Adriano Galliani has confirmed that Chelsea’s reported ‘mega-bid’ for Kaka is the stuff of fact, but that it has been “basically” rejected by the Rossoneri..
Brazil and Milan ace Kaka was the latest big name to be linked with a mega move this week as the elite clubs continue to test each other’s resolve in the summer transfer market.
Big-spenders Chelsea reportedly sought to lure the Rossoneri’s star man to the Premiership, just after the Serie A side linked him up with his countryman Ronaldinho.
A €100m bid has been mentioned and subsequently went some way to unsettling the midfield maestro.
The 26-year-old went on to claim that there were in fact two clubs after his services, with his apparent advisor, Diogo Kotscho, adding that, although Real Madrid had failed to land the player last year, a move to London was more likely.
However, Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani has confirmed that, although Chelsea have laid their credit cards on the table, bigwig Silvio Berlusconi hasn’t taken the rather expensive bait.
“Chelsea want Kaka?” Galliani cheekily asked eager reporters on Saturday. “It’s true - they have made a conspicuous offer - but I won’t tell you how much it is.
Adding that his boss has a backbone of steel, Galliani continued: “President Berlusconi basically says no to Kaka [leaving], just as he did when Real Madrid wanted [Andrei] Shevchenko in 2001.
“Even Clarence Seedorf is staying here; the fans can sleep easy.”
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Written by Darkvader on July 19th, 2008 with no comments.
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| Personal information |
|---|
| Full name | Francesco Totti |
| Date of birth | 27 September 1976 (1976-09-27) (age 31) |
| Place of birth | Rome, Italy |
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Playing position | Attacking midfielder, Forward |
| Club information |
| Current club | AS Roma |
| Number | 10 |
| Youth clubs |
1988
1989-1993 | AS Lodigiani
AS Roma |
| Senior clubs1 |
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 1993- | AS Roma | 377 (158) |
| National team2 |
| 1998-2006 | Italy | 058 00(9) |
| 1 Senior club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only and
correct as of 20 October 2007.
2 National team caps and goals correct
as of 28 May 2007.
* Appearances (Goals) |
Francesco Totti, Cavaliere Ufficiale OMRI,[1][2] (born 27 September 1976 in Rome) is an Italian World Cup-winning footballer. He plays for A.S. Roma in Italy's Serie A, a league where he also stands as the top active scorer, with over one hundred goals. Between 1998 and 2006 he was a regular member of the Italian national team, with whom he won the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
Totti's position is that of a striker or an attacking midfielder, though he is best known for playing as the trequartista (or second striker), a compromise between the two positions where the player acts as a link between midfield and attack. He is also Roma's first choice to take free kicks and penalties, having scored a number of goals from dead-ball situations.
Totti is widely recognised as the symbol of Roma, having never left the team despite the possibility of playing in stronger and richer clubs, and being the number one goalscorer and the most capped player in the club's history. On 7 June 2007 Totti was declared the winner of the prestigious European Golden Boot, the award given to the top scorer in all the European leagues.
Childhood
Totti was born and raised in Rome, in the Porta Metronia city neighborhood. His parents are Enzo and Fiorella Totti. Unlike other children his age who preferred to watch cartoons, Totti was always more interested in watching football matches instead. Totti constantly played football with older boys. His mother refused a big deal for her son from A.C. Milan while waiting for a deal from his favourite club A.S. Roma. His mother intended to never let her son set foot out of the "Eternal City". Totti finally joined the A.S. Roma junior team in 1989.
AS Roma
First Years
After three years in the youth team, Totti made his first appearance for AS Roma at the age of 16, when the then coach Vujadin Boškov made him play in the 2-0 away victory against Brescia on 28 March 1993. In the following seasons, although the presence of more expert strikers such as Abel Balbo, Daniel Fonseca and Ruggiero Rizzitelli, the young Totti began to play more games, and thus he succeeded in scoring his first goal on 24 September 1994 in a 1-1 draw against Foggia. With Carlo Mazzone as coach, Totti became a regular in 1995 and scored an amount of 16 goals in three years, the Roman manager kept being a point of reference during the whole Totti's career.[3]
The 1997 was the year of the shift in Totti's career, principally thanks to the arrival of the new coach Zdeněk Zeman, but also because that year he became the Captain of the Capitoline team, and began to be recognised as its real symbol. The bohemian manager used to play with a very offensive 4-3-3 formation, in which Totti was the left winger. In this way Zeman exalted his technical and physical skills, and in the two seasons he remained as AS Roma's manager, Totti scored 30 goals. Though he was not capped for the 1998 World Cup, in 1999 he was awarded the Serie A Young Footballer of the Year.
Scudetto 2001 and definitive consecration
Decal of Francesco Totti, on the wall of a house in Rome. It celebrates the 2000-01 scudetto won by AS Roma
The same year AS Roma tried to build a competitive team around Totti, and thus signed up Fabio Capello as coach, and many other great players, such as Vincenzo Montella, Gabriel Batistuta, Walter Samuel and Emerson. During the years of Capello, Totti changed his position, and began to play as trequartista to exploit his great skills in passing and create assists for his teammates. On 17 June 2001 he won his first scudetto with AS Roma, being one of the most important protagonist of the league victory, with 13 goals in the championship and one goal in the 3-0 victory against Fiorentina in Supercoppa Italiana. He was awarded the Italian Footballer of the Year for 2000 and 2001, and in the same year he was in the lists for the Golden Ball,[4] but the award was achieved by Michael Owen.
Totti became a widely recognised idol of the supporters, not only for his graet performances on the field, but also for being himself an AS Roma supporter, and for this reason he refused many offers by richer and stronger clubs that wanted sign him up.
In the following years Totti played as second striker, in a 3-5-2 and in 2003 and 2004 hit a career-high twenty goals, and even if Roma finished runners-up in Serie A twice in three seasons, Totti scored unforgettable goals, such as the 1-0 victory against Real Madrid at Santiago Bernabéu Stadium[5] during the 2002-03 Champions League, as the long range lob in the 5-1 victory in the derby against Lazio[6]. Also he achieved two further awards as Italian Footballer of the Year in 2003 and 2004.
At the beginning of the Serie A 2004-05, Fabio Capello quitted Roma for Juventus, and in this way the giallorossi made a very disappointing season, and the society had to replace four coaches. The only bright side of which was Roma finishing second in the Italian Cup and thus qualifying for the UEFA Cup. Despite all the problems, Totti scored fifteen goals, and helped Vincenzo Montella score 21 with numerous assists.
Though Roma was passing a bad period, on 3 October 2004 Totti scored his 100th goal for the giallorossi with a 30 meters free-kick against Inter Milan, while two months later, on 19 December, he broke AS Roma's goal scoring record when he scored against Parma, it was Totti's 107th goal for the club, a record previously held by Roberto Pruzzo.
As a striker with Spalletti
Francesco Totti with AS Roma shirt
Roma signed a new coach for the season 2005-06: Luciano Spalletti. He changed the formation into a 4-2-3-1, in which Totti was an atypical striker, because he did not remain forward waiting for crosses or passes, but went back to take the ball, and thus creating spaces for the three attacking midfielders (Mancini, Simone Perrotta and Rodrigo Taddei), that he could trigger with his assists. In this new position Totti began to score more frequently than the past, and the team won eleven consecutive matches, beating previous records (ten consecutive matches by Juventus 1931-'32, Milan 1950-'51 and Bologna 1963-'64). The last match of the streak was a 2-0 victory against rivals S.S. Lazio, and the team moved from fifteenth to fifth by the end of the season, with Totti scoring fifteen goals in 24 matches. Unfortunately, on 19 February the 2006, while playing against Empoli, Totti suffered a fracture of his left fibula, after a bad foul by Richard Vanigli. The injury severed the interconnecting ligaments with the malleolus, and Totti risk to skip the 2006 World Cup. Instead he returned from his injury on 11 May 2006 as a substitute in Roma's 3-1 defeat to Inter Milan in the Coppa Italia.
In the 2006-07 season, AS Roma finished second in the league, but succeeded in winning the Italian Cup beating Inter Milan in the finals. Totti also hit a career high of 31 goals in that season winning the Capocannoniere title (Serie A top scorer), with 26 goals in the league, as well as winning the ESM European Golden Boot award, as the best European goalscorer.
On June 2, 2007, Totti visited Dr. Paolo Mariani, the surgeon who operated on him after he broke his ankle in February of 2006. The doctor examined him and they both decided not to operate on the ankle again to remove the metal plate. Totti was reassured by the doctor that the plate will not cause any problems for next season. There were concerns that the plate could change the positioning of the bone and tendons in the area, but after testing everything was clear.
At the beginning of the season 2007-08, he retired from the national team, expressing his willingness to play his last seasons only with AS Roma. He later won his second Supercoppa Italiana against Inter Milan.
Despite he is the current best active Serie A scorer, he was excluded together with Zlatan Ibrahimović, from the finalists for the 2007 FIFA World Player of the Year.
National team
Totti scored in Italy's 4-1 defeat by Spain in the final of the UEFA European Under-18 Championship in July 1995. In the final of the Under-21 competition in 1996, Totti opened the scoring in a 1-1 draw against the Spanish before triumphing on penalties.
Totti made his senior Azzurri debut in the Euro 2000 qualifying victory against Switzerland on 10 October 1998. He played in the finals tournament and scored against Romania and Belgium and played in the final; losing to France. Although he was on the losing side, Totti was named Man of the Match in the final[9] and described by many footballing legends, including Michel Platini (France), as the best player of the tournament.
Disappointment followed at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, with Totti failing to make a significant impact and then being sent off as Italy lost to South Korea in the second round, when he received a second yellow card for diving in the penalty area by referee Byron Moreno.
At Euro 2004, Totti garnered negative media attention when he spat at Christian Poulsen, a midfielder playing for Denmark. Totti was subsequently banned until the semi-finals, but did not play in the tournament again, as Italy failed to qualify for the next round.
On 20 July 2007, Totti announced his retirement from the national team after he had made it clear that his intention was to retire from the national team after the World Cup. He plans to concentrate solely on playing for AS Roma.[10]. He also stated that he has been often criticized by the press because he is Roman and that players such as Paolo Maldini and Roberto Baggio were not treated as bad as he was, when they decided to retire.[11] About Roman players in the national team he also added that they are not treated in the same way of players from North Italy and that also Daniele De Rossi and Alberto Aquilani may have the same problems.
2006 World Cup
Totti's participation in the 2006 FIFA World Cup was put at risk by the broken ankle he suffered a few months before the tournament. He recovered in time to join the national team, although he was far from his best, and played with metal plates in his ankle that had yet to be removed. During the match with Australia, he scored from the penalty spot in the closing seconds of regulation time to give Italy a 1-0 victory. Italy then went on to face Ukraine, a match in which Totti provided an assist to defender Gianluca Zambrotta. Italy won the match 3-0 and moved on to the semifinals to face Germany. Totti started the game against Germany and played the entire match in which Italy defeated Germany 2-0. He also started in the final against France, but came off after 61 minutes for Daniele De Rossi. Italy went on to win the World Cup. Totti was selected for the 23-man Mastercard All-Star Team.
Celebration
Totti uses a variety of celebrations for special occasions. His most famous celebration was in the Rome derby of the 1998/1999 season. Totti scored the third and final goal for Roma in the final minutes of the game, and celebrated by flashing a t-shirt which read, "Vi ho purgato ancora". This translates to, "I've purged you guys again". This was in reference to the fact that he scored a goal against Lazio in the previous derby on November 29th, 1998. Another memorable celebration was when he took his shirt off and had a shirt under that said "6 (sei) Unica!" meaning "you are unique", he flashed this to Ilary Blasi, his wife. His most common celebrations are the one where he runs to the side, kissing his ring finger in honor of his wife and, then pointing upwards with his finger, thanking God. When his son, Christian, was born, he began sucking his thumb as a celebration to dedicate his goals to him.
He had a few celebrations that were unique. One time he put the ball under his shirt and he lay on his back as his teammates pulled the ball out. That of course was a skit of childbirth for his newborn son. Another time after he scored in the derby against Lazio he ran to the camera and started filming the crowd.
Personal life
Totti is married to Ilary Blasi, a former showgirl, who currently works as commentator and host on several RAI TV programs. The couple had their first baby, named Cristian, on 6 November 2005. Their second child, a daughter, Chanel, was born on 13 May 2007.
Totti also runs a football school, named Number Ten, and owns a motorcycle racing team in the Grand Prix motorcycle racing called "Totti Top Sport".
His best friend is his brother, Riccardo. However, Totti always says that his brother was the better player when they were kids, but he was unlucky on his way. Totti had a strong bond with Riccardo so today, Riccardo is Totti's agent.
He also had a bad relationship with his previous coach Fabio Capello. Totti accused Capello of being a traitor for leaving Roma suddenly without a warning, and left the Roman team in a very bad shape which had them almost relegated to the second division in 2004-05 season. This rift started on Capello's last days with Roma: according to Totti, his behaviour to most of the players changed, and he once advised the younger players not to take Totti as their role model player, but to take Brazilian Emerson as an idol for his hard work. Several months later, Capello, Emerson and Frenchman Jonathan Zebina all left AS Roma for rivals Juventus suddenly.
His close friendship with former teammate Antonio Cassano was ended as well when Cassano created a ton of problems for AS Roma before moving off to join Real Madrid where he was later joined by Capello and Emerson. Currently Totti and Cassano are not on talking terms. In a public bust up with Capello, Cassano claimed that he was wrong to leave Roma and he hopes that Roma and Totti will forgive him.
Honours
[edit] A.S. Roma
- Serie A:
- Winner: 2001
- Runner-up: 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007
- Coppa Italia:
- Winner: 2007
- Runner-up: 2003, 2005, 2006
- Supercoppa Italiana:
- Winner: 2001, 2007
- Runner-up: 2006
National Team
- FIFA World Cup:
- UEFA European Championship:
- UEFA Under-21 European Championship:
Personal
- FIFA 100 (125 greatest living players, as selected by Pelé)
- 2006 FIFA World Cup All-Star Team
- EURO 2000 Team of the Tournament
- Serie A Footballer of the Year
- Italian Footballer of the Year
- Serie A Young Footballer of the Year
- Serie A top scorer
- European Golden Boot
Career statistics
- Correct as of 25 October 2007.
| Season | Team | League | Domestic League | Domestic Cups | European Games | Total |
| App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals |
| 1992-93 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | 2 | 0 |
| 1993-94 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | - | 10 | 0 |
| 1994-95 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 21 | 4 | 4 | 3 | - | - | 25 | 7 |
| 1995-96 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 28 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 36 | 4 |
| 1996-97 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 26 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 30 | 5 |
| 1997-98 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 30 | 13 | 6 | 1 | - | - | 36 | 14 |
| 1998-99 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 31 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 3 | 42 | 16 |
| 1999-00 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 27 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 33 | 8 |
| 2000-01 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 30 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 34 | 16 |
| 2001-02 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 24 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 3 | 36 | 12 |
| 2002-03 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 24 | 14 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 35 | 20 |
| 2003-04 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 31 | 20 | - | - | 1 | 0 | 32 | 20 |
| 2004-05 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 29 | 12 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 40 | 15 |
| 2005-06 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 24 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 29 | 17 |
| 2006-07 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 35 | 26 | 6 | 2 | 9 | 4 | 50 | 32 |
| 2007-08 | A.S. Roma | Serie A | 7 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 11 | 8 |
| Total | 377 | 158 | 43 | 15 | 61 | 21 | 481 | 194 |
reference:
en.wikipedia.org
Written by typhoon on November 3rd, 2007 with no comments.
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Wayne Rooney
Full Name: Wayne Mark Rooney
Nickname: Roo, Roonaldo, The Boy Wonder
Birth Date: October 24, 1985
Birth Place: Liverpool, England
Nationality: English
2nd Nationality: Irish
EU Passport: Yes
Height: 178 cm
Weight: 78 kg
Club: Manchester United
Position: Striker [C]
Number: 10
Contract Expires: June 2012
Previous Clubs: Everton, Manchester United
International Debut: February 2003, vs Australia
Best Known As: Young superstar forward for Manchester United, 2004-
Caps: 33
Goals: 11
World Cups: Germany 2006
Wayne Mark Rooney (born 24 October 1985 in Liverpool) is an English footballer considered by many to be the best young talent in World football.
His boyhood team was always Everton and he made his debut at just 16. His love for his home town club was famously bore out when he wore a T-shirt reading "Once a blue, Always a blue". T-shirt's aside, however, he would end up playing just two seasons with Everton before demanding, and then executing, a transfer.
He currently plays for the Premiership club Manchester United, based near Manchester and the England national football team. He normally played as a second striker to Ruud van Nistelrooy for his club team before van Nistelrooy's move to Real Madrid C.F., although during 2005-06, he has shown his versatility as a player by shifting to the midfield and playing on both flanks. He wears number 8 for his club team and wears number 9 for his national team.
Rooney was brought up in an urban area of eastern Liverpool called Croxteth, where he and his two brothers attended the local De La Salle Catholic School.
Although he has been under an intense media spotlight since first arriving on the scene in 2002, it was not until his performances at the Euro 2004 that he gained a reputation on the world stage, as he spearheaded the English attack, scoring four goals. England coach Sven-Göran Eriksson compared his impact to that made by the legendary Brazilian, Pelé, at a similar age during the 1958 World Cup. Rooney is also on the cover of FIFA 2007 in
reference :http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Rooney
Written by typhoon on October 29th, 2007 with no comments.
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