SHAY GIVEN
HOW strange Shay Given should only now be earning plaudits as the best keeper in the Premier League since joining Man City.
Newcastle fans will testify Given turned in top-class performances for years - and was worth at least 15 points a season to them.
One of his best performances came in a 5-1 defeat at home to Liverpool which finally convinced the Irishman he had to leave Toon.
At Newcastle, Given's heroics kept the score down but at City his saves help his team turn defeats into draws and draws into wins.
Despite all the money ex-City boss Mark Hughes spent, the £5.9million he laid out for Given was the best buy of them all.
Given has been a Republic of Ireland stalwart, too, and deserved to be in next year's finals.
That he is not, is down to a Thierry Henry deliberate handball - his new team-mate in this side of the decade. Wonder how they'll get on?
...............................................
THIS is a tough position to pick as quality right-backs who have enjoyed Premier League longevity are few and far between.
There are few outstanding candidates and while Carra has spent more of his Liverpool career at centre-back, he gets the nod over Gary Neville.
Few in Prem history have been as committed and driven. He gives everything for the cause and inspires those around him.
Heaven help any slackers in red when Carragher is about - and he'd probably still be a candidate for the World Cup had he not retired from internationals.
But his love of Liverpool over everything was shown when he admitted in his autobiography that club defeats hurt him far more than England ones. He is tipped as a future Liverpool manager... no wonder.
...................................................
THE Prem's most expensive defender at £30m proved his worth with West Ham, Leeds and Manchester United.
Hit by injuries recently but who would dispute that when he is fit and on top of his game, he is one of the best centre-backs in the world?
His ban for missing a drug test took him out for eight months of this decade - but it did not have any adverse effect on his performances when he returned.
Strong, composed, he remains an automatic choice for United and England.
His laid-back style belies his attitude to the game. Rio is fiercely passionate about his football and locks himself away for days if he has played badly. He may not show it in the same way as Terry or Carragher but he cares every bit as much.
...........................................
JOHN TERRY
THE Chelsea and England skipper would have been a favourite on those old collectable cigarette cards.
He represents all the old ideals in the game - sticks his foot, his head and anything else in where it hurts without fear.
Forehead bleeding? Get him a bandage, quick.
Concussed? Pass the smelling salts. Twisted ankle? Strap it.
Terry hates missing a single minute of any game whatever his condition.
Chelsea players talk of him being the one they look up to and it is not hard to see why.
The mark of a true leader is they would not ask anyone to do something they would not do themselves.
The Blues defence is almost impregnable when Terry is around. Without him they look edgy and vulnerable.
.............................................
LEFT-BACK Cole used to be seen as such a nice lad then it all went horribly wrong.
He moaned Arsenal reneged on £60,000-a-week deal and offered only £55,000. Cole was pilloried by fans as the epitome of all that is wrong with modern-day footballers.
Gunners fans turned on him as he sought his exit to Chelsea and, because of his marriage to X Factor judge Cheryl, his private life has become an open book.
Given all that, it is easy to forget what a fine player he is. Whatever the off-the-field issue, he maintains his focus.
He has been one of the most consistent Premier League players of the decade. He may not be the most popular figure in English football but come the World Cup, we will be very glad to have him.
.......................................................
STEVE GERRARD
WHERE would Liverpool be without Stevie G? Twice during the decade Gerrard almost joined Chelsea but in the end thought better of it.
The sighs of relief at Anfield could be heard at Stamford Bridge.
Gerrard is a real local boy made good having joined the Reds aged nine. He is captain, talisman and the real heartbeat of their midfield.
They say no player is bigger than the club - but he is as close as you will get.
Gerrard was the inspiration behind the incredible comeback from 3-0 down in the Champions League final against AC Milan in 2005, which they eventually won in a memorable penalty shootout.
His brilliant late equaliser in the dying seconds of the 2006 FA Cup final against West Ham was another golden moment.
No man deserves a Premier League title more than Gerrard. He may not get it this season - but you can be sure he will keep trying.
.....................................................
FRANK LAMPARD
THE so-called 'Big, fat Frank' has done all right for himself.
Derided by the West Ham supporters, Lampard has been on a mission to shove the taunts back down their throats ever since his £11million move to Chelsea more than eight years ago.
When Rio Ferdinand and Joe Cole return to Upton Park they get standing ovations, Lampard gets abuse.
But how they could do with him in their struggling team now.
His position as runner-up in the Euro and World Player of the Year awards in 2005 was testimony to his progress.
And his goals return would make even the best strikers proud. He has hit 20 in each of the last five seasons.
Lamps is also rarely injured and holds the Prem record of 164 consecutive appearances for an outfield player.
He was a late developer as an England player, taking years to become a regular. He made his debut in 1999 but did not go to Euro 2000 or the 2002 World Cup. But Fabio Capello would not be without him in South Africa.
........................................................
RYAN GIGGS
RYAN GIGGS, Ryan Giggs running down the wing...
That song started in 1991 and it is still going strong - just like the Welsh wizard.
Giggs is the most decorated player in English football and remains a first-choice for Manchester United at the age of 36.
Last year? Giggs became the PFA Player of the Year and yet, just four years ago, the United fans were on his back complaining that he was past it and should be sold.
Giggs took their criticisms on board, changed his lifestyle and came back firing on all cylinders.
He has surpassed Bobby Charlton's appearance record of 758 games for United and has scored in every Premier League season since it started in 1992.
Giggs, surprisingly, lifted the BBC's Sports Personality of the Year award earlier this month. Perhaps it was the sway of United fans' votes. But if any player this decade deserves one more trophy to underline his incredible career, it's Giggsy.
..........................................
CRISTIANO RONALDO
HE may be the biggest winker ever to play in England but he is one hell of a footballer.
When Ron turned it on for Sporting Lisbon against United, the Red Devils players begged Fergie to sign him.
By the time the squad was on the team coach, Fergie had a £12.24million deal in the bag for the 18-year-old.
The fact Ronaldo was sold for £80m to Real Madrid says it all about his ability.
Those amazing runs which sent defenders wobbly, brilliant arrow-like free-kicks which no one can replicate and an aerial ability in the box worthy of the best strikers... Ronaldo has it all.
Yes, he used to dive and claim victimisation - and he got into hot water for that wink against England. But it showed how popular Ronaldo was among his peers that Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand forgave him.
He could have been remembered as the man who cost United the Champions League when he missed in the 2008 shootout.
But John Terry let him off the hook and Ron was named World Footballer of the Year.
..........................................................
DIDIER DROGBA
A MAN'S best friend is his Drog - and Chelsea fans are grateful to have their hitman pummelling the opposition defenders in the Premier League.
Drogba is a beast of a striker who scares centre-backs to death with his power, pace and strength.
At the start of the decade, the Ivory Coast hitman was an unknown, plying his trade in the lower reaches of French football.
He eventually hit the big-time at Marseille and a year later, aged 25, became Chelsea's record signing at £24million.
Drogba's arrival helped the Blues to their first Premier League title in 50 years.
Like Cristiano Ronaldo, he has got quite a reputation for diving and can be emotional - such as after Chelsea's Champions League loss to Barcelona last season.
But the Blues will tell you it's all worth it for what they get back.
Drogba's team-mates love him and in many ways, he is a throwback to the old-style English centre-forward, a battering ram who never gives opponents a minute's peace - plus he knows where the goal is.
..........................................
THIERRY HENRY
YEAH, yeah, boo hiss, Hand of Frog and all that. But, enough.
Let us remember the good times.
Henry is surely the greatest player to have graced the Premier League.
Arsene Wenger rescued him from Juventus - where the French player had got lost on the wing - and promised that he would turn him into a great goalscorer.
Signed to replace Nicolas Anelka, the early evidence was not promising but once Henry found the net, the goals just kept on coming.
He became Arsenal's record goalscorer, smashing Ian Wright's record as he hit 226 in all competitions.
He was a major part of the famous Invincibles of 2004 and he won the Golden Boot in the process.
He was three times Footballer of the Year in England and, as captain, led Arsenal to the 2006 Champions League final.
He was voted Arsenal's greatest player by fans.
Henry has become the villain of world football but the sight of him in full flow and his brilliance on the ball will not be forgotten.
......................................................................................................................
No comments:
Post a Comment