Pele played on Ronaldo

How the prize was awarded to the best football player in the world in 2008

Another FIFA gala evening, held last week in Zurich, was both similar and different from the previous ones. First of all, they changed the traditional date of its holding: they say that the rental of the famous Zurich Opera on Christmas December days ...

Another FIFA gala evening, held last week in Zurich, was both similar and different from the previous ones. First of all, they changed the traditional date of its holding: they say that the rent of the famous Zurich Opera during the Christmas December days cost Sepp Blatter a pretty penny, besides, they had to bear additional costs for the urgent transfer of the participants of the Intercontinental Cup from Tokyo to Zurich.

FIFA's anti-crisis measures were conspicuous: this time they did without servants in old clothes, and in general, the meeting of the guests was taken out to a tent deployed near the opera building. There were also fewer opera stars than usual, whose performances were replaced by longer speeches by nominees and football officials. (The traditional opera insert was made close to football - the audience heard arias from the opera Rinaldo, obviously with a hint of the name of the best football player of the year, during which the conductor showed yellow cards to the artists.) The evening was entrusted to a beauty, but from a football party - the wife of the Dutch star Rafael van der Vaart - Sylvia.

Unlike in previous years, the organizers from FIFA strictly classified the voting results, they became known only during the evening: even the FIFA press service only shrugged their shoulders, even references to the fact that the names of the best will be officially announced when many publications have already go to the printers. And although everyone understood that the main prize would most likely go to Cristiano Ronaldo, doubts were sown by the vote of fans on the FIFA website who preferred Messi.

And even Pele, who presented the main prize, played along with the organizers. Having already opened the envelope, he decided to intrigue a little more, saying: "And now I want to tell you a story." True, after a theatrical pause, he said that, congratulating the Portuguese last year with the second place, he expressed hope that he would be the first in 2008. And indeed, the best player in the world in 2008 was the forward of Manchester United and the Portuguese national team Cristiano Ronaldo.

Football stars seem to have taken their own anti-crisis measures, reducing their stay in Zurich to a minimum. For example, Cristiano Ronaldo, who received the main prize, flew to England immediately after the ceremony. Others followed his example. Fernando Torres, who got into the nomination for the first time and finished third, was in no hurry and did not avoid talking to journalists.

Fernando Torres: I would prefer to see Arshavin not among rivals, but in my team

— Were you surprised by the voting results?

- No, Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi were the favourites. These are truly the two best players in the world. Ronaldo has had a fantastic season. I often admire him when I see him play. And even when you have to play against him on the field. As for Messi, he is also a big player, but he is still young, and if he continues to play the same way, he will win this prize more than once.

- Are you upset that you took only third place?

- Not at all, because Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi, who bypassed me, had a very good year, and they are deservedly ahead. I am very grateful to everyone who voted for me, and I hope that this is not the last time here.

- In 2008 you became the champion of Europe. What would you like to win in 2009?

- First of all, I would like to do without injuries in 2009. In terms of prizes, Liverpool have not won the Premier League for many years, and this season we have a good chance. Yes, the opponents want the same, but we are now in the lead and really want to win this championship for our fantastic fans.

- Leadership always adds psychological pressure ...

- Well, the pressure is the same on us, and on the players of Manchester United or Chelsea. The Premier League is one of the strongest tournaments in the world, and that says it all. But we have a lot of experienced players on the team who have won various trophies in their careers, including the Champions League. A lot of people are missing only the championship title in their collection, and I think we can win it. From the day I came to Liverpool, I understood how important the championship is for the club. It is even more important than the Champions League.

— Who do you consider the main rival in the championship race?

Manchester United won the Champions League and the Intercontinental Cup last year. They are the favorites in the championship, but we will do our best to be higher at the end of the season. I think that everything will be decided on March 14 in our head-to-head match at Old Trafford. In recent years, we have played unsuccessfully on the road in Manchester, but we need to change the tradition. Of course, we also have important home matches against Chelsea and Arsenal. Well, it’s clear that you can’t lose points in games, for example, with Stoke City, as it happened recently.

- Your team in the summer did what it also could not do for many years ...

“And it was one of the best moments of the past year for me. We really did something that several generations failed to do, and I'm very proud of it. First of all, we had a team at the Euro, and it is not so important that it was I who scored the decisive goal. Although I will not hide it, as a forward it is always pleasant for me to score, and even more so in decisive games.

- At the Euro you had to play twice against the Russian team, and you won two big victories, how do you remember those games?

- Both times we won big, but the score did not reflect the balance of power. You have a great team, and if before the first game we were all confident of success, then after we saw the Russia-Holland quarter-final, we entered the semi-final match with apprehension. Your football is clearly on the rise, and a few of your players can decorate any club in the world.

- One of them - Andrei Arshavin - may end up in the Premier League.

“He is a great and very technical player. I am sure that in England he will not get lost, and would prefer to see him not among rivals, but among teammates.