Another amazing season of European football has just wrapped up. As with every season there were shocking exits, surprising results, and a lot of media attention on the coaches of the game. We wanted to bring you our picks for the best players to have played in either the Champions League or the Europa League. This year has an offensive twist to it as all of the players picked have run defenses ragged. We even had to enlist help from our friend Elliot over at Futfanatico.com. Check it out!
Everyone has dreams of winning a Champions League final. You dream of putting your stamp on one of the biggest games in the sporting world year after year. If you were to be honest you would admit that you dream of being a prolific goal scorer. Slide tackles don't make headlines. If there is one player that has made the headlines in this years Champions League tournament it is Arjen Robben. Although Bayern barely squeezed out of group play he has been one of the stand out players in the knockout stages. Having struck the game winners against both Fiorentina and Manchester United he also got the first goal against Lyon in the semi-finals. As far as dreams go Arjen Robben is simply your worst defensive nightmare.
Robben is gifted with pace, dribbling only paralleled by Messi and Ronaldo, and a shot that always seems destined for the back of the net. During his time with Chelsea he was one of the best wingers in the Premier League and he continued that into this seasons Champions League. Not everyone moves on from a team like Chelsea and continue to play at the highest level. Having just moved to Real Madrid last year he was quickly shipped off to Bayern Munich when room was made for Ronaldo, Kaka, and Benzema. Those are three of the best players in the world but this season Robben showed that he should be mentioned in that category as well. If he was not plagued by injury I think an argument could be that would be held in the same regard as the aforementioned Real Madrid players. I have yet to even mention that he is left footed. You know that left footers have twice the ability of right footers (especially if your name is Messi).
The best quality about Robben is his ability to pop up when you least expect it. A quality he shares with former teammate Didier Drogba. Fiorentina thought they had Bayern right where they wanted them until Robben scored on a 30-yard blast into the net. Bayern had a much more difficult test in Manchester United yet it was Robben who struck from a volley off of a corner kick to put the former English champions out. Robben may be aging in dog years, but he is doing it well. He is the player you dream you could be on the biggest stage. He is also the player that keeps you and some of the world's best defenders tossing and turning as you replay in your mind the nut meg between your legs and cool finish past the keeper. He is the worst nightmare you can have. The kind that manifests itself in reality.
Written By: Elliot at Futfantatico. Check out Elliot's blog for a look at soccer in a different way than you are accustomed. Seriously one of the best soccer blogs around.
It seems like just yesterday Sir Alex was throwing cleats at his young Uruguayan signing. Diego had just missed a sitter due to the treacherous terrain of wet English pitches and the sun was quickly setting on his Red Devils' career. Could he have heeded his manager's advice? Yes. Forlorn then, but now adored. The difference a decade and change of scenery can make.
The two time golden boot winner netted late winners in both the UEFA Cup semifinals and final, but his talent transcends quantification. Diego's ability is difficult to put into word, to subject to a scientific-rationale of x's o's and equal signs. Diego's exploits on the field defy simplistic humanistic notions of reason that reduce our essence to excel spreadsheets and graphs. On the grand scale of footballery, Diego Forlan displays the weight of a feather.
Yet moments bring the blonde man's genius to life. Out of the blue, his right foot flashes like the hammer of Thor, the goalie's hands reacting well after the net's first ripple. He glides between two center backs for ten minutes, then times a three step diagonal run to perfection and rounds the keeper. He prances about the pitch with the precocious talent of a prodigy raised on park soccer. He only runs when need be, and he rarely needs to run.
That is why you love Diego Forlan.
You watched the UEFA cup final. Fulham worked the ball harmlessly around the back when a defensive miscue spelled doom. A Reyes flick. A scuffed Kun shot. Looking back, the sequence makes perfect sense, the belt hums long a series of bolts and cranks in a perfect 4/4 beat. But in the moment, you did not know what to expect. But Diego did. He sensed it. He felt it. Like a moth to the flame, Diego darted before Kun's shot had even arrived. The touch could very well have graced a piano's keys. In extra time, as Kun dazzled you with his dribbling, Diego nonchalantly scampered about the box. Then, with the mouse trap ready and the spring set, he sprinted two feet and delicately redirected a low cross.
Neither goal required feats of incredible athleticism. The Atletico player removed his shirt, but underneath was no chiseled David of Michelangelo. To describe Diego's ability is to reduce all of soccer journalism and analysis to a simplicity that oscillates between madness and meaningless. Taken out of Nietschze, Diego is a good soccer player because Diego is a good soccer player.
And that is why you hate him.
You saw him take his first goal against Bayern Munich like only a true veteran could. His second goal saw him turn a helpless Bayern defender inside out before clinically finishing to the far post. This is a man who knows how to score goals. And if you ask the packed house Bernabeu he does it with style as well.
A lot of plaudits have and will continue to go to Jose Mourinho. If you ask the media he created Porto, Chelsea, and Inter Milan in six days. On the seventh day, he rested. In reality, Milito is one of the reasons he for Inter's success. His display in the final was not his only bright spot this season. He finished second in Serie A scoring this season with 22 goals in 35 games. He had 6 goals in 11 games in the Champions League. Milito scores goals.
It started in the Round of 16 against Chelsea. Three minutes in and Milito popped up with the first goal. That seems to be the theme with our three picks for best European players this past season. The 30 year old was looked to be second fiddle to Samuel Eto'o this season. It has been quite the opposite. In fact, Eto'o has only managed 2 goals from 13 games in the Champions League. Seria A has seen him return only 12 goals in 32 games. If you have not been watching the Seria A you may think that Milito has just popped up out of nowhere. In actuality, he has been lighting up the scoring charts all season. Jose Mourinho is the 'special one' and has Milito to thank for that this season.
