Who do you think is going to be the most valuable football player in the next 5 years

The football world has quite a few amazing upcoming talents that will be valued a lot more in the next 5 years. These are my top picks:

Benjamin Pavard

The 22 year old centre-back took Stuttgart to promotion in 2016/17 and has prospered this past season, helping France to become world champions - being out of position at right-back, and scoring a screamer against Argentina.

Lucas Torreira

One of Uruguay's next generation of midfielders who was outstanding for Sampdoria and is a multi-talented midfielder with great tenacity and tackling. His good use of the ball should not be ignored either. Such players don't come cheap, costing Arsenal around €30 million, and will only go on to become more valuable.

Ryan Sessegnon

With a tender age of just 18 and already being called“The future of English football” is something special. It is not common for a teenager to be a key player, who largely plays as a full-back. He is a bundle of energy down the left side combining an incredible work ethic with football intelligence. In 58 first-team appearances he has scored 14 times, including a double this season from left-back and a hat-trick when played further forward, while providing a number of assists.

He’s already one of the best and most pivotal players for the Fulham side. Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea have all shown serious interest in him.

Whether Sessegnon ends up a left-back remains to be seen. He's a better offensive player at this stage but in the hands of a good developmental coach, he can rise to the top.

Christian Pulisic

A 19 year old American who’s been attracting Chelsea,Liverpool,Bayern Munich and even Barcelona’s interest. He’s been setting records left and right. By the time he was 19, Pulisic had played 60 club games, scored nine goals and represented his country 18 times, with seven goals – bettering both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.He’s already the best player on the national team and he’s only 19.

Justin Kluivert

Recently signed for A.S. Roma, the youngster is destined to superstardom. A prodigious talent who has already forced his way into the Netherlands squad. Player of such lethal speed and wonderful skill is what landed him the big move in the first place.

Edit: Frenkie De Jong(Credits to Azrin Noor)

The Dutch midfielder has been somewhat of a revelation to the footballing world lately. A player with good control, smooth dribbles and dangerous passes, who can also dictate games, eager to go forward and can cut through several opponents with one quick move. With some even comparing his style to that of German legend Franz Beckenbauer.

De Jong is heavily linked to bigger clubs, especially Barcelona(surprise surprise). He was shifted into midfield because of his offensive style.But even when he plays in the middle third, he still drops deep and pushes the same aggressive ball movement.

Which sport will be the first to be abolished and why

“Abolished” is an interesting word.

Abolished implies that the sport is actively ended—that its governing body decided to fold and no longer sponsor official competitions. This may be due to lack of popularity, or because the federation finds it to be too flawed in some way.

It’s slightly different than a sport dying. A sport dying means that its popularity has waned and that very few people play it—eventually, there will be no one that plays it. I can think of a few sports that will die out, real tennis being one of them. However, a sport dying would eventually see its governing body fold, meaning it would be “abolished.”

Real tennis is vastly different than what you see on the ATP and WTA tours. The courts, which are generally indoors, are smaller and allow for closer viewing. From pictures, the courts look uncomfortably confined, almost as if a racquetball court and tennis court were combined. The ball is smaller, made of cork, and has fabric tightly wound around it. Unlike modern tennis, real tennis balls can bounce more than once, though I haven’t read enough to accurately say when this can happen and when it cannot. The ball can hit the wall and then returned. The video[1] I watched was short, but the racquet swings reminded me of slicing in tennis.

Melbourne Cricket Club

Modern tennis is often described as an “elite sport” because of the cost and the association with country clubs. Real tennis takes this further, with only have 43 courts left in existence. More than half are in the United Kingdom, so access is limited. They are almost all located in private clubs.

The most recently built real tennis courts were in Wellington College in 2016. It’s a private high school (I think that’s what a high school is called in England) that costs anywhere from £9,680 to £13,250 per term. Not exactly accessible—even if it was, I doubt there are actually many students looking to play real tennis.

Eventually, no one is going to be playing real tennis. It will be a museum memory like jeu de paume, the prototype to all racquet sports.

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EDIT: If any of you Brits are wondering where I got the term “private high school” from, I got it by following links on Wikipedia.

Call me a dumb (or perhaps stubborn) American, but that was the equivalent I could come up with at the time. “Public School” may be the correct term, but it sounds too odd as an American, because that phrase is the equivalent of “state school” in the US. Private is private, no matter where you are.

What is the India football history

At a press conference,after India lost 2:1 to France at the 1948 London Olympics football match, the captain(Talumeren Ao) was asked why India played barefoot, he replied with wits “Well you see, we play “ football” in India, whereas you play “BOOTBALL”.

He was really applauded by the British after his wonderful but witty remarks, and the next day, that comment was splashed in all of London's newspapers.

We all know the story and how FIFA banned playing football barefooted the next year.While some erroneously believed India didn't play the 1950 FIFA world cup held in Brazil because they wanted to play barefoot..

They didn't go because the India football association (AIFF) thought it wasn't necessary considering the expenses to fly all the way to Brazil, and India then valued Olympics to a football tournament; though the playing barefoot was just used as an excuse.

With regards to sports in India, its being said, “Cricket is a religion, but football is a way of life”But before cricket became the country's favourite(after the 1983 world cup win),

Football was a national sports in India at one time, it was an impetus to unify the Indian Army.

The same thing with England, but a reverse situation; Cricket was No 1 in england before football gradually took over, and now cricket No 2.

Many believe this is the likely part its going in India. Football will soon move from the number 2 sports to being the mumber 1.

A BRIEF HISTORY

It will shock a lot of people today to know that the Durand Cup in India ( founded by Mortimer Durand in 1888) is still the world 3rd oldest club competition in the world only behind English F.A cup and Scottish Cup.

I know what you are thinking…India,why India, and not the top European country competition.

India has a rich football history, no thanks to the British soldiers stationed in the Asian country and helped spread the new sport to every nook and cranny of the “Mystic land”But the big question is still,

What really happened to football in India?Imagine Calcutta F.C was the first club to be formed in India in 1872, while Mohun Began A.C founded in 1889 is now India’s oldest current team.

The India football association (IFA) was established in 1893, and legendary India player Gostha Paul led India to her first International football match victory 1:0 over Ceylon in 1933.

THE GOLDEN ERA(1951–1962)

India was Asian best team that period. They finished 4th place (in football games) in 1958 olympics in Australia.They defeated host Australia 4:2, and became the first Asian team to score in an international competition.

They were also the first Asian team to reach Olympics semifinals ( lost 4:1 to Yugoslavia in semi, and lost 3rd place to Bulgaria by 3:0)Indian finished 4th in Asian games, came 2nd in 1959 Merdeka Cup, and in 1962 defeated south Korea 2:1 to reach the finals.

THE DECLINE

Its strongly believed after India won the 1983 cricket world cup, an euphoria swept through the nation as cricket became a religion and the star players seem like gods.

THE SLEEPING GIANT AWAKENS

This new new millennium has seem a giant leap taken by the IFA to reposition football to its original rightful place as it was in the beginning.Taking over cricket as the number 1 sport might be a difficult task, but it has to start somewhere and someday.

With the introduction of the new ISL(Indian super league) in 2013 and players like Frederick Ljungberg, Nicholas Anelka, Del Piero gracing and playing in the league…

This has gotten the ISL worldwide attention, media coverage and sponsorship deals, with the newly league getting highest attendance in Asia and 5th highest in the world- You don't wanna joke with 1.2 billion people.

And one of the biggest feats is hosting the 2017 FIFA U-17 world cup with record attendance; they are already lobbying for hosting 2019 FIFA U-20.

Conclusion

Truly football is now a way of life. Go see a match of Kerala blasters and see thousands of supporters cheering the“Yellow submarines” to victory.

As more youths are involved from grassroots level with active government support, it won't be long before India plays its first FIFA world cup match.

My bet: 2026 world cup will take part in the copa Mundial.

BELIEVE THAT Universal Champion Roman Reigns shock cancer announcement is a wake-up call about what the Big Dog means to WWE and RAW

LAST night Roman Reigns announced that he was relinquishing the Universal Championship because he’s suffering from leukaemia – his second bout of the disease in 11 years.
The fans were stunned and showed their support for Reigns with chants of “Thank you Roman”.

Roman Reigns' cancer shock is a wake-up call to everyone about what he has done for the business.

Aside from the tragedy of a 33-year-old family man fighting a life-threatening illness, it was a wake-up call about what Roman means to pro-wrestling in 2018.

The night after WrestleMania 33 – when Reigns became only the second man to defeat The Undertaker on the grandest stage – Reigns stood silent as fans booed him for 12 minutes.

After 12 minutes of nuclear heat, Reigns lifted the mic and said: “This is my yard now.”

I was there that night. It was an amazing thing to witness – the defining moment in Reigns’ singles career.

The Big Dog revealed last night he has been diagnosed with leukaemia for a second time

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"I've been living with leukemia for 11 years, and unfortunately it's back...I'm going to have to relinquish the Universal Championship." - @WWERomanReigns #RAW

05:06 - 23 Oct 2018

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He has relinquished the Universal Title he won from Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam

More than pinning The Deadman 24 hours earlier. More than beating Triple H to become WWE Champion at Mania the year before. Or winning the Royal Rumble and headlining against Brock Lesnar the year before that.

It dawned on me that night in Orlando that Vince McMahon’s plan was  foolproof.

The more he pushed Reigns, the more he turned up the heat. In that moment – as he was booed mercilessly – Roman Reigns became a superstar.

Not just a superstar as WWE labels every one of its wrestlers, from top of the roster to the very, very bottom, but a legit superstar of sports entertainment.

As the handpicked hero of this generation, Reigns is “the guy” of this wrestling era. Like John Cena was the guy of the previous era. And Stone Cold and Hulk Hogan of the eras before that.

Of course, Reigns has been blighted with negative fan reactions since going solo from The Shield in 2014.

The fans were originally protesting against Vince and WWE booking, rather than Roman himself, but the boos had become venomous – even worse than Cena received at the height of his run. But we didn’t know how good we’ve had it with Roman Reigns.

He’s a true workhorse, far better than most gave him credit for, and someone with a genuine love for wrestling. Coming from the famous Anoa’i wrestling family, the business is in his blood. He’s a true fighting champion, with or without a belt.

Roman Reigns received more heat from the crowd than John Cena.

He’s a true workhorse, far better than most gave him credit for, and someone with a genuine love for wrestling. Coming from the famous Anoa’i wrestling family, the business is in his blood. He’s a true fighting champion, with or without a belt.

Which football player is most loyal to his club

Francesco Totti

Italian legend who has spent the past two decades at AS Roma. Considered to be one of the finest strikers at his peak. Loved by fans for his loyalty and hard work. At just 21, he was given the armband.

Carles Puyol

Barcelona legend Carles Puyol is known for his loyalty. A versatile player with tough tackling makes him a rock in defense. Since joining them, Puyol has won a handful of La Liga and UEFA Champions League trophies.

John Terry

John Terry has been one of the most loyal players of Premier League. He has been a part of the Blues for more than 15 years. Ever since he joined in 1998, Terry was a figure in Chelsea’s defense.

Javier Zanetti

For almost 20 years, Zanetti was a part of Inter Milan squad. He achieved legendary status among the fans. He can adapt to almost any position, playing more than 700 games for Inter. He’s also had the same haircut his whole career!

Steven Gerrard

Liverpool will never be forget this loyal soldier . For more than a decade, he was a first team choice for them. This midfield maestro has single-handedly taken his side to major titles and will go down as one of the finest Liverpool players of all time.

Edit: Paolo Maldini

One of the most legendary defenders football has ever had, who served Milan for 34 fricking years! Probably the most loyal player of football. A remarkable defender who rarely gets a step wrong and a natural born leader.

Ryan Giggs

One of the most decorated footballer in English history. The Welshman joined Manchester United at just 14 and went on to make a record appearance record of 963 matches! Hard to find someone so committed to one club like Giggs, rejecting big offers from clubs in the blink if an eye.

Is Rashid Khan solely responsible for the rise and impact of Afghanistan cricket team

Cricket is a team game. A single player may affect a team’s performance in a game or two. But not over the years.

Afghanistan Cricket has evolved unimaginably in the past half a decade. The credit for this can be given to its 3 main players.

1. Rashid Khan
2. Mohammad Shahzad
3. Mohammed Nabi

Mohammad Shahzad had contributed a lot to his national team. He gives a blasting start in most of the innings. He is one of the very few player who can make the ball cross the boundary in every direction of the ground. He is currently in the 6th position on the list of players to score most T20I runs. He is also a wicket-keeper, whose inspiration id MS Dhoni. It is a feast to watch his batting. He is the only player to score to international T20I half-centuries on a single day.

Mohammad Nabi, the handsome hunk of Afghanistan Cricket. Nabi is a Bowling all-rounder, who is famous for hitting the ball hard, coming down the batting order. He is also a great bowler, with a very good bowling average. Nabi has played in all the ODIs which were played by the Afghanistan Cricket Team. He is also the only player in the world to appear in all the first 100 ODI matches played by a team.

The Afghanistan Cricket team will ascent even more peaks in the near future with the advent of talented youngsters.

1. Mujeeb Ur Rahman
2. Najibullah Zadran

Unlike other international teams, Afghanistan has achieved the test status within a very short span, with their excellent performance in ODIs and T20Is. Hope we all witness the same in Test Cricket too.

Who is the most badass cricketer ever

This guy right here—

(Credit- Google Images)

Venue- SCG, Australia

Year- 2009

In that test match, Graeme Smith broke his left hand while playing a ball from Mitchell Johnson. What a lot of people don’t know is that he was also recuperating from an injured elbow that was also a victim of Mitchell Johnson.

He was retired hurt in the second innings.

There were 8.2 overs left for the day and with Smith retired hurt, Dale Steyn was cleaned up as the number 9 batsman. The Aussies believed they’d won the match and the celebrations erupted.

But then this happened-

(Credit- Google Images)

Smith appeared to come out of the visitors dressing room and started to pad up. He borrowed a shirt from Jacques Kallis and a pullover from Paul Harris. Amidst a wave of shock and disbelief from the commentators, the crowd erupted in adulation for the badassery that was about to be unleashed.

Smith joined Makhaya Ntini to try to salvage a draw for his team. They were still 118 runs away with 8.2 overs left so winning was not an option.

With a broken left hand, an injured elbow and his own blood injected into his right elbow, here was a man captaining his side who batted against Johnson who was breathing fire through his bowling. It can make anyone cringe to imagine what could have happened had the ball hit the injured parts of his body.

(Credit- Google Images)

Every defensive stroke was met with an ear-splitting cheer from the crowd. Every single run was celebrated like a victory lap. With just 2 overs remaining for the day, Smith was cleaned bowled.

(Credit- Google Images)

South Africa lost the match but the game of cricket witnessed a prime example of human endeavor, obsession, dedication and pure badassery.

“It shows how courageous he is and what kind of person he is. How many people would do that for their team?" - Ricky Ponting

Why did the West Indies cricket go down

The West Indies cricket team is the owner of many myths. One of the most prevalent ones is the status of the all-conquering teams of the 1970s and 1980s - it has reached the point where all perspective is lost. They were unstoppable and had no weaknesses. The recently-concluded series in the Caribbean between West Indies and India had more TV coverage of Sir Vivian Richards, Joel Garner and Michael Holding than it had of any of the players taking part in it.

But it isn't just in the past where the West Indies has cricketing myths. There is another one that is talked about so often that people assume it is true, and it is a lot more pernicious than ones about brilliant teams of the past - that cricket in the region is dying.

There are innumerable examples of the sport being in rude health in the region, and none more emphatic than the Test team's displays. This year, West Indies won three global tournaments - the men's World T20, the women's World T20 and the under-19 World Cup. To suggest that Caribbean cricket is in some sort of perilous state in the face of that level of success is a touch ridiculous.

That is not to say that there are no issues facing the sport. Governance of cricket in the West Indies has been making headlines for years now, not least when Dwayne Bravo led a player revolt in India in October 2014 that saw the tour abandoned. The ripples from the shockwaves that event caused are still being felt, with the breakdown in relationships that it caused having never been fully repaired.

That hugely public spat has seen the fractures that existed between the best cricketers in the West Indies, their board and the players union go from difficult to unworkable. It has seen Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russell, Jerome Taylor and Darren Sammy became freelance players that pick and choose when they play for their international team. That choice is very rarely one that includes Test cricket. It has been two years since Gayle played a Test, while Dwayne Bravo, after waiting for more than four years for a Test recall, pulled down the curtains on his career in the longest format.

Why is cricket not played at the Olympics

Cricket was once an Olympic sport. The emphasis has to be put on the word “once” because:

• It was only included in one Olympic Games (back in 1900) and
• Only one match was played because the competition consisted of only two teams (England and France) - meaning that the English team of 1900 won the Olympic gold after having played and won only a single match and the French team (having lost the only match that they played), still walked away with a silver medal - not bad for a 100% loss rate!

Saying that, there has been more recent efforts to bring it back as an Olympic sport, especially following the growing interest and success in the twenty20 format.

It really began mid-2017, when the CEO of the ICC has officially gone on the record stating that it’s time for cricket to return to the Olympics and unlike previously, he was faced with considerably less opposition from the English and Indian Cricket Boards (the most powerful and historically most opposed to the idea of cricket returning to the Olympics).

Then in 2018, things continued to heat up even further:

• First the governing International Cricket Council confirmed that most of its members backed the inclusion of the 20-overs format in Olympic Games.
• Then for the first time ever, the ICC CEO put a date on our expectations when he mentioned the 2028 Olympic Games as a possibility.
• Finally, former cricket heavyweights (Sri Lankan player Kumar Sangakkara and West Indian legend Brian Lara) both voiced their opinions and they were heavily in favour of it happening. Lara in fact believed it could happen as early as 2024 Games whilst Sangakkara was less optimistic about the possibility of participating in 2024 Games but in no uncertain terms stated that crickets inclusion in the 2028 Olympic Games is a very realistic possibility.

So in conclusion, I firmly believe that the tide is turning, and more and more voices will join the chorus in the comming months and years.

For cricket to be included in the Olympic Games is no longer an “if” and much rather a “when”, and when that fantastic day arrives (and it will), I suspect it will most likely:

• be in the shortest and most exciting form of the game (I.e. twenty20) - much like Rugby has been introduced to the Olympics (in the shorter 7’s format instead of the standard 15 man teams);
• include both men’s and women’s teams (due to both equality considerations and the increasing popularity of women’s cricket)

So cross fingers - hopefully we’ll see it in there much sooner rather than later.