Part 1: Players to watch out for in the UEFA Champions League
The Champions League, is about to kick off. After the draws last night, all teams and players have started preparing themselves, for what is quite possibly the greatest sporting event in the history of football. Here is a look at some of the players who will be looking to impress during the tournament and would be the players the fans should watch out for.
Wesley Sneijder: Quite possibly one of the greatest players to every come out of Netherlands is Wesley Sneijder. He is a player who seems to have it all built into him. He possesses pace, Sublime passing skills, amazing set piece deliveries, he is ruthless at keeping possession for his team and the best of all is the footballing brain that he is gifted with, it is quite possibly one of the best in the world. However what sets him apart from the rest, is his ability to synchronize his mental vision with his physical footwork. It is that ability that truly makes Sneijder a World Class footballer.
Sneijder was brought up and trained by the Ajax football academy, which is probably one of the best in the world. He is able to play equally well with both his feet and with the Total Football style of play embedded in his genes, he is able to play almost anywhere on the field.
Snijeder’s lightining quick reflexes and his ambidexterity are enough to strike fear into any defence the player faces. It is almost impossible to judge what the player will do next. He can either play a killer ball without anyone finding out or he can construct a wonderful move after a series of short passes.
Even though he possessed all of these attributes, Real Madrid failed to realize his potential and offloaded the player to Inter Milan. This was one of the most ridiculous transfers ever to take place in footballing history.
Even though the then coach of Real Madrid, Manuel Pellegrini, admitted to the Dutch player being a part of his plans for the future, he was still sold to the Italian giants and to a more than thankful, Jose Mourinho.
After feeling he had been treated wrongly and with a hunger for vengeance, Sneijder tapped into an infinite source of raw talent. This urge from Sneijder to perform even better, saw Inter Milan make history and win the first ever treble, in the clubs history. It was a treble that included winning the Champions league and saw them defeat the likes of Barcelona on their way to doing so.
On the national side he has found a manager who is more than happy to make Sneijder the main man in the Dutch squad, he has even gone on to say, "we've not had such a decisive player for Holland since Cruyff".
Sneijder has now already scored four goals at the World Cup, all of those goals have been crucial for his team. He was also a contender for the golden boot, being a midfielder, that is a remarkable feat on its own.
Sneijder may not have the dribbling skills that Lionel Messi possesses or the Pace that Cristiano Ronaldo does, but that being said, there are hardly any other players who could even come close to being half as good as Sneijder.
Sneijder is the only player at this moment in time who actually deserves the title of being the best player in the world, giving any one else that name or trophy would be absurd and a crime against football itself.
The player will however be looking to, build on his already solid reputation once the Champions League season kicks off. Having been voted the greatest footballer of the year on numerous websites already such as goal.com, the player will be looking to maintain his reputation once the Champions League kicks off.
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