And the award for UEFA's Player of
the year award goes to…
UEFA’s ‘player of the year’ is another
chance for the football world to lavish praise on the individual in a game
where being a team is becoming ever more important. The irony should not be
lost on the fans and media. And because of this the award should not go anywhere but Germany.
A biased and neglectful list
These kind of awards really do make you question the sanity of the game today. The list of football's so called ‘best’ players is imbalanced towards forwards. The neglect of defensive minded players highlights an issue with modern football. Flair, highlights and goals is what the football world and these type of awards glorify. Perhaps this is because the modern world has become so fast paced that it cannot fathom to watch an entire game.
Maybe this is why defenders and players like Carrick and Busquets are often under-valued by a fanbase whose source of football is YouTube. I don’t meant to vent my frustrations yet in a growing world of social media it appears we are encountering a growing number of 'highlight fans'.
These kind of awards really do make you question the sanity of the game today. The list of football's so called ‘best’ players is imbalanced towards forwards. The neglect of defensive minded players highlights an issue with modern football. Flair, highlights and goals is what the football world and these type of awards glorify. Perhaps this is because the modern world has become so fast paced that it cannot fathom to watch an entire game.
Maybe this is why defenders and players like Carrick and Busquets are often under-valued by a fanbase whose source of football is YouTube. I don’t meant to vent my frustrations yet in a growing world of social media it appears we are encountering a growing number of 'highlight fans'.
These awards also become something of a popularity contest. Therefore it is little surprise that the favourites to win the award are Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and
Gareth Bale, yes that is right Gareth Bale?! All three have provided enjoyable
highlights this past season yet only Messi has won a trophy, La Liga. How Gareth
Bale even got on this list is beyond me as I didn’t see his contribution worthy
of any award yet alone UEFA’s player of the year.
There were several players who deserved to be on there above Bale; players like Mario Gotze whose move to Bayern appeared to make everyone forget how great he has been last season at Dortmund. And what about his teammate Marco Reus, he did more in bigger games than Bale did. Juan Mata too, he was the standout player in the Premier League last year, perhaps even more than Van Persie.
There were several players who deserved to be on there above Bale; players like Mario Gotze whose move to Bayern appeared to make everyone forget how great he has been last season at Dortmund. And what about his teammate Marco Reus, he did more in bigger games than Bale did. Juan Mata too, he was the standout player in the Premier League last year, perhaps even more than Van Persie.
And while we’re at it why not have Javi Martinez, Arturo
Vidal and Ilkay Gundogan been nominated? Argubaly the best midfielders in
Europe this past season along with Bastian Schweinsteiger. Are they not ‘flair’ enough for the voters of this award? The shortlist is really a list of forwards and goalscorers and the result appears to be based on whose highlight reel was most spectacular.
But it should not be this way. The winner of the award should be the player who has taken himself and his team to new levels of quality and success. Therefore it must be a player from Bayern Munich.
But it should not be this way. The winner of the award should be the player who has taken himself and his team to new levels of quality and success. Therefore it must be a player from Bayern Munich.
Bayern were simply majestic and dominant last season and this award should reward their achievements. Yes Dortmund’s season was impressive yet Bayern deserve the accolades. Heynckes should win manager of the year and a Bayern player should win UEFA's award and FIFA's Balon D'or. But who?
There are many talented in this Bayern side; notably Lahm, Schweinsteiger and Martinez with a special mention to the work rate and tactical brilliance of Mandzukic. The clubs treble winning success was credit to what the ‘team’ have achieved over what a single individual has done. However, if you were going to give an individual award to any of those Bayern players it must be Frank Ribery. He deserves the award above the rest and here’s why.
Ribery's undervalued quality
The lack of appreciation for one of football’s
finest players perplexes me. I don’t know if it’s the scar on his face, which has perhaps made him a frightening prospect
for marketing campaigns or his indecent forays with young prostitutes. Or maybe fans and the media
just don’t see the quality which Ribery has. But surely from last seasons performances anyone who witnessed Bayern play must have seen what Ribery offers.
Ribery joined Bayern in 2007 from Marseille for a then club record
fee of €25m. This was after Zinedine Zidane had labelled Ribery the ‘jewel
of French football’. Bright things were expected of the French man in what was a career of setbacks and perseverance.
He was kicked out of Lille's academy at 16 for failing to do the required schoolwork which according to many was ‘a relief to his colleagues who had found his aggression and intensity tiring.’ He stayed in football yet moved between small clubs before moving to Metz. From there he found himself sought after by Galatasaray and after a short, impressive but disputed end he moved to Marseille. This was where he came into his own (perhaps it was his move to Islam in 2006 which focused him and allowed him to channel his intensity).
He was kicked out of Lille's academy at 16 for failing to do the required schoolwork which according to many was ‘a relief to his colleagues who had found his aggression and intensity tiring.’ He stayed in football yet moved between small clubs before moving to Metz. From there he found himself sought after by Galatasaray and after a short, impressive but disputed end he moved to Marseille. This was where he came into his own (perhaps it was his move to Islam in 2006 which focused him and allowed him to channel his intensity).
In his first two years at Bayern Ribery won the French player of the year in both 2007 and 2008 as well as the German player of the year in 2008. Yet injuries would plague his time at Bayern and hamper his
progression to one of the world’s best players.
That being said, in the past two seasons, notably under Jupp Heynckes, Ribery’s quality has become evident and important for Bayern's success. In fact many put Bayern’s rise to the top of Europe down to Ribery, a player who many believe is ‘irreplaceable’ in the side.
Recently Joachim Low, Germany’s head coach put forward the suggestion that Ribery was the best player in German football, stating that Ribery’s ‘defensive play’ and his ability to ‘amaze’ were key to his belief. "He is characterised by outstanding technical skills and an incredible feel for the rhythm of the game, But what was particularly noteworthy was his defensive play, which he celebrated as passionately as his inimitable dribbles.”
A need to be great on both sides
Recently Joachim Low, Germany’s head coach put forward the suggestion that Ribery was the best player in German football, stating that Ribery’s ‘defensive play’ and his ability to ‘amaze’ were key to his belief. "He is characterised by outstanding technical skills and an incredible feel for the rhythm of the game, But what was particularly noteworthy was his defensive play, which he celebrated as passionately as his inimitable dribbles.”
A need to be great on both sides
It is hard to disagree with Low’s statements regarding the
Frenchman. Ribery has become the world’s best left sided player because of his
ability to do everything in that role; in possession he can drive inside and
outside and look to cross or shoot. He can cross from deep or run to the byline and be the provider or the playmaker as well as the scorer of goals. He is not ‘glitz and
glamour’ like Ronaldo yet is extremely effective and possesses such doggedness
and drive that he must frighten those he plays against. And this is when he is
attacking.
As a defender there is perhaps no better ‘forward’ who
defends better than Ribery. And it is this willingness and desire to do his
defensive duties which makes him the world’s best at this time. His energy and
stamina to work up and down constantly makes him a truly wonderful player to
watch. He is selfless in his willingness to work for the team and yet has that bit
of ‘magic’ to make things happen.
Tactically he offers variety to his game yet also maintains his discipline, showing good decision making throughout matches on where and when to move. Overall his talents and importantly work rate have propelled Bayern to the levels they are at now.
Tactically he offers variety to his game yet also maintains his discipline, showing good decision making throughout matches on where and when to move. Overall his talents and importantly work rate have propelled Bayern to the levels they are at now.
What Frank Ribery personifies is the modern player and what is required in today’s game. There is no place for hiding in attack or defence anymore. The role of the modern player is to be as focused defensively as well as on attack. In this way Ribery has excelled and deserves to be rewarded for his selfless talent and UEFA would be foolish to reward anyone but Ribery with the award as Europe’s best player.
The team is more important
Yet to say it is all down to Ribery would be wrong and this is why the ‘UEFA Player of the Year’ award is flawed. Ribery is a key piece to his sides success yet he is only one part of it. The whole is stronger than the part, no matter how talented that ‘part’ is.
Bayern have become so dominant because they appreciate the need to be a whole, to work as a whole. Dortmund have proven they know the importance of being a team and the final could really have gone either way. Unfortunately Madrid and Barca have struggled to show this and come up short because they have put too much on to the individual.
A balanced team which possesses talented individuals willing to sacrifice themselves for the team is the perfect model for modern football.
The award is announced on August 29th and if Ribery does not
win the award it better be a Bayern player who wins the award because however
good an individual is, the team is the most important element and key to
success.
The Whitehouse Address @The_W_Address
Related articles
The Whitehouse Address @The_W_Address
Related articles
- German's Success Built on Unity & Sacrifice
- Und Keine Ausnahmen
- Are Bayern The Most Complete Team Ever?
- Part IV - The Rise of the Bundesliga
- Bayern 'Masterclass' Highlights Wenger's Failings
- The Worrying Trend Regarding Messi & Barcelona
No comments:
Post a Comment