Ronaldinho shoots into comic book

WORLD footballer of the year Ronaldinho has become the second Brazil star to be immortalised on the pages of a comic book.

The smiling assassin, who won his second FIFA player of the year award earlier this month, was in Rio yesterday to help launch Ronaldinho Gaucho, a character blessed with the silky skills of the real-life superstar.

Brazil legend Pele is the only other footballer to have been given such superstar status in a comic called Pelezinho, or little Pele.

Ronaldinho's character is drawn with the same bucktoothed grin the player flashes every time he scores, and looks every brushstroke the same, with flowing black locks held back in a characteristic Alice band.

The character even wears a golden "R" pendant around his neck, just like the real thing.

The comic was developed by Mauricio de Souza, a renowned local artist who draws Monica And Her Gang, a top-selling comic book series in Brazil, and who also created the Pele comics.

"We got the idea (for Ronaldinho Gaucho) when we were watching a game on television. Then we went to the stadium to see his razzle-dazzle play," de Souza said.

Ronaldinho said he was honoured by the comic.

Australia will have the chance to play against the comic book hero when Ronaldinho dons the Brazil strip for his side's Group F fixture against the Socceroos on June 18 in Munich, Germany.

Kaká and Ronaldinho Nominated

The French newspaper, "L’Equipe", published yesterday their eleven players for the season 2005. There are notably two Brazilians, Kaká (Milan AC) and Ronaldinho (FC Barcelona).

Here are the eleven players chosen by the journalists of the newspaper:

Coupet (Lyon, France), Sagnol (Bayern München, Germany), Terry (Chelsea, England), Carragher (Liverpool, England), Maldini (Milan AC, Italy), Kaká (Milan AC, Italie), Lampard (Chelsea, England), Gerrard (Liverpool, England), Ronaldinho (FC Barcelona, Spain), Chevchenko (Milan AC, Italy) and Eto’o (FC Barcelona, Spain).

Ronaldinho congratulates T&T

Brazilian FIFA World "Player of the Year" Ronaldinho met up with FIFA Vice President Jack Warner in Zurich this week and in a brief appearance with top FIFA officials. Ronaldinho extended words of congratulations to Trinidad and Tobago on their qualification for the Germany 2006 World Cup as the smallest nation to ever reach that stage.

"Ronaldinho is by far a role model for everyone who loves the game of football and what a privilege it was to hear him say well done and good luck Trinidad (and Tobago) when I spoke to him after the (FIFA Gala Awards) ceremony," Warner told TTFF Media.

"He may not know too much about how Trinidad and Tobago plays but the fact that he is aware of us qualifying for a World Cup shows that people are taking note of it."Â

The CONCACAF President said he also expressed his regrets to the player on the late cancellation of a proposed friendly international against Brazil in March but is maintaining his hopes that T&T will have further opportunities for such big occasions.

"I'm the happiest man on earth - I play for a great team, I have lots of friends, people appreciate the way I play, they appreciate my club and I want to continue to give happiness," added the Barcelona star who scored a hat trick to help Brazil's Olympic team to a 7-0 win over T&T's Olympic team in a friendly encounter back in January, 2000.

Since the draw in Leipzig Warner said he had been getting congrats from persons in all corners.

 "I tell you that it has been truly amazing to see what qualifying for this World Cup has done for the country in terms of the recognition it is now getting," he said.

"Everywhere I go and my other officials from home who were at the draw, can tell you that all kinds of people have been saying how happy they are to see Trinidad and Tobago in the World Cup. They all want to know more about the country, they want to come to the country to see the people, the beaches the place on a whole, to experience the music and the culture.

And I have told them that we have all intentions of giving them a full taste of what we have to offer both on and off the playing field when we go to Germany in June."

Ronaldinho wins FIFA Player of the Year

Ronaldinho won the poll of national team coaches and captains with 960 points, easily outdistancing Lampard, who had 306 points. Eto'o, who plays alongside Ronaldinho at Barcelona, was third with 190.

"It's a huge joy to be able to keep up this high level of performance the last years and I hope to be able to come back here over and over again," Ronaldinho said.

Ronaldinho became the third player to win the award twice since its inception in 1991. Ronaldo of Brazil and Zinedine Zidane of France have taken the prize three times.

Brazilians have won the award seven of the 15 times it has been given. On Monday, FIFA honored Brazil as the best team for the fourth year in a row.

In May, Ronaldinho led Barcelona to its first Spanish league title in six years, and his 10 goals this season have helped the team return to the top of the standings. He has 34 league goals in 82 games since his arrival from Paris Saint-Germain in 2003, and another 13 in 19 games against European competition. Ronaldinho also spearheaded Brazil's Confederations Cup title, capped by a victory over Argentina in the final.

Lampard also finished second to Ronaldinho last month for the European Player of the Year award. The attacking midfielder for Chelsea played in every game of last year's Premier League-winning season - the Blues' first in 50 years.

Eto'o is the reigning African Player of the Year and leads the Spanish league with 15 goals.

"I find it positive to be seated here next to great players, who are part of the dream of thousands and thousands of Africans," Eto'o said. "Just a few years ago, I was kicking a ball in a street in Cameroon."

Prinz finished with 513 points while Marta had 429 and Boxx 235.

"Awards never are a bore," said Prinz, who has 90 goals in 143 international games for Germany.

Mia Hamm, who retired from professional soccer last year, finished runner-up to Prinz in 2003 and 2004 after winning the award the two previous years.

Ronaldinho tips Lions for fina

Barcelona's little Brazilian will be hoping to lead the charge for Brazil to claim their sixth crown, but says he expects Sven Goran Eriksson's side to be strong contenders for football's biggest prize.

"I respect all sides, but I think England will make the final in 2006," Ronaldinho has said.

"They are very strong and have a very good trainer, and I don't agree that they have inferior technique.

"I like Rooney, too. He is very promising and I think things will get better for him."

It was against The Three Lions that Ronaldinho made his mark on the world stage by scoring a sensational free-kick in the 2002 quarter final.

Ronaldinho to miss game against

Champions League favourites Barcelona will be missing Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto'o when they take on Udinese in their final group game on Wednesday.

The Udinese team was full of enthusiasm in their final training session before the match.

They know that a win or a draw will seal their spot in the last 16 in their first ever season in Europe's premier club competition.

Udinese will also be missing a star striker with Iaquinta, who scored a hat trick against Panthinaikos, has been ruled out with a bruised foot.

The home team will be boosted by the return of captain Valerio Bertotto and French defender Vincent Candela.

Group leaders Barcelona are already through with 13 points, Udinese have seven, and Panathinaikos and Werder Bremen have four points each.

If Werder Bremen beat Panathinaikos in the other game in Group C, they would only progress if Barcelona beat Udinese.

Villarreal vs Barcelona

Barcelona are one of the most in form teams in Europe, and if not, then the best team in Europe at the moment. Any team that has had to put up with the nightmare of facing them has failed miserably, including arch rivals Real Madrid who lost 3-0 to them a few weeks ago. In their entire season, Barcelona have managed to score 2 or more goals in all but two games, and in the whole of November, or their last 6 matches rather, they scored an aggregate 23 goals whilst conceding just 3. With world class talent they truly are looking like odds on favorites for all their competitions. The only injury problems Barceonla are having at the moment is in the midfield where both van Bommel and Xavi are missing. But with talent like Iniesta and Garcia, the midfield should serve fine, since the defence is looking fully fit, and top scorer Etoo and World player of the year, Ronaldinho have each other to supply their side of the scoresheet

Ronaldinho setting for another top gong?

Barcelona forward Ronaldinho is in line for another top accolade after soccer's world ruling body nominated the Brazilian among the contenders for the world player of the year.

Voted the Ballon d'Or (Golden Ball) - Europe's player of the year - in midweek, the 25-year-old silky smooth Ronaldinho is already Fifa's player of the year (2004).
However whether he can again hold of the likes of Chelsea's Frank Lampard and Barcelona team-mate Samuel Eto'o of Cameroon remains to be seen.

According to a Fifa statement on Wednesday, the votes have already been counted, and all three above players are in contention for Fifa's prize, the 15th edition of which will be announced on at the Zurich Opera house on December 19th.

Unlike the Ballon d'Or winner, who is nominated by 52 journalists - one each from Uefa's association countries - the Fifa award is chosen by the coaches and captains of national teams worldwide from a list made up by Fifa.

Women's soccer will also be honoured. Birgit Prinz, the winner in 2004, is again in contention.

Fifa's player of the year award has only been held for the past 14 years while the Ballon d'Or - considered by many on the continent as the bona fide footballer's prize - has run since 1956.

Ronaldinho joined the greats of world football on Monday when he won the prize with 225 points, 77 ahead of Lampard.

Red hot Ronaldinho

Ronaldinho should have had his fill of tributes by now but he must have allowed himself a wry celebration on Monday night. The inspiration of the enthrallingly exotic Barcelona side mounted the podium in a city where he once sat on the bench. The Brazilian was back in Paris to be enthroned as the 2005 European Footballer of the Year, the 50th winner of the Ballon d'Or. When he actually played in France, it was sometimes hard for him to come by a kind word, let alone an honour.

As Ronaldinho was being feted at a venue close to the Place de la Concorde he might just have thought back to a time when what he needed most was an injury to Romain Rocchi. The defensive midfielder, who now aims to fend off relegation for Ajaccio, was one of the players intermittently preferred to Ronaldinho in the Paris Saint-Germain line-up. The man now acclaimed by a continent was quite often denied the approval of his coach only two or three years ago.

A conciliatory Luis Fernandez, perhaps with tongue in cheek, now suggests that he was protecting a fragile talent by rationing his appearances. In fact he was annoyed and exasperated by Ronaldinho, who danced away from regulations as smoothly as he swerves past defenders. This was the sort of star who was forever rumoured to have dropped sleep from his schedule so that he could go direct from Parisian night spot to training ground. Gossip was no doubt on speaking terms with the truth.

It is certainly a matter of record that Ronaldinho returned days late from a trip to Rio. He was also snapped cursing Fernandez when he was substituted in a match with Nantes. Even in that period, though, the cameras could dote on him as well, especially when he scored in a 3-0 win at Marseille a goal that he recreated at an even grander venue 10 days ago. Breaking from his own half in the Bernabéu, he flowed past Iván Helguera and Sergio Ramos before planting a shot into the far corner of the net. A similar goal from him nudged Barcelona's margin of triumph to 3-0 and ripped acclaim out of the throats of the Real Madrid fans.

Nothing is beyond him now and he has even taken to making a stylish correction of any fleeting error. Ronaldinho did see a penalty saved on Sunday, but that failure merely set the stage for the one that was awarded later. The goalkeeper's reaction can only have amounted to a flicker of the eye as the ball was whipped high to his right in a 4-1 win over Racing Santander.