Real Madrid C.F. Season 2008-2009

Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (also known as Real Madrid, Los Blancos, Los Merengues) is a professional association football club based in Madrid, Spain. It is the most successful team in Spanish football and was voted by FIFA as the most successful club of the 20th century, having won a record thirty-one La Liga titles, seventeen Spanish Cups, a record nine European Cups and two UEFA Cups. Real was a founding member of FIFA and the now-defunct G-14 group of Europe's leading football clubs as well as its replacement, the European Club Association.

Founded in 1902, Real Madrid has since spent all of its history in the top flight of Spanish football. In the 1940s, the club, the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium and the Ciudad Deportiva were rebuilt following the Spanish Civil War. The club established itself as a major force in both Spanish and European football during the 1950s. In the 1980s, the club had one of the best teams in Spain and Europe (known as La Quinta del Buitre), winning two UEFA Cups, five Spanish championships in a row, one Spanish cup and three Spanish Super Cups.

The club's traditional home colours are all white. Its crest has been changed several times in attempts to modernise or re-brand; the current crest is a modified version of the one first adopted in the 1920. Real's home is the 80,354-person-capacity.Santiago Bernabéu football stadium in downtown Madrid, where it has played since 1947. Unlike most European football clubs, Real Madrid's members (socios) have owned and operated the club since its inception.

It has a long-standing and fierce rivalry with FC Barcelona, although Atlético Madrid is actually the closest professional football club. The El Clásico between Real Madrid and Barcelona has been played since 1929. Real is the world's 2nd richest football club (€352m) in terms of revenue and the second most valuable (worth over €950m as of 2008).

The Santiago Bernabéu is a football stadium in Madrid, Spain. It is the home of Real Madrid. Work on the grounds started on October 27 1944. Originally called Estadio Chamartín after Madrid's previous stadium, it was inaugurated in December 1947. Real Madrid officially adopted the present name, Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, on January 4, 1955 in honour of the club president Santiago Bernabéu. The stadium has been officially sanctioned by UEFA as Elite or 5 Star on its 60th year of its existence.
The capacity has changed frequently, peaking at 120,000 after a 1953 expansion. Since then there have been a number of reductions due to modernisations (the last standing places went away in 1998/99 in response to UEFA regulations which forbid standing at matches in the UEFA competition), countered to some extent by expansions. The last change was an increase of about five thousand to a capacity of 79,400, effected in 2003. A plan to add a retractable roof has been announced.
The Bernabéu is one of the world's most famous and prestigious venues. It has hosted the European Cup final on three separate occasions (in 1957, 1969 and 1980), and is scheduled to host the 2010 final. The finals for the 1964 European Nations' Cup and the 1982 World Cup have also been held at the Bernabéu.
The stadium has its own Madrid Metro station along the 10 line called Santiago Bernabéu. Its location, in the heart of Madrid's business district, is quite unusual for a football stadium.
After its foundation in 1902 the club moved in their first years between some minor grounds before moving to the 'Campo de O'Donnell' in 1912.
This ground remained their home ground for eleven years. After these years the club made a move again, this time to the 'Campo de Ciudad Lineal', a small ground with a capacity of 8,000 spectators. This time, it would only be a short stay, because after only twelve months the club moved again. This new ground would make a longer appearance. The 'Estadio Chamartín' was inaugurated on the 17th of May 1923 with a match of Real Madrid against Newcastle United. In this stadium, which hosted 22,500 spectators, Real Madrid celebrated their first Spanish league titles.
After those successes, in 1943 elected president Don Santiago de Bernabeu decided that the Estadio de Chamartin wasn't big enough for the ambitions of the club. A new stadium had to be built, which was inaugurated on the 14th of December 1947. This was the 'Estadio Santiago Bernabeu' as we know it today, although it didn't acquire this name until 1955. The first match to be played in the new stadium was between Real Madrid and OS Belenenses (3-1). Sabino Barinaga scored the first goal in the new stadium. The initial capacity was 75,300.
Real Madrid at Santiago Bernabeu in 2007In 1953, a first extension to the stadium was realized with the addition of a third tier. This increased the capacity to an overwhelming 120,000.
At the same time a great team was formed in Madrid that would win many trophies in the next years. One of these trophies was won in their own Santiago Bernabeu; their second European Cup against Fiorentina (2-0). In the next years more European Cup finals would be played in the stadium (1969: AC Milan-Ajax & 1980: Nottingham Forest-HSV). The first official match of the Spanish national team in the Santiago Bernabeu was played in the year 1964 (Franco-Stalin).
Due to the upcoming World Cup championships in 1982 the stadium had to be renovated again. This decreased the capacity to a mere 90,000.
The matches in pool B (Germany, Spain & England) and the final between Italy and Germany (3-1) were played in the Bernabeu stadium.
In 1992 the stadium was extended again to a capacity over 100,000 (106,500). At the same the exterior of the stadium was renovated, which resulted in the exterior as we know it today, including the remarkable entrance towers at the corners.
This new increase in capacity led to a harsh competition with rival FC Barcelona about which stadium could host the most spectators. This battle was ultimately lost by Real Madrid in the season 1998/1999 when all standing places had to be converted into seats according to UEFA rules. This led to a capacity decrease to 74,300.
A new renovation has been completed. This renovation of the east stand has increased the capacity to 80,000 and has made the stadium totally covered.
The ex-president of Real Madrid, Florentino Perez, announced in 2005, before quitting the club, a proposal to construct a retractable roof on the stadium. The construction has not yet started.

Vicente Boluda (born 31 March 1955 in Valencia, Spain) is the president of Aguas de Valencia and the current president of Spanish sports club Real Madrid.

Life and career

Boluda has two master's degrees, one in legal advice for business and other in maritime law. He is also the president of the National Association of Shipowners and Tow-Trucks, a delegate in the Upper Counsel of the Chambers of Commerce, the first vice-president of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Navigation of Valencia, and vice-president of the Spanish Shipping Association.
In 1998, he received the Enterpriser of the Year award for his work in the Boluda Group, defeating rivals such as IBM and la Caixa.
Along with his own personal success, his grandfather, Boluda Marí, gave rise to a naval empire that has since expanded massively to cover various ports around the world. Now, they operate on both the shore, and sea, participating in off-shore rescues, and fight against contamination.

Career at Real Madrid

He has risen up through the ranks at the club, since becoming a part of the board directors when Ramón Calderón was elected in 2006.
In less than a year, he was named as vice-president, after Juan Mendoza resigned following a disagreement regarding the basketball side of the club.
Boluda became president of the club on 16 January 2009 after Ramón Calderón resigned.
In February 2009, Boluda boldly claimed that Real Madrid would "beat Liverpool 3-0" in a Champions League last 16 game at the Bernabeu. And finish the job by winning 1-2 at Anfield. However Liverpool won the first leg at the Bernabeu 0-1, thanks to a Yossi Benayoun headed goal, and won the second leg 4-0 at Anfield.

Juan de la Cruz Ramos Cano, more commonly known as Juande Ramos, (born 25 September 1954 in Pedro Muñoz, Ciudad Real, Spain) is a Spanish former footballer and manager, currently the manager of Real Madrid.

Playing career

Ramos played for Elche, Alcoyano, Linares, Eldense, Alicante and Denia as a midfielder, until he retired due to a knee injury at the age of 28.



Spain
During his first season with Sevilla, he won the UEFA Cup in the final against Middlesbrough, where his side won 4–0, and also winning the UEFA Super Cup, beating European champions and fellow La Liga side FC Barcelona 3–0. In the 2006–07 season, Ramos won the UEFA Cup for the second consecutive season after a 2–2 draw against RCD Espanyol, which Sevilla won 3–1 on penalties. Ramos also led Sevilla to a 3rd place finish in La Liga in the 2006–07 season, which qualified them for the European Champions League for the 2007–08 season. He also won the Copa del Rey, beating Getafe CF and pipped La Liga title holders Real Madrid to the Spanish Super Cup.
Ramos claimed he turned down a "dizzying" offer to become Tottenham Hotspur manager in August 2007, but ended speculation on his future at Sevilla, by stating in September 2007 that he would stay with the club until the end of the season. However, following Tottenham manager Martin Jol's sacking on 25 October 2007, Ramos was again tipped to become his replacement. Ramos resigned as coach of Sevilla on 26 October 2007 and became Tottenham Hotspur manager the following day on a four-year deal, which was reportedly worth over 6 million euros a year, making him one of the highest paid managers in the Premier League.

England

Ramos inherited a Tottenham side falling well short of expectations as their poor defending meant they were in the relegation zone when Ramos arrived. His first game in charge of Tottenham was a 2–0 win against Blackpool in the League Cup at White Hart Lane, courtesy of goals from Robbie Keane and Pascal Chimbonda. Tottenham's form under Ramos notably improved, and the side soon climbed up to the safety of mid-table in the Premier League, but Ramos' most notable accomplishments were in the cup competitions.[citation needed] Tottenham's UEFA Cup campaign had begun badly, with Spurs losing 2–1 at home to Getafe in the first match of the group stages, a game which proved to be former manager Martin Jol's last game in charge. However, a 2–0 win over Hapoel Tel Aviv and a comeback from 2–0 down to win 3–2 against Aalborg BK, meant that Tottenham's 1–1 draw away to Anderlecht was enough to secure second place in the group, and qualification to the knock-out stages. Spurs defeated Slavia Prague and won 1–0 against PSV Eindhoven at the Philips Stadion, but were beaten on penalties.
On 18 December 2007, Spurs travelled to the City of Manchester Stadium for their League Cup quarter-final against a Manchester City who up until that point had won every home game of the season, but despite playing with 10 men for more than 70 minutes, Ramos still masterminded a 2–0 victory for Tottenham. This set up a semi-final with North London rivals Arsenal. The first leg at the Emirates Stadium ended with a 1–1 draw, but the return leg at White Hart Lane saw Tottenham emphatically win 5–1. It was Tottenham's first win in the North London derby since 1999, and the biggest win for either side in the derby since 1983. It also meant Tottenham made their first appearance at the newly rebuilt Wembley Stadium against Chelsea in their first cup final since 2002. Spurs started the game at a high tempo, but fell behind to a free-kick from Didier Drogba. However a second half penalty from Dimitar Berbatov took the game to extra time, where Jonathan Woodgate scored the winner to give Spurs both their first trophy since 1999 and qualification for the 2008–09 UEFA Cup.
After a promising pre-season, the 2008–09 season saw Ramos lead Tottenham to their worst ever start to a league campaign, with the team placed bottom of the table after acquiring just two points from their opening eight matches. This eventually led to Ramos being sacked on 25 October, along with assistant manager Gus Poyet, first team coach Marcos Álvarez, and club sporting director Damien Comolli‎, less than 24 hours before the club's next league game with Bolton Wanderers. Harry Redknapp was announced as Ramos' immediate replacement. Tottenham went on to defeat Bolton 2–0 and register their first league win of the season.

Return to Spain

On December 9, 2008 Ramos replaced Bernd Schuster, who left Madrid by mutual accord, as manager of Real Madrid taking over immediately before their UEFA Champions League match against Zenit St. Petersburg and the El Clásico derby match against F.C. Barcelona. He has a contract until the conclusion of La Liga 2008–09.

Jerzy Dudek ( born 23 March 1973 in Rybnik) is a Polish football goalkeeper who plays for Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid C.F. He has been capped 58 times for the Poland national team, and won the UEFA Champions League with Liverpool F.C. in 2005.

Career

Dudek began playing football at youth level at twelve for Górnik II Knurów. At sixteen, he made his debut in the oldest youth team of Górnik Knurów, before moving to Concordia Knurów in the Polish third division two years later. He set a goalkeeping record of 416 minutes in the third league without conceding a goal. After four years at the club, he moved to Sokół Tychy, making his debut against Legia Warsaw. He only played fifteen games before moving to Holland.
He left Poland in 1996 to join Feyenoord, but had to wait a year before he made his debut, then played 140 consecutive games for the club. He won his first trophy in the 1998-99 season, along with the Dutch Super Cup later that year after defeating Ajax. Dudek was named the Dutch Goalkeeper Of The Year, becoming the first non-Dutch goalkeeper to win the award. He would retain the award again the following season. He played his final game for Feyenoord on 26 August 2001, against Ajax.
Dudek joined Liverpool August 2001, and was coach Gerard Houllier's first choice between the sticks. Following a splendid season where his clean sheets and fine performances helped Liverpool finish second in the Premiership behind Double-winners Arsenal, he was nominated alongside Oliver Kahn and Gianluigi Buffon for UEFA Goalkeeper of the Year at the end of the 2001-02 season. Next season he rebounded spectacularly from a series of poor errors in the Premiership to win the League Cup with a Man-of-the-Match performance against Manchester United in the Final. Pope John Paul II, who was a goalkeeper in his youth, met personally with Dudek in 2004, telling him that he was a fan of Dudek's and followed Liverpool whenever they played. Dudek, who had the honour of presenting the Pope with a souvenir goalkeeper shirt, would later dedicate Liverpool's Champions League success to the late pontiff.
Dudek was a catalyst in Liverpool's 2005 Champions League success, performing a double save against A.C. Milan's Andriy Shevchenko at the end of extra time in the final, after Liverpool had rallied from a 3-0 deficit to tie the match 3-3. He saved from Pirlo and Shevchenko in the ensuing penalty shoot-out, which Liverpool won 3-2. During the shoot-out, he attempted to distract the Milan players with the "spaghetti legs" tactic that was used by former Liverpool goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar in the 1984 European Cup final. As a tribute to his heroics, a group of Liverpool fans called the Trophy Boyz recorded a successful novelty single called "Du the Dudek."
He received his second UEFA Goalkeeper of the Year nomination, but lost his starting position to new acquisition José Manuel Reina the next season following an arm injury. Dudek made a total of twelve more appearances over the next two seasons before departing to Real Madrid at the end of the 2006-07 season.
Dudek's on-field activity at Madrid has been limited due to the presence of Iker Casillas, who has played in the lion's share of the club's games throughout the 2007-08 and current season. Nevertheless, his attitude and work ethic has earned praise from his fans, teammates, coaching staff and several Spanish journalists; his Man of the Match performance in his La Liga Debut in the penultimate game of the 2007-08 season against Real Zaragoza was hailed in the Spanish press, despite not being enough to earn selection for Poland's squad for Euro 2008. In new coach Juande Ramos's first game as Madrid manager Dudek was handed the start ahead of Casillas for Madrid's final Champions League group game against UEFA Cup and UEFA Super Cup winners Zenit St. Petersburg at the Bernabeu. In a match where Madrid's attacking play made headlines, Dudek made several fine saves and exuded an air of calm solidity and confidence, particularly on crosses, earning a clean sheet in the process. This performance earned glowing praise from Ramos, who highlighted the Polish goalkeeper's qualities and referred to him as a 'magnificent player'. In spite of this performance, Casillas returned to take the first team spot and Dudek spent much of the season on the bench as a substitute. Real Madrid drew Liverpool in the Champions League but Dudek did not get the opportunity to play against his former club. Real Madrid lost the game 5–0 on aggregate.
According to reports back in Poland he looks set to end his disappointing stay at Madrid in the close season and re-sign for Feyenoord where he will work with Poland coach Leo Beenhakker, who interestingly enough coached Dudek in his first spell at Feyenoord and handed the goalkeeper his last cap for Poland.

International career

Dudek is his country's second-most capped goalkeeper with 58 caps for Poland. He received his first call up in 1996 as an unused substitute during a friendly against Russia in Moscow, and won his first cap in February 1998 in a friendly against Israel. He was a member the 2002 World Cup squad that was eliminated in the group stage, and due to his lack of appearances at club level, he was dropped from the starting lineup in favor of Artur Boruc, and was left off the 2006 World Cup squad as a result. He captained the team once in a friendly against Estonia.
Dudek's omission from the 2006 World Cup Squad was greeted with shock among Polish fans and the national media, with one newspaper's headline reading 'Has (then Poland coach Pawel) Janas gone mad?!'. And during a warm-up match against Colombia where both Boruc and Tomasz Kuszczak were at fault for each of the goals in a 2-1 defeat, the angered Polish fans started to chant Dudek's name as a reminder of what they perceived as a mistake by Janas to drop him. It is worth noting that Kuszczak's goal, which prompted the chants, was directly from a goal-kick from the Colombian goalkeeper Neco Martinez.
It is unknown whether Dudek will play for the national team again, although he is hopeful that with more football he will be back in the picture. His chances have certainly received an unexpected boost following a horror display by Boruc in a World Cup Qualifier against Northern Ireland on 28 March 2009 where he was at fault for two of the three goals conceded in a 3-2 defeat.

Ambassador for Euro 2012

Dudek's status as an icon in Poland played a crucial role in securing the status of joint host nation for the Euro 2012 Championships for his country. Along with his Champions' League nemesis Andriy Shevchenko of the Ukraine, he was a part of the joint delegation and was involved in a presentation with the striker.

Jordi Codina Rodríguez (born April 27, 1982 in Barcelona) is a Spanish footballer for Real Madrid, as a goalkeeper.

Football career

Codina was a graduate of Real Madrid's youth system, but arrived at Real Madrid Castilla from the low categories of RCD Espanyol de Barcelona, joining in 2002. After the departure of Carlos Sánchez and David Cobeño he became the first-choice goalkeeper of Real's reserve side. Antonio Adán was the backup and Kiko Casilla the third-choice. Codina eventually gained Castilla's captaincy.
Codina made his debut in Segunda División in the 2005-06 season, against Sporting de Gijón. In the last of his five years with the B team, he played in 35 of 38 matches for a total of 3150 minutes.
At the start of 2007-08, Codina was promoted to Real Madrid's first team and served as third goalkeeper, after Iker Casillas and Jerzy Dudek. As Madrid were already crowned league champions, Codina made his first team debut on May 11, 2008, in a 5-2 home win against Levante UD, playing the entire match.

Miguel Ángel Salgado Fernández (born October 22, 1975 in As Neves, Galicia) is a Spanish footballer, who currently plays in the right back position for Real Madrid of Spain. He is known for his combative tackling and attacking play.

Career

He began his career in 1994, playing his hometown team, Celta de Vigo. In 1999, Salgado was signed by Real Madrid for €11,000,000. Salgado helped Real lift the Champions League trophy in both 2000 and 2002, as well as four La Liga titles and, in 2002, the Intercontinental Cup.
Salgado has been capped 53 times for Spain and was part of their Euro 2000 and 2006 FIFA World Cup squads, but missed out on the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Salgado is also part of the Galician team. Maradona named Salgado as one of 10 best right defenders in the world.

Képler Laveran Lima Ferreira, commonly known as Pepe (born February 26, 1983 in Maceió, Brazil), is a Brazilian-born Portuguese football central defender, who plays for Real Madrid in the Spanish first division.

Club career

At the age of 17, Pepe, alongside friend Ezequias, left Brazilian youth team Corinthians Alagoano and signed for the B-team of Portuguese first division outfit Marítimo, in the island of Madeira. After one season where he played 10 games, Pepe was promoted to the first team for the 2002-03 season. The Brazilian's impact was incredible and he soon nailed down a place in the starting eleven, forming a formidable partnership with Mitchell van der Gaag in Marítimo's defence.
By the end of the season, under new manager Anatoliy Byshovets, Pepe started to show his versatility and adapted well to several positions including defensive and attacking midfielder, and even as a support striker. The move by Byshovets paid off, particularly when Pepe scored against Braga to give Marítimo a vital 1-0 away victory.
During pre-season of 2003-04, Marítimo gave permission for the player to train with Sporting for two weeks, after which a deal could be negotiated for his transfer. However, neither club could agree on terms and the move broke down, with Pepe returning to the Madeira club shortly after. His success continued, and after another season he signed for Porto during the summer of 2004 for €1 million plus three players, Tonel, Evaldo and Antonielton Ferreira. A clause in the agreement also stated that Marítimo would receive 20% of any future transfer fee.
In his first season, with coach Víctor Fernández at the helm, Pepe was on the bench most of the season, playing under veterans Pedro Emanuel, Jorge Costa, and utility man Ricardo Costa, as central defenders.
In 2005-06, under the guidance of Co Adriaanse, Pepe had a breakthrough season, establishing himself as one of the best defenders in the Portuguese league. Adriaanse often chose a 3-4-3 offensive system, with the Brazilian often pitched as his only natural stopper.
On July 16, 2007, Real Madrid signed the highly rated 24-year-old from Porto. Pepe penned a five-year contract with the Spanish champions, for a fee of €30 million.
On November 8, he came to blows with teammate Javier Balboa during a training session. Pepe would be nonetheless called-up for Real Madrid's next match, whereas the winger would not.
On December 23, 2007, in Real Madrid's 1-0 away win against Barcelona, Pepe produced an excellent performance. He made no mistakes during that game, and earned a 9/10 rating, receiving the Man of the match award. Although arguably one of his best career performances, he later stated that it was a team effort.
On March 15, 2008, Pepe scored the only (own) goal in a 1-0 away loss to Deportivo La Coruña.

International career

Pepe never represented native Brazil in any youth category. He received Portuguese citizenship in August 2007, and on August 30 was named in the Portuguese squad for the first time, in view of a Euro 2008 qualifier against Poland.[4] An injury while training for his club prevented the debut for his adopted country, which would materialize almost four months later, in Portugal's last qualifier against Finland (0-0 home draw), on November 21.
In the tournament's final stages, Pepe played in all of the national side's matches, scoring once, in a 2-0 win against Turkey, on June 7, 2008.

Fabio Cannavaro, Cavaliere Ufficiale OMRI (born September 13, 1973 in Naples, Italy) is an Italian World Cup-winning footballer. Currently he is the captain of the Italian national football team and plays at club level for Real Madrid.
During his career Cannavaro has earned world wide prominence, winning many personal accolades. For example he was the first ever defender to win FIFA World Player of the Year. He was also selected in the FIFPro World XI squad twice, during 2005–06 and 2006–07.[3]
Before moving to Real Madrid in Spain, Cannavaro played most of his club career in the Italian Serie A league. The clubs he played for includes his hometown side Napoli, Parma, with whom he achieved significant domestic cup and European success, Juventus, where he won two later revoked scudetto titles, and Internazionale.

Biography

Cannavaro was born in Naples to Gelsomina and Pasquale Cannavaro. His mother worked as a maid, while his father was a bank clerk; his father also played football for provincial side Giugliano. As a youngster Cannavaro played for a team from Bagnoli before being quickly spotted by the scouts of Napoli, his childhood team. He is well known for his fierce defending and interception.

Club career

Cannavaro initially served as the club's ballboy, and his progress as a player was such that he became a member of the first team alongside some of his childhood idols. Cannavaro's debut in Serie A came on 7 March 1993 in Turin for a game against Juventus. The post-Maradona Napoli were in desperate need of funds and were soon forced to sell Cannavaro to Parma, where Cannavaro won the UEFA Cup and Coppa Italia, and was named the Serie A Defender of the Year.
In the summer of 2001, Cannavaro joined Internazionale for a fee of €23 million. During his spell with the club he reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League 2002-03 and also finished runners up in Serie A. His second season was not as productive and he missed a large chunk of it through injury.
After a two-year stint, he signed for Juventus on summer transfer window deadline day. The deal also involved the exchange of Fabian Carini who left for Inter and an additional €10 million. By coming to Turin, he re-joined his ex-Parma teammates Lilian Thuram and Gianluigi Buffon, and together the threesome formed one of the most feared defenses in the Serie A. They went on won two consecutive Scudetti in 2005 and 2006, though both were later revoked due to the Calciopoli scandal. Juventus captain Cannavaro won l'Oscar del Calcio: Migliore difensore, the Football Oscar, for his exceptional debut season at the Turin giants.
After the 2006 World Cup, the Calciopoli trial verdicts relegated Juventus to Serie B and stripped the club of its 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 Scudetti. Since Juventus was ineligible to qualify for the UEFA Champions League, Cannavaro decided to leave. "Even if I know this may be hard to believe, I would have stayed at Juventus had they remained in Serie A – even with a 30-point deduction.".
He rejoined coach Fabio Capello at Real Madrid and inherited the number 5 shirt of the legendary Zinédine Zidane. Although no fee was confirmed by either club, press speculation has often set the combined transfer's worth at roughly 20 million euros. On July 25, he officially signed a three-year contract. He scored his first goal for the club on August 18, 2006 in a friendly against Real Betis. He won the '06-07 La Liga title with Madrid, and was named the 2006 FIFA World Player of the Year. Fabio Cannavaro is the first and so far only defender to win the award (Paolo Maldini came in second place in 1995), as well as the oldest recipient. Fabio Cannavaro is reportedly ready to leave Real Madrid at the end of his contract(at the end of 2008-09 season) and has been linked to former club Napoli, Tottenham, Milan, and Manchester City.

International career

Cannavaro's first taste of international success came over a decade ago under coach Cesare Maldini with Italy's U-21 side, winning consecutive European Under-21 Football Championship titles in 1994 and 1996. In 1996, he participated in the Summer Olympics in Atlanta. He played for his country in the 1998, 2002, and 2006 World Cups, as well as Euro 2000 and Euro 2004. Cannavaro made his international debut in January 1997 against Northern Ireland and has since earned 124 caps. Only fellow defender Paolo Maldini (126 caps) has appeared in more games for Italy.
Cannavaro's first international tournament came at 1998 FIFA World Cup under the mentorship of veteran defender Paolo Maldini, and the squad was coached by Maldini's father Cesare. Italy went out in the quarter-finals to hosts and eventual champions France; Cannavaro suffered a cut on his forehead from an elbow by Stéphane Guivarc'h during the match. The match was decided by a penalty shoot-out after the teams were tied 0-0.
In Euro 2000, it was Les Bleus who once again shattered Italy's dreams. Cannavaro had a strong tournament and the Azzurri reached the final, where they led the then world champions 1-0 going into injury time. Near the end of regular time, Sylvain Wiltord found the equalizer, and an extra-time golden goal from David Trézéguet gave France the title.
At the 2002 FIFA World Cup he was credited with holding the defence together, almost single-handedly after Alessandro Nesta was injured against Croatia. Italy however went out in the second round, losing to co-hosts and eventual semi-finalists South Korea, again to a golden goal.
Cannavaro had a hard act to follow when he took over as captain from Maldini after the 2002 World Cup, but he quickly won the team over with his constant smile, laid-back Neapolitan approach and inspiring performances. After Maldini's international retirement he first captained Italy in a match at Napoli and received a standing ovation on the pitch where he sported the local side's colours between 1991 and 1995.
Cannavaro's first international goal was scored on 30 May 2004 against Tunisia, Italy won 4-0. Euro 2004, which was hosted by Portugal, turned out to be a disappointment. Cannavaro picked up yellow cards during the two draws with Denmark (0-0) and Sweden (1-1), forcing him to sit out the final group game. Italy defeated Bulgaria 2-1, but failed to advance on goal difference.

2006 World Cup

Cannavaro captained Italy throughout their 2006 World Cup campaign. One of his key performances came against Germany in the World Cup Semi-Finals 2006. His crowning moment was lifting the World Cup on July 9, 2006, the night of his 100th cap. Cannavaro did not receive a single yellow or red card during the 690 minutes he played in the tournament.
Along with Buffon, Cannavaro played every minute of every match in the tournament for Italy. The Italian defence conceded only two goals throughout the entire tournament, an own-goal against the United States and a Zidane penalty in the final against France.
With the injury of defensive partner Alessandro Nesta Cannavaro somehow managed to hold the defense together, earning him a spot on the All-Star Team at the end of the competition - awarded by FIFA's Technical Study Group - alongside six other Italian teammates, Gianluigi Buffon, Gennaro Gattuso, Andrea Pirlo, Luca Toni, Francesco Totti and Gianluca Zambrotta. He was runner-up in the race for the Golden Ball, finishing behind French counterpart Zinédine Zidane; it was a close contest with Zidane polling 2012 points to Cannavaro's 1977.

Euro 2008

On June 2, 2008, Fabio Cannavaro was injured during Italy's first training session for Euro 2008. Cannavaro sustained the knock following a tackle by fellow defender Giorgio Chiellini and was carried off the field on a stretcher. Italy doctor Paolo Zeppilli said: "We have to do tests but it does not look like a minor injury". Test had shown that he tore ligaments in his left ankle. Right after the examinations, Italian journalists awaited Cannavaro, who told them: "I'm going home", with a melancholic smile on his face. After the day was over, Roberto Donadoni called up Fiorentina centre-back Alessandro Gamberini as his official replacement. Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon captained the team in his place. Cannavaro added he will stay with the squad to offer support. This would have been Cannavaro's third Euro tournament.
Cannavaro has also put his plans to retire from the national team after Euro 2008 on hold and added that it has made him more determined to captain Italy through the 2010 World Cup.

Marcelo Vieira da Silva Júnior, or simply Marcelo (born May 12, 1988 in Rio de Janeiro), is a Brazilian football left-winger and wingback who currently plays for Spanish team Real Madrid C.F.

Early career

Marcelo started playing futsal at the age of 9 and by the age of 13 he was on the books of Fluminense He comes from a very poor background and even considered quitting football, but his club considered him as one of their 'Crown Jewels' and ensured that he continued playing football.

Real Madrid C.F.

Marcelo joined Real Madrid C.F. during the January transfer window in 2007.On his arrival, Club President Ramón Calderón said, "He is an important signing for us. He is a young player who will inject some freshness into the side and is part of our plan to bring younger players into the squad. We're very happy because he's a pearl that half of Europe wanted." Many spectators hailed him as Roberto Carlos' potential successor in the left-back role.
Marcelo made his debut as a substitute in the 2-0 defeat against Deportivo La Coruña. On April 14, 2007, Marcelo made his first start for Real Madrid C.F. against Racing Santander, which Real Madrid C.F. lost 2-1. Under the new manager, Bernd Schuster, Marcelo has started nearly all of Madrid's league games. His ability, speed running across the field, attack, and defence has enabled him to become a very important player, and current starter of the Real Madrid C.F. squad.
After a string of poor performances Marcelo has found himself on the bench for much of the remaining season while under new manager Juande Ramos, mainly as deputy to Gabriel Heinze. Juande Ramos deployed Marcelo as a left winger on more than one occasion, and the Brazilian adapted well to his new role. He scored his first goal after receiving a heel flick from striker Higuaín and slotting the ball past the goalkeeper in Real Madrid's 4-0 thumping of Sporting Gijón. After the game, coach Juande Ramos declared that Marcelo's future would be positioned as a left winger, but will push back to defense when required.

International career

Marcelo's first taste of international football came at the youth level. He was called up for the 2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship and the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
Marcelo scored on his Brazil debut against Wales, he picked up the ball just outside the Wales box and shot for a traditional Brazilian full back goal. Marcelo has become one of the preferred choices of Brazil's football coach Dunga. Marcelo has recently been compared to now former Real Madrid C.F. and Brazilian national team left-back, Roberto Carlos. The two played together during the second half of the 2006/2007 season before Roberto Carlos' move to Turkish team Fenerbahçe.
He was called up for the 2008 Olympic squad where he won a bronze medal. More recently, Dunga named him in the squad for the February 2009 friendly against Italy.

Miguel Torres Gómez (born January 28, 1986 in Madrid) is a Spanish football defender, currently playing with Real Madrid. He is comfortable as both right and left back.

Club career

Torres played his whole career for Real Madrid and its junior teams since he was 12. On July 12, 2007, he signed his first professional contract for the first team until 2013, joining the first team permanently from Real Madrid Castilla.
Torres made his senior debut against Écija Balompié as a starter, in a Spanish Cup contest on October 25, 2006, because of injuries to first team defenders Fabio Cannavaro, Cicinho and Míchel Salgado. He also played in the return leg as a substitute, replacing Sergio Ramos in the 80th minute. He would also start in both cup matches against Real Betis, sporting jersey #38 in these games and throughout the season.
He then made his league debut in his fourth consecutive appearance for Real Madrid, playing the whole 90 minutes against Real Zaragoza. He kept his place in the side the following week for the game against Real Mallorca, with that performance leading then-coach Fabio Capello to state: "It is not easy to find a player with as much personality and talent in attack and defence as Torres".
On February 10, 2007, in the match against Real Sociedad, Torres made his first assist. After a quick run on the left flank he provided a left-footed (he is right-footed by nature) cross for Ruud van Nistelrooy, whose header found the net, as Madrid came from behind to win in away 2-1.
With Torres as an important piece (first appearing in round 18, he only missed three contests until the end of the season, starting in all but one), R.Madrid won its 30th league title. However, he was unable to play in the deciding game against Mallorca due to a hamstring tear.
Although Torres appeared in more league games in the following season, he would start significantly less (as Madrid repeated league honours), primarily due to the signing of Argentine Gabriel Heinze. In that season, he switched back to number 22, which he previously wore with Castilla.

International career

Torres made his debut for the Spanish under-21 team on February 6, 2007, in a 2-2 draw against England, remaining a regular in subsequent matches.

Gabriel Iván Heinze (born 19 April 1978 in Crespo, Entre Ríos Province) is an Argentine footballer defender of German and Italian descent who plays for Real Madrid. Heinze holds dual Argentine-German nationality.

Early career

Heinze began his career in his home country with Newell's Old Boys. Following attention from various European clubs, he then signed for La Liga outfit Real Valladolid, where he did not manage one single appearance in his first season. After that, Heinze was loaned to Sporting Clube de Portugal, going unnoticed throughout the season, after which he returned for a further two Valladolid years. At the close of the 2001 season, Heinze moved to Paris Saint-Germain FC, where he amassed over 100 overall appearances in three seasons, also helping the capital side to the 2004 French Cup.

Manchester United

In June 2004, Heinze joined Manchester United F.C. for a fee of £6.9m.[1]He marked his debut for United in September 2004 with a goal in a 2–2 draw against Bolton Wanderers, and immediately established himself as United's first choice left-back. Heinze's play was regularly lauded by United fans with the chant of "Ar-gen-tina!"
Heinze was injured in a UEFA Champions League match with Villarreal CF on 14 September 2005, and was out of first-team action for the rest of 2005–06. Previous to the Villarreal match, he had scored two goals in the 3–0 second-leg qualifier win over Debreceni VSC. He made a comeback with the reserve team in April 2006, but a minor injury picked up in his third game back prevented him making a first-team appearance before the end of the campaign. The consequence of Heinze's injury was Manchester United's signing of Patrice Evra as his left-back replacement. Heinze's last season with Manchester United was the 2006-07 season. He scored his first goal of the season in the FA Cup fifth round replay against Reading F.C., in a 3–2 win on 27 February 2007. Due to United's injury problems, Heinze was used as a centre-back, partnering Wes Brown. He was made captain for their last two games of the season, away to Chelsea F.C and at home to West Ham United. On 21 July 2007, a bid in the region of £6.8 million from Liverpool F.C. was rejected by United.

Real Madrid

On 22 August 2007, Heinze joined Real Madrid on a four-year deal, becoming the third United player to join Real (after David Beckham and Ruud van Nistelrooy), for a reported £8 million fee. He debuted on September 2 against Villarreal, coming on as a substitute for Raúl. On March 30, 2008, he netted his first goal for Madrid in a 3-1 home win against Sevilla FC. In his first season with Real he won La Liga and the Supercopa de España.

International career

Heinze first represented Argentina on April 30, 2003, in a friendly away win against Libya. The following year, he won a gold medal in the 2004 Summer Olympics. Despite missing most of 2005-06 due to injury, Heinze was called up for the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals. In the quarter-final clash against Germany Heinze could only watch from the sidelines as Argentina lost out on penalties (he did not take a shot).
Heinze participated in the 2007 Copa América, and scored his only goal from a free kick in the semifinals against Mexico in a 3-0 win.[9] Argentina lost to Brazil in the final.

Christoph Metzelder (born 5 November 1980 in Haltern, North Rhine-Westphalia) is a football defender who plays for Real Madrid. Metzelder is also a part of the German national team, with whom he has amassed a total of 47 caps.

Career

In the summer of 2000, Metzelder signed for Borussia Dortmund, and he was an instant success. He not only won the German championships with BVB in 2002 as a regular first team player, he also reached the 2002 World Cup final with Germany.
On 18 April 2007 Metzelder transferred to Real Madrid at the end of the 2006–07 season.
Christoph's younger brother Malte is also a professional footballer, who plays in the 2. Bundesliga for Ingolstadt 04.
In February, 2008, Metzelder had surgery on the sole of his foot, resulting in him missing nearly two months of action. He missed Madrid's Champions League last-16 tie against Roma. On 11 May, Metzelder returned from injury and played the full 90 minutes against Real Zaragoza.
Despite his lack of playing time, he featured in Germany's starting eleven for Euro 2008. His formidable partnership with fellow defender Per Mertesacker of Werder Bremen has formed the backbone of the German defense for the past several years.

Francisco Javier 'Javi' García Fernández (born February 8, 1987 in Murcia) is a Spanish footballer. He plays as a defensive midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid, and can also be used as a central defender. He is the cousin of Atlético Madrid's Luis García.

Football career

A product of Real Madrid's youth system, García played three league contests with the first team, debuting aged 17 in a 5-0 home rout of Levante UD, on November 28, 2004. After that, he would spend the entire 2005-06 with Real Madrid Castilla, the B-side.
Summer 2006 was a very busy one for García. First he won the European Championship with the U-19 Spanish squad, impressing then-first team head coach Fabio Capello, who recalled him to training sessions. García played in most of Real Madrid's pre-season games, including a starting lineup spot in both Ramón de Carranza Trophy games, playing in central midfield alongside new purchase Émerson. He would not appear for Real's first team in 2006-07, nonetheless.
In August 2007, in the season of his supposed definitive promotion to the first team, coach Bernd Schuster would eventually prevent that golden opportunity (as fellow cantera players Rubén de la Red and Esteban Granero also left the club) and offers began to appear, from clubs in the Premiership including Liverpool F.C., and national sides, including Atlético de Madrid and Deportivo de La Coruña. He would finally settle for CA Osasuna on August 31, signing for four seasons for a fee of €2.5m, as the Navarre side was keen to replace injury-struck midfielder Javad Nekounam (out of action for six months at least). Having first appeared in a 1-1 home draw with Sevilla FC (one minute played), García scored twice in his first six games, in wins against Levante UD (4-1) and Villarreal CF (3-2).
García's contract included a buy-back clause that could see him return to Real Madrid for €4m. Osasuna officially reported, on April 29, 2008, that Madrid had exercised their purchase option, meaning his return to the Bernabéu for 2008-09. He made his first league appearance for Real since his return during his side's 7-1 thrashing of Sporting de Gijón in on September 24, 2008, coming on as a second-half substitute for Mahamadou Diarra.

Royston Ricky Drenthe (born April 8, 1987) is a Dutch footballer who currently plays for Real Madrid.

Early career

At Feyenoord, Drenthe came into the D2 team. He played mainly as a left winger during his junior years. As a C player he was invited to join the B squad on a trip to Switzerland. Drenthe misbehaved during the trip and the trainer, Marcel Bout, wanted him to leave the club as a result. Due to technical director Rob Baan, Drenthe was able to stay and he was only temporarily suspended by the club. After his suspension he continued to play in the C-team before moving to the B-team, where he again had Bout as his coach.
Bout hardly used Drenthe in his line-up. Later, at the end of the season he was named as one of eleven players whose future at the club was questionable. Drenthe then decided to switch teams and moved to Feyenoord's feeder club Excelsior Rotterdam.

Excelsior

Drenthe improved during the two years he played at Excelsior. Coach Marco van Lochem wanted to try him as a left back, which turned out to be a success. Drenthe seemed to be a talent at this position and became a team regular. He impressed the Feyenoord coaches and was asked to join them again.

Feyenoord

In the 2005/06 season, Drenthe reached the A1 team of Feyenoord, managed by his former C-youth coach Henk Fräser. Fräser told him he had to fight for his position with his team mate Mohammed Hammouti. Since the Otten Cup, a youth tournament at PSV Eindhoven where he scored three goals against Ajax Amsterdam as a left winger, he became a first-team player and even became captain of the team. In the meantime, he also became a team regular in Feyenoord's second team.
Drenthe was offered a professional contract soon after. That same week he helped to win an away match versus Ajax' second team 5-1 and was asked to train with Feyenoord's first team. He continued to play for Feyenoord's youth and second team before manager Erwin Koeman brought him in his regular squad. He made his debut in the match against Vitesse in the Gelredome and finished the season with three matches played.
In the 2006-07 season, Feyenoord signed Belgian international player Philippe Léonard at Drenthe's position, the left back spot, while Pascal Bosschaart was also still part of the squad. Due to the injury of Léonard and the switch of Bosschaart to play for ADO Den Haag, Drenthe was awarded a chance, which he grabbed immediately. In a short time, Drenthe became a fans' favourite player, being one of the few positive highlights in again a disappointing season for the club.
After impressing at the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship by winning it and awarded as player of the tournament, he picked up attention from a number of clubs, including Chelsea and FC Barcelona.
Feyenoord didn't want to sell as Drenthe extended his running contract until 2011 in April 2007, but they eventually agreed to a €14 million bid by Real Madrid, after Drenthe decided to take his club to court if they did not want to let him go.

Real Madrid

Drenthe was presented as a Real Madrid player on August 13, 2007 along with fellow Dutchman Wesley Sneijder in a double player presentation at the Santiago Bernabeu. Drenthe made his official Real Madrid debut starting as a central midfielder in the second leg of the Supercopa de España against Sevilla. Drenthe scored the equalizer, similar to a Seedorf long range strike, which was struck from 30-40 yards out, hit the crossbar and the ball crossed the line. However, Real Madrid eventually lost the match 5-3 as Sevilla clinched the cup.
Drenthe played fairly regularly for Real Madrid as left-back or left midfielder at the beginning of the season, but due to the sudden development of Brazilian left-back Marcelo, Drenthe's playing time has become limited. In the Dutch media, there were several reports of clashes between Drenthe and Real coach Bernd Schuster, after the German decided to keep Drenthe out of the squad for several matches, meaning that Drenthe had to sit in the stands instead of the bench. After being left out of the game against Valencia, Drenthe stormed angrily out of the training ground of Real. But after making several appearances since, he was ready to serve his best for Real Madrid. During a match against Real Valladolid, he performed really well by providing an assist to Guti's goal and scoring his first league goal. He has been linked with a move to AS Roma, and to Quique Flores' Benfica, on loan.
Despite rumours of Drenthe leaving the club on loan, he has featured in 15 of Real Madrid first 18 games of the 2008/2009 season, starting the last three games and giving creditable performances despite the clubs inconsistent form and major injury problems. Although recently the Dutch ace has been suffering from anxiety since he was booed by his own supporters during Real's 1-0 win at home to Deportivo La Coruna and has not featured since, although current manager Juande Ramos has given Drenthe his support and insists he will help the young winger
The Real Madrid coach has since revealed that Drenthe asked not to be picked for the three games after the Deportivo fixture.

International career

After the 2006-07 season, Drenthe was called up by Netherlands national under-21 football team coach, Foppe de Haan, to be part of his squad for the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, which was held in the Netherlands. Drenthe was one of the most important players in the second consecutive title of the competition for the Jong Oranje, being chosen by UEFA as player of the tournament.

Mahamadou Diarra (born 18 May 1981 in Bamako, Mali) is a Malian football defensive midfielder who signed for Real Madrid in the summer of 2006. Diarra has played over 20 international matches for the Mali national team.

Early career

Diarra started his career with Greek side OFI Crete and Dutch side Vitesse. He played for French club Olympique Lyonnais (Lyon) from 2002 until 2006, winning four Ligue 1 titles. Diarra was compared to top French midfielders like Patrick Vieira and Claude Makélélé and established himself as one of the top defensive midfielders in the game. Many people who have worked with him, including former Vitesse manager Ronald Koeman, felt that Diarra had the potential to succeed at the highest sporting level, but that he needed to learn how to control his strong temperament.

Real Madrid

He was rated very highly by Lyon manager Gérard Houllier, who said that Diarra would not be leaving Lyon cheaply. His €40 million price tag matched the price Chelsea F.C. paid Lyon for Michael Essien in the summer 2005. Real Madrid joined in the race to sign Diarra, along with Manchester United, and on 18 August 2006 Real Madrid reached an agreement with Lyon for €26 million. On 22 August, he was unveiled at the Santiago Bernabeu by Real Madrid president Ramón Calderón, and he was assigned the number 6 shirt; Iván Helguera's prior season shirt number. Two months later, Calderón said: "I admit he wasn't the best player we could sign, but Fabio asked us to sign him and that's what we did"
In the 2006-2007 season, Diarra was a staple player in Real Madrid coach Fabio Capello's 2-defensive midfielder system; however, a string of poor results saw Diarra relegated to the bench in favour of a new system. Guti, a more offensive-minded midfielder replaced him, while Capello favored Brazilian Emerson in the defensive position. By mid-December, Diarra, complaining about lack of playing time, found himself a regular on the Real Madrid bench. In May 2007 Diarra was linked with a summer move to Italian side AC Milan. In the final game of the season, however, Diarra headed in a match-winning goal in Madrid's come-from-behind victory over Real Mallorca. Diarra put in a strong overall performance in the match, which Madrid went on to win 3-1. The victory saw Madrid win La Liga and end its longest trophy drought in half a century. Diarra was supposed to be playing for Mali instead of Madrid in the last match of the season, but FIFA ordered him to play for Madrid in that game.
He played a pivotal role in the 2007-08 league success under coach Bernd Schuster, and established himself as the first-choice defensive midfielder, causing teammate Fernando Gago to play higher up field.
In October of 2008, while playing an international fixture against Chad, Diarra was stretched off the field after receiving a blow to his knee. He was rested for a month but made another appearance in late November, but was forced to go under the knife after he aggrevated his knee once more. He has since been ruled out for the rest of the season due to his injury. He was de-registered from Real Madrid's first team and his number 6 was given to new signing Lassana Diarra.

José María Gutiérrez Hernández, commonly known as Guti (born October 31, 1976 in Madrid), is a Spanish football player who currently plays for Real Madrid, where he has played his entire career. Alongside Raúl González and Iker Casillas, he serves as vice-captain.

Club career

As a child Guti was interested in tennis and books. He began playing for Real Madrid in 1986 in the cantera, initially as a striker, but was later moved to midfield, and has remained there ever since. He is one of the few players in the first team to have gone through the ranks of the Real Madrid youth academy. On December 2, 1995 he made his first-team debut against Sevilla FC, with Real Madrid winning 4-1. He finished the season with 1 goal in 9 appearances.
In 1997 Guti added two trophies to his cabinet, the league and the Spanish Supercup. He played 17 games that season, scoring once. Guti was again called upon to help the U-21 side lift the European cup in 1998. This capped off a brilliant season with Madrid as well after they won the UEFA Champions League and the Intercontinental Cup.
The 1999-2000 season started badly for Guti: struggling with the responsibility of replacing Clarence Seedorf, and was sent off at FIFA Club World Championship against Raja Casablanca for kicking a fallen adversary. In that season, in which he also captured the Champions League, he scored 6 goals in 28 games. The following year he had his best scoring season for Madrid, 14 goals in 31 games, playing most of the season as a striker, due to injuries to Fernando Morientes, contributing greatly to Madrid's 27th league title and subsequently another Spanish Supercup.
After the purchase of Brazilian Ronaldo in 2002, Guti returned to midfield, and his goalscoring rate went down drastically. During the next two seasons he would score 8 goals in 63 games. Along with the goals came another Champions League, a UEFA Supercup, and an Intercontinental Cup. In 2003, he added another domestic Supercup.
During 2004-05, Guti had his lowest season in terms of goal scoring, as he failed to score for the first time in seven seasons with the first team. He only managed to score a goal, in an international against San Marino in February 2005. In 2005-06, he played 43 games and scored 6 goals (4 in the league and 2 in Champions League).
With the election of Ramón Calderón as club president and his subsequent vow to bring AC Milan's Brazilian star Kaká to Real Madrid, Guti's future at the Bernabéu appeared insecure. He was linked with a move away from the merengues, and cross-town rivals Atlético Madrid showed a keen interest in getting his services. In the end, Guti decided to stay with Real while Kaká stayed in Italy.
With Zinedine Zidane retired, Guti found himself as the creative playmaker for 2006-07, his preferred position. His excellent short and through pass abilities, especially a performance in a May 6, 2007 3-2 home win against Sevilla, in which he played just 32 minutes from the bench, contributed to many of the goals which helped Real Madrid become league champions for the 30th time.
On February 10, 2008, Guti had two goals and four assists in a home game against Real Valladolid for which he was awarded the man of the match. Real Madrid won the game 7-0, and ultimately lifted another champions trophy. On September 14, he scored Real Madrid's 5000th league goal, in a 4-3 win over CD Numancia.

International career

A Spanish international since May 5, 1999 (Spain-Croatia, 3-1), Guti nevertheless failed to appear in any tournament's final stage for his country. This fuels rumors he has had a falling out with Spanish football officials.
Previously, he won the UEFA U-19 Championship in 1995, followed by the 1998 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship.

Daniel Parejo Muñoz (born April 16, 1989 in Coslada, Madrid) is a Spanish professional footballer. He is a central midfielder, plays currently for Spanish giants Real Madrid.

Club career

Parejo is a product of Real Madrid's youth academy. Then coach Bernd Schuster was impressed by the youngster and called him up to train with the senior team on several occasions.
On 4 August, 2008, Parejo signed a one-year loan deal with English Championship side Queens Park Rangers, and made his QPR debut five days later, coming off the bench in the 2-1 victory over Barnsley at Loftus Road. Parejo made 18 appearances for QPR.
On 17 December, 2008, Real Madrid recalled him from loan effective January 1, 2009, after first-team midfielders Ruben de la Red and Mahamadou Diarra were both out for the season with injuries. Parejo was given the squad number 17, which had previously been assigned to striker Ruud van Nistelrooy who is also out injured for the rest of the season.

National Team

Parejo had been recently called up for the under-21 squad. He has played in several qualification matches for the 2009 UEFA European U-21 Championship.

Rubén de la Red Gutiérrez (born June 5, 1985 in Móstoles, Madrid), is a Spanish football midfielder who plays for Real Madrid.

Club career

Rubén De la Red arrived at the Real Madrid youth system when he was 14, being the youngest in Cadete B. At one point, he was transferred to CD Móstoles after being told he was not good enough, but was soon re-signed by Madrid. After his fourth season with the club, youth coach Quique Sánchez Flores, who was moving to Getafe CF, wanted De la Red to join him at his new club, but Madrid turned him down. De la Red said: "It is a pride that Quique was interested so much in me, but for me Real Madrid is the number one choice, that is clear; everything else comes afterwards".
Rubén De la Red made his first-team debut on November 10, 2004 against CD Tenerife in the Copa del Rey. During the 2006-07 season, he was also called-up to the main squad by then-manager Fabio Capello, along with teammates Miguel Torres and Miguel Ángel Nieto, and made seven appearances during the league-winning campaign. After the end of the season, the midfielder renewed his contract until 2011.
On August 31, 2007, de la Red was transferred to Getafe, with Real Madrid having an option to re-buy the next two years. There, he established himself as an important first team player, usually assuming the role of playmaker, having been joined at Getafe by another Real Madrid canterano, Esteban Granero, who arrived on loan. During the season, he was forced, due to injuries to teammates, to perform as centre back, notably in the UEFA Cup tie against Bayern Munich, in which second leg he was sent off in the 6th minute.
Real Madrid president Ramón Calderón confirmed in May 2008 that, along with Granero and Javi García, De la Red would return to the Bernabéu for the 2008–09 season. It was suggested that Ivan could be used in a swap deal involving a number of potential targets, although the then Real Madrid coach Bernd Schuster stated that he was willing to give the midfielder a chance to impress in his team.
He scored his first goal for the club since returning on August 24, 2008, in the Spanish Supercup final (second leg) against Valencia CF, with an astounding long-range effort.He also scored his first La Liga goal for the club on September 21, 2008, against Racing de Santander.
On October 30, 2008, he was hospitalised after collapsing during a Copa del Rey match against Real Union. He suffered an effort syncope.
He has a five month old son with his wife. He honors his son with a thumb-sucking goal celebration.
On December 12, 2008, Real Madrid stated that De La Red will sit out the rest of the 2008–09 season as a precaution.

International career

De la Red played for the U-21 team before being called up by the senior team for a March 26, 2008 friendly against Italy, but did not debut. Uncapped, he was named in the nation's squad of 23 for Euro 2008 by coach Luis Aragonés, but would appear in two friendly games against Peru and USA prior to the continental competition.
During the tournament's final group stage match, De la Red scored his first international goal with a powerful strike against Greece, on June 18. Spain won 2-1.

Julien Faubert (born 1 August 1983) is a French footballer who plays for Real Madrid as a midfielder, on loan from West Ham United.

Cannes and Bordeaux

Born in Le Havre, Faubert enrolled in the AS Cannes academy in 1998 and began his career as a right back, but with his crossing ability quickly became a right winger. He made his Cannes first team debut in the 2001–02 season at the age of 18. He steadily earned notoriety as an important member of the squad and eventually caught the eye of several Ligue 1 sides. Bordeaux signed him in 2004, with whom he played in 96 matches, including the UEFA Champions League.

West Ham United

On 23 June 2007, it was reported in French sports newspaper L'Équipe that Faubert was on the verge of a €6.5 million (£4.3 million) transfer to Rangers. However, on 1 July, he was signed by West Ham United for £6.1 million. He suffered a ruptured achilles tendon during a pre-season friendly on 17 July against Czech Republic side Sigma Olomouc, which was expected to take six months to heal. As part of his comeback Faubert turned out for the reserves against Aston Villa's reserve team in January 2008. He finally made his first team debut for the Hammers as a late substitute against Fulham at Upton Park on 12 January 2008. His first season in English football was marked by continuing injury and he made only eight appearances in the league and FA Cup.
Faubert was given permission to speak to Real Madrid on 30 January 2009, with the move being completed on 31 January, when he signed on loan until the end of the 2008–09 season for a reported fee of £1.5 million with an option for Real to purchase him on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee. Faubert made his Real Madrid debut on 7 February 2009 in a 1–0 win against Racing Santander

International career

Faubert made his debut for France on 16 August 2006 against Bosnia and Herzegovina. He wore the number 10 shirt; the first player to do so for France since the retirement of Zinadine Zidane. He marked his first match by scoring in the final minute of the game to ensure France won 2–1.

Rafael Ferdinand van der Vaart (born February 11, 1983 in Heemskerk) is a Dutch footballer who plays for Spanish La Liga side Real Madrid and the Dutch national team. He is an attacking midfielder but usually functions as a playmaker. Despite not being a striker, van der Vaart does have a knack for scoring vital goals, scoring 29 in 74 games for former club Hamburg.

Ajax Amsterdam

Van der Vaart is a product of Ajax's youth system that produced Johan Cruijff, Edwin van der Sar, Dennis Bergkamp and Real Madrid teammate Wesley Sneijder. Initially he signed for Ajax on a trial basis as a ten-year-old but was eventually enrolled permanently after impressing the coaches. At the age of seventeen, van der Vaart made his debut for the Ajax senior side in a 1-1 draw with Den Bosch in the 1999–00 season.
In the 2000–01 season, Ajax coach Co Adriaanse increased van der Vaart's playing time by moving him to the attacking midfielder position. He was voted as European Talent of the Year by Italian football website CalcioManager.
The next season, van der Vaart suffered a serious knee injury and was out for several months. Shortly after returning to action, he reinjured the same knee on April 2, 2002, requiring an operation that involved the removal of his entire meniscus. He missed the rest of the season and finished with fourteen goals. In 2002–03, Ajax won the Amsterdam Tournament, though injury limited van der Vaart to twenty-one league appearances, in which he scored eighteen goals.
van der Vaart was named team captain by coach Ronald Koeman for the 2004–05 season. During an international match against Sweden on August 18, 2004, he was injured by then Ajax teammate Zlatan Ibrahimović which led to the sale of Ibrahimović to Juventus two weeks later following controversial accusations that Ibra had intentionally tried to hurt van der Vaart. As a result, van der Vaart took Ibra's spot as a striker. His on-pitch performance suffered due to being played out of position and he was stripped of the team captaincy by Koeman as a result, while the media criticized him for being overweight and spending too much time in the Dutch nightlife with his then-fiancée, The Music Factory VJ Sylvie Meis. In September, a league match against Den Haag was temporarily halted by the officials due to incessant anti-Semitic chants by opposing fans directed at Meis. The incident, coupled with his ongoing injury problems that resulted in an average of only 23 league appearances in five seasons with Ajax, led him to announce that he was leaving the club at the end of the year.

Hamburg

van der Vaart's €5.5 million transfer to Bundesliga club Hamburg on June 1, 2005, raised many eyebrows. Many other top-flight clubs had shown interest in the midfielder but he chose Hamburg. The Ajax legend Johan Cruyff himself commented in his De Telegraaf column, "I don't know what to say about it or what Rafael van der Vaart is doing in Hamburg." Van der Vaart finished his first season as the team's top scorer as Hamburg finished third in the league and won the 2005 UEFA Intertoto Cup. He assumed the team captaincy for the '06–07 season.
In the 2007–08 season, van der Vaart scored 12 league goals as Hamburg finished fourth in the league, while reaching the round of sixteen in the UEFA Cup. During the UEFA Cup away win at Zürich, he tore ankle ligaments and was out of action for several weeks. Despite interest from clubs such as Chelsea and Valencia, he stated that he would stay at Hamburg until the end of the season, but opted out of signing a contract extension.

Real Madrid

van der Vaart in action for Real Madrid.Towards the end of the 2007-2008 season, van der Vaart was linked to a move to several clubs including Atlético Madrid and Juventus. Atlético made a €15 million bid for the Dutchman, which Hamburg rejected, and in the end it was their cross-town rivals who got van der Vaart's signature instead.
On August 4, 2008, Real Madrid and Hamburg reached a €13 million agreement for van der Vaart's transfer, Real Madrid's only summer signing. He signed a five-year contract for an undisclosed amount. Van der Vaart debuted in a 2-1 preseason win four days later in a pre-season friendly against Independiente Santa Fé, where he scored the tying goal and provided an assist. He changed his squad number from 19 to his favored number 23 after teammate Wesley Sneijder took number 10 following Robinho's August 31 departure to Manchester City, He marked his league debut for Real Madrid with a strike against Numancia in a 4–3 victory. On September 24, he scored his first career hat-trick in a 7–1 thrashing of Sporting Gijón.
He has more recently again being linked with a move to Chelsea in the summer mainly due to being fallen out of favour with current coach Juande Ramos.

International career

Rafael van der Vaart gained the notice of the youth team coaches and was called up for the youth squads. He played in the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship with present senior teammates Stekelenburg and Heitinga and Real Madrid teammates Arjen Robben and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.
The 18-year-old van der Vaart then made his senior international debut against Andorra on October 6 2001. He was a member of the squads that participated in Euro 2004, Euro 2008, and the 2006 World Cup. Despite figuring prominently in a number of qualifying stage matches, van der Vaart has had a lack of luck when it came to the final tournament. A sub-par performance by the Dutch during their opening game of Euro 2004 persuaded former manager Dick Advocaat to change the side's formation into one which he felt the talented van der Vaart did not fit in to. With Advocaat's new system seemingly working, van der Vaart would be reduced to play a bit-part role at Euro 2004, as the Oranje reached the semifinals. Despite that setback, van der Vaart produced some superlative performances in the Bundesliga the following season, and it seemed that van der Vaart's turn to shine on the big stage was to finally come — at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. However, niggling injury problems resurfaced, and van der Vaart was not risked by Dutch coach Marco van Basten for the opening World Cup encounter against Serbia and Montenegro. With victory in that opening game, the national team coach would once again decide to continue fielding a van der Vaart-less lineup. And once again, Rafael van der Vaart was reduced to a bit-part role in the squad although since then he has become a more regular fixture in the starting eleven.
Van der Vaart was called up for Euro 2008 despite missing several qualification matches due to an ankle injury. As coach Marco van Basten had decided to change their formation to 4-2-3-1, van der Vaart was deployed in the midfield along with Wesley Sneijder and Dirk Kuyt or Robin van Persie behind lone striker Ruud van Nistelrooy. In the opening game of the competition, the Dutch team won 3–0 against the world champions Italy. Van Basten decided to field him again in the starting line-up in the next match against France, the Oranje later went on to win 4–1.
Van der Vaart has remained a first-choice player for van Basten's successor Bert van Marwijk in the 2010 World Cup qualifiers. On September 10, he ended a 10-month goal drought with a vital strike against Macedonia during a qualifying match which the Dutch won 2-1.