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Every week goal .com will be selecting a Player of the week. This week they have chosen Chelsea and Cot d’Ivoire forward Didier Drogba who scored a hat-trick on the opening day of the season.

According to Goal.com “It won’t necessarily be the best player in the world – at least not usually – but whoever we nominate will have done something amazing. It might be for a particularly awesome performance or for something praiseworthy off the pitch – either way, the person in question deserves special attention..”

Watch Chelsea 6  v West Bromwich 0



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Today the heavy hitters come out on  to the 2010 World Cup  stage today when  Brazil and Italy get involved in their involved in their group matches.

Five times World champions, Brazil are already are in position to advance to the Last 16, while the status of four-time champions, Italy, is uncertain. Oh, and throw African team Ivory Coast in as well.

Italy vs New Zealand

The Azzurri meet New Zealand (in Nelspruit) in their second game. The Azzurri put in a disjointed performance against Paraguay in their opening contest of the 2010 World Cup, having to come from behind to snatch a 1-1 draw.

Few sides shone in their first fixture and it would be foolish to write the Italians off so soon, but they will be well aware of the need to raise their game.Italy’s biggest concern heading into the game regards the fitness of goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon.

Brazil vs Ivory Coast

As we Africans are quickly running out of teams that may just get into the final 16, we are holding out for Cote de Ivore and a one-armed Drogba – cast and all. After all that is better than no Didier Drogba, isn’t it?

Sven Goran Eriksson’s African side are arguably the finest of the continent’s teams, and they will be relying on the fitness of star striker Didier Drogba to give them the cutting edge in attack. He may even start despite his injury.

So we have the Brazillians hoping for a win over Ivory Coast (in Johannesburg) in Group G ., which will boost them into the second round.

Predictions for Today’s Matches – Group E and Group F

I went to peek at my friend Mikes blog to see his predictions for today – he is a footy writer from England -  so take a look at his predictions for

Group E and Group F games featuring Italy, Brazil and the Ivory Coast

Slovakia takes on Paraguay in the other Group F match (in Bloemfontein).

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Didier Drogba and Rio Ferdinand were taken out of the 2010 World Cup yesterday because of injuries. They are only two of the top players who will be missing this years finals – is this a World Cup Curse?

The 2010 World Cup kicks off in one week at Soccer City with a match between hosts South Africa and Mexico. Sadly, due to the so-called World Cup Curse, many die-hard fans will be unable to cheer on their favorite footballers this year due several top players being ruled out of the competition.

Here we are talking about those who have been totally ruled out. There are still a number of key players who are struggling to be fit in time for the competition

We know and understand that for top-class athletes, injuries are a part of the game. However, what happens when they come to a week before the 2010 FIFA World Cup? Yesterday must have been the unluckiest 4 June in soccer history because both England captain, Rio Ferdinand, and Ivory Coast star forward Didier Drogba were felled by opposing players. (The injuries occurred in a pre-tournament practice and a friendly game, respectively.)

World Cup Curse or End of Season Exhaustion

Mark Meadows at Reuters sees the injuries as an inevitable part of pre-World Cup protocol, noting that soccer players, just coming off of their regular season are tired and overworked. He says, “Footballers are bound to be tired after a long season and tweaks are to be expected, it’s the curse of the World Cup itself coming at the end of the soccer year for many nations.

He adds a warning for Bafana Bafana, who are playing Denmark today in their last international friendly. “Is there something amiss here? Are players trying too hard in friendlies and training? I reckon teams in the remaining friendlies will be thinking again before launching into any risky tackles.”

Rio Ferdinand – England (Captain)

Rio Ferdinand has never looked in good condition this season. A back injury limited Ferdinand to only 13 Premier League appearances for Manchester United this past season and now, in a gentle warm up IN South Africa – on a perfect pitch,  Ferdinand injured his knee on a challenge from teammate Emile Heskey during a training session on June 4th – England

Didier Drogba – Ivory Coast

The English Premier League’s top scorer for the 2009-10 season fractured his elbow during a friendly with Japan on June 4 and has been ruled out of the World Cup.

Drogba had just scored for the Ivory Coast when he was injured in a clash with Japanese centre back Tulio and left the pitch in the 15th minute

Michael Essien – Ghana (Captain)

Yet another captain who will miss the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Michael Ballack’s Chelsea teammate was officially ruled out of the competition on May 27 after learning he would not fully recover from his knee injury until the end of July.

The loss of Michael Essien spells bad news for Ghana, who is drawn into Group D alongside Germany, Serbia, and Australia.

David Beckham – England

David Beckham probably would not have started for the Three Lions, the reason why he is our first entry. His dreams of becoming the only Englishman to ever compete in four World Cups came to a grinding halt when the world’s most recognizable athlete tore his Achilles tendon while playing for AC Milan.

René Adler – Germany

René Adler became the first choice keeper during Germany’s World Cup qualifying campaign following the retirement of Jens Lehmann and Robert Enke’s suicide.

Now head coach Joachim Löw will have to make due without his No. 1 in South Africa because Adler received a serious rib injury back in April.

Michael Ballack – Germany (Captain)

Michael Ballack, Germany Captain, was ruled out of the World Cup after tearing his medial collateral ligament during Chelsea’s FA Cup Final win over Portsmouth on May 15. This means that Germany lost their captain and their No1 goalkeeper to injuries.

Charlie Davis – USA

Although he is by no means a world-class striker, he was still one of the best the United States had to offer. Coach Bob Bradley had just started to enjoy some success pairing Charlie Davies with the young Jozy Altidore up front when USA suffered this devastating loss.

On October 13, 2009—the night before the Yanks were scheduled to play Costa Rica in a CONCACAF World Cup Qualifier—Davies was involved in a fatal automobile accident that claimed the life of the other passenger.

He worked hard to recover in time for the World Cup but Bradley left him off of the roster when Davies’ club, French side Sochaux, failed to grant him medical clearance.

Source: bleacher report

PHOTO: Ivory Coast’s Didier Drogba lies injured during the international friendly soccer match against Japan in Sion June 4, 2010. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse

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World Cup Mania is building up as we lead up to the biggest sporting spectacular in the world. It is only a couple of weeks before South Africa and Mexico face each other at Soccer city in Johannesburg and the referee blows the whistle for the 2010 World Cup South Africa to begin.

Best Commercial Ever Made?

Nike has done an awesome job job of pumping up the hype with a truly epic three minute commercial featuring  its stable of superstar footballers like Didier Drogba, Wayne Rooney, Fabio Cannavaro, Landon Donovan and Cristiano Ronaldo, the short film is directed by Alejandro Inarritu (“21 Grams” and “Babel”) and contains cameos from Roger Federer, Kobe Bryant and even Homer Simpson.

People are saying this Nike World Cup Ad  is the best commercial ever made!

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Chelsea striker Didier Drogba has challenged his Manchester United counterpart Wayne Rooney that he will score more goals to finish as the top scorer of the Premier League this season.

At the moment, both Rooney and Drogba’s are totaling 23 in all competitions.

I want to be the Top Goal Scorer – Drogba

“I want to be the top scorer in England. I want to make sure people remember ‘Drogba the Warrior’ in this campaign,” The Sun quoted Drogba, as saying.

“My absence at the African Nations Cup could end up being decisive. It gave an advantage to Wayne and my other rivals, but I warn them I shall be fighting until the very last match,” he added.

Tottenham Hotspur’s Jermain Defoe is next in the scoring chart with 20 goals, followed by Manchester City’s Carlos Tevez (18) and Darren Bent of Sunderland (15), but the race is on between the two leading hitmen.

Race Between Drogba and Rooney

The Ivory Coast star holds Rooney in the greatest of respect, but is determined to overtake him and then keep him at arm’s length.

“The race between Rooney and me will be beautiful and it is my objective to arrive at the finishing post first. I don’t think about the exact number of goals I shall need, but it will be necessary for me to pass 30 if I am to be the No 1 – and this is possible,” Drogba said.

Top Goal Scorer

If one wants to know anything about these two players, it’s a good idea to listen to the  the real fans, who watch them week in and week out. So I went to RedCafe.net – a Manchester United forum and picked up these following snippets from a Rooney vs Drogba thread.

Surprisingly, they weren’t as biased as one would think:

one thing that Drogba wins over Rooney by a mile is aerial ability. He is also stronger than Rooney, not that there is much in it. You cant discredit Drogba as a footballer, he is top class, not a disgrace. Can be a bit of a cunt on the field, but clearly shows his class off it.

Drogba is a world class striker. Don’t care how much of a twat he is, as a footballer he’s brilliant. He routinely makes some of the world’s best centre backs look like Sunday league players, the only other striker you can say that of is Torres.

They are very different types of players TBH. Rooney has a much better all round game, and attitude. He contributes all over the field and he lifts players around him.

Drogba’s ‘all round game’ is extremely underrated on this website.

Wasn’t Drogba the one who said at the beginning of the 07/08 season that Ronaldo’s goal record the previous season (23) was a bit of a fluke and he wouldn’t be able to match that again?

Drogba always give me the impression that he could take the whole opponent’s defence by himself. Rooney is the best all rounder, and top goal scorer.

Drogba is quality but I would never take him ahead of Rooney regardless of age.

Pics of Wayne Rooney and Didier Drogba football365.com

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