Ronaldo: not only the Record breaker (Contd...with "NOT")

Ronaldo’s history-making goal - his 15th in the FIFA World Cup taking him above Gerd Muller in the all-time goalscoring list – was not the only landmark achievement in Brazil’s Round of 16 defeat of Ghana.
Adriano’s goal, which made it 2-0, was Brazil’s 200th in FIFA World Cups. The 100th was scored by none other than Pele, the magnificent header against Italy in the 1970 Final in Mexico City.
Captain Cafu’s appearance in the game with Ghana in Dortmund was his 19th FIFA World Cup game - a Brazilian record, taking him past Claudio Taffarel and Dunga who were both on 18. If Brazil go all the way and he plays in all the remaining games, Cafu would end the tournament on 22, three behind record-holder Lothar Matthaus who appeared in every FIFA World Cup between 1982 and 1998.
The victory was also Cafu's 16th winning game in the competition – another FIFA World Cup record. Both Matthaus and Wolfgang Overath enjoyed 15 wins with Germany while Paolo Maldini and Franz Beckenbauer are next best on 14.

Ronaldo: The Record Breaker

Ronaldo inscribed his name into football's history books on Tuesday by scoring a record-breaking 15th FIFA World Cup goal to take him clear of Gerd Muller as the tournament's all-time top marksman.
The strike set Brazil on the road to the quarter-finals with a 3-0 win over Ghana, and it came eight years and 11 days on from O Fenômeno's first in this great competition, which by coincidence also came in a 3-0 win over African opposition.
Afterwards, he reflected on the achievement: "How do I make history? It's tough, difficult, it's not easy. You need a lot of sacrifice and a lot of work. This is the product of many, many years of effort."
There was, though, no suggestion that it would satiate the thirst of a player not yet satisfied with his extensive list of achievements. "What do I want from now on?" he said. "More, more and more. I want to keep scoring, as I still have much left to give."
Here,we looks back on the fantastic 15 that have cemented Ronaldo's status as one of the game's all-time greats.

Goal 15, 27 June 2006, Brazil 3-0 Ghana:One goal, 5 minutes
The goal that broke Muller's record from the 1970 and 1974 tournaments was classic Ronaldo. Timing his run to perfection to spring the Ghanaian offside trap, he raced onto a sublime through-ball from Kaka and, faced with a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper, provided the inevitable conclusion.
Cool, calm and collected, he left Richard Kingson sprawling with a clever shimmy, dragged the ball round the keeper and, with a defender rapidly closing in, flicked out his right boot to send the ball home. History was thus made.

Goals 13 and 14, 22 June 2006, Japan 1-4 Brazil: Two goals, 46 and 81 mins
Ronaldo's first goal at Germany 2006 boosted his waning confidence and silenced the critics who had poured scorn on his apparent lack of pace and co-ordination. Although crucial to both Ronaldo and Brazil, the finish itself was more straightforward than spectacular, with Ronaldo glancing in a header to level the score at 1-1 just before half-time.
The striker’s inspired second goal sealed Brazil's emphatic victory. Collecting the ball with his back to the goal outside the area, he turned and found the net with laser-like precision, leaving goalkeeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi sprawled helplessly across the turf. With these two goals, Ronaldo equalled Muller's record of 14 FIFA World Cup goals.

Goals 11 and 12, 30 June 2002, Germany 0-2 Brazil: Two goals, 67 and 79 mins
In the Final of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, Ronaldo scored the two most important goals of his career to secure for Brazil a record fifth world title. For the first, he won the ball on the edge of the area before laying it off for Rivaldo to unleash a powerful shot. The ball rebounded off goalkeeper Oliver Kahn, leaving Ronaldo to tap it into the net and give his country the lead.
The second goal saw Kleberson surge down the right wing before finding Rivaldo on the edge of the box, who dummied cleverly and let the ball run into the path of Ronaldo. From the edge of the area, the tournament's top scorer made no mistake, finding the bottom left-hand corner with a low-struck shot.

Goal 10, 26 June 2002, Brazil 1-0 Turkey: One goal, 49 mins
A goal of quality and skill in the semi-final: Ronaldo entered the area on the left-hand side and beat two defenders before flicking the ball past goalkeeper Rustu Recber.

Goal 9, 17 June 2002, Brazil 2-0 Belgium: One goal, 87 mins
Ronaldo's goal brought relief to Brazil after a tough match against a dangerous Belgium side in Kobe. Kleberson broke free on the right and delivered a cross to Ronaldo who had the time and space needed to pick his spot and wrap up the win for Brazil.

Goals 7 and 8, 13 June 2002, Costa Rica 2-5 Brazil: Two goals, 10 and 13 mins
Early in the first half, Ronaldo struck the first of two goals after connecting with a cross from Edilson. The second goal came from a corner and saw Ronaldo pick up the ball in the area, shake off his marker and hit a weak but well-placed shot between the keeper and the near-post.

Goal 6, 8 June 2002, Brazil 4-0 China: One goal 55 mins
After a powerful run down the right wing that left two men in his wake, Cafu picked out Ronaldo, who comfortably steered the ball past goalkeeper Jiang Jin for his sixth FIFA World Cup goal and Brazil’s fourth of the match.

Goal 5, 3 June 2002, Brazil 2-1 Turkey: One goal, 50 minutes
Before this match, many doubted whether Ronaldo could light up another the FIFA World Cup, with the striker only recently recovered from a series of career-threatening knee injuries that had plagued him for much of the preceding two years. Five minutes into the second half, however, and just three minutes after Brazil had fallen behind, Ronaldo made his mark, stretching to get his foot to a Rivaldo cross and steer the ball into the net.

Goal 4, 7 July 1998, Brazil 1-1 Netherlands (4-2 PSO): One goal, 46 mins
The fourth and last of Ronaldo's goals at France 98 closely resembled the others he had scored at the tournament. In the semi-final against Netherlands, Ronaldo beat Frank de Boer and slid the ball under goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar, who was racing out to close off the angle.

Goals 2 and 3, 27 June 1998, Brazil 4-1 Chile: Two goals, 45 and 70 mins
Ronaldo's second FIFA World Cup goal came from a penalty on the stroke of half-time in Brazil's Round of 16 tie against Chile – their third of the game. His side's fourth and final goal also came from Ronaldo, who picked up the ball in space and showed a remarkable burst of speed to beat goalkeeper Nelson Tapia.

Goal 1, 16 June 1998, Brazil 3-0 Morocco: One goal, 9 mins
An unused squad member at USA 94, Ronaldo had to wait until the second match of his second FIFA World Cup before finally opening his account, the bustling centre-forward putting his country in front with a well-struck volley at the start of group match against Morocco

Football is the Mantra on the Indian Sub Continent this Season!!

"Some-day I hope it'll be India that I'll be cheering," says one of the boys. "Then we'll stop supporting Brazil."

Domestic football in India is far more popular than domestic cricket, and many teams in the country's National Football League trace their origins back to the 1880s, when the game was introduced by British colonials.

Indeed, league football was being played in Calcutta long before Real Madrid or the world governing body Fifa even existed.The country qualified regularly for the Olympics until the 1960s, and were invited to the 1950 World Cup in Brazil but the problems of a long sea journey and the fact that they still played in bare feet prevented them from appearing. India is currently ranked a disheartening 117th in the world.Englishman Steven Constantine, who coaches the national team, identifies the problem as a lack of a proper grass-roots infrastructure. "You see kids playing football in the street with no shoes everywhere in this country but there's no development at youth level.On a brighter note, private football associations like the Indian Youth Soccer Association are keenly developing talent from the streets in an attempt to lift the sagging fortunes of the game in India.Each week nearly 20 Delhi street children aged eight to 13 - orphans or runaways - gather to play and learn the basics on the lawns at India Gate, an archway in the centre of the city that commemorates Indian soldiers who died in World War I. They are being taught shooting, passing and dribbling.

Crazy Corner

As the game goes boring, i think these guyz thought of their own entertainment

I think that he's a cop..spying all over the Football ground

World Cup,2006 Winner Declared!!!!

Brazil won the world cup in 1994.
Before that, he had won this title for the last time in 1970.
If you add up: 1970 + 1994 = 3964
Argentina won the world cup for the last time in 1986.
Before that only in 1978.And 1978 + 1986 = 3964
Germany, though, won the world cup in 1990.
Before that, Germany won in 1974.
Look: 1990 + 1974 = 3964
This could lead us to guess the winner of the World Cup in 2002, since it should be the winnerof the 1962 World Cup (In fact 3964 - 2002 = 1962).
And Brazil won the world cup in 1962! (And, in fact, Brazil won the 2002 WC)
This numerology seems to work...And now, who would be the winner of the 2006 world cup?Let's see, 3964 - 2006 = 1958
And who won in 1958?....
Oh, Brazil did!!!

So, Guys..no doubts..the Winner is already decided..!!!

Spirituality of Soccer

What all the religions of the world preach and all the good qualities they ask us to imbibe, can be learnt, practiced and tested on soccer field. Whoever invented the game must be both a genius and messiah.The beauty of the game lies in its simplicity. What happens in short span of an hour-and-a-half, on a rectangular field of about 100*60 metres between two teams of 11 players each and a simple ball can make you see both heaven and hell.A game of soccer can teach you so much about life and spirituality. The soccer field represents this universe. The period of game is nothing but your life. The rules of game are limitations which stop you from doing any thing wrong. Your team mates are the people who can help you to achieve the prescribed aim. The opponents are the obstacles that you have to overcome to reach the goal. The referee represents your conscience. And, the ball is your soul and its motion your fickle nature. The better you can control it, the faster you can reach your aim. The goalposts represent the Lord Almighty with whom your soul, the ball, craves to connect. And, the goal you score is nothing, but the salvation of your soul.
However, playing soccer may be spiritual experience, but what about spectator-violence??

crazy n insane 'bout futbol

Football's excitement seen all-through the world....Football Mania Continues

BRAZEAL!!!

Brazilians are brainsick when it comes to Football..For football, Brazilians can gamble their homes, and sometimes their wives too!!!

The PROSPECTIVE Mrs Zanotto could not believe her ears as she made her way up the aisle: Her groom Gustavo, 30, had convinced the musicians in the church to play his favourite football team Guarani FC's song instead of the Wedding March.For his number one passion, football, the Brazilian often goes to extreme lengths. At the most explosive matches, the craziest football fans are said to have gambled away not only their homes but also their wives.Fortunately, Zanottos are still living happily together a year after the wedding.The whole population of brazil will drop everything and turn their eyes on Germany in June. A World Cup paralyses life with us as in no other country. Even banks and schools clsoe. And, those who never watch a match otherwise wear the canary-yellow football shirt during the WC.