World Football- Christiano's Car, Snowballs, Golden Balls and the Magic of Messi

Across Europe a seasonal cold snap caused mayhem, with many of the games in England and France being called off. The highest profile match was the relegation battle between Portsmouth & Manchester City at Fratton Park. But the lower leagues in England suffered significantly with over ten games being called off in league 2.

However the cold snap in Spain lead to a snow ball fight in the game Between Atletico Madrid& Atletico Bilbao. The game had to be halted for a minute, as the Atletico Bilbao keeper Gorka Iraizoz was being pelted by snow balls by the home fans. A quick announcement over the speaker system put stop to the impromptu fight and the game then went ahead. Unfortunately the actions of the home fans did not serve to help Atletico as they crumbled to a 3-2 defeat. Elsewhere in Spain a resurgent Real Madrid dispatched with Mallorca with a comfortable 3-0 victory the goals coming from Raul, Arjen Robben and a first goal of the season for Spanish Defender Sergio Ramos.

Barca however struggled away from home to overcome relegation threatened Osasuna, by winning 3-2. In a foggy night in Pamplona Barcelona looked comfortable with Argentine ace Leo Messi prominent in attack. They soon took the lead a minute before the half time interval courtesy of Cameroonian striker Samuel Eto. However in the second half Osasuna took the game to Barca and consequently equalised and took the lead through goals from Miguel Flano & Walter Pandiani.

With Barca staring defeat in the face they rallied again and equalised through Spanish midfielder Xavi Hernandez on the 80^th minute, Barca won the game thanks to a superb effort from Leo Messi who’s individual flare is a real joy to behold, he ran unchallenged for over 30 yards before cutting back onto his left foot and delivering a blistering shot into the top corner. The performance underlined the prominence of the young Argentine who looked unstoppable at times. What is scarier is that he is only 21 so expect the little Argentine to be on the world stage for some time.

The big game in the Premier League at the weekend was a 2^nd verses 4^th battle as Manchester United took on Chelsea at Old Trafford. The first half was a relatively cagey affair with Chelsea passing the ball all over the pitch, but with no real cutting edge in the final third. The Red Devils seemed subdued and surprisingly registered there first shot in the 20^th minute. But they quickly took the lead on the

stroke of half time thanks to a well worked corner, Serbian defender Nemanja Vidic on hand at the back post to nod past Chelsea keeper Peter Cech.

The second goal came just after the hour as Wayne Rooney turned in left back Patrice Evra’s cross to put Manchester United on the right track for a deserved three points. But the game was put into little doubt when Bulgarian Striker Dimitar Berbatov scored from close range with four minutes to go. The result see’s Manchester United five points behind league leaders Liverpool with two games in hand.

Across the continent footballers and there driving habits have taken some headlines. In England Manchester United winger Christiano Ronaldo was involved in a crash which saw him totally write off his Ferrari sports car. Luckily team mate Edwin Van Der Sar was behind him to pick him up and get him to training on time. It’s not just Christiano who has been making the headlines for reckless driving. Bayern Munich midfielder Franck Ribery decided to pull a prank on his team mates which back fired in spectac

ular fashion. Ribery decided to scare his team mates who are currently on tour in the U.A.E by jumping onto the team bus and proceed to start driving it. Whilst driving around the hotel complex Ribery managed to crash the

team bus a fantastic three times.

Ribery Up to no good in the U.A.E

Over in Italy and David Beckham made his A.C Milan Debut against Roma at the Stadio Olimpico. Milan manager Carlo Ancelotti surprised everyone by starting Beckham, when he previously indicated that Beckham would be starting on the bench. However the game seemed to pass Beckham by, and looked lacking for pace against left back John Arne Reiise for Roma’s first goal. However Beckham did get back into the game by delivering a number of dangerous crosses. Beckham was replaced in the 89^th minute and looked a little jaded for his efforts. The final score was 2-2 thanks in part to a well taken brace by Brazilian wonder kid Pato.

Golden Balls & Pato the best of friends

Finally Portuguese winger Christano Ronaldo has been named the 2008 World Player of the year in Monaco. Ronaldo beat the likes of Leo Messi, Fernando Torres & Xavi Hernandez to the prestigious award. “It’s an overwhelming moment in my career and I'd like to dedicate this award to my family, friends and colleagues.” Said Ronaldo on receiving the award, the pacey wingers record tally of 42 goals helped Manchester United sweep to a European & Domestic double. Ronaldo is only the second Portuguese player to win the award after Luis Figo picked up the award in 2001.