Nominee For FIFA Award

Premier League stars have been nominated for the 2009 FIFA World Player of the Year, which also includes six players from Barcelona's all-conquering side, and also six from the Spanish national camp.

The winner of the coveted annual award will be announced at the 19th Fifa World Player Gala, at the Zurich Kongresshaus, on Monday December 21.

Full details of the nominees have been disclosed below.

NOMINEES FOR 2009 FIFA WORLD PLAYER OF THE YEAR:

Michael Ballack - Germany, Chelsea
Gianluigi Buffon - Italy, Juventus
Iker Casillas - Spain, Real Madrid
Cristiano Ronaldo - Portugal, Real Madrid
Diego - Brazil, Juventus
Didier Drogba - Ivory Coast, Chelsea
Michael Essien - Ghana, Chelsea
Samuel Eto'o - Cameroon, Inter
Steven Gerrard - England, Liverpool
Thierry Henry - France, Barcelona
Zlatan Ibrahimovic - Sweden, Barcelona
Andres Iniesta - Spain, Barcelona
Kaka - Brazil, Real Madrid
Frank Lampard - England, Chelsea
Luis Fabiano - Brazil, Sevilla
Lionel Messi - Argentina, Barcelona
Carles Puyol - Spain, Barcelona
Franck Ribery - France, Bayern Munich
Wayne Rooney - England, Manchester United
John Terry - England, Chelsea
Fernando Torres - Spain, Liverpool
David Villa - Spain, Valencia
Xavi - Spain, Barcelona


NOMINEES FOR 2009 FIFA WOMEN'S WORLD PLAYER OF THE YEAR:

Nadine Angerer - Germany
Sonia Bompastor - France
Cristiane - Brazil
Inka Grings - Germany
Mana Iwabuchi - Japan
Simone Laudehr - Germany
Marta - Brazil
Birgit Prinz - Germany
Kelly Smith - England
Abby Wambach - USA

Kimi named F1 Richest

Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen has been named Formula One's biggest earner, pocketing nearly three times as much as the next best-paid driver.

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The Finn's 2009 salary is £27.35 million, according to a list published by Arabian Business magazine, dwarfing the £10.9m paid to outgoing world champion Lewis Hamilton.

Another former world champion, Renault's Fernando Alonso took home £9.1m, with Williams' Nico Rosberg surprisingly fourth ahead of Raikkonen team-mate Felipe Massa.

Raikkonen leaves Ferrari at the end of the season, when Alonso replaces him, and his massive pay demands explain his difficulty securing a drive for 2010, with McLaren and Toyota interested in his services.

Newly crowned world champion Jenson Button earned 'just' £3.05m after taking a 50 per cent pay cut to drive for Brawn in 2009.

The Briton is in negotiations over a new deal with Brawn, and has a clause in his contract allowing him to leave if the team cannot restore his salary to its 2008 level.

Four drivers went unpaid - Kazuki Nakajima (Williams), Romain Grosjean (Renault) and Adrian Sutil and Vitantonio Liuzzi (both Force India F1) - went unpaid.

Total salaries for F1 drivers totalled £81.9m, an average of £3.9m per driver.

List compiler Tom Rubython said: "There may be a global recession going on but being an F1 driver means you earned a fortune this year. These figures are just basic salaries, and don't include sponsorship and other income, which can often be three times that amount."

Full list of F1 2009 driver salaries:

1. Kimi Raikkonen £27.35m

2. Lewis Hamilton £10.9m

3. Fernando Alonso £9.1m

4. Nico Rosberg £5.15m

5. Felipe Massa £4.85m

6. Jarno Trulli £3.95m

7. Sebastian Vettel £3.65m

8. Mark Webber £3.35m

9. Jenson Button £3.05m

10. Robert Kubica £2.75m

11. Heikki Kovalainen £2.1m

12. Nick Heidfeld £1.7m

13. Timo Glock £1.2m

14. Giancarlo Fisichella £0.9m

15. Sébastien Buemi £0.9m

16. Rubens Barrichello £600,000

17. Jaime Alguersuari £300,000

18. Vitantonio Liuzzi £0

19. Adrian Sutil £0

20. Romain Grosjean £0

21. Kazuki Nakajima £0

What the F1 teams spent on drivers in 2009:

1. Ferrari £32.2m

2. McLaren-Mercedes £13.05m

3. Renault £9.1m

4. Red Bull Racing £7m

5=. Toyota £5.15m

5=. Williams £5.15m

7. BMW-Sauber £4.45m

8. Brawn GP £3.65m

9. Scuderia Toro Rosso £1.2m

10. Force India £900,000

Wenger Tips FRan Merida for First Team

ARSENE WENGER has tipped Fran Merida to become a first-team regular at Arsenal.

The talented Spaniard, 19, wowed the Emirates last night as the young Gunners saw off Liverpool 2-1 in the Carling Cup.

Midfielder Merida, who is out of contract at the end of this season, smashed in a stunning 25-yard opener.

Wenger had offers to let Merida go on loan but decided to block any move away.

The Arsenal boss said: "He is a quality player.

"I kept him because I felt he had the quality to break through to the first team.

"He came to Arsenal at a very young age but our school is on-line with the way he was educated.

"He shows perfectly the way we want to play football.

"I believe we had some top quality on the pitch in midfield and in that kind of game that is very important.

"But when you think that all the players who didn't play tonight plus all the injured players, of course the competition for places is very difficult."

Police investigates FA Violence at Barnsley

THE FA have launched an investigation into last night's crowd disturbances at Barnsley.

Trouble flared as Manchester United progressed in the Carling Cup with a 2-0 win at Oakwell.

Fans invaded the pitch and prevented United keeper Ben Foster taking a goalkick, while catering staff were trapped in their kiosk as supporters stole cash and food.

South Yorkshire police made eight arrests but the FA will probe a number of incidents which marred the game.

A spokesman said: "There is no place for anti-social or violent behaviour in our game.

"Any culprit found to be involved in these disturbances and identified as such by either the police or clubs should be subject to a lengthy ban from attending football matches."

Barnsley, who have accused United fans of causing 'substantial damage' at the stadium, are also launching an investigation into the violence.

A Tykes spokesman said: "A complaint has been made to the police and we will be taking a look at CCTV footage before we can comment further.

"Scene of crime officers are down here now goingthrough the north stand and we're proceeding with our own investigation as well.

"It's a hell of a mess down there. Doors have been kicked in, tills have been damaged and there's food and drink everywhere.

"It looks like a swamp in one of the bars."

Spurs Bench Better Than Arsenal's Bench

Tottenham striker Robbie Keane has claimed they have a stronger bench than Arsenal ahead of Saturday's north London derby.

Spurs have spent over £60m over the last two transfer windows and Keane claims their squad is now at least the equal of Arsenal's.

"You look at the two squads and we're definitely on a par," Keane told the Evening Standard. "In the last four or five years, Arsenal always managed to get ahead of us but if you look now, it is even.

"It will be judged at the end of the season but if you look at the bench we have, it is probably a little bit stronger than their bench.

"The mentality around the club in previous seasons was that we would be happy to finish fifth, or qualify for the UEFA Cup, but there is a different feeling now.

"The players have the feeling that we want to get to the Champions League. You can take away Saturday's game, because anything can happen in a north London derby, but we need to be judging ourselves against teams like Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea over the season.

"It's still early days, but we're in the top four now, so it's important we stay where we are. If we can get to Christmas still around there, we'd certainly have every chance."

Spurs are currently in fourth place - level on points with the Gunners after playing one more game. They lost their last Premier League game against Stoke.

Make up your own mind...

Tottenham's bench v Stoke: Michael Dawson, Jermaine Jenas, Roman Pavlyuchenko, Alan Hutton, Carlo Cudicini, Gareth Bale, Kyle Naughton.

Arsenal's bench v West Ham: Nicklas Bendtner, Eduardo, Manuel Almunia, Mikael Silvestre, Samir Nasri, Aaron Ramsey, Kieran Gibbs.

Venus sees defeat

Elena Dementieva battled back to beat defending champion Venus Williams on day one of the season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships in Doha.

The Russian recovered from a set and a break down to win 3-6 7-6 (8-6) 6-2 in the first match of the White Group.

In the same group, Serena Williams later takes on Svetlana Kuznetsova in the final match of the day.

Belarusian Victoria Azarenka earlier enjoyed a superb debut, beating Jelena Jankovic 6-2 6-3 in the Maroon Group.

Caroline Wozniacki and Dinara Safina complete the eight-player field and they meet on Wednesday.

The season finale is split into two groups of four, with the top two in each group making the semi-finals and the eventual champion taking home US$1.55m.

Serena Williams hopes to regain the number one spot from Safina - the American must win one more match than the Russian to do so. 606: DEBATE
Your thoughts on the action in Doha


Twelve months ago Jankovic came into the tournament as the world number one, but a mark of her slump in form is that this time around the Serbian is the lowest ranked player of the eight on show.

Sixth seed Azaranka, in contrast, has made the breakthrough into the top 10 in 2009 and was much the steadier in the opening match.

Jankovic, 24, was in desperate form, dropping serve twice as the first set slipped away and, after recovering an early break in the second, handing it straight back with a succession of errors.

Azarenka came through a lengthy game eight on her way to sealing victory in one hour and 22 minutes and taking charge of the Maroon Group.
Azarenka took control of her debut match in the season-ending event


"I basically gave her everything," said Jankovic. "I beat myself. I was just a shadow of myself."

Azarenka, 20, responded: "I'm glad she gave me the match and that she wasn't in the mood.

"It worked out pretty well for me. I'm just happy with the way I started. I haven't played in a tournament for a while. I felt pretty good out there."

Venus Williams looked in complete control when she led the second match of the day by a set and a break, with Dementieva throwing in 10 double faults during the second set.

Fortunately for the Russian, Williams also lost her way and made 27 unforced errors to allow Dementieva into a tie-break which she narrowly edged.

And the Olympic champion dominated the decider as an increasingly frustrated Williams could do nothing to prevent an opening defeat.

"In the end I was very emotional, very positive," said Dementieva. "When you play against a player like Venus you can't put pressure on yourself but you have to fight or every point."

Blake Out for 6 weeks

Los Angeles Clippers’ rookie forward Blake Griffin suffered a non-displaced stress fracture of his left patella during the Clippers’ last preseason game vs. the New Orleans Hornets on Friday, October 23rd.

Griffin, who underwent an MRI yesterday which confirmed the diagnosis, was examined by both team physician Dr. Steven Shimoyama as well as specialist Dr. Neal ElAttrache. Based on communication between the two physicians, it has been determined that Griffin will be sidelined for approximately six weeks.

During this time Griffin will receive bone stimulation and PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) treatment.

Griffin originally suffered a bruised left patella during practice on Thursday, September 24th and was eventually cleared to resume full basketball activity.

Griffin, the first overall selection in the 2009 NBA Draft, averaged 13.7 points, 8.10 rebounds and 28.0 minutes in seven preseason games played.

Carl Froch Regains Title

CARL FROCH retained his WBC super-middleweight title against American Andre Dirrell on October 17 — but the result was far from convincing.

In fact many boxing pundits believed the Cobra's split decision victory could have easily gone the other way.

With that in mind, SunSport has come up with its very own top 10 controversial fight decisions.

We've even thrown in some from the world of MMA, as mixed martial arts is no stranger to the odd contentious call either.

Christiano Ronaldo won't vote for Barca Player

Cristiano Ronaldo has sensationally claimed that he would not sign any Barcelona player for Real Madrid if he could hypothetically take anyone from the treble winners' squad.

The Portuguese star believes that Los Merengues' group could not be improved with the addition of any of the Blaugrana's stars, including Lionel Messi.

Madrid spent around €250 million and are expected to compete for silverware with Barca, and Ronaldo is confident that they have the players to do just that.

"I am not scared of them at all and I am certain we are going to be fighting to try and beat them," he told Cadena SER.

"We have got a great squad and I would not sign anyone from Barcelona."

Ronaldo is recuperating from an ankle injury and is hoping to return against Milan in the Champions League next week.

"At the moment I feel better than ever. I have to be careful about my injury so that I don't suffer a relapse, but everything is going well and I hope that soon I will be playing again," he continued.

"I look after myself and have a normal diet. This is my profession and I have to be in good physical shape. I know that I am always in condition. All I do is play football and I have to be in condition to do that.

"If any footballer is not in condition, it is because they don't do the work."

Rio Under Fire

Alex Ferguson is set to drop underfire Rio Ferdinand for Manchester United's Premier League clash with Blackburn at the weekend.


The England defender has struggled for form since returning from injury earlier this season and came in for a hail of criticism for his performance in the weekend's defeat to Liverpool.

He was widely considered to be at fault for Fernando Torres's opener at Anfield and, considering it was not his first mistake of the season, Ferguson is now prepared to wield the axe. (The Sun)

And it may fall as early as this weekend's game at Old Trafford, with Jonny Evans willing, able and expected to step in.

That defeat to arch rivals Liverpool left Ferguson seething about referee Andre Mariner, albeit in a round-about way, considering the hot water the United boss is already in with the FA.

So cleverly-worded was his rant-but-not-a-rant after the game, there will be no further action as Fergie's views were considered too vague. (The Independent)

Speaking of the original episode that landed him in trouble - the 'fitness' jibe at Alan Wiley - the Daily Mail reports that Ferguson has now admitted he was wrong and has contacted the FA to admit their charge of improper conduct.

Another United defender making the headlines today is Gary Neville, who was involved in a war of words with a Liverpool steward and a police officer during his post-match warm down. (The Sun)

Neville did not play at Anfield, yet took to the pitch with fellow unused substitute Evans after full-time, only to be told to head back to the dressing rooms by the steward, who thought his presence might lead to problems with crowd control.

Neville protested, natch, before the policeman waded in and told him in no uncertain terms to listen to the steward and clear off. Eventually he did.

Tyson not sorry for

Former world heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson says he has no regrets about his "savage" career.

Tyson, who once bit a chunk out of Evander Holyfield's ear during a fight, says his tough mentality helped him become a legendary boxer.

The American told BBC Radio 5 live: "Everything I have done, the good and the bad, catapulted me to become one of the greatest fighters that ever lived."

Tyson, 43, has been jailed for rape and was declared bankrupt in 2003.

"I was happy to be the person who was savage because all my life I used to hear about these fighters who were savages, monsters and animals," said Tyson, who ruled out making a comeback.


"It made them almost inhuman and I loved the stigma behind those guys.

"That's why they continued to live in my head. They motivated me to be the guy that I became."

Tyson, who will be in Britain in November to talk about his turbulent life, became the youngest-ever world heavyweight champion when 20 but squandered earnings estimated at £200m.

He bit off part of Holyfield's ear during a WBA bout in Las Vegas in 1997 and was disqualified from the fight.

Mikel Battles First Team at Chelsea

Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel is battling for his future at Stamford Bridge.

The People says Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti has now had a chance to assess his options and he is considering dumping Obi Mikel - and has started the search for the 'new Claude Makelele.'

The Italian supremo has looked at his squad and thinks they lack a genuine midfield enforcer, a top player who can sit in front of the defence.

The Nigeria international signed a new deal earlier this year with Chelsea.

Wenger Blames Ref. for Gunners Loss

Arsene Wenger was unhappy with the refereeing decisions that allowed a resurgent West Ham United to claw back a two-goal lead to draw with visitors Arsenal at Upton Park on Sunday.

After seeing his side concede twice in the closing 20 minutes, the Arsenal manager questioned both the free kick that led to the Hammers’ first goal and the penalty referee Chris Foy awarded against Alexandre Song after he brought down Carlton Cole.

The Gunners had been 2-0 up before half-time, as van Persie tucked home after Robert Green’s error and William Gallas headed a second from the Dutchman’s corner.

West Ham attacked well and had chances of their own in an entertaining contest, but looked to have missed their chance once Arsenal doubled their lead.

The Arsenal manager told Sky Sports: "It is disappointing because we had a good game and get away with the minimum.

"I believe we were a bit unlucky today with decisions and in their kind of circumstances West Ham did fight for their life and made it very difficult.

"I believe we had many disadvantages in the game but overall we played a good game and unfortunately we couldn't finish the third goal off.

"We had plenty of opportunities in the second half and in the end when the other team comes back to 2-1 and any little decision goes against you, you can pay for it," he added.

The result leaves Arsenal in third place in the Premier League, five points behind leaders Chelsea with a game in hand.

Defeat to Liverpool Painful

Manchester United defender Patrice Evra admitted that defeat to Liverpool at Anfield this afternoon was painful and difficult to take.

The champions went down 2-0 to their bitter rivals with Fernando Torres and David Ngog scoring the goals for Rafael Benitez’s side in an eventful game which also saw Nemanja Vidic and Javier Mascherano receive their marching order.

Speaking to MUTV after the game, Evra conceded that the Red Devils had been poor and that he was frustrated by the result.

“The advice was to play our football but we didn’t do that and I don’t know why. Liverpool were aggressive but we didn’t play and that’s why it’s so frustrating to lose," he explained.

"I look more at the display of Manchester United and the display was poor today. Normally when United play we create at least five or six clear chances but we only had the one when Valencia hit the crossbar. It’s not enough if you want to win against Liverpool.”

The Frenchman also revealed how it felt to lose to the Merseysiders and admitted the defeat would take a few days to get over. 

"[Losing to Liverpool] is the most pain you can have when you play for United. There was a big silence in the dressing room afterwards and we will need a few days to recover from this big disappointment for us, for the staff, for the fans,” he added.

“Now I think we need to do what we did last year – win the league after losing to Liverpool. We also need to make sure we show the real United team at Old Trafford.”