Lionel Messi breaks German great Gerd Mueller's 40-year-old record for most goals

Lionel Messi breaks German great Gerd Mueller's 40-year-old record for most goals

 Messi has scored 74 goals for Barcelona and 12 times for Argentina this year.

Lionel Messi broke German great Gerd Mueller's 40-year-old record for most goals in a year by scoring for the 86th time in 2012 on Sunday.

The Argentina forward scored twice to lead Barcelona to a 2-1 win at Real Betis in the Spanish league match.

His first was an individual effort in the 16th minute to tie Mueller's mark, and he eclipsed the 1972 milestone with a familiar left-footed finish nine minutes later.
 "As I have said many times, the record is nice but the important thing is the victory that keeps us on the patch we want to continue on," Messi said. "As I always say, my objectives are on a team level: to win the league, the Champions League and the Copa del Rey again."

Messi has scored 74 goals for Barcelona and 12 times for Argentina this year, and he has three more games in which he can add to his tally before the end of the year. Mueller scored 85 for Bayern Munich and West Germany.

The 25-year-old Messi passed Brazil great Pele's single-season milestone of 75 goals for Brazil and Santos in 1958 with his 75th and 76th goals of the year on Nov. 11 to move into second place behind Mueller.

 After his record 50 goals in the Spanish league last season, Messi has led Barcelona to the best start in the history of the championship this season with 14 wins and a draw in the opening 15 rounds. The scoring ace has found the net 30 times already this season in all competitions for Barcelona.

"We won't see another player like (Messi)," Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova said. "Not just because of his ability to score. But also for his ability to pass, play defense, and his understandings of the game. He is a global star that helps us in so many ways."

Messi, who became a father for the first time on Nov. 2 to a boy named Thiago, was announced as one of the three finalists for the FIFA world player of the year award along with teammate Andres Iniesta and Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo.

Messi has won the Ballon d'Or award for the past three years in helping Barcelona win three Spanish league titles and two Champions League crowns, along with various other competitions.

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 He is seeking to become the only player to win the award for a fourth time when the winner is announced in Switzerland on January 7.

Iniesta participated in both of Barcelona's goals in Seville on Sunday, and Messi said he would be happy to see his teammate win the award.

"If the Ballon d'Or is for Andres, he deserves it for everything he shows us game after game," Messi said.

Nicknamed "The Flea" for his small stature and uncanny ability to slice through defenses, Messi has shattered several records during the past year.

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 He scored 73 times in all competitions for Barcelona last season, breaking the previous European club record of 67 goals set by Mueller in 1972-73 and the prior world club mark of 70 established by Archie Stark of Bethlehem Steel in the American Soccer League in 1924-25.

Messi scored his 73rd and final goal of the 2011-12 season as Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao 3-0 in the Copa del Rey final in May to give then-coach Pep Guardiola his 14th title in his final game.

In March, Messi passed Cesar Rodriguez's 57-year-old milestone of 232 goals to become Barcelona all-time leading scorer.

He also tied the record of 14 goals in a single European Cup competition last season, scoring five times in one Champions League match to set yet another mark.

"Leo is supernatural," Barcelona defender Gerard Pique said. "He doesn't have limits. We'll always have to remember everything he gave us. We have to enjoy every minute we have with him."

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Spain tops FIFA rankings, Brazil sinks to No. 18l

Spain tops FIFA rankings, Brazil sinks to No. 18l

World Cup and European champion Spain has completed a full year atop the FIFA rankings, 2014 World Cup host Brazil has plummeted to No. 18 and the U.S. dropped one spot to No. 28.

World Cup and European champion Spain has completed a full year atop the FIFA rankings, 2014 World Cup host Brazil has plummeted to No. 18 and the U.S. dropped one spot to No. 28.

Brazil has dropped while playing only non-competitive matches, and failed to win last month.

Brazil lost against Argentina, which remains at No. 3, and drew with Colombia, which rises to No. 5.

The rankings weigh a four-year results cycle, and Brazil lost points from a 6-2 victory over Portugal in 2008.

pain leads No. 2 Germany, with European Championship finalist Italy at No. 4. England is No. 6, and Europe fills all places through Switzerland at No. 12.

Ivory Coast is Africa's best at No. 14. Mexico is No. 15, and Japan leads Asia at No. 22.

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Watson returns as US Ryder Cup captain

By Rachel Cohen
Associated Press

Tom Watson leaves the stage after a news conference in New York, Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012. The Americans are bringing back Watson as their Ryder Cup captain with hopes of ending two decades of losing in Europe. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

NEW YORK — Weary of two decades of defeat in Europe, the Americans are breaking from precedent with a captain uniquely suited for the 2014 Ryder Cup in Scotland.
Tom Watson will be by far the oldest man to fill the role and the first repeat captain for the U.S. since 1987. But he’s also the last American to lead the team to victory on the road, and he knows how to win in the blustery Scottish weather.
“We are just really tired of losing the Ryder Cup,” PGA of America President Ted Bishop said Thursday during a news conference at the Empire State Building.
It won’t be easy.
The Americans have lost seven of the last nine Ryder Cups and have not won away from home since 1993, when Watson was the captain at The Belfry in England. They are coming off a staggering loss this year at Medinah, where Europe strung together a remarkable rally from a 10-6 deficit going into the final day to win by one point.
Watson is the first repeat U.S. captain since Jack Nicklaus in 1987, when the Ryder Cup was played on his home course of Muirfield Village in Ohio. Watson becomes the seventh American to get more than one shot.
“Tom Watson will do a fine job,” Nicklaus said. “Tom always has been a wonderful golfer and he remains one, but Tom is also a good leader.”
His selection received an immediate endorsement from Tiger Woods. The Stanford alums have never been particularly close, and Watson has criticized Woods for not showing respect for the game with his demeanor on the course.
“I think he’s a really good choice,” Woods said in a statement. “Tom knows what it takes to win, and that’s our ultimate goal. I hope I have the privilege of joining him on the 2014 United States team.”
Watson went out of his way Thursday to praise Woods as “the best player maybe in the history of the game.”
“My relationship with Tiger is fine,” he said. “Whatever has been said before is water under the bridge. No issues.”
Watson breaks the PGA of America’s prototype in a big way. The eight-time major champion will be 65 when the Ryder Cup is played at Gleneagles. Sam Snead was 57 when he was captain in 1969, and the oldest European captain was John Jacobs (56) in 1981.
Watson predicted that some would say: “Why is Watson, being the old guy, being the captain?”
“I deflect that very simply by saying: ‘We play the same game,’” he said. “I play against these kids at the Masters. I play against them at the British Open.”
He does hope to play more PGA Tour events in the next two years to spend more time around his future team.
Watson has not been back to the Ryder Cup since that ’93 victory at The Belfry. But since then, he had been pining for another chance to serve as captain.
With that familiar gap-tooth grin, Watson recalled his reaction when the PGA of America first contacted him more than a year ago: “Boy, I’ve been waiting for this call for a long time.”
As much as Watson is beloved around the world for his timeless game, epic duels with Nicklaus and graciousness in any outcome, the Scots consider him one of their own. Watson won his first major at Carnoustie in 1975 when he quickly understood how to play links golf. He won five British Open titles, the most of any American, with four of those in Scotland.
He nearly made it six claret jugs three years ago. At age 59, he came within an 8-foot par putt on the last hole from winning at Turnberry. Watson missed the putt, and then lost to Stewart Cink in a playoff.
The ovation he heard that week in Turnberry might be different at Gleneagles. His job will be to help the players handle the pressure of the hostile crowd and the enormity of the moment.
The PGA of America broke from its model of taking former major champions in their late 40s who still play on the PGA Tour and are in touch with the players. Watson last played a full schedule in 1998, though the PGA of America had to wonder if perhaps the young captains were too close to the players.
Bishop first thought of Watson while flying back from Bermuda after the 2011 PGA Grand Slam of Golf, when he read a book about that near-miss at the British. When he first called, Watson was in a field in South Dakota pheasant hunting.
A few blocks from Broadway on Thursday, Watson compared himself to a stage manager with the job of putting his actors in best position to succeed. He mentioned the importance of luck in winning the Ryder Cup.
But he acknowledged that the good karma of his victories overseas — and especially in Scotland — might be that little nudge that returns the Americans to victory.
“It may give them a sense: ‘This guy has been there before and he’s been successful before and we’re going to be a success because he’s there leading us,’” Watson said.
He expects he’ll help out in the most mundane of areas, such as advice on how to adjust to the time change. At the 1981 Ryder Cup at Walton Heath, Watson recalled, he cautioned Tom Kite not to tweak his swing just because he felt lousy the first few days there. Kite was glad he listened.
Watson dismissed talk that the Europeans were more motivated than the Americans in recent years. What he heard from Davis Love III, the captain at Medinah, was a team devastated by defeat.
“This responsibility is a challenge,” Watson said. “But I’ve been there before, and I welcome it.”

Suzuki Cup: Azkals poised for breakthru

Singapore duel tomorrow

By Cedelf P. Tupas
Philippine Daily Inquirer

9:29 pm | Monday, December 10th, 2012

Photo from AFF Suzuki Cup website.

MANILA, Philippines — Coach Michael Weiss is comfortable at the thought of his Philippine Azkals soaking up the pressure and waiting for their chance against a Singapore side expected to be on attack mode right from the get-go in the second leg of their AFF Suzuki Cup semifinals tomorrow.
The counter-attacking game has suited the Azkals for much of the tournament and, although he would have loved his side to be confident in possession, Weiss sees the Azkals relying on their solidity at the backline and their ability to create scoring chances in transition.
The Azkals and Lions fought to a goalless standoff Saturday night at Rizal Memorial Stadium, with the second leg to be played at the 8,000-seater Jalan Besar Stadium, which has an artificial pitch.
A scoring draw would be enough for the Azkals to advance due to the away goals rule, and Weiss said their chances only got better with the return of midfielder Jerry Lucena for the second leg.
“We will not risk much; the pitch in Jalan Besar is pretty tight,” Weiss said before the team left for Singapore yesterday morning.
“We have to be patient because we expect to see a more active Singapore on their (home) turf, which may not be the worst thing for us. Against this defense, it will not be easy for Singapore to score even on home soil.”
One player who has stood out defensively for Weiss in the last two matches is Fil-Spanish rightback Carli de Murga, who coped well with the threat posed by Aleksandar Duric on the left wing Saturday night.
“He has been fantastic for us,” said Weiss of the 24-year-old who was only called into action when Ray Jonsson sustained a quad muscle injury in the match against Vietnam.
“The defensive approach has worked for us, but sooner or later we would have to change our style by playing more possession.”
The depth of the side remains the least of Weiss’ worries with defender Jason Sabio and midfielder Chris Greatwich, who scored the late equalizer against the Lions in their group match in Vietnam two years ago, still to play.
Striker Denis Wolf has been used sparingly because of an ankle injury.
Meanwhile, tickets to the second leg are reportedly sold out with Singapore-based Filipinos complaining of the little allotment for Azkals fans for Wednesday’s match.
The Filipinos beat the Singaporeans, 2-0, in a friendly last Sept. 7 at Jurong West Stadium.

Azkals try to seize the moment

Azkals try to seize the moment

Battle Singapore in Lions’ den today for spot in Suzuki Cup finals

By Cedelf P. Tupas

 

SINGAPORE—Unfazed by the thought of playing in enemy territory in its most important match in tournament history, the Philippines aims for a maiden championship appearance against three-time winner Singapore in the second leg of the AFF Suzuki Cup semifinals Wednesday at Jalan Besar Stadium here.
The two sides battled to a scoreless draw in Manila last Saturday, which means a goal by the Azkals here could pile up the pressure on the Lions, who are heavily favored to advance considering their wealth of experience.
The Azkals’ chances haven’t been better, though. Two years ago, in a similar stage, they were down 0-1 on aggregate to an Indonesian side backed by about 70,000 supporters in Jakarta heading into the second leg.
This time, the Azkals will have to deal with an 8,000-strong crowd, playing in a faster artificial pitch, and a squad with a winning tradition.
A scoring draw would be enough but experienced defender Rob Gier thinks it would be foolish for the Azkals to take that mindset.
“We don’t want it to end tomorrow night (Wednesday night),” said Gier, referring to their Suzuki Cup journey.
The Lions have the dual task of scoring and preventing the Azkals from doing the same. If the match stays goalless after regulation, extra time will be needed with a penalty shootout as the ultimate decider if no team finds the back of the net.
“We’ve always been saying that this is what we’ll all be waiting for,” said Azkals manager Dan Palami. “We don’t want to settle for just another semifinal appearance.”
“This is the best chance we will ever have,” said striker Phil Younghusband. “The good thing about our team is that whether we are home or away, we still feel we can win the game.”
The Azkals took time to settle on the ball in the first leg in Manila, where the Lions dominated the opening 45 minutes. With their midfielders finding their rhythm, the Azkals showed some attacking bite in the second half.
“One of the plus things about the last game is that we know we could still play better,” said Younghusband.
One thing constant for the Azkals in the tournament has been their solidity on the defensive end with Gier and Juani Guirado manning the fort.
Jerry Lucena returns to the side since the 1-0 win over Vietnam in the group stage in Bangkok and Azkals coach Michael Weiss sees the Fil-Danish standout as a stabilizing factor in the middle.
Weiss said the Azkals must produce the same kind of fighting spirit they showed in the second half of the first leg to stand a chance against the Lions.
“Singapore will have a small advantage because of their experience, but the boys are hungry and eager to show what they can do,” he said.