JAMIE CARRAGHER’S ULTIMATE ELEVEN

No 1. GK – Manuel Neuer
The German number one has formed quite a
reputation for himself in recent seasons. His honours
already include two Bundesliga’s, one Champions
League medal and a World Cup. The former Schalke
04 player is widely recognised as the best keeper in
the World. Known for his spectacular saves and
rushing out to thwart strikers, he is exciting to watch
and warrants being Carragher’s number one all time
goalkeeper.
2. RB – Cafu
Cafu is often regarded as the best right-back to play
the game, known for his time with AC Milan, Roma
and the Brazil national team his career expands over
18 years winning numerous honours. He played a big
part in winning two World Cups, one Champions
League and two Serie A titles. The former Sao Paulo
player was a rampaging full back that had incredible
fitness doing his defensive duties as well as his
attacking ones.
3. CB – Desially –
This one may come as a bit of a surprise with the
amount of supreme centre-backs that Carragher could
have chosen from. The Frenchman had a twenty year
career, racking up numerous appearances for the
likes of Nantes, AC Milan and Chelsea. He is
considered one of the most accomplished players of
his generation and one of the finest French defenders
ever. He won two Serie A titles, one Champions
League and one World Cup.

4. CB – Baresi –
Baresi is one of Carragher’s older selections for his
ultimate XI. The AC Milan legend spent his whole
career at the Italian side from 1977-1997. During this
spell he won 6 Serie A titles, 3 European Cups and one
World Cup with Italy. In all of football the Italian is
regarded as one of the greatest defenders of all time.
He had pace, power, technical ability and outstanding
mental attributes. It’s no surprise to see him in
Carra’s line up.
Paolo Maldini finishes off Carragher’s Serie A themed
back four. Like Baresi, Maldini spent his illustrious
career at AC Milan. He played at a World Class level
consistently over 25 years. He was known for being a
great leader, he captained Milan and Italy leading to
the nickname “Il Capitano” (the Captain). He made an
incredible 647 appearances for Milan and gained 126
caps for Italy. He won a whopping 7 Serie A titles and
5 European Cups/Champions Leagues. Maldini also
won various individual honours, including World
Soccer Player of the Year (1994) and the Serie A
Defender of the Year (2004).
6. DM – Matthaus
Carragher’s team suits a 4-4-3 formation where a
deep-lying midfielder was needed. There was no
better choice than Lothar Matthaus. The German had
a star-studded career playing for Borussia
Mönchengladbach, Bayern Munich and Inter Milan. He
won seven Bundesliga’s, one Serie A and one
European Championship with Germany. He scored
184 goals for club and country and was one of the
finest midfielders the game has ever seen.

7. CM – Xavi –
The Spanish maestro is well worth a spot in Carra’s
ultimate XI in centre midfield. He was another one
club wonder who made both his club and national side
tick from midfield. Xavi provided goals, assists,
defensive cover at the centre of both Spain and
Barcelona’s successes. The little genius won seven
La Liga’s, three Champions Leagues, one World Cup
and two European Championships.

8. CM – Zidane
The Frenchman needs no introduction. Regarded in
some quarters as the greatest player to play the
game. ‘Zizou’ was a truely world class midfielder
known for his elegance, vision and technique. Zidane
was named the best European footballer of the past
50 years in the UEFA Golden Jubilee Poll. He spent his
best years playing for Juventus and Real Madrid
winning two Serie A titles and one La Liga. He was
named Ballon D’or winner in 1998 and has World and
European Cup medals with France. His career may
have gone down with a headbutt, but he will always
be known for his sheer class with the ball.

9. WR – Maradona
Carragher chose Diego Maradonna to play on the right
of the front three in his dream team. Another
contender for the “greatest player of all time” in many
people’s eyes, Maradonna is a household name and
will always be remembered for his football genius. He
played for a variety of clubs, including Boca Juniors,
Barcelona, Napoli and Sevilla. He largely made his
name on the International stage, as most England
fans will remember! He scored 34 times for Argentina,
many of them were so dazzling they’re still replayed
all over the world today. His main honours include two
Serie A titles and one memorable World Cup victory.

10. ST – Van Basten
Van Basten is the lone dutchman in Carragher’s team.
Despite an injury forcing him into early retirement, he
is acknowledged as being one of the greatest strikers
of all time. Playing for Ajax and AC Milan, the deadly
forward scored 218 goals in 280 games. He won the
Eredivisie and Serie A three times as well as two
European Cups. Van Basten shone on the
International stage too, scoring 24 times and winning
the European Championship in 1988. In the same
tournment he scored possibly the most memorable
goal of all time, a stunning volley which football fans
still admire to this day.
11 – WL – Messi
On the left of the front three, Carragher opted for
Lionel Messi. The four time Ballon d’Or winner would
feature in most ultimate XI’s. He is arguably the
greatest footballer playing today with an incredible
goal scoring record for Barcelona. He has an
unbelievable 249 goals in 284 games, eclipsing all
rivals other than Cristiano Ronaldo. Despite only being
27, he’s won six La Liga’s, three Champions League’s
and whole host of individual honours. The Argentine’s
wizardry is often compared to fellow countryman
Maradonna due to the irresistable skill and talent they
both possess. Messi’s speed, trickery and intelligence
is second to none. It’s understandably well believed
that when he retires he’ll be known as the greatest
player of all time.

The Tiger of Sweden and top 6 euro clubs

Zlatan Ibrahimovic's records have come while dividing
opinions in the footballing world along the way. Inspite of
being infamous for his arrogance, Ibrahimovic is arguably
one of the finest strikers in the footballing world. The Swede
has impressed wherever he has decided to ply his trade,
winning 11 League titles along his career across various
clubs. Zlatan has also relived his magic in Sweden colours.
The Malmo-born striker is currently the captain of the
Blagult team, and many a time has singlehandedly turned
around games for his country with his skills.
Footballing Great or Arrogant Prima-donna?
Ibrahimovic was born in Malmo, Sweden on 3rd October,
1981 to a Bosniak father and a Crotian mother. At the age
of six, Zlatan was given his first pair of football boots, and
fell in love with the game. Born in a poverty-stricken home,
financial hardships was almost about to rob football of one
of its finest talents. In 1996, at the age of 15, he considered
quitting football due to his family's financial problems and
wanted to join the local dock at Malmo as a labourer. But
his Malmo Youth club manager persuaded the teenage Ibra
to not let his hardships decide his footballing fate.
Thankfully Ibrahimovic agreed to pursue football, or else the
beautiful game wouldn't have witnessed Zlatan magic.
Ibrahimovic was promoted to the Malmo senior side in 1999
and started to impress. In his three seasons at the Swedish
club, he netted 16 goals in 40 outings. His performances in
the Swedish League grabbed the attention of several
European heavyweights.  In 2001, Arsene Wenger tried his
best to sign this promising youngster for Arsenal.
According to an oft-repeated story, Wenger had even
handed the number 9 jersey to the towering Swede. When
asked by Wenger to attend a training session with the senior
players, a 19-year-old Ibra refused to do training, claiming
that 'Zlatan doesn't do training'. Glimpses of his attitude
was evident even at that early age. But Dutch giants Ajax
agreed to sign the striker for a reported 8.7 million Euros in
2001. After a promising debut season at Amsterdam, Zlatan
won his first league title, the Eredivisie in 2001-02, and the
rest is history. Winning league titles at every club he has
played for since then, Ibra has proven his worth on all the
big stages of football.
Here are listed few of the many records that the towering 6
foot 5 inch-striker from Malmo has achieved:
- Since making his Sweden debut on 31st January 2001, in
a goalless friendly against the Faroe Islands, Ibrahimovic
has made 98 appearances. He ranks 10th on the list of
most capped player for Sweden.
- The Sweden skipper has been really prolific in scoring on
national duty. Ibra is just one goal shy of claiming the
record of being Sweden's all-time top-scorer. With 48
goals, he needs one more strike to equal Sweden legend
Sven Rydall.
- Ibrahimovic has raked in big bucks throughout his career.
His move in 2011 to Serie A giants AC Milan made him one
of the highest-paid footballers. While with the Rossoneri,
Ibra collected 7.9 million Pounds a year, making him the
then 7th highest paid footballer in the world.
- In December 2013, The Guardian ranked him 3rd on the list
of the best footballers in the world, behind Cristiano
Ronaldo (Real Madrid) and Lionel Messi (Barcelona).
- In a friendly game against England in November 2012,
Ibrahimovic netted a breathtaking goal as the Swedes
routed the Three Lions 4-2. Zlatan netted an astonishing
'bicycle kick' goal that was awarded the FIFA Puskas Award
for Goal of the Year at the Ballon d'Or ceremony.
- The striker has an incredible record of winning eight
succesive domestic titles. From 2003-04 to 2010-11, Ibra
has won the domestic championship every year with
different clubs. He won in 2003-04 with Ajax, followed by
two titles at Juventus, three with Inter Milan, and one each
with Barcelona and AC Milan.
- Ibrahimovic is the only player to have scored in the
Champions League for six different clubs. The 32-year-old
has netted in Europe's prestigious tournament for Ajax,
Juventus, Inter Milan, Barcelona, AC Milan and Paris Saint-
Germain.
- While with Inter Milan, Ibrahimovic was twice (in 2007 and
2009) named in the UEFA Team of the Year.
- With 41 goals in 103 appearances he ranks 12th on the list
of top goal-scorers in the UEFA Champions League. The list
is led by former Real Madrid and Schalke striker Raul with
71

Ronaldo is simply extraordinary

The full monty... Ronaldo's seventh
minute strike gives him a goal in
every minute of a game! Even Messi
can't match that
Cristiano Ronaldo is a record breaker and smasher.
And after scoring in the seventh minute of Real's win
against rivals Atletico Madrid, Portugal international
Ronaldo earned the bragging rights to a new record which
Messi can't yet lay claim to, he has now scored in every
minute of a 90 minute game.
The former Manchester United star is more prolific in some
minutes than others, having scored 22 goals in the 90th
minute and 12 goals in the 45th.
However, he has only netted once in the 1st, 7th, 15th,
17th, 31st, 40th, 43rd, 53rd, and 78th minutes . compiled by nedusportsfacts.blogspot.com..

Superstars under Jorge Mendes

Jorge Mendes' clients include
Radamel Falcao, Diego Costa and
James Rodriguez... but agent's
influence raises questions about who
really owns football’s stars
By Nick Harris for The Mail on Sunday
22:37 06 Sep 2014, updated 12:42 07 Sep 2014
'Super agent' Jorge Mendes boasts Angel Di Maria
and James Rodriguez among his clients
Diego Costa and Eliaquim Mangala also clients of
Portuguese
48-year-old earned £20million from transfer
negotiations with Man United this summer
Total transfers negotiated by Mendes total over
£1billion
Mendes carries four mobile phones and is fluent in
English, Spanish, French and Italian
Cristiano Ronaldo described Mendes as a 'fair and
honest man'
Jose Mourinho considers Mendes the best agent in
the world
Angel di Maria, James Rodriguez, Diego Costa and
Manchester City’s Eliaquim Mangala are among his clients,
moving clubs in the past two months alone in permanent
transfers worth £208.5million.
And that does not take into account the potential £51.3m
final transfer involved in Colombian striker Radamel
Falcao’s move from Monaco to Manchester United.
No wonder, the charming 48-year-old Portuguese ‘super
agent’ Jorge Mendes, friend and adviser to footballing stars
from Cristiano Ronaldo to Jose Mourinho, has been hailed
for ‘winning’ the transfer window. And not just one.
VIDEO Scroll down to see Falcao and Rodriguez practice
one-twos in Colombia training
The Mail on Sunday have calculated Mendes has negotiated
transfers totalling £1,068,370,548. So far.
With a typical ‘take’ of 10 per cent commission per deal, he
will have cleared some £20m-plus this summer, and
£100m-plus in commissions alone in his career. But his
earnings do not stop there. Via his company GestiFute he
also owns stakes in many players.
Mendes, married with five children, carries four mobile
phones, is fluent in English, Spanish, French and Italian, and
also acts as a consultant to other agencies who own and
trade in players.
Total of Mendes' transfer negotations
As such he represents what many fans see as the good, the
bad and the ugly of modern football. He is, simultaneously,
a key figure in a dynamic marketplace where you can rise
on hard work and talent; a major player in a parasitic
industry where hangers-on prosper; and a key figure in the
often murky waters of vested interests where just a few
people control many of the players and, arguably, the clubs.
That is not to traduce Mendes. Those who know him say he
is engaging and provides good pastoral care. ‘He’s with
players for the long haul, not the quick buck,’ says one
associate.
Ronaldo says Mendes is a ‘fair and honest man’ who he
trusts ‘completely’. Mourinho said of him in 2010: ‘When I
was told there was to be an award for the best agent in the
world, I was immediately convinced that the award had to
be Jorge Mendes.’ The Chelsea boss also says Mendes
encourages players to ‘respect their commitments’ to clubs.
Sir Alex Ferguson says Mendes is ‘the best agent I dealt
with, without a doubt’.
Also not in any doubt is Mendes’s increasing influence.
GestiFute’s client list contains 58 names, two of them
managers, Mourinho and Valencia’s Nuno Espirito Santo,
the former goalkeeper known as Nuno.
JAMES RODRIGUEZ
Club: Real Madrid
Age: 23
Nationality: Colombian
Position: Midfielder
Total move value: £101.50m
Last move: £63m to Madrid in 2014
Real Madrid’s Pepe and Fabio Coentrao are also on the list,
as are United’s David de Gea and Anderson, and Monaco’s
Ricardo Carvalho and Joao Moutinho.
Eighteen players are aged 23 or under, most of them in
Portugal and Spain. Spotting potential and following it
through is a hallmark of Mendes’s business.
He grew up in Lisbon, the son of a gas plant worker for
Portugal’s biggest petrol company, Petrogal. By 20 he was
playing semi-professional football as a left winger. He ran a
video store, then opened a bar and club in coastal town
Caminha. There he met Nuno, then 22, and helped him
move to Deportivo La Coruna.
Eighteen years later, Nuno has been handed three young
Mendes clients on loan this summer in a loan intake that
also includes (non-Mendes clients) Alvaro Negredo and
Bruno Zuculini, both from Manchster City.
By helping the young Nuno, Mendes was on his way, a
fledgling agent at 30. He next helped midfielder Costinha
get his break, from lowly Nacional to Monaco, then took
winger Capucho from little Vitoria Guimaraes to Porto. His
contacts grew, as did his rivalry with the then dominant
Portuguese agent Jose Veiga. The pair had a scuffle over
Luis Figo in Lisbon airport in 2002.
Falcao and Rodriguez practice one-twos in Colombia
training
CRISTIANO RONALDO
Club: Real Madrid
Age: 29
Nationality: Portuguese
Position: Forward
Total move value: £92.24m
Last move: £80m to Real Madrid in 2009
Mendes didn’t land that client from Veiga but he did bag
Hugo Viana, Ricardo Quaresma and Ronaldo. Crucially, he
charmed a client from another agent, Jose Baidek; the client
was Mourinho and the truly big time beckoned.
By Euro 2008, Mendes was representing every major
Portuguese footballer. He was agent to 16 of the 23-man
squad, and to Portugal’s manager Luiz Felipe Scolari, who
he then took to Chelsea.
In such a high-stakes environment it is inevitable Mendes
has upset people. He was accused of poaching Nani (in
2007) and Bebe (in 2011) from their respective former
agents Ana Almeida and Goncalo Reis, just before those
players made moves to United. They said he pinched their
players; he said they wanted his help to make progress.
Reis said of his muscling in on the Bebe deal: ‘When
Mendes arrived I was out of the transaction. It’s a sad thing
that the one who discovers a player is not able to stay with
him when big clubs are interested.’
Cristiano Ronaldo nets early goal Real Madrid 2-1 Fiorentina
ANGEL DI MARIA
Club: Manchester United
Age: 26
Nationality: Argentinian
Position: Midfielder
Total move value: £89.08m
Last move: £59.7m to Man United in 2014
The Bebe transfer also highlights another aspect of
Mendes’s business — owning players. His firm GestiFute
earned about £2.87m from the £7.4m United paid for Bebe
for their share of his ‘economic rights’.
Another of Mendes’s recent client moves took Spanish
striker Adrian Lopez from Atletico Madrid to Porto, with
Porto paying £8.7m for 60 per cent of the player and the
other shareholding an unspecified third party.
Another Mendes client, 21-year-old Portuguese midfielder
Andre Gomes, on loan at Nuno’s Valencia from Benfica, is
owned — entirely separately from his loan move — by
Valencia’s Singaporean billionaire owner, Peter Lim.
Third-party ownership (TPO) is a regulatory minefield. In
England it is prohibited by FA rules and opposed by the
Premier League, whose spokesman said: ‘It threatens the
integrity of competitions, reduces the flow of transfer
revenue contained within the game, and has the potential to
exert external influences on players’ transfer decisions.’
ELIAQUIM MANGALA
Club: Manchester City
Age: 23
Nationality: French
Position: Defender
Total move value: £42m
Last move: £42m to Man City in 2014
A report last year by auditors KPMG said there were about
1,100 TPO footballers at work around Europe, in total worth
about £1bn.
Sources say four — among them Mangala — and perhaps
more of the 100-plus players coming to the Premier League
this summer were third-party owned — before the English
clubs took 100 per cent ownership. Liverpool’s Lazar
Markovic and United’s Marcos Rojo were among them.
Chelsea’s parent company, via a subsidiary firm, is believed
to own a group of TPO players, but none in England, so no
rules are broken. Mendes has been linked to that fund as
consultant.
Mendes didn’t own Mangala, he is ‘just’ the player’s agent
and worked with several parties as City paid about £40m
for the player. The £40m was split between Porto, an
‘ownership fund’ called Doyen and another called Robi Plus,
with agency fees on top.
No wonder Mendes, pictured so often with his clients
recently, is always smiling.
MORE...
Cristiano Ronaldo, Radamel Falcao and Angel di Maria all
star in 'super agent' Jorge Mendes' XI... and Jose Mourinho
is the boss
Radamel Falcao celebrates £6m season-long loan move to
Manchester United with a glass of wine and a Chinese meal
FIFA 15 player ratings: Gareth Bale and Radamel Falcao
miss out on top 10 as EA Sports announce numbers 20-11
Monaco had to flog Radamel Falcao - their owner is going
through a £2.7bn divorce, has a £41.5m tax bill... and then
there's the financial fair play rules
DAVID BECKHAM: I've retired to be a taxi driver for my
boys, but I'd be proud if England asked me to help out... I
miss playing for my country more than anything
Marcos Rojo 'desperate' for his Manchester United debut
after getting his work permit
10 things to watch this weekend: Raheem Sterling on centre
stage for England, Scotland facing world champions
Germany, and Brazil kick off new era

The most influential football agent

Jorge Mendes: The rise and
rise of Portugal's super-agent
How a DJ and nightclub owner became one of
most powerful men in football and the agent of
José Mourinho and Cristiano Ronaldo
Jorge Mendes was named agent of the year last
December – he made his first deal in 1994. Photograph:
Paulo Esteves/ASF Paulo Esteves/ASF
Jorge Mendes may have proclaimed himself
"world's best businessman" after his agent of
the year accolade at the Globe Soccer event in
December, but accounts of his life story
describe him, like many agents, falling into the
work by chance, just as the money to be made
in football deals began ballooning. He is
reported to have struggled to build a career in
Portuguese semi-professional football, then
worked as a DJ, opened a video shop, bar and
nightclub in Caminha, northern Portugal. There,
in 1996, he happened to meet the goalkeeper,
Nuno Espírito Santo, who was then playing for
Vitória Guimarães – the same club from which
Mendes orchestrated Bébé's sale to Manchester
United 14 years later. Mendes negotiated Nuno
a move to Deportiva La Coruña, and after that,
he moved gradually into the agency business.
Known now for doing hugely lucrative deals
representing almost all Portugal's international
players, together with José Mourinho, and Luiz
Felipe Scolari and Carlos Queiroz – both former
Portugal national team coaches – Mendes's rise
has been hard-edged. It was marked, famously
in Portugal, by a fist fight at Lisbon airport with
José Veiga, Luis Figo's agent, whom Mendes was
gradually supplanting in the early 2000s as the
country's top football fixer. He has also been
accused by other agents of moving in on their
players shortly before agreeing major deals –
Nani's former agent, Ana Almeida, complained
that the player joined Mendes, then Manchester
United, in 2005, while she still had a contract
with him. Bébé's agent, Gonçalo Reis, has said
he was cut off mid-contract, before Mendes
suddenly began to represent Bébé then within
days agreed a €9m (£7.5m) deal with United.
Discussing the dispute with Almeida in an
interview in 2006, Mendes was quoted as
saying: "There are people that have signed
contracts with players and are there waiting for
a Jorge Mendes to show up and take him to a
big club. They want to be glued to the operation
without ever having done anything to promote
it."
Even Mourinho is always reported to have
dropped his own agent, Jorge Baidek, before
signing up with Mendes then moving from
Porto to manage Chelsea in 2004. In a video
message played at the award ceremony in
Dubai, Mourinho praised Mendes's skill in
building good relationships with clubs and
managers, and for motivating players to
"respect the commitments with the clubs".
Ronaldo described his agent as "a fair and
honest man" with whom he established
"immediate empathy" as a 17-year-old.
Accepting the award in Dubai, which he
dedicated to his mother and brother, who have
both died in the last year and a half, Mendes
said: "Portugal is a small country, where people
who do well are the target of envy, but you
have to struggle against the tide."

Arsenal’s history quiz... NSF Exclusive

1
When was Arsenal originally formed?
1890
1886
1875
None of the above
2
What was the club first known as?
Arsenal
North London
Highbury square
Dial square
3
What year did the club turn professional?
1891
1886
1900
1895
4
What league were Arsenal elected to?
Conference
First division
Third division
Second division
5
What year did they gain promotion to the league
above?
1904
1909
1906
1910
6
Arsenal got relegated in 1909
True
False
7
Arsenal's first major trophy was the league
True
False
8
Who scored the winning goal in extra time against
Liverpool in the FA cup final in 1969?
Charlie George
Frank Mac Clintock
Terry Neil
Don Howe
9
In 1989 who did Arsenal beat on goals scored in
the race for the title?
Chelsea
Man Utd
Tottenham
Liverpool
10
In the 1992-93 season who did Arsenal beat in the
FA cup final and the coca cola cup?
Sheffield UTD
Sheffield Wed
Liverpool
Man UTD
11
Who did Arsene Wnger take over from as the
manager of Arsenal?
Bruce Rioch
Stewert Houston
George Graham
None of the above
12
Who did Arsenal lose to in extra time in the FA cup
in 1998-99
Liverpool
Tottenham
Man UTD
Chelsea
13
Where did Arsenal finish in the 2000-01
2nd
1st
3rd
4th
14
In the Champions league in 2000-01 what score
was it in the arsenal, valencia match in highbury?
2-1 arsenal
1-0 arsenal
1-0 valencia
1-1
15
How much points did Arsenal finish with in the
2002-03
83
80
69
78
Submit Your Answers
Unanswered questions will be maked as wrong

D u know the gunners that much??

1
Which of these is not an Arsenal player?
Jens Lehmann
Aliadiere
Silvestre
Larsson
2
Who did Arsenal play against in the FA cup final in
2004?
Chelsea
Manchester United
Liverpool
Arsenal was not in the FA cup final in 2004
3
What was the score when Arsenal played
Manchester United in the FA cup final in 1979?
Arsenal 2 Manchester United 3
Arsenal 0 Manchester United 2
Arsenal 1 Manchester United 0
Arsenal 3 Manchester United 2
4
Arsenal are moving to a new stadium in 2006. It
will be called..?
Highbury Stadium
The Gooners Stand Up
Arsenal Stadium
Emirates Stadium
5
Which of these players has not played for
Arsenal?
Sean Wright Phillips
Ian Wright
Thomas Coakley
Tony Adams
6
Which of these people has managed Arsenal in the
past?
Walter Smith
Jimmy Gabriel
Frank Brettell
Bertie Mee
7
Which of these is an Arsenal Defender?
Kole Toure
Rio Ferdinand
Jens Lehmann
Robin Van Persie
8
Arsenal's current coach is (in 2005)...?
Arsene Wenger
Pat Rice
George Graham
Alan Hanson
9
Arsenal have appeared in the FA cup final how
many times?
12
5
22
16
10
In the 2003/2004 Premiership season, Arsenal
finished...?
2nd
3rd
1st
5th
11
Arsenal came first in division 1 in which season?
1998/1999 and 1991/1992
1990/1991 and 1983/1984
1989/1990 and 1990/1991
1990/1991 and 1988/1989
12
In the 1999/2000 season, Arsenal reached the
final in which cup(s)?
Cup-winners Cup
UEFA cup
Champions League and UEFA
Champions League and Cup-winners Cup
Submit Your Answers
Unanswered questions will be maked as wrong