Iker Casillas

Captain of his country and a hero to millions of Madridistas, Casillas also has a strong claim to the title of the finest goalkeeper of his generation. The Real Madrid icon has won tournaments with his country at Under-15, U-17 and U-19 level, but his crowning glory was lifting the Euro 2008 and World Cup trophies in two stellar years

Nicknamed San Iker ('Saint Iker') at Real Madrid, Casillas is a rare homegrown talent among a sea of galacticos having joined the club at the age of nine. He made his first-team debut under the current national coach, Vicente del Bosque, in the 1998-99 season and cemented his place the following year when becoming the youngest goalkeeper to appear in a Champions League final when beating Valencia just four days after his 19th birthday. A rare slump in form saw him dropped for the encounter with Bayer Leverkusen two years later but he appeared as a substitute in the second half in Glasgow and won the trophy for Real with a series of superb saves

Casillas has been an established and respected member of the first XI ever since and has played a major role in Real's extensive success over the past decade - winning almost everything there is to win in the game

He is Spain's most capped player, breaking the record held by the legendary Andoni Zubizarreta, and it will take some effort from his rivals for his position - the likes of Victor Valdes and Pepe Reina - to wrestle the national jersey off Casillas

Strengths: As the last line of defence in a team that often pays scant regard to such an art, Casillas gets plenty of practice and frequently demonstrates his impressive reflexes, superb agility and innate ability to pull off a spectacular save. His forceful personality and will to win ensure he is a born leader

Weaknesses: His aura of invincibility has been slightly dented due to a handful of mistakes and he can be slightly rash when rushing off his line

Career high: Lifting the World Cup trophy at Soccer City in 2010

Career low: A humbling experience at the Bernabeu last season when arch rivals Barcelona smashed six past Casillas in May in a game that effectively clinched the league title for the Catalans

Style: Energetic, extravagant, commanding, a leader from the back

Quotes: "Iker is the perfect captain. I'd give him ten out of ten for everything he does as a keeper, a captain and in the way he behaves. He sees everything so clearly. The whole squad deserve a ten but Casillas more than anyone. As the captain he's the one I speak to the most. He's a phenomenon." Luis Aragones, June 2008

Trivia: Casillas is very superstitious and every time Real Madrid score a goal he has to touch his own crossbar

Lionel Messi

LIONEL MESSI

PROFILECAREERAPPEARANCES

Lionel Messi is the heir apparent to the throne left vacant by Diego Armando Maradona. The waters are divided between those who consider him to be far from being the best No. 10, and those who believe that Messi will be even better than Maradona.

Born in Rosario, he cut his teeth in the youth ranks of Newell's Old Boys, until a hormonal problem that affected his growth changed the plans of his family and, of course, his personal future. Facing expensive treatment for their son, Messi's parents moved to Spain as Newell's were not able to afford the medical costs related to his condition, and even the wealthiest Argentine teams, such as River Plate, refused to foot the bill.

After his first trial with Barcelona, the Catalan coaches had no doubts. They decided to sign Messi and pay for his medical treatment. His growth was noticeable within Barca, and in little time he came to be considered one of the great talents at the club. He made his debut in the first division in October 2004, against Espanyol, and Barcelona have since adopted him as one of their greatest idols.

His first championship would come in the Liga season of 2004-05. Since then, and playing a more prominent role every season, he has won every major club trophy at Camp Nou - including a stunning haul of six in 2008-09 - and claimed the World Player of the Year award four times in four years, leaving many in little doubt as to the fact that Messi is the best player of his generation; possibly of all-time.

That idea was given further weight in March 2012 when, at the age of 24, he became the all-time top scorer at Barcelona - beating the 232 goals of Cesar Rodriguez - and then broke Gerd Muller's record for goals in a calender year when he scored 91.

Strengths: His ball skills are second to none, his runs from midfield are usually lethal and he is almost impossible to tackle when he gets his head down. His balance when running at speed is incredible.

Weaknesses: Too often he searches for a way to finish moves by himself without looking for team-mates in a better position to shoot at goal.

Career high: Winning the 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 World Player of the Year awards - the latter coming after he broke the record for goals in a calender year.

Career low: He was unable to perform to his best in the 2006 World Cup in Germany, where Argentina were eliminated in the quarter-finals with Messi looking on from the bench.

Style: Quick, incisive, balanced, a stylish runner with the ball.

Quotes: "Messi is my Maradona," said Maradona himself, as the head coach of the Argentine national team.

Trivia: His debut with the national team (against Hungary) was a disaster: he entered the game in the 18th minute of the second half, and 47 seconds later was sent off.

Cristiaano Ronaldo Life

Cristiano Ronaldo Profile and Biography in English

Full Name: Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro

Birth date: February 5th, 1985

Age: 28 years old

Birthplace: Funchal, Madeira - Portugal

Height: 186 cm (1m 86cm)

Weight: 84 kg

Field position: Left/right winger, striker/forward

First professional club: Sporting Clube de Portugal

Career debut: October 7th 2002, against Moreirense

Current club: Real Madrid (since 2009)

International team: Portugal

International debut: August 20th 2003, against Kazakhstan

Nicknames: CR7, CR9, Ronny

Cristiano Ronaldo biography 1985-2013

Cristiano Ronaldo is the son of Maria Dolores dos Santos Aveiro (a cooker) and José Dinis Aveiro (a Municipal gardener). Many say that Ronaldo's humble family origins are the reason why CR7 manages to deal so well with the fame and spotlights he has nowadays. Cristiano Ronaldo has two older sisters, Liliana Cátia and Elma, and one older brother, Hugo.

Cristiano Ronaldo family

Cristiano Ronaldo first steps in football/soccer were made in his amateur hometown club called Andorinha, when he was still 8 years old. A couple years later, CR7 moved to CD Nacional, one of the most known teams in Madeira, around his 10th birthday. But he didn't stay there for too long and the year after (1996), Ronaldo was persuaded to join Sporting Lisbon, one of the biggest clubs in Portugal.

Cristiano Ronaldo Andorinha

It's now clear that 1996 was a turnaround year in Cristiano Ronaldo life. By joining Sporting CP, Ronaldo had to leave his family back in Madeira and start learning how to live on his own. CR7 trained with the youth team in the first years and in 2002, by the age of 16, he made his senior debut against Moreirense, in the Portuguese First Division. In that match, Ronaldo scored a brace and immediatly caught everyone's attention upon him. The European debut took place later on, in the UEFA Champions League qualifier match against Inter Milan.

Cristiano Ronaldo Sporting

By the age of 17, Cristiano Ronaldo really started to attract many attentions throughout the World, and his tremendous performances when playing for Portugal's Youth Team in UEFA's Under 17 Championship, made him one of the most promising stars of the moment. Among many other top clubs, Liverpool and Arsenal had some scouts on that tournament. Managers Gérard Houllier and Arsene Wenger were allegadly interested in signing Cristiano Ronaldo. However, it was revealed later that both clubs got a bit hesitant on betting in such a young player and Manchester United ended up to rush things and sign Ronaldo in the 2003 pre-season.

Cristiano Ronaldo vs Manchester United

The moment Cristiano Ronaldo definately convinced a top club to sign him, was after a 2003 pre-season friendly match, between Sporting and Manchester United, in the inauguration of the "Estádio José de Alvalade" in Lisbon. The Portuguese side defeated the Red Devils by 3-1 and United players were said to be stunned by Cristiano Ronaldo's technique skills as well as his natural talent and kept talking about it on their way home. Rumors say that Sir Alex Ferguson had a chat with his team players and then decided to sign Cristiano Ronaldo, in a transfer fee around 15 million euros (£12.24 million pounds).

Cristiano Ronaldo debut vs Bolton

Cristiano Ronaldo's adventure in England, started with a memorable debut for Manchester United, coming in as a substitute against Bolton Wanderers and playing for around half an hour. Those 30 minutes are probably still in the memory of many Manchester United fans, since CR7 stunned everyone in the stadium and impressed the traditional harsh English media, with his dazzling dribbles and runs over the wing. Ronaldo scored his first goal for Manchester United, by taking a curled free kick, in a 3-0 win against Portsmouth, in November 2003. However, and despite several promising starts, Cristiano Ronaldo's first two seasons in Manchester United received mixed reviews. He got praised for his technique and skills, but he often got criticised for lacking consistency and poor decision making on the field, which seems to be a natural thing at the age of 17 and 18.

Cristiano Ronaldo in Manchester United

In the year of 2005, Cristiano Ronaldo's father, José Dinis Aveiro, died of an alcoholism liver disease. Ronaldo was 20 years old and that was one of his most difficult moments of his life. CR7 is said to not drink any alcohol as a consequence of what happened with his father.

In 2006 it was widely reported Cristiano Ronaldo and manager at the time Sir Alex Ferguson, had placed a £400 bet in which required the Portuguese international to score at least 15 goals that season. Ronaldo won the bet by scoring 17 goals...

The following season, Cristiano Ronaldo and even some bookmakers upped the ante on their sports bet, with Ronaldo putting his hair on the line by promising to completely shave his head should he fail to score 20 goals. However, the bet was eventually declined by Ronaldo himself, after Sir Alex Ferguson requesting for the Portuguese to score 35 goals during that season.

Cristiano Ronaldo father, Dinis dos Santos Aveiro

Regarding the Portuguese National Team, Cristiano Ronaldo made his senior debut against Kazakhstan a few weeks later, just after being signed by Manchester United, in a match played in August 2003. CR7's first biggest tournament was the Euro 2004, organized by Portugal and Ronaldo managed to help his team reaching the finals, but ended up by being defeated by Greece. Cristiano Ronaldo photos in tears after the match were the Portuguese soul mirror that afternoon and those images got spread all around the World. A couple years later, in the World Cup 2006 played in Germany, Ronaldo was caught up in a very big controversy, after allegedly pressuring and influencing the referee to send off his Manchester United team mate and England's striker/forward Wayne Rooney, in the quarter finals clash between England and Portugal. Cristiano Ronaldo ended up being used as the scapegoat for England's defeat in the World Cup and the hatred towards him the following season, could be seen on every stadium the Red Devils had to play. English fans showed CR7 how much they got upset with the World Cup elimination and started insulting and "booing" Cristiano Ronaldo on every match outside Old Trafford. That situation made CR7 think about leaving England and Manchester United. However, Sir Alex Ferguson managed to convince him to stay and, against all odds, Cristiano Ronaldo surprised everyone with a great season in the English Premiership League. Ronaldo was quoted saying: "All the boos and insults just motivate me training harder and playing better".

Cristiano Ronaldo silence

In 2007, Cristiano Ronaldo won the PFA Player and Young Player of the Year Award and was also voted Footballer of the Year, by the Football Writers Association. That same year and for the first time, Ronaldo also made up to the top 3 finalists for both the FIFA World Player of the Year trophy and the European Player of the Year award. Cristiano Ronaldo kept on his outstanding form in the 2007-2008 season and scored 42 goals in all competitions (31 in the English Premier League), allowing him to be voted again for the PFA Player of The Year and the Football Writers Footballer of the Year. CR7 rising performances allowed Manchester United to win two titles that season, those being the English Premier League and also the UEFA Champions League trophy, in which Ronaldo scored a goal in the final, after a superb header.

Cristiano Ronaldo header vs Chelsea in Champions League final

The 2008 year was definately Cristiano Ronaldo glory year at Manchester United and after having won the UEFA Champions League, Ronaldo won the FIFA World Player of the Year (2008) and the European Player of the Year (2008). In the 2008-2009 season, Cristiano Ronaldo scored another 26 goals, which helped Manchester United to win another English Premier League title and reaching again the final of the UEFA Champions League, in which they ended by losing against Barcelona this time, by 0-2.

Cristiano Ronaldo FIFA World Player of the Year 2008

In 2009, Cristiano Ronaldo broke another record by becoming the World's most expensive football player, after transfering from Manchester United to Real Madrid in July 2009, in a £80 million pounds transfer (around 94 million euros and 132 million US dollars). That was an historic moment, and more than 80 000 fans received and welcomed Cristiano Ronaldo in the Santiago Bernabéu stadium, during his official presentation. Ronaldo's career in Real Madrid started well, scoring plenty of goals on his first matches and only getting stopped by his first injury, in October 2009. However, CR7 recovered his form a few months later and still managed to score 33 goals on his first season playing for Real Madrid, which unfortunately, didn't prove to be enough for the club to win any trophies in the 2009-2010 season.

Cristiano Ronaldo presentation in Santiago Bernabeu

As for the Portuguese National Team, Cristiano Ronaldo captained Portugal at the 2010 FIFA World Cup played in South Africa, but the "Lusitanos" got eliminated in the last 16, against the future World Champions, Spain, getting defeated by 1-0.

Cristiano Ronaldo in the South Africa 2010 World Cup

In the 3rd of July, 2010, Cristiano Ronaldo announced on his facebook page that he had become a father. The information shocked many fans since there's still a big mistery nowadays, on who is the mother of the Cristiano Ronaldo's son. CR7 requested privacy and named his son with his own name, Cristiano Ronaldo Junior. The child is currently in Ronaldo's full custody, while being helped by his mother and sisters.

Cristiano Ronaldo son

In the 2010-2011 season, Cristiano Ronaldo had an outstanding personal performance, breaking several all-time records, not only in Real Madrid, but also in the Spanish League. Ronaldo scored 41 goals in La Liga, breaking the previous 38 goal record set by Hugo Sanchez and Telmo Zarra. CR7 scored a total of 54 goals and once again, won the Golden Boot award, beating Lionel Messi in the way, who finished the season with 53 goals. However, not everything was perfect, since Real Madrid only won the Copa del Rey and failed to conquer the Spanish League and the UEFA Champions League.

Cristiano Ronaldo lifting Copa del Rey trophy

The 2011-2012 season will always be a memorable one in Real Madrid's history. With Cristiano Ronaldo leading the charge game after game, the Merengues ended with Barcelona's hegemony in Spain and won the Spanish League in a record-breaking fashion. The club reached 100 points that season, the highest ever registered until then, but also broke the record for goals scored, with 121 in 38 games. The Champions League journey ended once more in the semi-finals round, in a penalty shoot-out decision against Bayern Munich. As for the Copa del Rey, Barça knocked out Real Madrid with a 4-3 result on aggregate. Ronaldo had his highest goalscoring season ever, with 60 goals out of 55 games (46 of those goals were scored in La Liga).

Cristiano Ronaldo in Real Madrid 2011-2012, after scoring 60 goals

Following that monumental season, Ronaldo went straight ahead with Portugal into the EURO 2012 that was going to be held in Poland and Ukraine. Unfortunately for the "Lusitanos", the team ended up falling short to the expectations and got knocked out at the semi-finals against Spain, during the penalties shoot-out. Nevertheless, Cristiano Ronaldo has undoubtedly been one of the best players of the tournament, with three goals scored and several great performances that allowed him to earn a well deserved pick for the "UEFA EURO 2012 Team of the Tournament".

Cristiano Ronaldo in the EURO 2012

On his fourth season wearing a Real Madrid jersey (2012-2013), Ronaldo had nothing left to win in Spain except the Spanish Super Cup. That's precisely the title he started by winning for the Merengues, in August of 2012. The Spanish League adventure didn't go the way everyone expected and Barcelona had a safe and regular campaign, which allowed them to earn a big distance over Real Madrid still very early in the season. The Merengues finished 15 points below Barcelona and would also end up losing the Copa del Rey final to Atletico Madrid. The Champions League brought more of the same for José Mourinho's men, with a third consecutive elimination in the semi-finals, this time at the hands of Borussia Dortmund. But not all was bad that year, since Cristiano Ronaldo ended the season with a perfect record of 55 games and 55 goals, top-goalscorer of the Champions League with 12 goals. As usual, the season ended with a lot of speculation going around about his future...

Cristiano Ronaldo celebrating at the Camp Nou, in 2012-2013

Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro, OIH (born 5 February 1985), commonly known as Cristiano Ronaldo, is a Portuguese footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid and who serves as captain of the Portuguese national team. He became the most expensive footballer in history upon his 2009 move from Manchester United to Real Madrid in a transfer worth £80 million (€94 million/$131.6 million), a record that would later be reportedly broken by Gareth Bale, who joined Real Madrid in 2013 for £85 million (€100 million). Ronaldo's contract with Real Madrid, under the terms of which he is paid €21 million per year (after taxes), makes him the highest-paid footballer in the world, and his buyout clause is valued at €1 billion as per his contract. Ronaldo began his career as a youth player for Andorinha, where he played for two years, before moving to C.D. Nacional. In 1997, he made a move to Portuguese giants Sporting Clube de Portugal. Ronaldo caught the attention of Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson, who signed him for £12.24 million (€15 million) in 2003. In 2004, Ronaldo won his first club honour, the FA Cup. Ronaldo was the first player playing in England to win all four main PFA and FWA awards, doing so in 2007. In 2008, Ronaldo won the Ballon d'Or. He placed second in the Ballon d'Or in 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2012. He was awarded the European Golden Shoe in both 2008 and 2011. In 2008, he won three of the four main PFA and FWA trophies and was named the FIFA World Player of the Year, FIFPro Player of the Year, World Soccer Player of the Year, and the Onze d'Or. In 2007 and 2008, Ronaldo was named FWA Footballer of the Year. Ronaldo was the inaugural winner of the FIFA Puskás Award for the Goal of the Year in 2009. Ronaldo is regarded to be one of the finest footballers in today's game and as one of the greatest of all time. Ronaldo is the first top European league player to reach 40 goals in a single season in two consecutive years, fastest Real Madrid player to reach one hundred league goals, and the first player ever to score against every team in a single season in La Liga.[16] He also holds records for most goals scored in a season for Real Madrid and most goals scored per minute in La Liga for a Real Madrid player. In January 2013, Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 300th club goal.8]

Ronaldo is a Portuguese international and made his debut against Kazakhstan in August 2003. He has been capped over 100 times and is his country's second-highest goalscorer of all time. With Portugal he has participated in five major tournaments; UEFA Euro 2004, the 2006 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2008, the 2010 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2012. He scored his first international goal in the opening game of the Euro 2004 against Greece, in addition to helping Portugal reach the final. He took over the captaincy of the side in July 2008 and went on to captain Portugal to the semi-finals at the Euro 2012 and finished the competition as the joint best scorer. He wore the number 7 shirt at United, which was previously worn by Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona and David Beckham. After spending his first year at Madrid wearing the number 9 shirt, he began wearing the number 7 again following the departure of the legendary Raúl.