The Goal 50 Superheroes

 

The winner of the Goal 50 has been announced, and our annual list's top 10 is, as ever, not short of football's biggest superheroes.

Superman Lionel Messi claimed the award for the third time, beating off competition from the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Robin van Persie.

Thiago Silva and Arturo Vidal also invaded the top 10, along with four Bayern men in Philipp Lahm, Thomas Muller, Arjen Robben and runner-up Franck Ribery.

See the complete Goal 50 here
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Goal 50: Class of 2012-13

 

The countdown to the Goal 50 has begun and the debate is raging over which star performers from the season should be included in this year's list of football's most talented

School is out for much of the football world but the class of 2012-13 can still look forward to the annual prize-giving ceremony that is the Goal 50.

Our brilliant artist Omar Momani has drawn up his vision of the high achievers in contention for the list - which will be announced on July 29.

Bayern Munich trio Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery and Thomas Muller are sitting in the front row accompanied by Brazilian superstar Neymar.

Behind are La Liga legends Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo next to Robert Lewandowski, scorer of four goals for Borussia Dortmund against Real Madrid in last season's Champions League semi-final.

The Premier League may be flagging behind Germany and Spain, but Gareth Bale has stood out. The Tottenham totem sits with enigmatic Liverpool striker Luis Suarez and Mario Balotelli, who has lit up Serie A since joining AC Milan in January.

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Robben finally hits Champions League jackpot

 

Arjen Robben has endured his fair share of disappointment in major finals in the past.

The Dutchman has twice suffered defeat in the Champions League final with Bayern Munich, against Inter in 2010 and Chelsea in 2012.

And the forward was also on the losing side in the 2010 World Cup as the Netherlands were defeated by Spain.

But Robben finally hit the jackpot in the Champions League last night, scoring the winning goal in a 2-1 victory over Borussia Dortmund in the closing stages to finally shake off that 'loser' tag.

"It was a special feeling," Robben told reporters. "I didn't want to be remembered in my career as a loser.

"It's harsh to say but every time in second place is not what you want. It was so important to win the trophy this time. We needed to do it and we deserved to do it." 
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Bayern Munich too strong for weakened Barcelona

 

Bayern Munich booked a place in the Champions League final with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Barcelona on Wednesday night.

Already four goals down from the first leg at the Allianz Arena, the Camp Nou giants were facing a tall order in turning over the deficit.

And their task was made harder by Lionel Messi's lack of fitness, with the Argentina star only able to watch on from the bench.

What followed was a dominant showing by the Bundesliga side, who were simply too strong for Barcelona.

Arjen Robben opened the scoring with a superb strike, before Gerard Pique deflected a cross into his own net and Thomas Muller completed the rout with a header from close range to seal a humiliating 7-0 aggregate defeat for Tito Vilanova's men. 

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Pep & Gotze prepare to tag in to Munich Mania as Barca are rumbled

 

Bayern Munich showed their muscle in the Champions League on Tuesday night, with the 4-0 hammering of Barcelona putting them on the brink of reaching next month's Wembley final.

Two goals from Thomas Muller and one each for Mario Gomez and Arjen Robben secured a resounding first-leg triumph at the Allianz Arena to send the Munich crowd into absolute rapture.

On course for the treble this season and with Pep Guardiola and Mario Gotze set to jet in to join the Bavarians in 2013-14 - it's a pretty darn good time to be a Bayern fan, that's for sure. 
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Heynckes encourages Bayern booze-up

 

Bayern Munich can clinch the Bundesliga title on Saturday if they beat Frankfurt, and boss Jupp Heynckes has allowed his players to let their hair down.

Die Roten have run away at the top of the table this season, leading second-placed Borussia Dortmund by 20 points ahead of their trip to Commerzbank-Arena.

And despite facing a trip to Juventus for the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday, the 67-year-old has told his charges they can celebrate with a beer or two.
 

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Ronaldo passes Euro 2012 exam with flying colours to send Dutch & Danes packing

 

Cristiano Ronaldo answered his critics in stunning style on Sunday night with his virtuoso performance in Portugal's 2-1 victory over Netherlands at Euro 2012.

After enduring a difficult start to the competition, the Real Madrid star scored both goals to book his side's place in the quarter-finals against Czech Republic - sending the Dutch and Denmark home.
That took Ronaldo's tally for the season to an astonishing 65 for club and country, although the 27-year-old will know that his work has only just begun if he is to deny arch-rival Lionel Messi yet another Ballon D'Or.
 

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Messi steals the limelight from Euro 2012

 

All the attention may be on events at Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine but Lionel Messi still managed to hog the limelight after his hat-trick in Argentina's 4-3 friendly win over Brazil on Saturday.

The Barcelona star's superb treble in front of 82,000 fans at the Meadowlands Stadium in New York - home of American football teams the Giants and the Jets - took his season's tally to a remarkable 82 goals for club and country to single-handedly beat the combined number of times the Netherlands, Denmark, Germany and Portugal found the net on the same day.

And with his arch-rival Cristiano Ronaldo firing blanks, Messi proved once again why he is rated as the world's best player.

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Robben seeks spinach strength

 

It has not been the best of weeks for Arjen Robben. After missing a penalty in Bayern Munich's potential title-deciding defeat to Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga last Wednesday, he then failed to inspire his side past Mainz at home on Saturday.

Now the Bavarians face the visit of a far more dangerous outfit in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final: Robben's former club, Real Madrid. The Dutchman has acknowledged that his side will have to be at their best to defeat Jose Mourinho's men and reach the final, which will be played at the Allianz Arena.

For Robben the tie against Real Madrid is also a chance to finally defeat goalkeeper Iker Casillas, who famously denied him in a one-on-one in the final of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Much like Popeye, the winger could well use a can of spinach to help him through this hardest of challenges ...

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Plain sailing in Madrid and Turin ...

 

As the season enters its crucial period, individuals can become heroes in key moments.

That was the story in the Spanish capital on Wednesday night when Cristiano Ronaldo netted yet another hat-trick to guide Real Madrid past city rivals Atletico, and in Turin where Alessandro Del Piero came off the bench to seal a vital win for Juventus over Lazio to send his side to the top of the Serie A table.

However, in Germany it was a different state of affairs when Arjen Robben sunk his Bayern Munich side in the defeat at Borussia Dortmund. 

First the Dutchman played Robert Lewandowski onside for the only goal of the game, before he twice cost his team a point when he failed to convert a penalty and then missed from close range. It's sink-or-swim time for Bayern in the title race, but it looks like Arjen is doing both.

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Pick on someone your own size!

 

Goalkeeper Joe Hart might be England's last man standing by the time Wednesday night's international friendly against Netherlands at Wembley kicks off, given the rate of withdrawals from the Three Lions' squad.  

Glen Johnson became the fifth player to pull out, joining Darren Bent, Wayne Rooney, Tom Cleverley and Kyle Walker on the injured list..... 

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