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Sócrates

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 16:01:54 +0200

Era: 1974 - 1989

Nationality: Brazilian

Position: Midfielder

Team(s): Botafogo FC, SC Corinthians, AC Fiorentina, CR Flamengo, Santos FC

Caps: 60 - 22 goals (Brazil)

Trivia: Considered to be one of the greatest midfielders ever to play the game. Easily recognizable for his beard and headband, Sócrates became the “symbol of cool for a whole generation of football supporters”. He earned a doctor’s degree while concurrently playing professional football. There is a persistent myth that he studied medicine in Dublin, Ireland, and that during this time he played reserve football for University College Dublin A.F.C. Sócrates was also noted for being an intellectual, a heavy drinker and a smoker. He died on 4 December 2011 at the age of 57.

Alen Bokšić

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 15:44:34 +0200

Era: 1987 - 2003

Nationality: Croatian

Position: Striker

Team(s): Hajduk Split, AS Cannes, Olympique Marseille, Lazio Roma, Juventus FC, Middlesbrough FC

Caps: 40 - 10 goals (Croatia)

Trivia: Capped 40 times for the Croatia national team, scoring 10 goals. Bokšić played for his country at Euro 96. He missed Croatia’s surprising third place run in the 1998 FIFA World Cup due to injury. This was a devastating blow for the Croatian team as they could not pair him together with Davor Šuker to form arguably the most potent striking force in the tournament. Bokšić finally made his World Cup playing debut in the 2002 World Cup at the age of 32.

Stéphane Henchoz

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 15:35:10 +0200

Era: 1992 - 2008

Nationality: Swiss

Position: Defender

Team(s): Neuchâtel Xamax, Hamburger SV, Blackburn Rovers, Liverpool FC, Celtic FC, Wigan Athletic

Caps: 72 (Switzerland)

Trivia: Proved to be an inspirational signing for Liverpool and was popular with the fans during his five-and-a-half year stay. Henchoz formed an effective central defensive partnership with Sami Hyypiä. This partnership played an important part in Liverpool’s historic cup treble in 2001.

Jean-Marie Pfaff

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 15:23:49 +0200

Era: 1973 - 1990

Nationality: Belgian

Position: Goalkeeper

Team(s): KSK Beveren, Bayern Munich, Lierse SK, Trabzonspor

Caps: 64 (Belgium)

Trivia: Scored an own goal in his first competition game for Bayern Munich, a big one against Werder Bremen. But Pfaff quickly won over supporters, and both Belgian and German journalists, with his goalkeeping abilities and interviews in which he often spoke a memorable mix of dutch and ‘german’.

Jay-Jay Okocha

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 14:29:28 +0200

Era: 1985 - 2007

Nationality: Nigerian

Position: Midfielder

Team(s): Borussia Neunkirchen, Eintracht Frankfurt, Fenerbahçe SK, Paris Saint-Germain, Bolton Wanderers FC, Qatar SC, Hull City

Caps: 73 - 14 goals (Nigeria)

Trivia: Joined Turkish club Fenerbahçe following Eintracht Frankfurt’s relegation to Bundesliga 2 in 1996. Okocha amassed thirty goals in sixty appearances, many of them coming from direct freekicks which had become something of a trademark for him at the club. During his time in Istanbul he became a dual Turkish-Nigerian citizen, having acquired Turkish citizenship as “Muhammet Yavuz”.

Hossam Hassan

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 14:16:43 +0200

Era: 1985 - 2007

Nationality: Egyptian

Position: Striker

Team(s): Al-Ahly, PAOK Thessaloniki, Neuchâtel Xamax, Al Ain, Zamalek SC, Al-Masry Club, Tersana SC, Al-Ittihad Alexandria

Caps: 169 - 69 goals (Egypt)

Trivia: A prolific goalscorer, Hassan amassed well over 150 caps for Egypt, netting more than 50 times. His twin brother, Ibrahim, also played professional football, and they shared teams for most of their extensive careers.

RUUD KROL

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 13:56:30 +0200

Era: 1968 - 1986

Nationality: Dutch

Position: Defender

Team(s): Ajax Amsterdam, Vancouver Whitecaps, SSC Napoli, AS Cannes

Caps: 83 - 4 goals (Holland)

Trivia: One of only four players to score both a goal and an own goal in the World Cup; the others being Ernie Brandts (another Dutch player), Mexico’s Gustavo Peña and Serbia’s Siniša Mihajlović.

Noureddine Naybet

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 16:26:54 +0200

Era: 1989 - 2006

Nationality: Moroccan

Position: Defender

Team(s): Wydad Casablanca, FC Nantes, Sporting CP, Deportivo La Coruña, Tottenham Hotspur

Caps: 115 - 4 goals (Morocco)

Trivia: Agreed to a dream move to Treble winning Manchester United in August 1999. However, the Red Devils were worried about his injured knee and United subsequently signed Mikaël Silvestre instead. Naybet did eventually make a move to the English Premiership with Tottenham Hotspur in August 2004, aged 34.

Miklos Molnar

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 16:17:00 +0200

Era: 1987 - 2000

Nationality: Danish

Position: Striker

Team(s): Hvidovre IF, BK Frem, Standard Liège, Servette FC, AS Saint-Etienne, Lyngby BK, FSV Frankfurt, Herfølge BK, Sevilla FC, Kansas City Wizards

Caps: 18 - 2 goals (Denmark)

Trivia: Top goalscorer of the 1989 and 1997 Danish championships, and won the 2000 MLS Cup with American team Kansas City Wizards.

Germán Burgos

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 15:56:19 +0200

Era: 1989 - 2004

Nationality: Argentinian

Position: Goalkeeper

Team(s): Ferro Carril Oeste, River Plate, RCD Mallorca, Atlético Madrid

Caps: 35 (Argentina)

Trivia: Earning himself the nickname Mono (Monkey) because of his sometimes extravagant appearance and rock and roll attitude both on and off the pitch. During the early years of his footballing career in Argentina, Burgos was already active in the world of rock and roll with his band ‘Simpatía’. In 2002 they made some changes in their line-up and changed their name to ‘The Garb’.

Ronnie Wallwork

Fri, 13 Jul 2012 14:47:34 +0200

Era: 1995 - 2008

Nationality: English

Position: Defender/Defensive Midfielder

Team(s): Manchester United, Carlisle United, Stockport County, Royal Antwerp FC, West Bromwich Albion, Bradford City, Barnsley FC, Huddersfield Town, Sheffield Wednesday

Caps: -

Trivia: Moved to West Brom in 2002, where he was the voted Player of the Year for 2004-05. Wallwork was not always a regular in the side however, and spent time on loan at Bradford City, Barnsley and Huddersfield Town. His spell at Barnsley was cut short when he was stabbed in a nightclub, causing him to miss more than two months of the 2006–07 season. Wallwork was transferred to Sheffield Wednesday in January 2008, but was released just four months later and has since been without a club. Almost 3 years later, in December 2011, he was sentenced to 15 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to three counts of receiving stolen goods and handling in stolen cars.

VLADIMIR BESCHASTNYKH

Sat, 16 Jun 2012 15:54:09 +0200

Era: 1991 - 2008

Nationality: Russian

Position: Striker/Midfielder

Team(s): Zvezda Moscow, Spartak Moscow, Werder Bremen, Racing Santander, Fenerbahçe, FC Kuban Krasnodar, Dinamo Moscow, FC Rusichi Oryol, FC Khimki, FC Volga Tver, FC Astana-64

Caps: 71 - 26 goals (Russia)

Trivia: The all-time goal leader for the Russian national team (anno 2012) with 26 goals in 71 appearances. Beschastnykh has an identical twin, Mikhail, who also played football professionally, even though he was nowhere near as successful in his career as Vladimir was.

CARLOS HERMOSILLO

Sat, 16 Jun 2012 15:29:00 +0200

Era: 1983 - 2001

Nationality: Mexican

Position: Striker

Team(s): Club América, Standard Liège, CF Monterrey, Cruz Azul, Club Necaxa, LA Galaxy, Atlante FC, Chivas Guadalajara

Caps: 90 - 35 goals (Mexico)

Trivia: Gained respect in and out of Mexico for being one of the top all-time goalscorers for the Mexican national team. After his career Hermosillo was named the head of the National Commission for Sports in Mexico. After various scandals however, President Felipe Calderón requested him to resign at his post after only 2 years in office. Hermosillo became the first National Sports Minister to be fired by the President in Mexico.

FINIDI GEORGE

Sat, 16 Jun 2012 14:53:24 +0200

Era: 1989 - 2004

Nationality: Nigerian

Position: Midfielder

Team(s): Calabar Rovers, Iwuanyanwu Nationale, Sharks FC, Ajax Amsterdam, Real Betis, RCD Mallorca, Ipswich Town

Caps: 62 - 6 goals (Nigeria)

Trivia: A leading figure for the Ajax team which won eight major titles, including the 1994–95 UEFA Champions League. George also represented Nigeria in two FIFA World Cups, 1994 and 1998. He scored against Greece in a 2–0 win at the 1994 World Cup, famously proceeding to mimick a urinating dog whilst celebrating.

MARK FISH

Sat, 16 Jun 2012 14:29:16 +0200

Era: 1991 - 2009

Nationality: South African

Position: Defender

Team(s): Jomo Cosmos, Orlando Pirates, Lazio Roma, Bolton Wanderers, Charlton Athletic, Ipswich Town

Caps: 62 - 2 goals (South Africa)

Trivia: Gained a cult status among Bolton supporters, backed up by his nickname ‘Feesh’ and an eyecatching blue hat in the shape of a fish that was made available in the club shop.

Mario Basler

Sun, 01 Apr 2012 17:17:00 +0200

Era: 1987 - 2004

Nationality: German

Position: Midfielder

Team(s): FC Kaiserslautern, Rot-Weiss Essen, Hertha BSC, Werder Bremen, Bayern Munich, Al-Rayyan

Caps: 30 - 2 goals (Germany)

Trivia: Bundesliga top-scorer in 1995 and a squad-member of the German national team that qualified for Euro 1996. Basler however missed the final stages in England because of an injury, Germany managed to secure the European title without him.

Florian Maurice

Sun, 01 Apr 2012 17:07:57 +0200

Era: 1991 - 2005

Nationality: French

Position: Striker

Team(s): Olympique Lyon, Paris Saint-Germain, Olympique Marseille, Celta de Vigo, SC Bastia, FC Istres, LB Chateauroux

Caps: 6 - 1 goal (France)

Trivia: Made his debut for the French national team in August 1996, under national manager Aimé Jacquet. However, Maurice’s progress was halted during the 1996-97 season, when he suffered a ruptured achilles tendon and went through several months of recovery.

Roberto Sensini

Sun, 18 Mar 2012 16:59:27 +0100

Era: 1986 - 2006

Nationality: Argentinian

Position: Defender

Team(s): Newell’s Old Boys, Udinese, Parma FC, Lazio Roma

Caps: 59 (Argentina)

Trivia: One of the oldest players of the 2005/2006 Serie A, holding even the record as the oldest foreign player to score a goal in first division, at the age of 39 years, two months and 26 days. With over 380 matches in the top level, Roberto Nestor Sensini was considered as one of the most experienced defenders of the Italian league, and often nicknamed nonno (grandfather) by Italian sports journalists.

Luc Nilis

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 12:36:00 +0100

Era: 1984 - 2000

Nationality: Belgian

Position: Striker

Team(s): Winterslag, RSC Anderlecht, PSV Eindhoven, Aston Villa

Caps: 56 - 10 goals (Belgium)

Trivia: During his time with PSV, Nilis formed one of the deadliest partnerships in Europe with team-mate Ruud van Nistelrooy. In the 1998–1999 season, Nilis and van Nistelrooy scored 55 league goals between them. van Nistelrooy finished as top-scorer, Nilis came second. In the following season, Nilis’ last for PSV, they scored 48 league goals between them. Ronaldo occasionally names him as one of the best strike partner he had played with despite sharing only a brief time with him at PSV. Van Nistelrooy has also stated on several occasions that Nilis was one of the best players, if not the best, he had ever played with.

Massimo Taibi

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 12:14:00 +0100

Era: 1987 - 2009

Nationality: Italian

Position: Goalkeeper

Team(s): SSD Licata, Trento, AC Milan, Como Calcio, Piacenza Calcio, SSC Venezia, Manchester United, Reggina Calcio, Atalanta BC, Torino FC, Ascoli

Caps: -

Trivia: In 1999, Manchester United purchased him for 4.5 million pounds. Taibi competed with the other two Manchester United goalkeepers, Mark Bosnich and Raimond van der Gouw, for the first-team place, but lost out after a gaffe against Southampton that resulted in Matt Le Tissier scoring a goal. This match led to Taibi being dubbed ‘The Blind Venetian’ by one newspaper. He returned to Italy after playing only four matches for the Mancunians.