It's That Time Of Year Again…
A cursory glance at some of the names on Uefa's much-vaunted "short-list" of 50 (yes, 50) nominees for the European Footballer Of The Year begs the question, just how long was the "long list?"
And what were the criteria for making it on to this list? Just being famous, presumably. By its sheer size the short-list is somewhat devalued, bloated by all the usual suspects. In fact I get the impression that after maybe the first half-dozen or, being charitable, dozen names of worthy contenders, the selectors were reduced to adding anyone else they could think of.
How else can you explain the presence, on this list of Europe's alleged elite, of Sylvain Wiltord? A few reasonable games for Les Bleus, OK; but most Gunners fans would be hard-pressed to find a place for Wiltord in a list of their top 50 current Arsenal players.
Those who find the whole idea of such awards and polls distasteful, like a kind of butch beauty contest, would also question the rationale behind including guys like Luis Figo, Giovane Elber, Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Del Piero, Patrick Kluivert, Lilian Thuram, Filippo Inzaghi, Jan Koller, Henrik Larsson and even Zinedine Zidane and Roberto Carlos on the basis of their performances during 2003. Too many seem to have drifted onto the list purely on the strength of their past reputations. Maybe there should be a separate award for longevity to satisfy all the nostalgia buffs.
Others of course start with an unfair advantage in the quest for the Golden Ball. David Beckham, for example, is actually nicknamed "Golden Balls" by his shy and retiring wife Victoria. And his every kick, body-swerve, sneeze and knowing smile has received such blanket coverage from a ravenous media that many could be forgiven for believing Beckham has been the ONLY player in Europe all year.
It was inevitable that Ronaldo would feature on the list. His move to Real virtually guaranteed it; and to be fair the soon-to-be-divorced gap-toothed icon has produced some entertaining goalscoring feats despite continuing to eat all the pies. But will we be able to stay awake long enough to applaud if he wins the accolade again? Ronaldo's dentally-challenged compatriot Ronaldinho seems to be on the list largely because of memories of his 2002 World Cup exploits; ditto Sol Campbell, Oliver Kahn, Samuel Eto'o and Nihat Kahveci, perhaps? But it is a measure of how far Rivaldo has fallen from grace since moving to Milan that he doesn't even make the top 50.
Of course, football is all about opinions. It's one of the things that make the game so fascinating, so compelling and so endlessly debatable. Get 50 football fans together and you'll get 50 different views about who's good, who's bad and who's just plain ugly. It's part of the world-wide passion.
I've probably upset any number of people already with my own swipes at some of the hallowed names on this cumbersome and rather dubious list. And so far I haven't even mentioned the merits - or otherwise – of Iker Casillas (Real's attacking style tends to keep the ball away from him but when their defence is under pressure it – and he – usually buckle); Cristian Chivu (great potential, as yet unrealised); Dida and Mutu (same applies); Pauleta, Deco, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Darko Kovacevic, Ludovic Giuly, Michel Salgado, Hatem Trabelsi, Roy Makaay and Michael Owen (good players all, but included just to make up the numbers with no realistic chance of winning this year), etc, etc.
Picking the best player in each position to arrive at a symbolic if largely meaningless "Best European XI" might be an amusing diversion, because in a list of 50 names there is hardly any sensible, rational or objective basis for comparing a goalkeeper with a striker or a centre-back. They each perform specialist functions in what is, after all, a team game.
And it's goals that make the football world go round, so the goalscorers – strikers and attacking midfielders – always start with an edge of glamour that defenders are denied.
So who is the winner likely to be this year? There are 15 Serie A candidates, 10 of them Italian, and the smart money is already on Pavel Nedved of Juve and the Czech Republic. He wouldn't get my vote as I don't like his attitude, though he's certainly a hell of a player. (The same applies to Ruud Van Nistelrooy). If it has to be someone from the Italian League's finest I'd prefer to see Francesco Totti, Alessandro Nesta, or one of the keepers, Buffon or Toldo, get the nod. But assuming it's not a foregone conclusion and other Leagues are in with a shout, Raul is consistently devastating, Ballack tirelessly creative and Henry sheer balletic pace and power.
For purely partisan reasons, I'd give that Golden Ball to Henry. Which probably means it's Nedved's already. And if this article has infuriated the hell out of you, it just goes to show that in football as in life, one man's pizza supreme is another man's mouldy old dough.
Graham Lister
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