Awards for Messi, Mourinho spoil Spanish party
Source: Agencies |
January 12, 2011, Wednesday
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ARGENTINA'S Lionel Messi won the World Player of the Year for the second time in a row on Monday and Jose Mourinho walked off with the coach's award, leaving Spain's World Cup winners disappointed.
Messi surprisingly held off Barcelona teammates Andres Iniesta and Xavi, second and third respectively, to win the newly created FIFA Ballon D'Or, a fusion of the previously separate annual awards handed out by FIFA and France Football magazine.
Mourinho, now with Real Madrid, won the inaugural Coach of the Year award after leading Inter Milan to a Champions League, Serie A and Italian Cup treble.
"I'm proudly Portuguese, the Portuguese don't have so many of these proud moments, and this is certainly good for Portuguese ego.
"After Eusebio, Figo, and Cristiano (Ronaldo), we are now four golden balls," Mourinho said.
Iniesta and Xavi had been favorites after helping Spain win last year's World Cup while Messi had failed to score a goal or produce his best form at the tournament in South Africa.
"It was just good to be here with my teammates," said Messi, who looked as surprised as anyone by the result which was announced by Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola.
"I'd like to share this with my teammates, without whom I would not be here, and ... with all the Argentines."
Messi won surprisingly easily, polling 22.65 percent of the votes to Iniesta's 17.36 and Xavi's 16.48. But Mourinho said there should have been room for at least one member of his Inter team for the player's award.
"Inter were a little hard done by in my opinion, European champions, world champions, champions of everything, to have not had anyone among the players sitting in these three chairs," he said.
"For me it was something of an injustice. It had special meaning that their trainer had won an historic trophy."
Mourinho was close to tears during the ceremony when Inter player Wesley Sneijder thanked him from the stage after being picked in the world XI.
Spain's only consolation was that it had six players in the world team of the year, Iniesta and Xavi joined by Iker Casillas, David Villa, Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique. Brazilians Lucio and Maicon, Dutchman Wesley Sneijder, Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi completed the line-up.
A host of other awards were handed out by FIFA with 79-year-old South African Nobel Peace Prize laureate Desmond Tutu given the FIFA Presidential Award and the Haitian women's under-17 team were given the Fair Play award for taking part in the CONCACAF under-17 women's championship in Costa Rica two months after the huge earthquake which devastated its country last year.
Messi surprisingly held off Barcelona teammates Andres Iniesta and Xavi, second and third respectively, to win the newly created FIFA Ballon D'Or, a fusion of the previously separate annual awards handed out by FIFA and France Football magazine.
Mourinho, now with Real Madrid, won the inaugural Coach of the Year award after leading Inter Milan to a Champions League, Serie A and Italian Cup treble.
"I'm proudly Portuguese, the Portuguese don't have so many of these proud moments, and this is certainly good for Portuguese ego.
"After Eusebio, Figo, and Cristiano (Ronaldo), we are now four golden balls," Mourinho said.
Iniesta and Xavi had been favorites after helping Spain win last year's World Cup while Messi had failed to score a goal or produce his best form at the tournament in South Africa.
"It was just good to be here with my teammates," said Messi, who looked as surprised as anyone by the result which was announced by Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola.
"I'd like to share this with my teammates, without whom I would not be here, and ... with all the Argentines."
Messi won surprisingly easily, polling 22.65 percent of the votes to Iniesta's 17.36 and Xavi's 16.48. But Mourinho said there should have been room for at least one member of his Inter team for the player's award.
"Inter were a little hard done by in my opinion, European champions, world champions, champions of everything, to have not had anyone among the players sitting in these three chairs," he said.
"For me it was something of an injustice. It had special meaning that their trainer had won an historic trophy."
Mourinho was close to tears during the ceremony when Inter player Wesley Sneijder thanked him from the stage after being picked in the world XI.
Spain's only consolation was that it had six players in the world team of the year, Iniesta and Xavi joined by Iker Casillas, David Villa, Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique. Brazilians Lucio and Maicon, Dutchman Wesley Sneijder, Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi completed the line-up.
A host of other awards were handed out by FIFA with 79-year-old South African Nobel Peace Prize laureate Desmond Tutu given the FIFA Presidential Award and the Haitian women's under-17 team were given the Fair Play award for taking part in the CONCACAF under-17 women's championship in Costa Rica two months after the huge earthquake which devastated its country last year.
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