Categoría: Tienda de Fútbol Online

One of the ironies of Samuel Eto’o playing for FC Barcelona is that he originally joined arch-rivals Real Madrid, who immediately put him out on loan; first to second division CD Leganes; then to first division Espanyol after playing just one league match for Madrid; and finally to Mallorca. He did so well at the latter club that they signed him for a club record and became the highest scorer in the history of the club with a total of 54 goals between 2000 and 2004.

The Cameroon striker signed to FC Barcelona after a series of negotiations between Barcelona, Mallorca and Real Madrid who had retained an option on him. On one hand Madrid didn’t require him in the team as they already had two strikers in the form of Ronaldo and Raul; on the other hand they didn’t want him to play for Barcelona, a club that was looking for a quality striker to cement the attack after they were unable to come to an agreement with midfielder Edgar Davids, who had spent the second half of the 2003-2004 season on loan to the Catalan club.

With Eto’o in place as striker and Ronaldinho as attacking mid-fielder, Samuel Eto’o quickly proved to be good value for money and scored a total of 24 league goals in the 2004-2005 season. Although he helped FC Barcelona to take the league title, he narrowly missed the title of top goal scorer in La Liga.

However, at the celebrations that followed at the Nou Camp he gave speech in which he openly criticised Real Madrid, apparently venting the bitterness he felt for being passed over by the club in favour of being put on loan. He later had to retract his statement and issue an apology.

The following year Samuel Eto’o was able to improve of his league score and with a total of 26 goals he narrowly took the «Pichichi» crown, just one goal ahead of David Villa from Valencia. His strong performance on the pitch saw him also score six Champions League goals, helping to propel Barcelona all the way to the final against Arsenal. He was strongly implicated in the result as first the Arsenal goalkeeper was sent off for a foul against Eto’o in the first 20 minutes; failing to capitalise on the one man advantage, Eto’o equalised in the 76th minute from a pass from Larsson and Belletti scored the winning goal a few minutes after.

On the basis of a strong season Samuel Eto’o was awarded the title of UEFA Champion’s League Best Forward as well as Best African Player for the third year running.

The electrifying Victor Ikpeba began his career at the now defunct African Continental Bank F.C of Lagos, before representing Nigeria U-17 squad that took part in the 1989 FIFA U-17 World Cup held in Scotland. His performance at that tournament convinced football scouts from Belgium to recruit him into modest Belgian club side- RFC Liege. He soon established himself as a clinical finisher after making 79 appearances and scoring 27 goals for the Belgian team.

In 1994 French club- Monaco F.C then coached by the present Arsenal tactician Arsene Wenger snapped gave snapped him up. Victor Ikpeba had the most eventful time of his football career at Monaco, as he helped the French club win the League title. He also got an invitation into the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Soccer squad of Nigeria. The Team eventually won Gold after defeating Argentina in the final.

The icing in the cake of the Delta State born Footballer came in 1997 when he won the African footballer of the year award after a wonderful season with Monaco. He played a total of 169 games and scored 55 goals for the Monaco team. This enviable feat earned him the nickname- «The Prince of Monaco».

After leaving Monaco for Borussia Dortmund in 1999, his career took a nose-dived which eventually became worse in the 2000 after the demise of his young wife- Atinuke through breast cancer. Subsequent efforts to revive his career with Real Betis of Spain, Al-Ittihad of Libya and Charleroi F.C of Belgium did not yield much fruit, as he eventually retired from active football in 2005.

It is pertinent to note that Victor Ikpeba was an integral part of the Super Eagles squad from 1993- 2000. He played a total of 30 matches and scored 3 goals for the Super Eagles of Nigeria in all competitions.

His worst miss came in the African Cup of Nations final jointly co-hosted by Nigeria and Ghana in 2000 when he scored in the penalty shoot-out against Cameroon but thought the ball had not crossed the line. He held his head in disbelieve and the referee and his assistant ruled that it was not a goal. Television replay later showed that the whole of the ball actually crossed the line. Nigeria eventually lost the game.

He was a member of the Super Eagles squad that participated at the 1994 African Nations Cup held in Tunisia as well as the 1994 and 1998 FIFA World Cups held in the United States and Spain respectively. He his presently a sports analyst with South African based Super Sports Channel television.

FC Barcelona and Real Madrid are two of the most exciting teams in the world. The best players on the planet ply their trade in the Spanish Premiera Division and in mainly these two powerhouses.

Last year, Atletico Madrid got the better of both Barca and Real in the La Liga. Although they couldn’t snap up victory in the Champions League final against Carlo Ancelotti’s side, yet all over they had a great season.

The ten-time European champions, Real, have yet another target this season and it is to win the Champions League again. No club side has ever won back-to-back Champions League trophies. To compete for all the major trophies, the Spanish giants have added a few marquee signings. Toni Kroos is one of those and he has justified his value to be called-up by one of the most successful clubs in the world. Kroos was phenomenal for the German champions, Bayern Munich, and was among the best players in Brazil, 2014 World Cup, which his national side eventually won.

Real not only, grabbed the World Cup winner, but they also convinced the best player of the tournament to sign with them. James Rodriguez was the star in Brazil and he lead his team quite far in the tournament. His tally of 6 goals helped him win the Golden Boot. It will be quite interesting to see how he would do at the Santiago Bernabeu under Ancelotti, who describes James as the player who would be Real’s future. On the other hand, the outgoing players are Nuri Sahin and Morata.

It is quite possible that Real win more silverware than previous season as the Galacticos look more powerful than ever.

Barcelona too, haven’t done bad in this summer transfer window. The Catalonian giants seized the opportunity to sign probably the best striker in the world right now. Luis Suarez is a flawed genius and he definitely attracts controversy. He would be out till October 25th and might feature in the first El Clasico of this season. In addition to the ex-Liverpool man, Barca have brought in Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Claudio Bravo, Ivan Rakitic and Jeremy Mathieu. Alexis Sanchez and Bojan Krkic are the players who were not needed by the new manager at Camp Nou.

Barcelona appeared pale last season and they would look to get back their domination in world football. Leo Messi would again be key for the Blaugrana and would be assisted by Suarez, Neymar and Iniesta. We can’t predict which team would do better than the other because of the sheer quality in both the sides.

After a highly successful first season under new manager Carlo Ancelotti, in which the Blues completed their first ever Premier League winners and FA Cup winners double, there were naturally high expectations for the 2010-11 season. The Blues were many peoples favourite to win the Premier League title again.

Chelsea started the season as they had finished the last, in emphatic style, as the beat West Brom 6-0 with Didier Drogba scoring a hat-trick. The Blues looked cohesive and composed and the following week they recorded another 6-0 victory away at Wigan, winning their first five consecutive Premier League games, by the end of October Chelsea had won eight of the first ten League games, including a victory against Arsenal, and they were showing great form, even at this stage, many thought they would easily retain the Premier League title they had won the season before.

Unfortunately the Blues lost their way in the November following injuries to John Terry and Frank Lampard and the many attributed their sudden loss of form to the unexpected departure of assistant coach Ray Wilkins who left the club at the beginning of November. Achieving only two victories from their next eleven games, saw Chelsea endure their worst run of form for over ten seasons, which included a 0-3 home defeat against Sunderland.

January saw the arrival of £50 million Fernando Torres from Liverpool, which became a record transfer fee for a player between two English clubs. Unfortunately it wasn’t the dream move that everyone had hoped for as his poor form which he experienced at Liverpool continued at Chelsea. Torres only scored one goal and often seemed to struggle with the Blues formations and style of play, often cutting a lonely figure on the pitch.

By the time Chelsea faced Manchester United at the beginning of March they could have fallen 15 points behind the Reds in the race for the title, but a heroic second half performance saw the Blues secure a dramatic 2-1 victory. Seven wins from their next eight league games saw Chelsea make a late push for title glory, which would have secured one of the most dramatic Premier League titles in recent history. Defeat against United at Old Trafford brought their amazing run to an end and sealed their fate of finishing in second place in the league.

Chelsea were also beaten by Manchester United in the Champions League quarter finals, a defeat that effectively sealed the fate of manager Carlo Ancelotti, and he was sacked moments after the final game of the season against Everton

The Blues will now search for a new coach and look to rebuild their squad for next season and speculation on the future of some of the teams older players will also be in focus, as Chelsea will again strive for domestic honours and the elusive Champions league glory.

Bohemian FC is the oldest football team in Ireland. It was started in September 1890 and was one of the instigators of what is now known as the Eircomloi League of Ireland.

It has the unique attribute of being the only team never to drop out of the League’s first division. Only one other team, Shelbourne, has been in the League since its inception.

Throughout its history the club has experience both good times and bad. Perhaps its lowest ebb was a 34 season run that saw no silverware in the trophy cabinet.

Many fans point to the club’s prolonged amateur status as the explanation for these dark times. During this period Bohemian FC successfully brought many new players into the game, but as the opportunity for a professional carer beckoned, many of these aspiring footballers left to follow a more lucrative professional career with Bohemian FC’s competitors.

1969 finally saw an end to this drain of talent as the club turned professional and signed its first pro player – a landmark moment in the club’s history.

The following decade would signal a change in Bohemian’s fortunes as they went on to secure both league and cup titles and establish themselves as a major force in the Irish game.

To date, the Bohemians, as they are affectionately known, have recorded 10 League of Ireland titles and 7 Irish Cup titles – an unprecedented achievement. They have managed to do the «double» on three occasions, the most recent of which was 2008.

They have also gone through to Europe and competed in the UEFA Cup and the Cup Winners Cup, although so far with only moderate success. This should however be tempered by the status of the game in Ireland and the resources that the club has at its disposal.

In Ireland football is more often referred to as soccer to avoid confusion with the indigenous sport of Gaelic football which is a different game completely and achieves a higher national status.

Bohemian FC’s colours are red and black and this has been the case since 1893. Tradition has, and remains, and important part of Bohemian FC’s special history.

Supporters of Dublin’s premier club tend to be from northern Dublin and attendances are in the region of 2,000 to 4,000 fans per match. The fans refer to Bohemian FC as either the «Gypsies» or the «Bohs».

The club are based at the Dalymount Park stadium, their home since 1901, however moves have been made to sell the ground for redevelopment and build a new stadium at Harristown. Legal and financial complications are currently holding this process up.

Despite these hiccups, the future of the club looks positive and with success on the field continuing to reach ever higher levels, Bohemian FC look set to dominate Irish football for some years to come.