran
6
4
2 0 20 3 14
Oman
6
3
2 1 10 5 11
Turkmenistan 7
3
1 3 8 10 10
Guam
7
2
1 4 3 15 7
India
6
1
0 5 4 12 3

2015
Jun 11 Guam v Turkmenistan
India v Oman
Jun 16 Guam v India
Turkmenistan v Iran
Sep 3 Iran v Guam
Oman v Turkmenistan
Sep 8 Guam v Oman
India v Iran
Oct 8
Oman v Iran
Turkmenistan v India
Oct 13 Oman v India
Turkmenistan v Guam
Nov 12 India v Guam
Iran v Turkmenistan
Nov 17 Guam v Iran
Turkmenistan v Oman
2016
Mar 24 Iran v India
Oman v Guam
Group H
Mar 29 India v Turkmenistan

Iran v Oman
1-0
1-2
2-1
1-1
6-0
3-1
0-0
0-3
1-1
2-1
3-0
1-0
1-0
3-1
0-6
2-1
2018 WC QUALS ASIA 2ND ROUND: GP G

P W D L F A Pts
Sth Korea (Q) 6
6
0 0 23 0 18
Kuwait
6
3
1 2 12 4 10
Lebanon
6
3
1 2 11 4 10
Myanmar
7
2
1 4 8 20 7
7
0
1 6 3 29 1
Laos

2015
Jun 11 Laos v Myanmar
2-2
Lebanon v Kuwait
0-1
Jun 16 Laos v Lebanon
0-2
Myanmar v South Korea
0-2
Sep 3 Kuwait v Myanmar
9-0
South Korea v Laos
8-0
Sep 8 Laos v Kuwait
0-2
Lebanon v South Korea
0-3
Oct 8
Kuwait v South Korea
0-1
Myanmar v Lebanon
0-2
Oct 13 Kuwait v Lebanon
0-0
Myanmar v Laos
3-1
Nov 12 Lebanon v Laos
7-0
South Korea v Myanmar
4-0
Nov 17 Laos v South Korea
0-5
Myanmar v Kuwait (awarded) 3-0
2016
Mar 24 Kuwait v Laos
South Korea v Lebanon
Mar 29 Lebanon v Myanmar
South Korea v Kuwait
They will be drawn into 5 4-team groups

on June 24, 2016 (games to be played
Oct 2016-Nov 2017)
The 5 group winners will qualify for the nals
CONCACAF section
4th round
Group A
2018 WC QUALS CONCACAF 4TH RND: GP A
P W D L F A Pts
Mexico
2
2
0 0 5 0 6
Canada
2
1
1 0 1 0 4
El Salvador
2
0
1 1 0 3 1
Honduras
2
0
0 2 0 3 0

2015
Nov 13 Canada v Honduras
Mexico v El Salvador
Nov 17 El Salvador v Canada
Honduras v Mexico
2016
Mar 25 Canada v Mexico
El Salvador v Honduras
Mar 29 Honduras v El Salvador
Mexico v Canada
Sep 2 El Salvador v Mexico
Honduras v Canada
Sep 6 Canada v El Salvador
Mexico v Honduras
1-0
3-0
0-0
0-2
WORLD SOCCER
127
Group B
3rd round
2018 WC QUALS CONCACAF 4TH RND: GP B

P W D L F A Pts
Costa Rica
2
2
0 0 3 1 6
Panama
2
1
0 1 3 2 3
Jamaica
2
1
0 1 1 2 3
Haiti
2
0
0 2 0 2 0

2015
Nov 13 Costa Rica v Haiti
Jamaica v Panama
Nov 17 Haiti v Jamaica
Panama v Costa Rica
2016
Mar 25 Haiti v Panama
Jamaica v Costa Rica
Mar 29 Costa Rica v Jamaica
Panama v Haiti
Sep 2 Haiti v Costa Rica
Panama v Jamaica
Sep 6 Costa Rica v Panama
Jamaica v Haiti
1-0
0-2
0-1
1-2
Group C
2018 WC QUALS CONCACAF 4TH RND: GP C
P W D L F A Pts
United States 2
1
1 0 6 1 4
1
1 0 2 1 4
Trinidad & T 2
Guatemala
2
1
0 1 5 2 3
St Vincent & G 2
0
0 2 1 10 0

2015
Nov 13 Guatemala v Trinidad & Tob
1-2
United States v St Vincent & G 6-1
Nov 17 St Vincent & G v Guatemala
0-4
Trinidad & Tob v United States 0-0
2016
Mar 25 Guatemala v United States
St Vincent & G v Trinidad & Tob
Mar 29 Trinidad & Tob v St Vincent & G
United States v Guatemala
Sep 2 St Vincent & G v United States
Trinidad & Tob v Guatemala
Sep 6 Guatemala v St Vincent & G
United States v Trinidad & Tob
Each team will play 6 games (3x2)
The top 2 in each group will qualify for the
5th round
5th round
The 6 qualiers will form a single group (games
to be played Nov 2016-Oct 2017)
The top 3 will qualify for the nals; the 4th-placed
country will meet the winner of the Asia section
play-off in a play-off for a place in the nals
0CEANIA section
2nd round draw

Group A
New Caledonia
Samoa
Papua New Guinea

Tahiti
Full xtures
2016
May 28 Tahiti v Samoa
Papua New Guinea v New Caledonia
May 31 New Caledonia v Samoa
Papua New Guinea v Tahiti
Jun 4
Tahiti v New Caledonia
Papua New Guinea v Samoa
Group B
Fiji
Solomon Islands
New Zealand
Vanuatu
Full xtures
2016
May 29 New Zealand v Fiji
Vanuatu v Solomon Islands
Jun 1
Vanuatu v New Zealand
Solomon Islands v Fiji
Jun 5
New Zealand v Solomon Islands
Fiji v Vanuatu
The top 3 in both groups will qualify for the
3rd round
128
WORLD SOCCER
The 6 qualiers will be drawn into 2 3-team

groups (games to be played Mar 2017-Oct 2017)
The 2 group winners will qualify for the play-off
round
Play-off round
The 2 qualiers will meet in a play-off (games to
be played in Nov 2017)
The play-off round winner will meet the
5th-placed South American country in a play-off
for a place in the nals
EUROPE section
13 nals places available (excluding the place

for hosts Russia, who qualify automatically)
Draw
Group A
Belarus
France
Luxembourg
Bulgaria
Holland
Sweden
1st 4 rounds of xtures

2016
Sep 6 Belarus v France
Bulgaria v Luxembourg
Sweden v Holland
Oct 7 France v Bulgaria
Holland v Belarus
Luxembourg v Sweden
Oct 10 Belarus v Luxembourg
Holland v France
Sweden v Bulgaria
Nov 13 Bulgaria v Belarus
France v Sweden
Luxembourg v Holland
Group B
Andorra
Hungary
Portugal
Faroe Islands
Latvia
Switzerland

2016
Sep 6 Andorra v Latvia
Faroe Islands v Hungary
Switzerland v Portugal
Oct 7 Hungary v Switzerland
Latvia v Faroe Islands
Portugal v Andorra
Oct 10 Andorra v Switzerland
Faroe Islands v Portugal
Latvia v Hungary
Nov 13 Hungary v Andorra
Portugal v Latvia
Switzerland v Faroe Islands
Group C
Azerbaijan
Germany
Norway
Czech Republic
Northern Ireland
San Marino

2016
Sep 4 Czech Republic v Northern Ireland
Norway v Germany
San Marino v Azerbaijan
Oct 8 Azerbaijan v Norway
Germany v Czech Republic
Northern Ireland v San Marino
Oct 11 Czech Republic v Azerbaijan
Germany v Northern Ireland
Norway v San Marino
Nov 11 Czech Republic v Norway
Northern Ireland v Azerbaijan
San Marino v Germany
Group D
Austria
Moldova
Serbia
Georgia
Republic of Ireland
Wales

2016
Sep 5 Georgia v Austria
Serbia v Republic of Ireland
Wales v Moldova
Oct 6 Austria v Wales
Moldova v Serbia
Republic of Ireland v Georgia
Oct 9 Moldova v Republic of Ireland
Serbia v Austria
Wales v Georgia
Nov 12 Austria v Republic of Ireland
Georgia v Moldova
Wales v Serbia
Group E
Armenia
Kazakhstan
Poland
2017 AFRICAN NATIONS CUP QUALS

Denmark
Montenegro
Romania

2016
Sep 4 Denmark v Armenia
Kazakhstan v Poland
Romania v Montenegro
Oct 8 Armenia v Romania
Montenegro v Kazakhstan
Poland v Denmark
Oct 11 Denmark v Montenegro
Kazakhstan v Romania
Poland v Armenia
Nov 11 Armenia v Montenegro
Denmark v Kazakhstan
Romania v Poland
Group F
England
Malta
Slovakia
Lithuania
Scotland
Slovenia

2016
Sep 4 Lithuania v Slovenia
Malta v Scotland
Slovakia v England
Oct 8 England v Malta
Scotland v Lithuania
Slovenia v Slovakia
Oct 11 Lithuania v Malta
Slovakia v Scotland
Slovenia v England
Nov 11 England v Scotland
Malta v Slovenia
Slovakia v Lithuania
Group G
Albania
Italy
Macedonia
Israel
Liechtenstein
Spain

2016
Sep 5 Albania v Macedonia
Israel v Italy
Spain v Liechtenstein
Oct 6 Italy v Spain
Liechtenstein v Albania
Macedonia v Israel
Oct 9 Albania v Spain
Israel v Liechtenstein
Macedonia v Italy
Nov 12 Albania v Israel
Liechtenstein v Italy
Spain v Macedonia
Group H
Belgium
Cyprus
Greece
Bosnia-Herzegovina
Estonia
Group A
P
2
2
2
2
Togo
Liberia
Tunisia
Djibouti
Mar 23-26
Mar 26-29
Jun 3-5
Sep 2-4
W
2
1
1
0
D
0
0
0
0
L
0
1
1
2
F
4
2
8
1
A
1
2
2
10
Pts
6
3
3
0
Djibouti v Liberia; Tunisia v Togo

Liberia v Djibouti; Togo v Tunisia
Djibouti v Tunisia; Liberia v Togo
Togo v Djibouti; Tunisia v Liberia
Group B
Angola
Cent Af Rep
DR Congo
Madagascar
P
2
2
2
2
W
1
1
1
0
D
1
0
0
1
L
0
1
1
1
F
4
2
2
1
A Pts
0 4
4 3
3 3
2 1
Mar 23-26 DR Congo v Angola;

Madagascar v Central African Rep
Mar 26-29 Angola v DR Congo;
Central African Rep v Madagascar
Jun 3-5
Central African Rep v Angola;
Madagascar v DR Congo
Sep 2-4
Angola v Madagascar;
DR Congo v Central African Rep
Group C
Mali
South Sudan
Benin
Equat Guinea
Mar 23-26
Mar 26-29
Jun 3-5
Sep 2-4
P
2
2
2
2
W
1
1
0
0
D
1
0
2
1
L
0
1
0
1
F
3
1
2
1
A Pts
1 4
2 3
2 2
2 1
Mali v Eq Guinea; S Sudan v Benin

Benin v S Sudan; Eq Guinea v Mali
Benin v Eq Guinea; S Sudan v Mali
Eq Guinea v S Sudan; Mali v Benin
Group D
Uganda
Botswana
Burkina Faso
Comoros
P
2
2
2
2
W
2
1
1
0
D
0
0
0
0
L
0
1
1
2
F
3
1
2
0
A Pts
0 6
2 3
1 3
3 0
Mar 23-26 Burkina Faso v Uganda;

Comoros v Botswana
Mar 26-29 Botswana v Comoros;
Uganda v Burkina Faso
Jun 3-5
Botswana v Uganda;
Comoros v Burkina Faso
Sep 2-4
Burkina Faso v Botswana;
Uganda v Comoros
Group E

2016
Sep 6 Bosnia-Herzegovina v Estonia
Cyprus v Belgium
Oct 7 Belgium v Bosnia-Herzegovina
Greece v Cyprus
Oct 10 Bosnia-Herzegovina v Cyprus
Estonia v Greece
Nov 13 Belgium v Estonia
Greece v Bosnia-Herzegovina
Group I
Croatia
Iceland
Ukraine
Tables & remaining xtures (all 2016)
Congo
Zambia
Kenya
Guinea-Bissau
Mar 23-26
Mar 26-29
Jun 3-5
Sep 2-4
P
2
2
2
2
W
1
1
0
0
D
1
1
1
1
L
0
0
1
1
F
5
2
2
2
A Pts
3 4
1 4
3 1
4 1
G-Bissau v Kenya; Zambia v Congo

Congo v Zambia; Kenya v G-Bissau
G-Bissau v Zambia; Kenya v Congo
Congo v G-Bissau; Zambia v Kenya
Group F
Finland
Turkey

2016
Sep 5 Croatia v Turkey
Ukraine v Iceland
Oct 6 Iceland v Finland
Turkey v Ukraine
Oct 9 Finland v Croatia
Iceland v Turkey
Nov 12 Croatia v Iceland
Ukraine v Finland
Each team will play 10 games (5x2), except
Groups H & I 8 games (4x2); games to be
completed by Oct 2017
The 9 group winners will qualify for the nals;
the 8 runners-up with the best record will be
paired in 4 play-offs, the winners of which will
also qualify for the nals
Cape Verde
Morocco
Libya
Sao Tome
Mar 23-26
Mar 26-29
Jun 3-5
Sep 2-4
P
2
2
2
2
W
2
2
0
0
D
0
0
0
0
L
0
0
2
2
F
9
4
1
1
A
2
0
3
10
Pts
6
6
0
0
C Verde v Morocco; S Tome v Libya

Libya v S Tome; Morocco v C Verde
Libya v Morocco; S Tome v C Verde
C Verde v Libya; Morocco v S Tome
Group G
Egypt
Nigeria
Tanzania
Chad
P
2
2
2
2
W
2
1
0
0
D
0
1
1
0
L
0
0
1
2
F
8
2
0
1
A Pts
1 6
0 4
3 1
7 0
Mar 23-26
Mar 26-29
Jun 3-5
Sep 2-4
Chad v Tanzania; Nigeria v Egypt

Egypt v Nigeria; Tanzania v Chad
Chad v Nigeria; Tanzania v Egypt
Egypt v Chad; Nigeria v Tanzania
Group H
Ghana
Rwanda
Mauritius
Mozambique
P
2
2
2
2
W
2
1
1
0
D
0
0
0
0
L
0
1
1
2
F
8
1
2
0
A Pts
1 6
1 3
7 3
2 0
Group I
Mar 23-26
Mar 26-29
Jun 3-5
Sep 2-4
P
1
1
2
W
1
0
0
D
0
1
1
L
0
0
1
F
1
0
0
A Pts
0 3
0 1
1 1
Ivory Coast v Sudan

Sudan v Ivory Coast
Sierra Leone v Sudan
Ivory Coast v Sierra Leone
1st legs - Feb 2-4; 2nd legs - Feb 9-11

Cesar Vallejo (Per) v Sao Paulo (Bra)
1-1, 0-1 (agg 1-2)
Huracan (Arg) v Caracas (Ven)
1-0, 1-2 (agg 2-2, Huracan on away goals)
Independiente del Valle (Ecu) v Guarani (Par)
1-0, 1-2 (agg 2-2, Independiente on away goals)
Oriente Petrolero (Bol) v Santa Fe (Col)
1-3, 0-3 (agg 1-6)
Puebla (Mex) v Racing (Arg)
2-2, 0-1 (agg 2-3)
River Plate (Uru) v Universidad de Chile (Chl)
2-0, 0-0 (agg 2-0)
The winners have qualied for the
group stage
AFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

P
2
2
2
2
Algeria
Ethiopia
Seychelles
Lesotho
W
2
1
0
0
D
0
1
1
0
L
0
0
1
2
F
7
3
1
2
A Pts
1 6
2 4
5 1
5 0
Algeria v Ethiopia; Seychelles v Lesotho

Ethiopia v Algeria; Lesotho v Seychelles
Lesotho v Ethiopia; Seychelles v Algeria
Algeria v Lesotho; Ethiopia v Seychelles
Group K
P
2
2
2
2
Senegal
Burundi
Niger
Namibia
Mar 23-26
Mar 26-29
Jun 3-5
Sep 2-4
LIBERTADORES CUP
ASIA
Group J
Mar 23-26
Mar 26-29
Jun 3-5
Sep 2-4
SOUTH AMERICA
Preliminary round
Mar 23-26 Ghana v Mozambique;

Mauritius v Rwanda
Mar 26-29 Mozambique v Ghana;
Rwanda v Mauritius
Jun 3-5
Mauritius v Ghana;
Rwanda v Mozambique
Sep 2-4
Ghana v Rwanda;
Mozambique v Mauritius
Sudan
Ivory Coast
Sierra Leone
Club football
W
2
1
1
0
D
0
0
0
0
L
0
1
1
2
F
5
3
1
0
A Pts
1 6
3 3
2 3
3 0
Burundi v Namibia; Senegal v Niger

Namibia v Burundi; Niger v Senegal
Burundi v Senegal; Namibia v Niger
Niger v Burundi; Senegal v Namibia
P
2
2
2
2
W
1
1
0
0
D
1
1
1
1
L
0
0
1
1
F
4
3
3
2
A Pts
3 4
2 4
4 1
3 1
Mar 23-26 Guinea v Malawi;

Swaziland v Zimbabwe
Mar 26-29 Malawi v Guinea;
Zimbabwe v Swaziland
Jun 3-5
Swaziland v Guinea;
Zimbabwe v Malawi
Sep 2-4
Guinea v Zimbabwe;
Malawi v Swaziland
Group C
Kiwi
Magenta (NC)
Nadi (Fij)
Tefana (Tah)
The 3 group winners and the runner-up with the
best record will qualify for semi-nals; tournament
(group stage and full knockout phase) to be
played in New Zealand, Apr 8-23
ANGUILLA
2015-16 FINAL
P
Salsa Ballers (C) 8
Diamond
8
Attackers
8
ALHCS Spartan 8
Docks United 8
2nd preliminary round
3rd preliminary round

(single-leg ties)
Feb 9: Adelaide United (Aus) 1 Shandong
Luneng 2; Al Jazira (UAE) 2 Al Sadd (Qat) 2
(aet, Al Jazira 5-4 on pens); Al Ittihad (Sau) 2
Al Wehdat (Jor) 1; Bunyodkor (Uzb) 2 Al Shabab
(UAE) 0; Naft Tehran (Irn) 0 El Jaish (Qat) 2;
Pohang Steelers (SKo) 3 Hanoi T&T 0;
Shanghai SIPG (Chn) 3 Muangthong United 0;
FC Tokyo (Jap) 9 Chonburi 0.
OFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

P
2
2
2
2
W
2
1
0
0
D
0
0
1
1
L
0
1
1
1
F
2
3
0
1
A Pts
0 6
2 3
1 1
3 1
Mar 23-26 Cameroon v South Africa;

Mauritania v Gambia
Mar 26-29 Gambia v Mauritania;
South Africa v Cameroon
Jun 3-5
Gambia v South Africa;
Mauritania v Cameroon
Sep 2-4
Cameroon v Gambia;
South Africa v Mauritania
The13 group winners and the 2 runners-up
with the best record (excluding 3-team Group I)
will qualify for the16-team nals. Hosts Gabon
qualify automatically
L F A Pts
1 30 5 19
2 21 7 16
3 20 15 13
4 17 17 10
8 3 47 0
W
13
11
9
9
9
7
5
6
3
1
D
2
3
5
3
3
4
6
3
2
3
L
3
4
4
6
6
7
7
9
13
14
F
41
33
34
38
36
36
23
30
18
15
EDITORIAL
Blue Fin Building, 110 Southwark Street,
London SE1 0SU
Tel: +44 (0) 20 3148 4817
Fax: +44 (0) 20 3148 8130
ADVERTISING AND SPONSORSHIP
Tadeyo Akitoye, Richard Torey
Tel: +44 (0) 20 3148 2515
+44 (0) 20 3148 2823
E-mail: tadeyo.akitoyetimeinc.com,
richard.toreytimeinc.com
Advertising
Back issues
Binders
+44 (0) 20 3148 2503

+44 (0) 20 3148 2823
+44 (0) 20 3148 4816
+44 (0) 20 3148 4816
International licensing enquiries

+44 (0) 20 314 85490
E-mail: bianca.hamilton-fostertimeinc.com
ANTIGUA & BARBUDA

2015-16 FINAL
P
Hoppers (C) 18
Grenades
18
Empire
18
Old Road
18
Parham
18
SAP
18
Pigotts Bullets 18
Ottos Rangers118
Fort Road (R) 18
Five Islands (R) 18
PICTURES
Pictures copyright: Press Association Images,
Getty Images, Action Images and Reuters
PRODUCTION MANAGER Tom Jennings

PUBLISHING DIRECTOR Hamish Dawson
MANAGING DIRECTOR Oswin Grady
Previous champions (most recent)

2009-10 Roaring Lions
2010-11 Kicks United
2011-12
Kicks United
2012-13 Attackers
2013-14 n/a
2014-15 Kicks United
2nd qualifying round
OCEANIA
D
1
1
1
1
0
Kicks United & Roaring Lions both withdrew

from the league before the season started
AFC CUP
(single-leg ties)
Feb 9: Ahli Al Khalil (Pal) 1 Khujand (Taj) 0; Al
Hidd (Bhr) 2 K-Electric (Pak) 0; Al Wahda (Syr) 2
Balkan (Tkm) 0; Tripoli (Leb) 0 Alay Osh (Kyr) 0
(aet, Tripoli 7-6 on pens).
W
6
5
4
3
0
EDITOR
Gavin Hamilton
ASSISTANT EDITOR
Nich Hills
DESIGN DIRECTOR
Kevin Eason
DESIGN EDITOR
Jamie Latchford
DEPUTY DESIGN EDITOR
Daniel Franklin
PICTURE EDITOR
Duncan Bond
NEWS EDITOR
Jamie Rainbow
EDITORIAL SECRETARY
June Hiscock
Thanks this issue to

Dean Chillmaid, Debbie Millett, Peter Neish,
Dave Rallis
CONCACAF
(single-leg tie)
Jan 27: Mohun Bagan (Ind) 3 Tampines Rovers
(Sin) 1.
(single-leg ties)
Feb 2: Chonburi (Tha) 3 Yangon United (Mya) 2
(aet); Hanoi T&T (Vie) 1 Kitchee (HK) 0;
Muangthong United (Tha) 0 Johor Darul Tazim
(Mly) 0 (aet, Muangthong 3-0 on pens);
Shandong Luneng (Chn) 6 Mohun Bagan 0.
March 2016 Vol 56 No 6
Group B
Hekari United (PNG)
Lossi (NC)
Suva (Fij)
Team Wellington (NZ)
1st preliminary round
The winners have qualied for the group stage
Group M
Cameroon
Mauritania
Gambia
South Africa
Group A
Amicale (Van)
Auckland City (NZ)
Lae City Dwellers (PNG)
Solomon Warriors (Sol)
The winners have qualied for the

group stage
Group L
Swaziland
Zimbabwe
Malawi
Guinea
Group stage draw
A
16
19
26
24
23
31
28
38
46
53
Pts
41
36
32
30
30
25
21
21
11
6
SUBSCRIPTIONS
ORDER HOTLINE
+44 (0)844 848 0848
E-mail: ipcsubsqss-uk.com
Enter rel/prom play-off
Previous champions (most recent)

2009-10 Bassa
2010-11 Parham
2011-12
Old Road
2012-13 Old Road
2013-14 SAP
2014-15 Parham
Preliminary round group
SUBSCRIPTIONS RATES
Annual sub is for 12 months (13 issues, prices
include postage) UK: 59.99 Europe/Eire (inc.
VAT): 98.85 euros (airmail) USA: $144.48
(airmail) Rest of world: 99.25 (airmail)
Periodicals paid at Rahway,
NJ Postmaster: send address changes to
World Soccer, c/o MAIL America,
365 Blair Road, Avenel NJ 0700I, USA.
USPS004075
Played in the Cook Islands

SUBSCRIPTIONS DEPARTMENT
Rockwood House, 9-17 Perrymount Road,
Haywards Heath, West Sussex RH16 3DH,
England Tel: +44 (0) 1444 475 675
Jan 26: Utulei Youth (AmS) 2 Kiwi (Soa) 6;

Veitongo (Ton) 0 Tupapa Maraerenga (Coo) 7.
Jan 28: Utulei Youth 3 Veitongo 2;
Tupapa Maraerenga 1 Kiwi 2.
Jan 30: Tupapa Maraerenga 9 Utulei Youth 1;
Kiwi 7 Veitongo 1.
PRELIMINARY ROUND GROUP FINAL
P W D L F A Pts
Kiwi (Q)
3
3
0 0 15 4 9
Tupapa Marga 3
2
0 1 17 3 6
Utulei Youth 3
1
0 2 6 17 3
Veitongo
3
0
0 3 3 17 0
Kiwi have qualied for the group stage
KEY TO TABLES
(C) = champions
(R) = relegated
(Q) = qualied for next stage
O A Bola (Portugal) O De Telegraaf (Holland)

O ElfVoetbal (Holland) O Fanatik (Turkey)
O Frankfurter Allgemeine (Germany)
O Goal News (Greece) O Kicker (Germany)
O Marca (Spain) O Nemzeti Sport (Hungary)
O So Foot (France) O Sport-Express (Russia)
O Sport/Foot (Belgium) O TIPS Bladet (Denmark)
O World Soccer (UK)
WORLD SOCCER
129
O Titan Sport (China) O KickOff (S Africa)

O Netease (China) O SportalKorea (S Korea).
JUNE 24, 1990, MILAN: WORLD CUP
West
Germany
2
Holland
1
GREAT Arch-rivals produce a World Cup classic despite both sides
MATCHES
playing with 10 men for over an hour

All important...Jurgen Klinsmann
celebrates putting Germany ahead
KEY MOMENTS
Off...Juan Carlos Loustau gets out the red card
vershadowed by two red cards,

the second-round showdown
in the San Siro was described
by World Soccer as a real
World Cup blockbuster, with West
Germany deserving a magnificent victory
after a fast, skilful and ferocious contest.
The report in the July 1990 edition
continued: A contest which saw the
double expulsion of Frank Rijkaard and
Rudi Voller after only 21 minutes also
saw the most magnificent performance
from West Germanys Jurgen Klinsmann.
No doubt he supplied one of the
most outstanding individual displays of
any modern World Cup. That he scored
the all-important first German goal was
not merely his prize, but his right.
The fact that the San Siro was home
to West Germanys three Internazionale
players as well as Hollands three Milan
stars only added to the traditionally intense
rivalry between the two nations.
And that intensity reached boiling point
when Rijkaard deliberately fouled Voller.
As the German got to his feet, he
complained that he had been spat at by
his Dutch opponent. Yellow cards were
shown to both players but within a
minute the yellows had turned to red.
[Referee] Loustau showed Voller the
red card and sent Rijkaard off to join him
Poor...Frank Rijkaard
spits at Rudi Voller
in the dressing rooms as Rijkaard [again]

spat full into Vollers hair, continued the
report It was an appalling display by
Rijkaard. It damaged Holland more than
West Germany since an important cog in
their creative mechanism was removed.
Despite the shameful scenes, the match
opened up into a feast of entertaining,
attacking football from both sides.
Hans Van Breukelen made a string of
fine saves before Klinsmann managed to
beat him and Brehme then secured victory
in the last 10 minutes. Ronald Koeman
scored a late consolation penalty.
WEST GERMANY
Coach: Franz Beckenbauer
HOLLAND
Coach: Leo Beenhakker
Brehme
Vant Schip
Van Aerle
(Kieft 66)
Buchwald
Kohler
Klinsmann
(Riedle 78)
Gullit
Winter
R Koeman
Van Breukelen
Illgner Augenthaler Matthaus

Van Basten
Voller
Reuter
Rijkaard
Wouters
Littbarski
Berthold
11min Pierre Littbarski fires over

the bar in West Germanys first attack.
20min Frank Rijkaard fouls Rudi
Voller and is shown a yellow card. He
then appears to spit at the German,
who is also shown a yellow card for
complaining to the referee.
21min Voller challenges Hans Van
Breukelen and referee Juan Carlos
Loustau shows him a red card.
Rijkaard is also dismissed for
spitting at the expelled Voller.
50min Guido Buchwald breaks down
the left, crosses to the near post and
Jurgen Klinsmann finishes with a
glancing shot into the far corner. 1-0
76min Klinsmann nearly doubles
Germanys lead, following a long
pass from Andreas Brehme, but his
powerful shot hits the post.
84min Brehme receives a short ball
from Buchwald on the corner of the
penalty area and curls a shot beyond
the dive of Van Breukelen. 2-0
88min Jurgen Kohler fouls Marco
Van Basten in the penalty area and
Ronald Koeman steps forward to
score from the spot. 2-1
Van Tiggelen
Witschge
(Gillhaus 79)
Referee: Loustau (Arg)
Clash...Holland full-back Adri Van Tiggelen

challenges Jurgen Klinsmann
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March 2016

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The footballing revolution in China (page 24) is not a new

Juventus beat Napoli to go top of Serie A ..............................................................page 117

GLOBAL FOOTBALL INTELLIGENCE

Dutch football officially

Protest...players in a Greek second division game

LARISSA & ACHARNAIKOS

Row...Anis Ben-Hatira attacked a Hertha team-mate

Signed for Slovenian top-tier side Domzale after

Referee Massimiliano Irrati had to stop Lazios

BOCA JUNIORS AND RIVER PLATE

Historic...Werder Bremens Claudio Pizarro

The Ivorian defender

PAOK is my team now and

To see video footage of these goals, and many more that we

YAO SERGE NGUESSAN

GLOBAL FOOTBALL INTELLIGENCE

You always looked grim-faced, but

Enfield in 1952 and later managed Durban

in 278 league appearances between 1952

Anatoli ILYIN (1931-2016)

Ray POINTER (1936-2016)

A Soviet Top League title winner five times

Burnleys second-highest scorer of all

Trifon IVANOV (1965-2016)

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