RONALDO

TEAMS PLAYED FOR
 
Corinthians (Brazil): 2009 –
AC Milan (Italy): 2007 – 2008
Real Madrid (Spain): 2002 – 2007
Inter Milan (Italy): 1997 – 2002
FC Barcelona (Spain): 1996 – 1997
PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands): 1994 – 1996
Cruzeiro (Brazil): 1993 -1994

BIO

Question - what does one need to become a famous soccer player?  Answer – you have to be born in Brazil, be a poor boy, receive a soccer ball as a gift from your parents and… practice, practice, practice.  In fact, practice until the ball becomes an extension of your leg. 
This is exactly what made Ronaldo Luis Nazario de Lima (known as simply, Ronaldo) a famous player.  Ronaldo was born on September 18, 1976 in the suburb of Rio-de-Janeiro.  The parents named him Ronaldo in honor of his mom’s doctor, Ronaldo Valiente.  When he turned four, his father bought him a cheap soccer ball as a gift.  It was his own ball, not borrowed from his brother or friends.  Ronaldo instantly fell in love with the round object.  While most children were falling asleep hugging stuffed animals, Ronaldo was hugging the soccer ball.  The boy kicked the ball around the house and would even yell “Pass, pass the ball…” in his sleep.  His parents didn’t really care as soccer was a big part of their life also. 
Ronaldo could not speak until he turned three but way before then he would watch his father play soccer with his friends.  When he turned five, he started playing himself and everyone could see that he had a God given talent.  Every free minute he tried to play soccer.  Ronaldo hated school, especially mathematics.  There were days when he would skip school just so he would kick the ball around with his friends who loved it as much.  His father was working for a telephone company and his mom sold ice-cream all day, so there was no one really around to check his homework, which actually made the boy happy as he continued to master his soccer skills in the streets.
When Ronaldo turned 12 he was asked to play on an indoor soccer team.  At first the coach made him a goalkeeper but he could not stay still and kept trying to play in the field.  Ronaldo played very well and then one day decided that this team was too small for him and decided to try out for Brazil’s famous team, Flamengo.  It took him many hours to get there by bus.  He tried out, but the team did not want to accept him.  The boy was very upset, got on the bus and went home.  Not too far form his house two older boys entered the bus and robbed Ronaldo of his watch.  Up to this day, if you ask Ronaldo about the worst story in his life, this will be it.

CLUB CAREER

One day when Ronaldo was 13 years old, after one of the games, he told his friends that one day he will be rich and famous.  He also gave himself the word that he would help his family out of poverty.  Ronaldo’s talent was noticed by scouts and he was asked to play for Brazil’s youth team in the South American tournament.  Ronaldo was ecstatic and asked the team to give him a pair of Nike soccer shoes, which he never had and dreamed about.  During that tournament Ronaldo became the best player and returning he signed a $50,000 contract with Cruzeiro.  A portion of his first paycheck Ronaldo spent on his first car – Volkswagen Golf.  The boy was really tired of taking a bus to the practice.  He also helped his mom move out of the poor neighborhood and eventually bought her a house.  His parents were divorced by then but he did not forget the sacrifices his father made for him when he was little.  He bought his father a house also and helped financially all his family.
When Ronaldo turned 18 he signed his first professional contract with a European team – PSV from Holland.  Holland was a lot different than Brazil.  This is where he saw snow for the first time.  He hated it.  He also hated food, it was too plain comparing to Brazilian.  While at PSV he becomes the best scorer and after two years signs a contract with Spanish club Barcelona for 20 million dollars.  By this time he is one of the soccer idols in the world.  He signs an endorsement with Nike, which is amazing considering Nike shoes was his childhood dream.  In Spain he also becomes the best player and scores a lot of goals.  In 1997 he signs a contract with Inter form Italy for… 77 million dollars.  His stakes are rising, just as his income.  By now Ronaldo has reached what he always wanted, money and fame.  He is the best player in the world, second time in a row. 
There came Real Madrid and AC Milan.  After a serious knee injury at one of the games, Ronaldo was forced to move to Brazil for treatment. While recovering from the injury Ronaldo was training with Flamengo and signed a one year contract with Cruzeiro.  As of 2009 his contract is up for renewal.  Why not?  He is one of the best players on the planet and he’s still got it!

NATIONAL TEAM CAREER
       
Ronaldo went to the World Cup in the USA in 1994 as a 17-year old but didn’t play although was awarded the gold medal.  In 1996 and 1997 he was voted the best player on the planet, two times in a row.  The next World Cup in France, 1998 was not very successful for Ronaldo.  He did perform well by scoring 4 goals and adding 3 assists.  However, before the final game he had a convulsive fit. At first Ronaldo was removed from the starting lineup 72 minutes before the match, but he requested to play and was later reinstated by coach Mario Zagalo.  Ronaldo did not perform well and he was injured in a collision with French goalkeeper Fabien Barthez.  Brazil lost the final 0:3 against France.  After the game, the experts concluded that he should not have played as he has not chance to recover from the fit to perform at 100%.
2002 World Cup in Korea/Japan was more successful for Ronaldo.  He once again led his team to the tournament final where Brazil beat Germany 2:0 and Ronaldo scored both goals.           

PERSONAL INFO

       

Ronaldo loves women and has been in many relationships with them.  At one point he was married to Milene Domingues, Brazilian female soccer player.  The marriage lasted 4 years and the couple has a son, Ronald. Ronaldo is currently in a relationship with Maria Beatriz Antony with whom he has a daughter, Maria.  The family lives in San Paolo, Brazil. 

Ronaldo is co-owner of Brazilian A1 race team.

TITLES AND AWARDS

Cruzeiro

Campeonato Mineiro: 1994

PSV Eindhoven

Dutch Cup: 1996

FC Barcelona

Spanish Super Cup: 1996

UEFA Cup Winners Cup: 1997

Spanish Cup: 1997

Inter Milan

UEFA Cup: 1998

Real Madrid

La Liga: 2003, 2007

Spanish Super Cup: 2003

Intercontinental Cup: 2002

Corintians

Campeonato Paulista: 2009

Brazil Cup: 2009

International

FIFA World Cup (winner): 1994, 2002

Copa America: 1997, 1999

FIFA Confederations Cup: 1997

Summer Olympics (bronze medal): 1996

FIFA World Player of the Year: 1996, 1997, 2002

Ballon D’Or: 1997, 2002

FIFA 100

FIFA World Cup all time scoring leader (as of 2009)

RAUL GONZALEZ

TEAMS PLAYED FOR
 
Real Madrid (Spain): 1994 - present

BIO

Raul Gonzalez, or simply Raul, was born on June 27, 1977 in Madrid, Spain.  Today, Raul is widely seen as one of the best strikers in the world.  Everyone is looking to achieve a balance in their lives, be it financial, professional or personal stability.  Success that Raul has achieved today is somehow balancing his poor past.  Having exchanged his parent’s tiny house for a huge villa in one of the most prestigious parts of Madrid, he could not stop talking to the reporters about how big his bedroom was.  Now he was happy as he could turn on the electricity whenever he wanted without being scolded by his father.
Raul lived in the family of five including his mother, father, a brother and a sister.  Most of Raul’s young life his family was trying to make the end meet living off his father electrician’s small salary.  Because of this, his parents could not pay to have him sent to the soccer academy, which was the boy’s dream.  Even when he did try out for a kid’s team, the coaches did not accept him saying that he was too small and skinny.  The boy gave himself a word, that no matter what, he will gain weight even though his parents could not afford much food.
Time went by and scouts started noticing Raul on the field while playing for children’s teams.  His idol was Maradona and he tried to imitate him on the field.  As a result, he was able to perform miracles with the ball which sometimes stunned even his fellow players.  Raul was invited to play for Atletico Madrid youth team, however that didn’t last long because the youth team club was closed due to the financial problems.
The boy did not lose hope and decided to try out for Atletico city rivals, one of the greatest teams in the world, Real Madrid.  The first game Raul played for Real Madrid youth team was against Alcala in 1992.  Real won the game 5:0 without any difficulties and Raul scored one of the goals which happened to be his first goal for the team.  Raul barely remembers that game, but his youth coach Antonio Kirogi remembers it very well: “It seems like from the very beginning of his career at Real, he became the team leader”, says the coach.  “I knew right then and there that this 15 year old boy has a potential to be a great player.  Although he was better than most of his fellow players, he never made it known and always was humble to everyone around him”.   

CLUB CAREER

The first game for Real Madrid Raul played on October 29^th, 1994 against Saragosa.  The day before the game, Jorge Valdano, Real coach at the time told Raul: “Don’t pass out but tomorrow will be your first game”.  The coach expected to see fear and apprehension in boy’s eyes, but saw sheer determination and confidence. 
After that game Raul became one of the main players on the team.  Largely because of his efforts and goal scoring ability, Real Madrid once again became one of the greatest teams in the world by winning the Champions League and Intercontinental Cup.   
Raul’s fame was growing… until one day when he stopped scoring.  It was really strange and no one could explain why.  People started talking about Raul’s lack of commitment to the team and that he wasn’t trying hard any more.  Raul stopped giving interviews and talking to the fans.  He started spending more and more time at night clubs with questionable friends.  According to rumors, he started using alcohol and drugs.  To overcome his depression, Raul hired psychologists… nothing helped.  Until one day when he met Mamen Sanz, a Spanish model.  Their attraction was instant and the player completely changed.  He seemed to grow up overnight, got his confidence back.  As a result he started playing even better than before and returned to his high scoring days.  This is where his signature goal celebration comes from.  After scoring each goal, Raul kisses his ring finger as a sign of gratitude to his wife.  

NATIONAL TEAM CAREER

       

Raúl began his rise in the international scene with the youth teams and was chosen to represent Spain at the 1995 FIFA Youth World Cup.  He has scored a national record 44 goals in 102 caps for Spain.  Raul participated in three World Cups – 1998, 2002 and 2006 along with Euro 2000 and 2004.  He was not chosen to play for Spain during 2008 Euro tournament which the team won

PERSONAL INFO

Raul is very aggressive on the field but is complete opposite in real life.  He is shy and quiet and you will hardly ever find any information on him in tabloids.  All his spare time he likes to spend with his family, doing “family things”.  He is very modest and you will not find any fancy cars in his garage.  He has a lot of friends, likes movies, books and hunting. Raul likes to give out autographs.  One time Michael Jordan asked for Raul’s autograph through their common friends.  Raul though it was a joke, but when he figure it out, he signed his Real Madrid jersey” To Michael Jordan, the greatest athlete of all times.  Your humble fan, Raul Gonzalez”

       

TITLES AND AWARDS

Real Madrid

La Liga: 1995, 1997, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2008

Spanish Super Cup: 1997, 2001, 2003, 2008

UEFA Champions League: 1998, 2000, 2002

UEFA Super Cup: 2002

Intercontinental Cup: 1998, 2002

All time top scorer as of 2009

International

FIFA World Player of the Year (third place): 2001

UEFA Player of the Year (second place): 2001

FIFA 100

GABRIEL BATISTUTA

lTEAMS PLAYED FOR
 
Al Arabi (Qatar): 2003 – 2005
Inter Milan (Italy): 2003
Roma (Italy): 2000 – 2003
Fiorentina (Italy): 1991 – 2000
Boca Juniors (Argentina): 1990 – 1991
River Plate (Argentina): 1989 – 1990
Newell’s Old Boys (Argentina): 1988 - 1989

BIO

Gabriel Omar Batistuta will always be one of the best strikers in the history of soccer.  He is rich, good looking and famous.  Men envy him, women want him.  But, just like many others, he grew up poor.  Just like many others, Gabriel experienced tragedies and uncertainties, which he withstood with honor.  He never gave up and always lived to the fullest.  He embraced the unknown as a challenge.  Everything he has reached in his life is due to his hard work and perseverance.   
Batistuta was born on February 1, 1969 in Avellaneda, Argentina.  He has three younger sisters.  On one hand, his early childhood went by under a strict supervision of his father, Osmar, the slaughterhouse worker.  On another hand, his early life was always supported by the love given to him by his mother Gloria with whom he always had a close relationship. 
From the very age Gabriel, or “el gringo” as he was called by his friends due to his fair skin color which is rare for an Argentine, was interested in two things: chasing around a soccer ball and fishing.  According to his words, Batistuta never really saw himself playing soccer.  His favorite sports was basketball.  He never dreamed about becoming a professional soccer player or even thought that he would become famous.  His life is full of difficulties, obstacles and wasted chances, tears and smiles, and, of course, unbelievable moments on the soccer field. 
It was a pure chance that Gabriel became a soccer player.  In January 1987 a representative from Newell’s Old Boys literally kidnapped Batistuta from his town and took him to the club.  The boy at that moment didn’t realize that his father had given Newell’s Old Boys an agreement to have his son tried out for the team.  It was time for Bati to spread the wings as Osmar put it.
  
CLUB CAREER

Gabriel Batistuta debuted in Argentine championship in the game against Saint Martin.  However, the real debut took place three days later, when he came onto the field wearing no 9 on his back instead of an injured striker in Copa Libertadores against San Lorenzo.  Batistuta did not score in that game, but without a doubt he left his heart on the field.  When he woke up the next morning, the first thing he saw was the newspaper article titled: “Batistuta – new star is born”.
After Newell’s Batistuta transfers to River Plate and then eventually to Boca Juniors, the team that will remain in his heart forever. 
During his time at River Plate, Batistuta was selected to be a part of the youth “Il Deportive” team traveling to Europe to play in youth tournaments.  In his first game against CSKA Sofia he scored a hat trick, however in the next game, Batistuta missed his penalty in a shootout and “Deportive” were knocked out.  The team had a free day and the coach arranged for the boys to attend a Serie A game between Fiorentina and AC Milan.  Young Gabriel was speechless seeing the atmosphere and love the fans were giving their teams.  At that moment he had no idea that two years later this love and affection of the Fiorentina fans will belong only to him.
After signing a contract for Fiorentina in 1991, Batistuta (or Batigol as the fans started calling him) played in 269 games for the team and became one of the most successful players in club history.  After playing in Florence for 9 years, Batistuta was transferred to Roma with whom he won his first major title, the Scudetto.  After Roma Gabriel continued his trade in Qatar, where he scored practically in every game (30 goals in 22 games).  Gabriel Batistuta retired in 2005

NATIONAL TEAM CAREER

       

The first game for the national team, Gabriel Batistuta played on March 27, 1991 in a friendly game against Brazil. Argentine national team in early 90’s was very strong.  By 1991, they had not lost in 33 games.  The team had a lot of famous players who were wither playing in Italy or were going to play there: Ruggeri, Goicoechea, Caniggia and Basile.  The team also had Kempes and Passarella who won 1978 World Cup and of course Diego Maradona who won the tournament in 1986.
The first tournament Batistuta won was Copa America 1991.  Not only that, but during that tournament he became the best scorer with six goals. 
The next major tournament where Argentina took part was the 1994 World Cup in the USA.  After Fiorentina being relegated to Serie B, Batistuta arrived in the US full of energy and optimism.  The first game Argentina won with style against Greece 4:0.  Gabriel scored a hat trick and Maradona added the forth goal.  The second game against Nigeria was also won – 2:0  However, the atmosphere in the team changed drastically when Diego Maradona failed the drug test after this game.  He was accused of having ephedrine in his system but the team refused to believe it.  As a result of Maradona’s suspension, the team has lost it’s tactical picture and got knocked out of the competition by Romania who won in the next round 3:2.
The team began to change and the new coach, Daniel Passarella, did not see Batistuta having a place on the team.  In fact, Batistuta did not play for Argentina for almost a year.  However, when he came back a year later, he continued to score as he did before.  At that time he passed Diego Maradona as the highest scorer in the history of Argentina. 

PERSONAL INFO

       

Gabriel Batistuta is married to his childhood sweetheart Irene and they have three sons Thiago, Lucas and Joaquin.  Currently Batistuta lives in Perth, Australia and is not involved in soccer.

TITLES AND AWARDS

Roma

Serie A: 2001

Supercoppa Italiana: 2001

Fiorentina

Supercoppa Italiana: 1996

Coppa Italiana: 1996

Serie A Top Scorer: 1995

International

Copa America: 1991, 1993

Confederations Cup: 1992

FIFA World Player of the Year (third place): 1999

FIFA 100

ZINEDINE ZIDANE

TEAMS PLAYED FOR
 
Real Madrid (Spain): 2001 - 2006
Juventus (Italy): 1996 - 2001
Bordeaux (France): 1992 - 1996
Cannes (France): 1987 - 1992

BIO

Zinedine “Zizou” Zidane (full name Zinedine Yazid Zidane) was born on June 23, 1972 in Marseille, France.  Zidane’s family is originally from Algeria.  His parents immigrated to France in 1953 and settled in Marseille.  Zidane is the youngest in the family of five children.     

CLUB CAREER

When Zinedine was a kid, school was not his strongest asset.  Instead he preferred to play soccer with his friends.  Eventually Zidane started playing for soccer teams from various districts of Marseille.  During one of the youth games, he was noticed by a scout from team Cannes and was invited for a trial.  One year later, Zizou makes his debut with the club's senior squad in the French First Division.  All together Zidane spent 4 years at the team scoring 6 goals and eventually being sold to Bordeaux in 1992.
After reaching the UEFA Cup final with Bordeaux, Zidane caught the attention of the Italian powerhouse, Juventus who signed him for 3 million euros.  At Juventus his talent and hard work started to pay off and the titles poured in.  During the five years spent in Torino, Zizou won every tournament played including Seria A, Italian Super Cup and European Cup. 
In 2001, Zidane was transferred to Real Madrid of Spain for 66 million euro, the world record at that time.  In the 2001/02 season, the Frenchman leads Real Madrid to Champions League glory by scoring a spectacular winning goal in the final.

NATIONAL TEAM CAREER

       

The first game for French National Team Zidane played in 1994 when he came out as a substitute in a friendly game against the Czech Republic.  France was losing 0:2 in that game but Zizou scored two goals to tie the game.  In his career, Zidane played in three World Cups (1998, 2002, 2006) and three European Championships (1996, 2000, 2004), however the biggest success in his career came during 1998 World Cup and 2000 European Championship. 
During 1998 World Cup in France, Zizou was the leader of the team and scored two goals in the final against Brazil.  While playing and winning 2000 European Championship, Zidane was voted the best player of the tournament and was considered the best midfielder on the planet by many experts. 
2006 World Cup was very disappointing for the Frenchman.  He did not play well in the first two games of the group stage and earned a yellow card in each of them.  Having missed the third game of the group stage due to suspension, Zidane started playing well in the knock-out stages.  He scored the winning goal in the semi-final against Portugal and a penalty kick in the final against Italy.  With ten minutes to go in the overtime, Zidane was red carded for head butting Italian Marco Materazzi in the chest, following verbal taunts from the Italian player.  That was the last professional soccer game Zidane played in his career. 

PERSONAL INFO

Zinedine Zidane is married and has four sons.  He currently works for Real Madrid and is engaged in many charity projects.

       

TITLES AND AWARDS

Bordeaux

UEFA Intertoto Cup: 1995

Juventus

Serie A: 1997, 1998

Italian Super Cup: 1997

European Super Cup: 1996

Intercontinental Cup: 1996

UEFA Intertoto Cup: 1999

Real Madrid

La Liga: 2003

Spanish Super Cup: 2001, 2003

UEFA Champions League: 2002

European Super Cup: 2002

Intercontinental Cup: 2002

International

FIFA World Cup: 1998

UEFA European Championship: 2000

Ballon D’or: 1998

Onze D’or: 1998, 2000, 2001

FIFA World Player of the Year: 1998, 2000, 2003

FIFA 100

FRANCO BARESI

TEAMS PLAYED FOR
 
AC Milan (Italy): 1977 – 1997

BIO

Franco Baresi was born on May 8, 1960 in Travagliato, province of Brescia, Italy.  Since his early childhood, Franco loved AC Milan and always wanted to play for the team.  He is one of the few players on the planet who has spent his entire career playing at one club.


CLUB CAREER

After a few trials at other teams including Inter Milan, Franco arrived at Milanello in 1974, at the age of 14. He actually had three trials at the team, and only after the third trial, he was admitted.  Franco was one of those players that didn’t look very impressive physically compared to what you would expect from a central defender. He usually operated as a sweeper behind the defensive line, and controlled the pace of the game from there. He read the game impressively well, which was the main reason to why he was so outstanding. 
Baresi played his first game for AC Milan in 1978 against Verona which the team won 2:1.  That season Bresi was not featured a lot in the line-up, however the next year he became team regular player. 
Baresi led the Milan team and its defense for the best part of a decade; a period during which Milan's defense was considered by many observers to be one of the best back fours in the history of football, consisting of Baresi, Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Constacurta and Mauro Tassotti.

NATIONAL TEAM CAREER

It took some time for him to break into the national team because Enzo Bearzot, the coach at the time, preferred the Juventus trio Cabrini, Gentile and Scirea in defence. The latter occupied the sweeper’s position in the World Cup winning team of 1982. Baresi was included in that squad, but never played a minute in Spain which he didn’t like. He then rejected to play for Italy as long as Bearzot was in charge which made him miss the 1986 World Cup. Bearzot then retired and Baresi once again said yes to the Azzurri. Italy reached the semifinals at Euro 88, Franco’s first tournament with Italy, and another semifinal in their own World Cup in 1990. Italy lost to Argentina on penalties, but beat England in the bronze match.

Baresi was captain when Italy traveled to America for the World Cup in 1994. At 34, he knew this was his last chance to win the World Cup, but an injury in the first round against Norway made him miss several matches and he wasn’t ready until the final against Brazil, where he played the game of his life. Brazil eventually won on penalties and Franco missed one of the penalties for Italy. It was his 81st and final match for Italy.

PERSONAL INFO

Because Baresi’s achievements, AC Milan played a tribute to the player by retiring his jersey number 6.  No player in the future will ever wear that jersey at Milan.  Played in 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. 

       

TITLES AND AWARDS

AC Milan

Serie A: 1979, 1988, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996

Italian Supercup: 1988, 1992, 1993, 1994

Mitropa Cup: 1982

UEFA Champions League: 1989, 1990, 1994

Intercontinental Cup: 1989, 1990

European Super Cup: 1989, 1990, 1994

International

FIFA World Cup: 1982

FIFA 100

ROBERTO BAGGIO

TEAMS PLAYED FOR
 
Brescia (Italy): 2000 – 2004
Inter Milan (Italy): 1998 – 2000
Bologna (Italy): 1997 – 1998
AC Milan (Italy): 1995 – 1997
Juventus (Italy): 1990 – 1995
Fiorentina (Italy): 1985 – 1990
Vicenza (Italy): 1982 - 1985

BIO

Roberto Baggio was born on February 8, 1967 in a small town of Caldogno, Italy.  He started playing soccer from the early age, and almost immediately people around him saw the beginning glimpses of a natural born striker.  When he was 9 years old his childhood team coach recognized his attacking skills and immediately started playing him up front.  In one of the games, Roberto scored 6 goals and was immediately noticed by the scouts of the local third division team, Vicenza.      

CLUB CAREER

Vicenza became Baggio’s first professional team with whom the boy signed a contract when he turned 14.  His first salary was around $170 per month.  The first two years, Roberto spent on the bench, however in 1984/1985 season his 12 goals helped the team secure the promotion to the second division, Serie B.  Baggio himself was sent directly to Fiorentina, one of the Serie A powerhouses.  Roberto spent 5 years ar Fiorentina and during his years there, he rose to cult status among the team's fans who still consider him to be one of their best ever players.  His most successful season at Fiorentina was his last season in 1990 when the team went as fat as the final of the UEFA Cup where they lost to another Italian team, Juventus. 
After seeing Baggio play in the final and throughout the season, Juventus management could not let the played to be snatched out by a different club.  After the UEFA Cup final, they made Fiorentina an offer that they could not refuse - $17 million.  Baggio’s transfer to Juve was accompanied by the mass riots in the streets of Florence.  Fiorentina’s fans could not forgive the team management for selling their talisman player. 
At Juventus Baggio continued performing at the highest level.  This is where he won his first scudetto and UEFA Cup.  After five years at Juve Baggio was sold to AC Milan where he won another Scudetto in his first year, hence becoming the first player to win the Scudetto in consecutive years with two different clubs.
During his time at AC Milan, the team suffered from player misbalance and coaching change.  As a result, after just two years, Baggio was transferred to Bologna, where according to himself, he had one of the best seasons in his life. Later on Baggio played for Inter Milan and Brescia where he finished his career in 2004.

NATIONAL TEAM CAREER

Roberto Baggio player in three World Cups – 1990, 1994, 1998 – and is the only Italian player to score in all three tournaments.  With total 9 goals in the World Cup, Baggio is the scoring leader along with Christian Vieri and Paolo Rossi.  

PERSONAL INFO

When Roberto was 16 years old, the doctors discovered that he was allergic to certain medications.  This allergy never allowed Baggio to heal completely from his injuries and he had to deal with the pain throughout his career.  According to him, the only things that kept him going was Buddhism and incredible love for the game.  The most important person in Baggio’s life is his wife Adreanna with whom he has been together since the age of 15. They have daughter Valentina and son Mattia.  Roberto is the 6^th of 8 brothers.  Nicknamed “The Divine Ponytail” because of his hair style.

       

TITLES AND AWARDS

Fiorentina

UEFA Cup (runner-up): 1990

Juventus

Serie A: 1995

Coppa Italia: 1995

UEFA Cup: 1993

AC Milan

Serie A: 1996

Bologna

UEFA Intertoto Cup: 1998

International

FIFA World Cup: runner-up 1994, 3^rd place 1990

FIFA World Player of the Year: 1993

UEFA Player of the Year: 1993

FIFA 100

RUUD GULLIT

TEAMS PLAYED FOR

Chelsea (England): 1995 – 1998
Sampdoria (Italy): 1993 – 1994
AC Milan (Italy): 1987 – 1993
PSV Eindhoven (Holland): 1985 – 1987
Feyenoord (Holland): 1982 – 1985
HFC Haarlem (Holland): 1979 - 1982 

BIO

Ruud Gullit was born September 1, 1962 in Amsterdam, Holland.  His father George was from Suriname and his mother from Holland.  The family lived in one split level room on the top floor of a small apartment building. Gullit's father worked as an economics teacher at a local school, his mother as a cleaner.
The history of Dutch soccer has two “golden” generations.  The first one, shining in 70’s, is associated with the name of Johan Cruyff.  The second, from mid 80’s, is synonymous with the names of Ruud Gullis, Franc Rijkaard and Marco Van Basten.
Beginning with early childhood, soccer became more than just a game for little Ruud.  It became his life.  Gullit and Rijkaard were neightbors, both of Surinamese background, they became friends.  The boys would spend hours chasing a soccer ball around Amsterdam. 
Gullit always tried to play against older boys.  Fortunately, his natural skills allowed him to do that.  Being tall and fast, he was a lot better than many players older than him.  There were times when he would get the ball in his own penalty box, dribble past the entire team and score a goal. 
Interesting story happened to Ruud when he was 16.  Both, him and Rijkaard tried out for Ajax youth soccer team… Rijkaard was accepted and Gullit wasn’t. It’s amazing how Ajax scouts missed such a great talent.  According to Ruud, Ajax representatives told him that it would be better if he started playing at some small team first.

CLUB CAREER

That small team was DVS from Amsterdam where Gullit debuted at 16 and a year later he signed his first professional contract with Haarlem.  When Gullit turned 20, he signed a contract with one of the biggest teams in Holland, Feyenoord.  That same year, Johan Cruyff also came to Feyenoord to finish his career.  This fact was very important in Ruud’s career because he was able to learn a lot from the legend of the Dutch soccer.
After playing for PSV for two years, his amazing skills caught the eye of Sylvio Berlusconi, Italian television magnate who had just bought AC Milan and wanted to return the team to the previous glory.  He paid PSV 10 million dollars, which was at that time the highest transfer price.  Ruud’s salary was also the highest in the world – 2.2 million dollars a year after tax.  Berlusconi also bought Gullit’s best friend, Frank Rijkaard, reuniting the two. 
Gullit became one of the best players in AC Milan history winning numerous trophies including the Champions League.
After Milan, Ruud played for Sampdoria and Chelsea, but was not able to reach much success with these teams.   

NATIONAL TEAM CAREER

       

Gullit made his debut for the National team on his 19^th birthday in 1981.  Dullit’s early international career was full of disappointments.  The team failed to qualify for 1982 and 1986 World Cup and Euro 1984.  However, the Dutch team reached it’s glory of the 80’s during Euro 1988 when they went on to win the tournament.  After losing it’s opening game to the USSR, Holland won every game after that.  That was the first time Holland won a major international tournament and Gullit was the first Dutch captain to hold a trophy over his head. 

PERSONAL INFO

Ruud Gullit has been marrier three times and has six children.  He is currently married to Estelle Cruyff, the neice of Johan Cruyff.  Gullit is an accomplished guitar player and played in a band in his youth.  An interesting story happened to him in 1988.  While resting after Euro 88, Gullit and his friend Rijkaard were in Germany.  They decided to visit a friend of Ruud’s with whom he used to play in a band.  During the visit, the friends wound up playing and singing a few songs just for fun, using guitars and other instruments.  At that time, Gullit didn’t realize that the “performance” was being recorded.  Imagine his surprise when his friend released a vinyl record with the songs him, Gullit and Rijkaard sang.  Needless to say that the record became very popular in Europe. 

       

TITLES AND AWARDS

HFC Haarlem

Eerste Divisie: 1981

Feyenoord

Dutch League: 1984

Dutch Cup: 1984

PSV Eindhoven

Dutch League: 1986, 1987

AC Milan

Serie A: 1988, 1992, 1993

Supercoppa Italiana: 1988, 1992, 1994

UEFA Champions League: 1989, 1990

UEFA Super Cup: 1989, 1990

Intercontinental Cup: 1989, 1990

Sampdoria

Coppa Italia: 1994

Lotto Cup: 1993

Chelsea FC

FA Cup: 1997

International

UEFA European Championship: 1988

European Soccer Player of the Year: 1988

FIFA World Player of the Year: 1987, 1989

FIFA 100

PAVEL NEDVED

TEAMS PLAYED FOR
 
Juventus (Italy): 2001 – 2009
Lazio (Italy): 1996 – 2001
Sparta Praha (Czech Republic): 1992 – 1996
Dukla Praha (Czech Republic): 1991 - 1992

BIO

Pavel Nedved was born on August 30, 1972 in Cheb, Czech Republic.  When Pavel was 7 years old, his parents took him to a soccer school not far from his house.  Throughout his childhood Nedved played for a few local teams.  When he turned 17, his talent was noticed by one of the scouts from the team called “Victoria” from Plzen.  Plzen was located 100 miles away from his home town; therefore it took a while for the scouts to persuade his parents to let him go. His parents were sad that their son left the house and his father, Vatslav, would come to visit his son once a week.  He would always bring two bags with him, one full of food and another one clean clothes.  Unlike other parents who would take their children home for the weekend, Pavel’s father never did that.  Being a handyman, he simply had no money to pay for his son’s ticket.  Thinking about this today, it is hard to believe considering the fact that Pavel made over $100,000 a week in his soccer career. 

CLUB CAREER

At Dukla, Nedved was fast to make an impression and he only needed a single season at their youth club to convince the senior squad's coach that he is worthy for a place with the big boys. Although today Dukla is not the biggest club in Czech league, back in 70’s this was the team to beat.  During that time period, Dukla won numerous trophies and was the most popular team in the country. 
Nedved's time with Dukla was short however, as he only played one season with the club, before being offered by another Czech giant, Sparta Praha. 
Sparta is where Nedved was able to really develop his enthusiastic style of play.  After playing for the team for 4 seasons Pavel Nedved signed a contract with Italian club Lazio.
Despite winning two trophies with his new club, namely the Italian Cup in 1998 and the Cup Winners Cup in 1999, Lazio was still a team that couldn't fight for the league or Champions League, so when Juventus made a 41 million euros offer to Lazio for Nedved, neither the club (who had some financial problems), nor the Czech player could refuse.
Before Nedved came to Juventus, he was considered a quality midfielder, but no one really thought of him as a super star. For most Italians, he was just another foreigner playing for a mid-table team like Lazio was at that time. His move to Juventus and his first seasons there certified the fact that he is indeed a quality player, but even more, the move established him as an international star and leader of the team. 

NATIONAL TEAM CAREER

       

Nedved debuted for Czech Republic team in 1994 in a 3-1 win over the Republic of Ireland.  His big break came during 1996 Euro competition when he was the main driving force behind the Czech’s run to the final.  All together, Pavel played 91 games for his country and scored 18 goals.  He retired from the international soccer after 2006 World Cup.

PERSONAL INFO

Pavel Nedved is married to his long-time girlfriend Ivana and they have two children. Nedved is good at mathematics and holds a geometry diploma.  Catholic, loves going to church.

       

TITLES AND AWARDS

Sparta Prague

Czech League: 1993

Czech Gambrinus Liga: 1994, 1995

Czech Football Cup: 1996

Lazio

Serie A: 2000

Coppa Italia: 1998, 2000

Supercoppa Italiana: 1998, 2000

UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup: 1999

UEFA Super Cup: 1999

Juventus

Serie A: 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006

Supercoppa Italiana: 2002, 2003

Serie B: 2007

UEFA Champions League (runner-up): 2003

Coppa Italia (runner-up): 2004

International

UEFA European Championship (runner-up): 1996

UEFA European Championship (third place): 2004

Ballon d’Or: 2003

FIFA 100