Mario Balotelli - The Golden Boy

“Winning the Golden Boy is obviously a good omen for obtaining the main prize, which I have wanted from the very beginning.

“Who else would have won it other than me? There is only one who is a bit stronger than me – Messi. All of the others are way behind me.”

Nelson Valdez - The Heart of a Lion.

It is a statement that has been made by thousands of children. When Nelson Valdez promised that he would score at a World Cup tournament for Paraguay to his mother, who was crying after Paraguay had been eliminated in 1998, it was a promise that had been heard by many other parents. Nelson Valdez was different though, he would strive to fulfil this pledge.

The 2010 Team of the Year.

2010 is likely to be a year remembered, in footballing terms, by Spanish fans most fondly after their side lifted the famous Jules Rimet trophy for the first time. It has also been a year in which a Barcelona side, possibly the greatest team of all time, have continued to revolutionise football with their style of play. The “Tika-Taka” style they play makes football look like an art form. When watching Barcelona play you realise why football is known as “the beautiful game”. It has also been a year where, in the top leagues and at international level, the 4-2-3-1 has emerged as the modern formation of choice and it becomes a new trend in the changing world of tactical footballing strategies which have moved from the “W-M” formation all the way to the “4-4-2”.

Doncaster Rovers - Quietly Dangerous

6 years. That’s all it took. From the Conference to the Championship. It’s not normally that easy.  They’d gone from playing against full-time postman to finishing above former European Cup champions. Doncaster Rovers’ rapid rise up the English football pyramid is one of the greatest recent achievements any team has experienced.