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legally-brief · 4 months ago

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MOVIES WITH MEN IN UNDERWEAR (This is outdated- website shutdown early 2000’s)

“ E-F”

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) Ten year old Henry Thomas in long underwear with no shirt. Calls 14 year old brother "penis breath".

Early Bird, The (1965) Slapstick comedy starring Norman Wisdom. Businessman determined to make a tricky golf shot up an oak tree ends up hanging upside down and falling out of the tree, and of his trousers, when his suspender buttons give way. Enraged, in his striped shorts, he chases Norman Wisdom across the golf course. Near the end of the movie, Wisdom steals the fire chief's uniform in his campaign of destruction. The fireman climbs out of the lift shaft in his white T-shirt and boxer shorts, only to be doused with water.

Early Frost, An (1985) (TV) Aidan Quinn and boyfriend in boxer shorts.

Earth Girls are Easy (1989) Sci-fi comedy. Geena Davis throws her cheating fiancé out of the house in his surgical mask, stethoscope and boxer shorts.

East Is East (1999) Comedy-drama. A young Anglo-Asian guy is seen for a second dancing in his bedroom in his green print Y-fronts.

Echoes in the Darkness (1987) (TV) Good scene with Robert Loggia stripping in his office wearing white T-shirt and white briefs.

Electra Glide in Blue (1973) Robert Blake. One scene exercising in white briefs. Another getting all dressed up in Dallas Duds and forgetting pants.

Elmer Gantry (1960) Burt Lancaster, in his Oscar winning performance, has a scene in turn of the century ‘drawers’.

Emerald Forest, The (1985) Blonde Charlie Boorman as a white boy raised by natives and wearing just loincloths throughout the movie.

Endless Love The main actor screws with his girlfriend in white jockeys (kinda dark though).

Enemy of the State (1998) Action thriller. Pursued by intelligence agents who have hidden tracking devices in his clothes, Will Smith has to strip to his white undershirt and pale-striped boxers and run through the streets to escape.

Escape Artist, The (1982) Griffin O’Neal as a 14 year old boy in chains and boxer shorts.

Evening Star, The (1996) There's a great scene of Scott Wolf in tighty whities.

Everybody Does It (1949) Paul Douglas in white boxers and garters can’t find a place to change into his trousers, as his wife: Celeste Holmes, has invited all her women friends over to hear her sing.

Exit to Eden (1994) The very beginning has a young boy being spanked by his mother in his underpants. A very short scene. The movie also has lots of people walking around in gold thongs, which aren’t quite underwear, but might be worth mentioning.

Eye for an Eye (1996) Revenge thriller. Ed Harris in his boxers in a couple of domestic scenes.

Eyes Wide Shut (1999) Tom Cruise and Ms. Kidman play out a long, marijuana-laced argument in their underwear.

F/X (1986) Bryan Brown under fire and crawling around his apt. in white briefs ... extended scene.

Fábula de la Bella Palomera (1988) (Fable of the Beautiful Pigeon Fancier) "It is Orestes' exquisite absurdity that engages us, his preposterous dignity while tumbling trouserless out of a mistress' window..."

Fabulous Baker Boys, The (1989) Beau Bridges is caught in the hallway of his hotel in dark printed boxers, while Michelle Pfeiffer looks on and comments.

Face in the Crowd, A (1957) Scenes of Andy Griffith in white boxers and A-shirt.

Fallen Angel 13 year old boy is star of kiddy porn movies, in boxer shorts on set, no shirt.

"Fallen Angels" (1993) [TV-Series], episode "Red Wind" One-hour TV adaptation of a short story by Raymond Chandler. Private eye Phillip Marlowe (Danny Glover) is on the beach at night with his blonde client. When she invites him for a swim, he strips to his underwear, hesitating to put down his gun. He should have followed his cautious instinct, because when he comes out of the sea in just his wet orange print boxer shorts, he's at a disadvantage. But it's a beautiful sight.

Family Man, The (2000) Romantic comedy starring Nicholas Cage. Near beginning of movie he makes two or three short appearances wearing black Calvin Klein briefs, and a few minutes later he is seen wearing a pair of plaid boxer shorts.

Fandango (1985) Kevin Costner

Fargo (1996) Crime drama/black comedy. One guy gets beaten up in a corridor in his white T-shirt and print boxers. At the end of the film, one of the protagonists is arrested, struggling as he's handcuffed face-down on the bed in his white T-shirt, dark socks and pale blue boxers.

Fast Talking (1984) Young looking 15 year old boy strokes a wooden penis in shop class. Later is forced by principal to strip to underwear.

Fat City (1972) Good scene. Stacy Keach sleeping in green shirt and ratty white Y-fronts. He walks around his apartment a bit.

Fatal Attraction (1987) The opening scene, with Michael Douglas sitting in the couch reading his appointment book or sth like that while waiting for Anne Archer (who played his wife) to get dressed early in the morning. He was wearing a pair of white classic brief but the white dress shirt he was also wearing cover part of the underpants. There was also one more scene, He was making love with Glenn Close stripping off each other’s clothes.

Fatal Instinct (1993) Armand Assante appears in printed boxers in two scenes in this spy-flick spoof.

Father of the Bride (1950) Spencer Tracy has a nightmare where he walks down the church aisle and loses his pants (white boxers) before the entire congregation.

Fatty's Magic Pants (Fatty's Suitless Day) (1914) "Have you ever gone to a fancy dress ball and had your trousers suddenly vanish? Fatty Arbuckle has. What will happen as the evening progresses? Will more articles of his clothing disappear?"

Fear of a Black Hat (1993) Comedy. Rusty Cundieff and others in boxer shorts; includes a scene where disarming for a fight goes as far as stripping to underwear!

Female Trouble (1975) Divine (as a man) wearing classic whites (with skid marks).

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986) Swimming pool scene with Ferris (Matthew Broderick) and his friend in boxer shorts (wet).

Fierce Creatures (1997) Comedy. Kevin Kline running around in his black boxer briefs, and John Cleese in shirt, tie and striped boxers.

Fight Club (1999) Drama. "We twice see a man's bare butt in a black and white advertisement (as well as another man in small and tightfitting underwear)".

Fightin' Fools (1941) "While the Our Gang kids are enjoying the local swimming hole, a rival group ties all their clothes in knots. Our Gang challenges the meanies, and the two sides have a military-style battle using fruits and vegetables for ammunition."

Final Exam (1981) Horror flick. Frat guy gets stripped to briefs.

Finders Keepers (1984) Micheal O’Keefe gets caught in the bathtub with some other man’s wife - and escapes wearing only his boxer shorts. A long chase scene entails.

Fine Madness, A (1966) Sean Connery bums around his apartment in his boxers.

Fire with Fire (1985) Story of a young guy sent to a juvenile detention camp. Nice scene, about halfway through, of the guys in the bunkhouse roused from bed for a late-night inspection. Several cute young guys in jockeys or boxers, including Craig Sheffer.

Fire! Trapped on the 37th Floor (1991) (TV) Scene with three fire-fighters getting out of bed in jockeys (one white, one red, one black) and one tee-shirts.

First Power, The (1990) Twenty-five minutes into the film: Lou Diamond Phillips quickly puts jeans on over white briefs; he then walks around room wearing only jeans with waistband of briefs showing.

First Strike (1996) Humorous actioner with Jackie Chan, including a scene where he's stripped naked at gunpoint. "One of the funniest scenes is Jackie singing 'I Will Follow Him' accompanied by a strip tease"; "I was going to say 4.5 stars, but then I thought about Jackie walking around in that hysterical polar bear hat and the koala underwear...5 stars all the way!"

First-Time Felon (1997) (TV) Boot-camp drama. Omap Epps and other prisoners being inducted into a prison, lined up in white T-shirts and boxers.

Fish Called Wanda, A (1988) John Cleese does what he thinks is a private sexy strip tease down to his bikini briefs and then some, and finds he is being watched by an entire family who are somewhat shocked by the sight of him.

Fisher King, The (1991) Robin Williams and Jeff Bridges are in Central Park at night and Robin Williams is dragging his butt across the ground nude like a dog saying "Do you know why dogs do this? Because it feels SOOO good!!" Absolutely hilarious!!

Five Easy Pieces Don’t remember scene, though definitely has underwear scene

Flashfire (1993) Action. Tom Mason is killed early on, shot dead in his white undershirt and dark print boxers.

Fled (1996) Action. The heroes visit (surprise!) a plush massage parlor, where they're greeted by a most attractive black man in a black robe and white boxer briefs. Cue another shootout and the guy is quickly killed. Such a shame.

Flesh 1995 - A Male Sexorama of Tomorrow (XXX) A rather stupid story (as in most pornos): after some nuclear accident sex for pleasure is forbidden and only allowed for public TV. This gives rise to some beautiful hunks to appear on stage in different types of underwear (thongs, jock-straps, briefs, and boxers). After getting hard in them there are various scenes of sexual pleasure (really hot, especially because of the underwear playing an important role). This finally ends up in a hot j/o session among 5 guys (this time without underwear). Copyright 1990 by Videorama.

Fleshtone (1994) Martin Kemp on the phone in his white underwear.

Flirting with Disaster (1996) Ben Stiller has a lot of scenes in his boxer shorts - including a running joke where he’s constantly taking his pants on and off.

Flying Down to Rio (1933) Gene Raymond rhapsodizes about Delores Del Rio in his hotel room, dressed in white yoke-front boxer shorts.

For Love of the Game (1999) Drama/romance. "We briefly see the back of Billy's (Kevin Costner's) underwear as he gets undressed while preparing for the game".

For Love or Money (1993) Comedy. Michael J. Fox in his underwear at one point; dark boxers.

For Your Eyes Only (1981) Action. James Bond and team attack a mountain hideout at the end of the film. Some guards are caught asleep, and are glimpsed getting out of bed in their assorted underwear.

Forces of Nature (1999) Romantic comedy. Needing cash, Ben Affleck reluctantly has to strip in a gay bar, and is highly embarrassed when Sandra Bullock suddenly pulls his trousers down, revealing his boxer shorts to an enthusiastic audience.

Foreign Correspondent (1940) Joel MacCrae in hotel room in bathrobe. Two toughs come in to get him. He goes into bathroom and out hotel window. On ledge, robe blows open revealing him in A-shirt, white boxers, with shoes, socks and garters. Long scene as he escapes and climbs through a window only to be where a party is going on in his underwear.

Forrest Gump (1994) Tom Hanks and friend ‘Bubba’ (Mykelti Williamson) are in their military white boxers and T-shirts, as they clean the barracks floor - talking about shrimp.

Fortress (1993) Violent, futurist prison-escape drama. Christopher Lambert movie with lots of prisoners in black underwear (including a few on the toilet).

Fortress (USA Movie) In the middle, the actors and actresses strip down to their underwear and swim out of a cave. Don’t know the people, though.

Fortune and Men’s Eyes Hot scene of guys in classic white briefs.

Fortune, The (1975) Warren Beatty and Jack Nicholson drop their trousers for Stockard Channing in this 1920’s era comedy, revealing white full-cut boxers and garters.

Forty-Ninth Parallel (1941) Wartime drama. Fugitive German sailors stand and salute in their shirts and undershorts before getting into bed. In an escape bid at the end, they steal an old railroad guard’s uniform.

Foul Play (1978) Dudley Moore believes he is very sexy in full-cut printed boxer shorts covered in red hearts.

Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) Romantic comedy. Hugh Grant momentarily seen in his white shirt and pale blue boxers in one scene; blue T-shirt, striped boxers in another.

Fourth Man, The (1983?) A gay Dutch man obsessed with another younger man, spies on him - and follows him throughout the Netherlands. White European briefs on one man, as he ‘massages’ himself. Red bikini briefs on the younger man, in a fantasy sequence where the obsessed man pictures the younger man on an erotic crucifix, where he slowly and sensuously pulls the red bikini briefs off the younger man inside a Dutch church.

Foxy Brown (1974) Action. A judge ends up humiliated in a public hallway without his pants. A gang leader is stripped for mutilation (who makes this stuff?!).

Fraternity Row (1977) Lots of guys (including Gregory Harrison) being hazed in briefs. LONG scene at end of movie.

Freejack (1992) Pretty short (yet nice) scene towards beginning of movie with Rene Russo waking Emilio Estevez outta bed. Emilio laying down and walking around in gray Jockeys. Nice shots, but look fast.

Freeway (1988) Ball-exploding scene has beefy James Russo getting out of bed in white jockey shorts and grey T-shirt.

French Kiss (1995) Kevin Kline in his underwear in the hotel room when he sleeps on the couch.

Friday (1995) Comedy. Two short but good scenes: Drug-confused Chris Tucker running down the street in his white undershirt and briefs, pursued by his friends in a car; and Bernie Mac, chased by jealous husband, running to his car in his white undershirt and red briefs.

Friday the 13th (in some parts) There are some scenes where young men in briefs were killed.

From This Day Forward (1946) Mark Stevens in white boxers and A-shirt, has a marital quarrel with Joan Fontaine.

Full Metal Jacket (1987) For those with boxer fetishes.

Full Monty, The (1997) The hit comedy about a bunch of unemployed guys who become strippers.

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strawberryclothing · 5 months ago

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peacedtogether · 2 years ago

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jimmydemaret · 4 years ago

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serpentinesheldonserpentine · 3 years ago

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What the heck happened to air travel?

Today I am using my WayBack Machine to reminisce about days when air travel was an event, an occasion to look forward to.

My first flight was as a four year old. As you’d figure, Mom helped me pick out my clothes, a ‘casual’ look of blue blazer, white shirt, (clip-on)tie, gray slacks, polished shoes. We all sat and talked quietly; at midflight my dad introduced himself to a flight attendant and mentioned his work for the FAA. Could his son meet the Captain?

Sure, of course and she escorted me to the cockpit where I was the guest of the crew until we began our descent to Miami airport. I returned to my seat alone, proudly wearing my Junior Captain’s Wings on my blazer.

No kidding. It was about 1960.

Unlike today. Flying today is a series of indignities, one after the other that appear designed to test our ability to hold our tongues and our fists of rage. From a government security staff of recent parolees dressed in uniforms lifted from the Nixon White House (sans the braids) and behaving like bouncers guarding the champagne room at a strip club to the open contempt of the flight staff toward customers, air travel remains an event, but one only a masochist can anticipate with glee.

I’ll be direct. I loathe these motherfuckers, every fucking one of them. Oh, and the passengers? Sweet Jesus I had a seatmate ( a citizen, born of citizens) ask me as we approached Philadelphia if “Philadelphia is its own State?” I told him it was part of Delaware. That satisfied him and I feigned sleep avoiding the “what is a Delaware” follow up. It's part of Maryland for those of you from California.

But it’s not all grim. If you travel for work, negotiate for First Class travel for every trip scheduled for 4 hours or longer. Covid changed everything at work, so you have a better shot at this upgrade then you might imagine, and while better seats won’t improve the screening and boarding process, you’ll find them useful when your flight circles Detroit for an hour because of bad weather. It gives you time to stretch out and ask yourself “why the fuck am I going to Detroit?” and weightier questions like “why did Barry Sanders retire so young” and “was Sanders the best ever?”.

If you have flexible working conditions why not drive to your appointment? This is the greatest country in the world and cranking up a bigass SUV from Hertz is a fine way to get around. I have friends to visit this summer and I’ll check into work from the road and enjoy driving at $1500 a month with free miles. Free miles. As in no charge. In a big ‘Murican made SUV with plenty of room for luggage, golf clubs, untaxed cigarettes, cheap hooch, you name it.

See you on the Interstate.

#air travel #Spotify

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microshiner · 5 years ago

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Ska, craft spirits, and Colorado's real drinking town

The hangover bell rings loud and clear in my head as I lift a 70 pound guitar cabinet into the back of a white 2000 Ford Econoline XL. Rain falls lightly. I am running on only a few slovenly hours of sleep but despite the pounding head, my mood is jovial. My band mates and I recount the night before over and over. In the world of ska music, there are few bands more respected than Hepcat, and few bands more infamous than Mephiskapheles, and we just shared the stage with both in one night. It was also the kick off to the second leg of our spring and summer run- this morning we hit the road out of Denver and head for Durango, Colorado, where we’ll spend a week in the studio and follow it up with two shows in the area including a performance at the legendary Ska Brewing Company.

Alright.

Personally, I am excited for more than one reason. I went to school in Durango, but it’s been six years since I’ve lived there and from what I can tell, the drinking scene has only gotten better. A new craft distillery just opened up, and the number of breweries has jumped from 4 to 6 (All this in a town of 17,000. Fort Collins gets the glory, but at over 150,000 residents, are their 14 breweries and 3 distilleries that impressive? Which is the real drinking town?)

I contemplate this and other pressing issues to pass the time on a 7 hour haul over the Rocky Mountains. As we climb in elevation, my mood levels off. It always does when passing time in the van. Whether I am headed somewhere new or somewhere I’ve been many times, as long as it’s light outside touring has always had a bit of a weird vibe to me. The late nights, the shows, the people, the free drink tickets - that is what it’s all about and what makes it worth it. The rush of playing a good show is matched by no drug or other experience I’ve ever had. But during the day, driving through the middle of nowhere to the next town while getting further and further away from your personal life back home, the anxiety creeps in.

Maybe it’s because I’ve never been in a band at a level where touring was our income. I’ve always had to hurry back home after each run and get to work in order to keep the bills paid. Right now, it’s about 9:30 on Monday morning. Everyone I know (except the three guys sitting here with me) is at work, or walking the dog, or heading to the bank, something normal.

Don’t get me wrong, there is certainly a level of awesome to all this. I’m never going to be a ‘company man.’ I knew that by the time I hit high school. I take a lot of pride in what I do for a living and for a hobby. But the older I get, the harder I find it to relate the stories of the road and the stories of the pen and the stories of so many nights passed in rock clubs to people who are my age but haven’t had a night out in months. The word ‘baby’ means something entirely different to them.

As Vonnegut would say - So it goes. We pull into town just in time for happy hour but unfortunately the liquor store will have to suffice for tonight; we’ve got to get to the studio. Tomorrow I will have the opportunity to experience some of the actual culture of this town I’ve missed so much.

Tuesday morning I am walking down Main Avenue bright and early in a leisurely search for a cup of coffee and a paper. Part of me feels like a Texan, stopping to gaze into each store window as I pass by and then actually purchasing, after looking around to make sure no one I know is in sight then ducking quickly into the storefront, a “Durango” t-shirt. I’ll have to bury this down in my backpack so my bandmates never see it. I justify the window shopping and eventual purchase as a mere way to pass some time before my scheduled meeting with some real locals, the owners of Durango Craft Spirits, at 10 o’clock.

I walk into the tasting room to meet owners Michael and Amy McCardell. Immediately I can tell that the duo lives by their motto and are ‘Inspired by the true spirit of Durango’ - It is only 10 am but the room is full of bluegrass music and the McCardell’s beckoning call for a drink. Michael handles the distilling of what is currently their sole offering - Soiled Dove Vodka, made from a mash of 60% native grown, non-GMO white corn they get directly from the Ute Mountain Tribe of Ute in Towaoc, Colorado (just a little over an hour from Durango). His soft voice, with a bit of a country tinge, makes even a short sentence sound well-rehearsed and wise. Perfect for telling stories, and I’m guessing he has a lot of them.

Lucky for me, Michael is not at all shy about telling the story of Durango Craft Spirits, his pride and joy.

It is, I learn quickly, Durango’s first post-prohibition, grain-to-glass distillery. “We’ve got a couple friends over at Ska, Dave (Thibodeau) and Bill (Graham), that opened Peach Street Distillery, in Grand Junction) years ago and one day I met the old distiller and Bill brought in one of their first bottles of gin, along with a bottle of Bombay Sapphire,” Michael says. “It was just unbelievably so much better. That first opened my eyes to craft distilling.”

This was over ten years ago, and until that day Michael had no plans at all of going into the distilling business. “A couple years later, I’m hiking around a piece of property up north with the county assessor, and he said ‘I gotta tell you this story. There’s a buddy of mine who thought he found some ancient Anasazi ruins on his property and he wanted me to come check them out. They hiked up there on a cliff to an Anasazi looking wall and there was an old still sitting back there.’”

He decided to do some research and try to figure out what kind of distilling was done in the area. “I started reading a few books about distilling in the area, and there was quite a bit done,” Michael says. “Especially turn of the last century when the silver market took a crash. A lot of the miners took to cooking booze in the mines.”

With his interest piqued, Michael attended three distilling schools and landed himself an internship at Wood’s High Mountain Distillery in Salida, CO, with the intention of opening his own show in Durango once he learned about the operational side. Both Michael and Amy had spent years in the local hospitality industry managing hotels and a golf club.

As their current jobs came to end due to sell offs, the decision was made to go full-steam with the distillery concept. Step one, securing a location. Where They landed right on the corner of 11th and Main, in the heart of downtown, and opened in January of this year.

Their setup is pretty simple - tasting room in the front, still setup and work area in the back (visible to guests), and office off to the side. Nice and cozy. “We go grain to glass right in the building with all regional grains,” Michael says. “We’re real proud to mash, distill, and bottle right in house.” I had been sold on their concept already, but at this point I could not continue the interview without trying some of their product.

Amy, generally in charge of the tasting room and PR, hands me a pour from behind the bar. I stir, smell, and sip. Then I gasp.

I am not a vodka drinker. My taste for the stuff was ruined by too much Smirnoff as a teenager. But this morning I am happy to make an exception. This stuff is good. Smooth, one of those spirits that you know would be perfect in a cocktail but it almost seems like a sin to dilute it, like a fine scotch. Until you realize that a vodka of such high quality could finally allow you to drink those plastic-bottle vodka infused party concoctions you swore off in your mid-twenties because you can’t stand the headaches any more, minus the headache. “I use a pretty strange recipe for the vodka compared to other distilleries, and it gives it a pretty unique flavor.” That, I agree, is easy to notice.

“The product is tied to Durango’s history,” Michael informs me as empty my glass. “Soiled doves being a Victorian term for the prostitutes of the town. They operated into the 1960s in Durango and were fined heavily, with the fines helping to cover the cost of the schools, the police department, and the fire department.”

The McCardells pay homage to these lovely financiers on the back of their bottle. The cocktails served in the tasting room are also related to the town’s history, an effort that has most certainly allowed the curious tourist to feel more accomplished in his imbibing. The distillery looks to release an unaged whiskey this fall, with barreling scheduled to begin this month. The vodka is currently only sold within 150 miles of Durango. “We are being (probably) too cautious about our growth,” Michael says. They do, however, plan to expand further across Colorado. Not bad for a true mom-and-pop and operation.

I like to think that my band is a mom-and-pop operation. I guess it would be a quadruple-pop operation. Like Michael and Amy, we have grown our small company from nothing into nothing less than an amazing life experience, with no real guidance other learned experience. We have made plenty of mistakes over the last eight years but have slowly made progress come from each of them. We’ve dealt with marriages, jobs, mortgages, kids, operational disagreements, and an old van catching on fire on the road, and as life has happened, we have found a way to happen with it. Back in the early days, circa 2007-2010, I put all of my eggs in that basket. I was willing to work crappy kitchen jobs and live in dilapidated apartments so that I would in turn have the flexibility to leave town when I needed to and be able to keep my financial overhead at a bare minimum in order to play music multiple nights a week. I cared about nothing other than making the band succeed. I lost relationships and friends.

The other guys, at least the two I started the group with, did the same. And then, in the fall of 2010, we crashed and burned hard. So hard, in fact, that over the next two years we did next to nothing with the group. We had no money, our leases were up, and we had nowhere left to go. For a while, we went our separate ways. Our biggest lesson, and one of the most important things I have ever gotten out of life, is that you have to have options - you have to have more than one card to play. As we’ve grown up since then, we have found ways to have other priorities in life while still being able to come back and execute with the band when it’s time.

While the band was on ‘unofficial hiatus’, I filled the musical craving in another group, but I was also able to take the experiences I had with the band, mix them with my college degree, and create some kind of shit show career path based on music business and journalism. Five years later I feel I can see it blossoming. To me, the craft lifestyle embodies that same spirit - live life, take what you’ve got, mix in a heavy dose of passion, and throw it to wind. It takes awhile, but when it finally comes full circle, it tastes so damn good.

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youzicha · 5 years ago

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Reading about Tony Tether's tenure as DARPA director (June 2001-February 2008). He seems like he'd make a great TED Talk speaker.

Over [...] three weeks, Tether and a handful of office directors worked days, nights, and weekends to prepare to brief the vice president. Cheney “was a person who liked pictures, he is a very visual person,” Tether recounted. “So, having a slide with a whole bunch of words on it was just, ‘oh, wow,’ you don’t ever do that to him. You know, you give him a cartoon.” Tether recounted that he wanted something that would blow the vice president away, and so the cartoon he chose for Cheney was Superman.

The headlining act for the vice president would be super soldiers [...] humans who could survive severe blood loss in suspended animation, soldiers who could go for days without food or sleep, and warriors enhanced with superhuman strength and mental abilities.

Just two miles from the burning Pentagon, a small DARPA-financed laboratory on Washington Boulevard, across from the army’s Fort Myer, had been quietly rehearsing terrorist scenarios for senior defense and intelligence officials, trying to convince them that terrorist attacks could be detected well before they are perpetrated. The key was to sift through vast amounts of data—both public information and intelligence records—to identify patterns of activities that might indicate that terrorists were preparing an attack. The intelligence data could be from intercepted phone calls, e-mails, or Internet traffic. The public data might include credit card transactions, doctor visits, and car rental records. The laboratory was designed to demonstrate what could be done if all of that data could be linked together and treated as a single database.

The “laboratory” was all smoke and mirrors, at least in the fall of 2001. A Hollywood set designer had been hired to create the futuristic-looking command-and-control center with large, sleek display screens and flashing lights. The humming computers were not churning any real data. There was research going on at companies and universities, but the laboratory was just a showcase to convince intelligence officials that data, or more important, spotting patterns in data, could help predict the next terrorist attack.

DARPATech, the semiannual DARPA conference, had once been a staid technical meeting held in cities like Denver and Dallas, but Tony Tether wanted to make a public splash, so in 2002 he moved the venue to Disneyland in California. “We have had a lot of fun creating this symposium,” Tether said in the keynote speech. “Part of the fun was each office finding a Disneyland-like theme for what it does.” (The theme for the Information Awareness Office featured the Star Wars androids, C-3PO and R2-D2.) [---]

Over his nearly eight years as agency director, Tether would hold all four DARPATech conventions at Disneyland, featuring speeches punctuated by Star Wars theme music and schwag that included DARPA-embellished playing cards, custom DARPA-logo golf balls, and T-shirts decorated with armed drones. “Welcome to our world!” Tony Tether said, beaming to the audience in the opening ceremony in March 2004. “A world where science fiction morphs into reality.”

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the technology for detecting neural signals was rudimentary; forty years after that initial DARPA program, the technology had evolved, but scientists still disagreed over the interpretation of those signals. For example, scientists had developed better ways to detect the P300, a brain signal that occurs about three hundred milliseconds after a stimulus, like a specific sight or sound. Yet DARPA’s vision for augmented cognition assumed that such brain signals, which were still being studied in the lab, could be used to start immediately building the equivalent of mind-reading caps for the military. It was science fiction, quite literally.

To illustrate its vision, the agency enlisted the services of Alexander Singer, a Hollywood television director best known for the new Star Trek series, Deep Space Nine, to create a half-hour mini-film depicting augmented cognition. The video, inspired by the Star Trek holodeck, opened with lingering shots of groundbreaking scientists: Charles Darwin, father of evolution theory; B. F. Skinner, famous for operant conditioning; and Hans Berger, inventor of electroencephalography. It then flashed to DARPA’s Dylan Schmorrow, credited as the father of augmented cognition. The science fiction story line featured a cyber-security officer, Claudia, who must head off a cyber attack designed to destabilize Africa. Claudia is outfitted with a headpiece that monitors her cognitive state, and the computer parses out information to speed her decisions, with occasional interruptions by a Yoda-like cyber chief teleconferenced in from a fishing vacation. “We may be looking at an anomaly, big time,” Claudia declares.

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mygolfshirtsblog · 3 years ago

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Unknown Facts On Women's Golf Wear

Golf is the oldest game played from the 15th century. But it was known to be a male domain. However, from the 1950s, the golf court is no longer a male court only.

Before 1950, female golf players faced much criticism for playing the elite gentleman's game. Though Mary Queen was the first woman to swing a golf club in 1550, the women golfers were not heard for at least 200 years due to widespread criticism. This gradually changed in the 19th century. Since then, there has been so much evolution in women's golf apparel. Are you ready to uncover the history of women's golf fashion? Have a quick look!

Unknown Facts & History Of Women's Golf Wear

Before the 1950's - Women used to wear Victorian golf dresses, which include crinolines, bustles, and multiple petticoats. However, the long and buggy golf skirts that women used to put were uncomfortable as they gave very little opportunity for free swing.

So, women golf apparel fashion moved to Edwardian Style - straw boater hat, white blouse, and long black skirt. Still, comfort and ease to play were not the focus when it comes to women's golf skirts.

Fashion Revolution and liberation in golf attire, the women were offered freedom to wear skirts above the ankle. Fortunately, female golf players could then play their games significantly faster with enhanced comfort. Also, this change in women's golf skirts provided them with increased mobility in the golf court. These short skirts were coupled with a simple blouse and layered with a cashmere sweater. However, in hotter climates, sleeveless blouses were also acceptable.

The introduction of skirts in the 1960s was a turning point in women's golf apparel fashion. The next change in fashion was experienced in the 1980s, where women started wearing high-waisted pants, tops, and sleek belts at the waistlines.

From 2000 until today, the athletic style has continued to grow. Comfortable, fitted, and chic attires have helped female golf players to perform at their best. With the enhancement in fabric technology, polo-style shirts, turtlenecks, and crew-neck tops coupled with slacks, shorts, or skirts became the perfect outfit for debutants as well as renowned golf players.

However, on sunny days, all eyes are on dri fit golf shirts that pull away extra sweat and help block UV rays, providing the ultimate layer of cool in the golf court. It keeps female golf players feeling dry all day during their beautiful golf sunny games. Brands are also helping to create women's golf shirts that appeal to today's women.

Crazy, stretchy, and wild golf shirts, skirts, and pants are also a comfortable and smart option for many women golf players. It will make you stand out on the golf court. You will feel your best all day long.

So, say hello to a new trend of women's golf apparel and improve your golfing experience with the right golf apparel packages. Make a statement when you walk down on the golf court with our extensive collection of women's golf apparel.

#dri fit golf shirts #wild golf shirts #women's golf shirts #golf apparel packages

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skihunter374 · 3 years ago

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Best Kits For Pro Clubs

With the 2021-22 Premier League campaign upon us, it's time to dive into the most exciting thing about the new season: the kits each club will be wearing for the next year.

After Euro 2020, the Copa America and the Olympic football tournaments have stolen the focus over the past couple of months, there's a chance you may have missed some of new uniforms unveiled ahead of the new season, which kicks off on Friday. We've seen jerseys inspired by past glories, 1960s modern art movements and even dabbles into psychedelia from a certain north London side.

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Here we offer a comprehensive guide to the home, away and (where applicable) third alternate kits that all 20 Premier League clubs will be wearing throughout the 2021-22 season. We've compiled each and every one of them here and ranked each club by their collective output from worst to best. As more kits get released, they will be added to the list below and the ranking could change accordingly.

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20. Burnley (Umbro)

Home: The very un-jazziest of all Premier League sides have added some very jazzy sleeve patterns to their tried-and-tested home kit formula, with unsettling results.

Away: The Clarets certainly made us wait for their away kit, unveiling it five days after the 2021-22 season had kicked off. Sky blue pinstripes run over a white base, trimmed in claret, and there's an old-fashioned feel to the jersey with its V-neck and oversized cuffs, but it wasn't really worth the wait.

Third: This is more like it. Not only is Burnley's third kit a study in cool navy, it is also a charitable endeavour with the club pledging to donate £5 from ever sale to the Alzheimer's Society -- a donation that will then in turn be matched by their shirt sponsor.

19. Brighton & Hove Albion (Nike)

Home: After toying with a daring pinstriped design last season, Brighton are back in their classic blue-and-white stripes once again, thus making their 2021-22 shirt almost indistinguishable from 99% of the club's previous home kits.

Away: The Seagulls' away shirt has more to offer with the aqua colouring similar to that seen on Brighton's Marine Parade, the city's main promenade along the seafront, and the rippled sleeve graphics also reminiscent of a walk by the beach. The lightning-shaped panels that run down either side of the jersey also help to conjure images of the typical weather conditions found on a day trip to the English coast.

18. Brentford (Umbro)

Home: Brentford are embarking upon their first season in the Premier League with a pair of kits that scream 'Premier League new boys.' Plain and basic, the Bees' red-and-white striped home shirt is the kind of generic template kit you might see on a local pub's Sunday League team.

Away: The away kit is 'buttercup yellow' with a subtle chevron pattern that Umbro says is intended to conjure images of a bee sting. It's a passable effort, but you'd be forgiven for wanting a little more from a club who are trailblazers for the modern data analytics approach in English football.

Third: Alas, the Bees' third kit is predictable fare too, with a largely plain white shirt added to the mix. It does at least include a nod to the club's historic roots via the 'claret, salmon, and blue' trim on the sleeve cuffs -- the colours first worn when the club was formed in 1889-90 - but they also used these colours as trim for their nigh-on identical white third kit last season.

17. Wolverhampton Wanderers (Castore)

Home: New kit suppliers Castore used colour matching to ensure they re-created the precise shade of 'Old Gold' that has become synonymous with Wolves over the years. Laser-cut breathing holes in 'high sweat zones' and angular side panels add subtle detailing to an otherwise simplistic design. They also went with a shiny matte finish, which makes the shirt look permanently sweaty.

Away: The gold specks against the dark background resemble the dying embers of a fire, which doesn't inspire much confidence in a team facing a pivotal third season back in the top flight under a new manager. Also, the pattern is reminiscent of the infamous 1992-93 'smudge' kit that we hoped had been consigned to history.

16. Leicester City (Adidas)

Home: Blotchy and blue, the Foxes have suffered a distinct downgrade from last season's regal gold-fringed home kit. The pattern makes this jersey look like it's made of the kind of fabric generally used to upholster seats on public transport.

Away: The Foxes have gone with mint green for their away kit, which the club rather optimistically claim is 'anticipated to be an instant classic.' There's a subtle checkerboard pattern integrated into the design, but there's not much to get your teeth into beyond that. 'Instantly forgettable' might be a little closer to the mark.

Third: The Foxes have slipped into a dusky grey number which falls a little flat despite the retina-searing pink used to accentuate the club crest and trim. As with the club's mint-tinged away kit, this third alternate falls neatly into the 'generic' category and is unlikely to be fondly remembered by anyone at the King Power beyond the end of next May.

15. Aston Villa (Kappa)

Home: Bound by convention, there's not much wiggle room with a claret-and-blue Villa home shirt in terms of design since they went with those colours in the 1880s, with the club favouring a claret body with blue sleeves without much in the way of deviation in the years since. This season some two-tone vertical stripes have been added into the mix, an ambiguous nod to 'past successes of the team,' according to the manufacturers. Other than that, it's all a bit humdrum.

Away: Heralding the 40th anniversary of Villa's European Cup triumph, the new away shirt mirrors the pinstriped white jersey worn against Bayern Munich for the 1981-82 final. The claret detailing gives the jersey a pleasant look but, sentimentality aside, the 2021-22 rehash is a little bland when judged on its own merits. Standard mid-table fare.

Third: A design inspired by the lion that adorns the Villa club crest, this deep blue number features a slash of faux claw marks across the front and back. So if you want to look like you've just managed a narrow escape from the big cat enclosure at your local zoo, this kit is for you.

14. Newcastle United (Castore)

Home: A new manufacturer's logo to the Premier League gives the 2021-22 Newcastle home shirt a vaguely exotic tinge, but it would probably look more at home on a rugby pitch. The mandarin collar is distinctive, but the general lack of stripes is a drawback and the slogan 'Better never stops' inside the hem is a bit of a head-scratcher, considering their perennial struggles at the wrong end of the table.

Away: For a team who famously play in black-and-white stripes at home, to release a black-and-grey striped away kit seems like folly. However, we can commend the level of detail put in to make Newcastle's 2021-22 alternate shirt visually engaging, with gold crest and sponsor logos and a slick 'wave' pattern disrupting the horizontal bands and playing tricks on the eye.

Third: This kit is hardly a blockbuster, but the Tron-style symmetrical grid pattern adds some depth and character to the baby blue base colour.

13. Watford (Kelme)

Home: Having played in a gruesome mess of black spikes last year, Watford are back in stripes for their return to the Premier League, continuing a proud club tradition of never being able to settle on any one design for more than a season. A slightly paler yellow and hazy 'gradient' hoops mean that the Hornets' latest effort is far more comfortable to look at for a sustained length of time than their previous jersey.

Away: Watford's away kit is a vivid red jersey with black-and-yellow trim, with the shirt also subtly marbled with a swirl pattern. It looks like something the Belgium national side might have worn in the late 1980s, and for that, it gets a solid thumbs-up from us.

Third: Watford have gone all-out to make a statement with this bottle green-and-gold kit, but the reality is that the overzealous zig-zag pattern renders the shirt a bit of an eyesore.

12. West Ham United (Umbro)

Home: No prizes for guessing that West Ham have gone with claret and blue once again, though the new sleeve panels and button collar lend a distinct 1990s feel. This is fully deliberate, as the Hammers' new home shirt is directly inspired by their 1999-2000 kit, as worn by Upton Park favourite Paolo Di Canio.

Away: Like a West Ham-themed deck chair, the away shirt is pale blue with white stripes, finished off with contrasting bands of claret trim. Again, the club have dug through time in search of inspiration, with the kit intended to evoke memories of the 1992-93 season in which Billy Bonds' side earned promotion into the Premier League.

Third: West Ham complete the line-up by shifting their palette around once again, this time choosing a navy marl third shirt decorated with claret-and-sky blue accents on the collar and cuffs. It's fine, if a little predictable.

11. Norwich City (Joma)

Home: Norwich have earned promotion again and have kicked off their latest spell in the top flight with a new kit deal with Joma. The Spanish manufacturer's first offering is a familiar yellow-and-green shirt, with the feathery pattern on the sleeves designed to look like the wings of a canary -- the bird on the club's crest from which they take their nickname. The collar is embroidered with the club's six core values (growth, integrity, belonging, resilience, pride and commitment), and the presence of Norfolk-based sports car company Lotus as a main sponsor is a welcome addition.

Away: The feathery sleeve pattern is also in place on the away kit, with a deep black and neon turquoise colour scheme giving it a bioluminescent quality. It's moody and nocturnal. We dig it.

Third: The Canaries' third kit is altogether less subtle. In fact, it is fluorescent coral from head to toe with black detailing, including the V-neck and the central stripe. As with the away strip, the third is so powerfully vivid that it nearly functions as its own light source.

10. Southampton (Hummel)

Home: Billed as a 'kit like no other,' the major selling point of Saints' home shirt is that it incorporates augmented reality (AR) technology that allows fans to access a variety of interactive content when they scan it. This rather glosses over the fact that the shirt itself is actually fairly nondescript, even with Hummel's trademark chevrons in the background.

Away: Like many football shirts these days, this one is made from 100% recycled plastic bottles. The Saints emphasised the eco-friendliness of their new away kit by launching it at an event where supporters gathered to clean a beach just a few miles from their St Mary's stadium. The yellow-and-blue jersey bears a tribute to the stadium, as well as the club's former home at The Dell, by including structural details of the two grounds on the inside.

Third: Super smart in black-and-red, the Saints' third shirt also pays homage to the club's stomping grounds by including the same renderings of St Mary's and The Dell, only this time in subtle patterns on the outside of the jersey. Impeccable timing, too: the shirt debuts as the club celebrate the 20-year anniversary of uprooting and moving into their 'new' stadium in 2001.

9. Leeds United (Adidas)

Home: Fresh as a daisy, the new Leeds home shirt is pristine white with the blue-and-gold trim of 2020-21 replaced with fresh navy and yellow accents. The button-up, collarless look is also a nice touch, with Marcelo Bielsa's side certain to look immaculate as they embark upon their second season back in the top flight.

Away: Leeds will play in blue camo on their travels, which Adidas says is intended as an homage to the club's 'amazing' away following. In all honesty, it looks more like an homage to Leicester City's 2021-22 home shirt, made by the same manufacturer, although the colour will be agreeable to more fans than the Foxes' mint-green version.

Third: Third kit designs tends to afford a little extra creative license which has seen Leeds introduce a brand new colour to their palette. It's kind of hazy heather, kind of luscious lavender, and definitely wouldn't look out of place adorning the walls of the bathroom at your grandmother's house.

8. Chelsea (Nike)

Home: Nike says that this kit is inspired by London in the 1960s, specifically the Op-art movement that came to the fore during that time wherein artists created stark abstract and geometric patterns intended to fool the eye. It's hardly a timeless design -- indeed, we have a feeling it's not going to age particularly well -- but you have to commend them for trying something different.

Away: Yellow is the colour for Chelsea on the road once again, with the club returning to an alternate hue favoured since the early 1960s. The horizontal pinstripes also echo several historic Blues away shirts worn during the 1980s and early '90s.

Third: Inspired by the London streetwear scene, Chelsea's third kit features a green and black splotch print accented with crimson trim, all designed to shine under the floodlights on European nights. It's undeniably chic and modern, though you could argue that the last thing the Blues needed to add to their already lively 2021-22 kit collection was another chaotic, abstract design.

7. Manchester City (Puma)

Home: City emerged top of our style ranking in 2020-21 with their jerseys of mosaic, paisley and copper trim. However, this summer's kit release is not enough for Guardiola's side to defend their title. It looks like the nostalgia well might be running dry at the Etihad with City's latest home jersey at least part-inspired by Sergio Aguero's famous title-winning goal against Queens Park Rangers -- which was less than a decade ago. The time stamp (93:20) of Aguero's stoppage-time strike on the final day of the 2011-12 season has pride of place in the back of the neck, while the main design is reminiscent of the shirts that City wore that day.

Away: City's away kit is an ecological endeavour, made from 100% recycled plastic while using a special dying process that drastically reduces water usage during its manufacture. This was a decision made by City to highlight water concerns around the world, with the club collaborating with charitable partners to provide clean drinking water, sanitation and hygiene to deprived communities in four cities across three continents. They also knocked out a very smart kit in the process, with the iridescent lettering and logos are an exquisite touch.

Third: This jersey was released as part of Puma's recent mass 2021-22 third kit dump, which has proven very unpopular. Critics have likened the design to lacklustre training wear, with crests removed from chests and replaced with large bands of clunky text. Any City goal scorers seeking to kiss the badge in celebration will have a struggle on their hands, given that it's been relocated to the back of the jersey.

6. Crystal Palace (Puma)

Home: Palace unveiled their new home kit with a little help from possibly their only fan old enough to remember the year (1937) the club first switched to red-and-blue stripes. At 101 years old, Pam Blomfield (known affectionately as 'Nan Pam') was the unlikely face of the launch after her grandson contacted the club on social media asking to get a shirt for her landmark birthday. The shirt itself sees the Eagles' famous stripes tilted diagonally for the first time, echoing the two-tone sash worn on their white home kits of the 1970s.

Away: A staple for the club's away kits since the 1960s, Palace will be back in yellow on the road this season having chopped and changed between black and white away shirts over the past few years. A return to yellow is likely to prove popular with fans of the Eagles. Speaking of which, there is a large eagle detail sunk into the background of this jersey, while the red-and-blue stripes running vertically down the front to house the club crest are another nice touch.

Third: Sky blue and white aren't colours you'd immediately associate with Palace, but the club have gone back 160 years and untangled their earliest roots in search of creative inspiration. The half-and-half shirt is inspired by the uniform worn in 1861 when Crystal Palace cricket club formed a football team to keep playing sport during the winter months. The shirt is speckled in references to the Eagles' nascent years, including an image of the famous Crystal Palace building -- originally constructed for the Great Exhibition of 1851 -- which has been merged into the design.

5. Everton (Hummel)

Home: Hummel says its design is inspired by the ingenious 'dazzle' camouflage used to shroud ships in the Liverpool docks and beyond during the First World War. It worked by using angular lines and confusing colours to make it difficult for enemies to determine both the size and orientation of boats while at sea. Should the Toffees' new kit prove as effective, opposing defenders will no doubt have similar problems judging precisely which way Richarlison is facing while he charges around the Goodison pitch.

Away: A black kit furnished with a bright burnt orange sash, the new Everton away kit is a tribute to the team of 1881-82, a side that came to be nicknamed 'The Black Watch.' That team had a formidable record but, due to a lack of formal league structure, most of their games were classified as non-competitive friendlies, barring two outings in the Lancashire Senior Cup. Still, their kit looked amazing.

Third: Inspired by the Toffees' white away kits of the 1950s, this modern interpretation features a central track of navy and yellow chevrons -- another innovative use of Hummel's trademark logo, even if it does make the shirt look like it's been run over by a motorbike.

4. Tottenham Hotspur (Nike)

Home: There's going 'back to basics' and then there's this: the whitest shirt and naviest shorts and socks you'll see this season. Some will find this design utterly boring, but when you're a club with such a distinctive combination of colours then you have the luxury of reverting to the classic look. Still, most Spurs fans will be more concerned about star striker Harry Kane's attempts to force an exit late in the transfer window than how much effort has gone into designing their kit.

Away: As if to compensate for their ultra-simplistic home kit, Spurs went all out with the away shirt. In as stark a contrast between a club's kits of the same season as you're likely to find, the second jersey is a chaotically cosmic trip through a mind-bending neon galaxy. The swirling dreamscape has split opinion among Spurs fans right down the middle but, hand on heart, we love it.

Third: Spurs risked going one wild kit too far with their lurid purple third jersey with its angular chevrons, chaotic collages, patchy patterns and washed out colours. It was designed in collaboration with local artists as a showcase for the young creative talent emerging in North London.

3. Manchester United (Adidas)

Home: The United home shirt is designed to conjure images of club legends like Sir Bobby Charlton, George Best and Denis Law in their pomp. Inspired by the club's classic red home kits of the 1960s with white round collar and cuffs, the plain design is another intended to prompt swells of nostalgia. The past will be something of a refuge for United fans who are having to deal with the club's current four-year trophy drought.

Away: United have also gone retro for their new away kit, specifically the cult classic 'snowflake' shirt of 1990-92. Just like they did for their 2017-18 away shirt, the old tessellating trefoil pattern has been updated to create a modern take on a fan favourite. Jadon Sancho certainly seems to enjoy being back in pale blue, so who are we to argue?

Third: United's new third kit was introduced as a 'remix' of the sleek black away kit worn by Eric Cantona & Co. during their historic double-winning 1993-94 campaign. The contemporary revamp chops and changes the palette around with a deep blue base, even darker angular patterning and a high-contrast yellow trim. Looking at both shirts side by side, the correlation isn't immediately apparent -- and it seems a little daft that both of United's alternative outfield kits for 2021-22 are predominantly blue -- but it's still a perfectly nice strip, all things considered.

2. Liverpool (Nike)

Home: Liverpool have sent a shock wave through their traditional home red this season, intensifying the colour in what Nike calls a testament to former manager Bill Shankly's belief that it made his team play with added vigour. In 1964-65, Shankly introduced an entirely red kit -- shirt, shorts and socks -- at Anfield for the first time, citing the psychological advantages of harnessing the 'danger and power' associated with the colour. Sure enough, they went on to win the FA Cup that season. Jurgen Klopp's side will no doubt be looking to reclaim their Premier League dominance by channelling that energy.

Away: Liverpool's away kit sees a welcome return for the colour off-white shade 'ecru,' although here they have dubbed it 'stone,' inspired by the buildings that dominate the city's skyline. Ecru became synonymous with Liverpool during the 1990s thanks largely to the infamous Armani suits the team wore ahead of the 1995-96 FA Cup final, and the off-beige away strip they wore for the following season, which has since attained 'cult classic' status among fans. The contemporary 2021-22 rendering is altogether easier on the eye, with a green-and-red trim bringing the whole thing together nicely.

Third: With trim inspired by the chequered flags that first appeared on the Anfield terraces in the 1970s, this kit is a loving tribute to one of football's most famous stands: The Kop. Drenched in vibrant yellow with subtle pinstriping, the shirt harks back to the club's last great flush of success during the 1980s, when the colour became a staple of the Reds' repertoire. Unashamedly retro and steeped in nostalgia, you either love it or you don't -- and we do (even if some see it as too close to the uniform of a fast food outlet for their liking).

1. Arsenal (Adidas)

Home: Arsenal have followed up last season's art deco-themed kit by reverting to a clean, modern reworking of their iconic club colours. A vivid red base, white sleeves and flanks are set off by a navy blue trim. It's undoubtedly smart and uncluttered, though there are distinct shades of Ajax about it -- which is never a bad thing in our book.

Away: Arsenal will be wearing 'pearl citrine' (yellow) and 'collegiate navy' (dark blue) on the road with an effortlessly stylish shirt that also sees the club's old and much-loved cannon crest make a long-awaited return. The kit also marks the 50th anniversary of the club's first-ever double-winning season, when Charlie George & Co. wore yellow as they beat Liverpool in the 1971 FA Cup final at Wembley.

Third: Continuing the retro theme, Arsenal have resurrected their cult classic 'blue lightning' away kit from 1995-96. Breathing new life into a fan favourite, the 2021-22 rework sees the bolt graphic spread right across the shirt, with two shades of blue and a contrasting scarlet outline combining to create a pattern that feels brand new and yet familiar at the same time. Incidentally, the original lightning kit was worn during the last season the Gunners weren't involved in European competition -- until 2021-22, that is.

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Fifa 19 Best Kits - Most Cool Home, Away And Third Kits For Fifa Ultimate Team And Pro Clubs

10/29/2018 3:52:36 PM

the fifa 19 kits are necessary items of fifa 19, each club or league has different kits, which makes the players or team stand out on the field, it's a symbol of a specific club, league, and level in the game. all kits can be divided into three version: home kit, away kit, and third kit. then, from the numerous kits, how to pick up some best kits to use in ultimate team, and pro club.

i. home kit

ws wanderers it looks pretty, the combination of red and black comes from australia, you use it both in pro clubs and ultimate team.

orlando pirates another black kit. this kit in pro clubs looks better than ultimate team because in pro clubs you can customize your player.

lazio it mainly consists of blue and white, looks feel comfortable, there is a shape a bird in the middle of the kit, shows power and speed at the same time.

tigres one of the best kits for ultimate team for this season, the striking golden color is combined with the retro pattern, this kit will make you stand out on the field undoubtedly.

ii. away kit

new zealand let's take a look at this kit, black background and white marks and feather, very cool, because of the feather you can't see all the feather with short sleeve, it's a really nice slick design.

z.sosnowiec the design in the middle of the kit looks really cool and slick and in pro clubs, this kit wears long sleeve looks even better.

al taawoun there may be a wolf image on that design, with the dark color. you can find it in either pro clubs or ultimate team.

paris

simple full white kit with the black words and gold marks, it's a classic design and suitable for most players.

iii. third kit

galatasaray this kit is a third kit, looks awesome and cool, it's the best kit for a quickly attacker and striker on the field of fifa 19, you can go on the market and purchase it.

liverpool a lot of people in pro clubs and ultimate team like to use this kit i think it's one of probably one of the best kits you can use in fifa 19.

fc barcelona this is a all pink kit, looks beautiful and active on the player, awesome especially for october. describing a bird’s-eye view of the city, created a fantastic and vibrant football kit for ultimate team.

inter milan fashionable gray color and absolutely gorgeous marble effect, the iconic logo of pirelli and cross-cutting graphics seamlessly combined, to add different features for this kit.

the above twelve kits are picked out from all fifa 19 kit, stands for various design style and makes you stand out on the pitch, but this just a small part of thousands of kits, there may more cool and classic kits you can find, hope this can help you. more information or tutorial for fifa 19, or fifa 19 coins please head over fifaah.com. cheapest fifa coins for more game items, players, kits and more, it's very worth right now.

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Best Custom Kits Pro Clubs

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jimmydemaret · 4 years ago

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FootJoy Men's Short Sleeve Sport Golf Windshirt (XXL, Navy/Silver)

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bestshirttrend · 4 years ago

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You Know What Rhymes With Golf And Beer Shirt

Rotterdam Netherlands You Know What Rhymes With Golf And Beer Shirt . Inspired by the classic 1991 track 'Jazz (We've got)' by seminal hip hop pioneers A Tribe Called Quest, this exclusive design comes courtesy of illustrator, muralist, and visual artist. Ready2Rumbl is an artist living and working in Rotterdam in The Netherlands. Aside from Hip Hop, his inspiration springs from his love of American illustration from the 1960s, children’s books, modern popculture, as well as old fairy tales, myths and sagas. With all of this tossed in the pot, he cooks up many cartoon-esque characters with a funky human flavour. is a new casual wear brand and digital art creating machine that vows to create quirky on any topic they feel interested in or the mood they feel before they have had their coffees.You Know What Rhymes With Golf And Beer Shirt, hoodie, sweater, longsleeve and ladies t-shirtFounders Lukas Beles and Stephen Byrne are two chefs with a huge interest and passion for music, art, food, science, history, literature, movies and tv You Know What Rhymes With Golf And Beer Shirt . They draw inspiration from these many topics to create the right design and share with their visitors. Both want to create a vast collection of dead famous people using the simple yet eye catching form of silhouette and hirsute for the many people who have inspired their lives; from writers to musicians, poets to scientists, revolutionaries, artists and crazy historical figures. Read the full article

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liamhaydn-blog · 4 years ago

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The Maradona of the 21st Century is not Lionel Messi

The most common and in fact only real comparison ever made between 2 great footballers of different eras is that of Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi. Both are diminutive left-footed Argentine number 10′s, blessed with the best dribbling ability the game has ever seen. With a strength and speed that belies their stature, combined with extraordinary close control, they beat defenders at a rate that noone has matched.

And in the early day’s of Messi, there were eerie similarities. 2005 saw Messi make his international debut against Hungary, the same opponent Maradona debuted against. In 2007 Messi scored against Getafe with a goal identical to Maradona’s ‘goal of the century’ and then a couple of months later he scored with his hand against Espanyol, going unpunished as Diego famously did with the ‘Hand of God’.

But since then, the differences between the two players careers have grew and grew. Messi has so far spent over 20 years at one football club, Maradona represented 6 across 7 different spells. Leo though only 33, has already scored well over twice as many career goals as Maradona, and has appeared in well over 200 more senior matches. Messi has scored over 30 goals for his club in 13 consecutive seasons, Maradona only scored over 20 goals twice in Europe. Messi has so far won 35 major honours in club football, to Diego’s 9. Maradona has lifted the World Cup whereas Messi has never won a senior international trophy and Messi has scored over twice as many goals for Argentina, with over 50 more caps so far.

Simply put, they have had very different careers and lived very different lifestyles. I feel greater similarities are to be found between Maradona and another 21st century footballer, who also wore the number 10 shirt for Barcelona, Ronaldinho.

Maradona and Ronaldinho both spent 10 seasons in Europe, played for 3 European Clubs, and spent 2 seasons at their first European club. They played by far the best and most consistent football of their career and reached their highest highs at their 2nd European club. Here both men won 5 major honours, including 2 league titles and a European trophy. Maradona played 52 more games for Napoli and scored 21 more goals than Ronaldinho for Barcelona, which makes it likely that if they’d played an identical amount of games, they’d have an almost identical goal tally.

Both won the World Cup with a 2-0 knockout stage win over Belgium, a 2-1 Quarter-Final win over England, and beat Germany in the final. Both also scored goals in the Quarter-Final which were the best remembered of the tournament and highly embarrassed the England goalkeeper.

Here are some stats which highlight some more similarities in their respective careers:

Club trophies won: Maradona 9, Ronaldinho 12. Number of Clubs: Maradona 6 (in 7 spells), Ronaldinho 8. International caps: Maradona 91, Ronaldinho 97. International goals: Maradona 34, Ronaldinho 33. Competitive Internationals: Maradona 46, Ronaldinho 52. Goals in Competitive internationals: Maradona 17, Ronaldinho 17. Total senior goals: Maradona 345, Ronaldinho 299. freekicks scored: Maradona 62, Ronaldinho 66.

As Players

Maradona was a classic Number 10, a creative playmaker operating from a free role either as an attacking midfielder or a 2nd striker. His game was renowned for his dribbling which due to his low centre of gravity, stocky physique, acceleration, quick feet, close control, agility and his ability to quickly change direction made him extremely difficult to stop. Despite a solid goal return, Maradona’s game was about more than just scoring goals and individual runs, his vision, passing and creativity made him a fantastic teamplayer also.

Ronaldinho also could operate as a Number 10, playing in a free central role as an attacking midfielder, though he could also be deployed on either wing to devastating effect. Ronaldinho was an extremely effective playmaker as like Maradona he possessed outstanding vision and creativty with great passing ability. He was also a world class dribbler with underrated pace and acceleration, aswell as athleticism, balance and ball control allowing him to take on opponents. He was one of the most effective ever 1 v 1 at beating players with his tricks, feints, stepovers, nutmegs, aswell as sheer unpredictability making him extremely challenging to handle. Ronaldinho was also known for his technical skills, flair, creativity and touch.

Maradona and Ronaldinho are the most skillful players to ever reach the top of the game. More so than anyone else who has become the number 1 player on the planet, they were freestyle footballers. Maradona was one of Ronaldinho’s idols as a kid, and it’s easy to see why. Only Ronaldinho himself could cast a similar spell over the ball, Diego seemed to be almost at one with it, manipulating it in any way he wanted.

Whether doing keepy-ups with his shoulders, head, heel or slices as naturally as other players do them with their feet, Maradona had an artists understanding with the ball. And not just footballs either, his feet could do whatever he wished with golf balls, rolled up socks, anything he could make resemble a football he juggled with.

Maradona and Ronaldinho were two players who you didn’t need to see in an-game situation to be entertained by. Just throw them a ball. This was evidenced with the well known video of Maradona warming up before a UEFA Cup Semi-Final against Bayern Munich set to ‘Life is Life’ by Opus. Preparing for the game as if he’s arrived too early for a kickabout and is waiting for his mates to show up, Diego plays with an unbelievable rhythm.

This sense of rhythm and fun didn’t leave Diego once the game had kicked off, with regular rabona’s and roulette’s (which became known as the Maradona turn due to the level he perfected it) elevating the entertainment for everyone in attendance.

This is where I think his game is more similar to Ronaldinho’s than that of Messi’s. Lionel though brilliant to watch is nowhere near as flashy, applying skills only when absolutely necessary. For Ronaldinho however, skills always felt necessary. No look passes, pannas, elasticos (known also by some as ‘the gaucho’ due to Ronaldinho’s mastery of the skill) were all regular features of Ronaldinho’s arsenal.

Like Maradona, Ronaldinho was always worth watching before a game had even kicked off. And in training he was capable of getting his teammates to stop dead in their tracks and just stand around watching him perform his skills. An example of Ronaldinho’s ridiculous skill level compared to everyone else, was when he and a number of other top professionals took on the ‘Blindfolded Keepie Uppie challenge’ where as the name suggests, you attempt to do kick ups whilst wearing a blindfold. Benzema managed 5, Lewandowski 7, Xavi 8 and Ronaldinho.. 44.

It’s maybe a strange thing to say about a player who some consider the greatest of all time, and most consider in the top 3 of all time, but Maradona could’ve done even more in football. What he was able to do was limited by injuries courtesy of the many dreadful fouls he endured, bouts of lacking motivation, a lifestyle that led to drug addiction, weight gains & crash diets, and 2 drugs bans that meant he scored just 15 league goals after his 30th Birthday.

And aswell, it shows how good Ronaldinho was that a career that saw him become the only player to win the World Cup, the Champions League, the Copa Libertadores and the Balon d’or (not to mention 2 La Liga’s and 2 FIFA World Player of The Year Awards) is seen by many as one that could and should have been better. A lack of dedication and discipline, combined with his hedonistic lifestyle off the pitch led to Ronaldinho’s physical decline coming alot sooner than it should have. That said I think it’s unfair to boil his whole career down to just his years at Barcelona (where he did for a while have the focus and dedication to become the best player in the world) and dismiss everything else. There was still plenty of very good performances afterwards for AC Milan, Flamengo and Atletico Mineiro, where he thrilled the supporters with his quality.

Maradona was in many ways an individualist, for example he had his own fitness coach and his own doctors, never using the doctors employed by his club side or national team, but he was also very much a team player. A technical leader, he was loved by his teammates because he took all the pressure, all the attention on his shoulders, freeing the team up to go out and play without burden. The best example of the deep respect Maradona’s teammates had for him was in a clip from the Napoli dressing room following their historic first Scudetto win in 1987, where the players all sing as though ultras rather than colleagues: “Oh mama, mama, mama, do you know why my heart is racing? I’ve seen Maradona! I’ve seen Maradona! and Mum I fell in love with him!”

In a different way, Ronaldinho was also an excellent team player. When Ronaldinho was at the peak of his powers, a 16-year old Argentine came to his attention. Here he saw a player he knew could be something special. Ronaldinho became a sort of big brother figure to Messi from that point on, helping him as much as possible. For an introverted young kid to have the best player in the World take such a care and interest in him, must have been a tremendous boost. There was no ego from Ronaldinho, no jealousy or attempt to keep the teenager ‘In his place’. When Messi was 17, Ronaldinho introduced him to Kobe Bryant as “someone who will be the best footballer of all time” and in an interview with Four Four Two magazine the current Balon d’Or holder claimed Messi was already better than him.

Beginning

Diego Armando Maradona was born October 30, 1960 in Buenos Aires, Argentina and was raised in the Villa Fiorito shantytown, on the outskirts of the capital city. His love of football came very early, when he was given a ball as his first toy at 3 years old, and slept hugging it all night. Growing up in a shack without water or electricity, when Maradona joined the Argentinos Juniors youth team at just 8 years old he and his parents soon realised that their only way out of this hardship was for Diego to make it as a footballer. He already played with an ability way beyond his years and small, skinny physique quickly beginning to garner attention.

As a ballboy for Argentinos Juniors 1st team games, he would go on to the pitch at half time and entertain the crowds with his skills and tricks, aswell as an extraordinary acceleration when dribbling the ball. On one occasion as the 10-year old Diego exited the field for the Argentinos-Boca Juniors game to re-commence, the fans chanted “Let him stay! Let him stay!”. As Maradona continued to seemingly get better with every match he played in the youth teams, Argentinos Juniors had already pinned all their hopes on him before he’d even joined the first team. They already recognised him as the only player they had who could raise serious funds in the future, and in the meantime would be able to improve the team. He was promoted to the first team aged 15.

Ronaldo de Assis Moreira was born March 21, 1980 in Porto Alegre, Brazil. He lived in a wooden house in the middle of a favela, until his brother Roberto 8 years his senior, was gifted a home in a more affluent area by Gremio in an effort to get him to stay with the club and reject the interest of Italian club Torino. Tragedy would soon strike for Roberto and his younger brother however, when Roberto returned to the house to celebrate his 18th birthday only to find his father drowned in the family swimming pool.

From a young age Roberto would train his younger brother in one-on-one football sessions, after noticing he too had a real talent for the game. Ronaldinho said of this time “Roberto forced me to juggle the ball as many as 500 times. He stood to watch me do it and would never go until I’d completed it. This took all the fun out of it for me, and at that age it made me very angry. I cried. I didn’t understand. But later I understood what he wanted.”

Roberto’s football career was going well, he had played for Brasil’s under 20′s team and won 3 consecutive state titles with Gremio, the future looked very bright, when more misfortune struck the family. Roberto suffered a serious injury and was let go by Gremio. He moved to FC Sion in Switzerland and with his older brother and father figure since the passing of his Dad now living far away, Ronaldo felt an increased urgency and responsibility to step up and make it as a footballer to help the family financially. He had learned alot from his big brother, who despite being prevented from fulfilling his potential due to injury was still able to etch out a career in football, with a journeyman career making appearances for many sides including Vasco De Gama, Fluimenese and Sporting Lisbon.

Ronaldo played Futsal and Beach Football aswell as 11-a-side football and all this honed his ball control and skills. Often the smallest and youngest player on each of the teams he played for he quickly was assigned the nickname ‘Ronaldinho’ meaning ‘little Ronaldo’ which has always stuck throughout his career despite him growing to over 6 feet tall. He was 13 when he received his first media attention after scoring all 23 goals in a 23-0 win for his side at Futsal (though he did later say “those kids were terrible!”). After starring at the Under 17 World Cup, Ronaldinho followed in his big brothers footsteps by signing for Gremio.

Maradona and Ronaldinho both had their youthful innocence cut short and were forced to see Football as more than fun but as a way out of their hardships at a very young age. As a mere child Maradona had all his families hopes pinned on him for a way out of extreme poverty and Ronaldinho experienced the hardships of life early too with the death of his father and career damaging injury to his brother. But despite all the external pressure and aswell the huge demand they put on themselves to succeed for their families, their pure love for football never wavered.

Starting Out

Maradona made his first-team debut for Argentinos 10 days before his 16th Birthday. A few minutes after entering the pitch, he nutmegged an opponent. A few weeks later he made his first start, with then vice-president Settimio Aloisio recalling “What really struck me was the joy there seemed to be in his playing. What seemed unique was that he didn’t seem to have any fear, he was so self-assured, so determined. It was the first time he played a full 90 minutes in the first-team and he did it with all the confidence of a player who had been playing top-class football for at least six years.”

In Diego’s first season for the club in 1976 they finished 2nd bottom of the Metropolitano Championship. In his final season they finished 2nd top. He scored 116 goals in 166 appearences, including a Messi-esque 69 in 71 in his last 2 seasons. Maradona was now too big and too good for the team, and it was time for Argentinos Juniors to get the big payday they hoped years of nurturing this talent would get them. Maradona joined the club he always dreamed of playing for, Boca Juniors for $4M.

Maradona scored 28 goals in 40 games for the club, including a memorable goal in his first Superclasico at La Bombanera stadium against River Plate. The 1981 season brought him his first trophy in senior football, when Boca secured the Metropolitano Championship, the clubs first title for 5 years, by a single point. They had finished 6th in the competition the year before Diego joined.

Ronaldinho made his debut for Gremio in 1998, and by his 2nd season the teenager was already showing himself as one of the top Brazilian players in the world. A real breakout moment for him came in the Campeonato Gaucho, the State Championship, usually won by one of Porto Alegre’s biggest sides, either Gremio or rivals Internacional. Gremio came out on top after a sublime performance from Ronaldinho where he tormented and terrorised Brazil’s World Cup winning captain Dunga, on one occasion flicking the ball over his head.

Ronaldinho scored 58 goals in 125 appearances for Gremio, 52 in 87 excluding his debut season and 28 in 37 in his last full season. This was enough to convince Paris St. Germain to spend 5 million Euros to bring him to the French Capital.

Maradona and Ronaldinho both began their professional careers for their local sides, neither club the most glamorous or prestigious of their country, but both rapidly stood out with their performances. Ronaldinho was transferred to Europe in half the time with his first 3 seasons in his native country as opposed to Maradona’s 6, highlighting the change in Football between the late 70s, early 80s and the late 90′s, early 00′s.

In 1978 Argentina had won the World Cup with just one player playing outside of Argentina, and coach Menotti had warned Maradona that Argentina fans would not accept him leaving to play his domestic football in Europe, he did not join a European club until his 7th season. By the time Ronaldinho was on the scene, Europe’s stranglehold over Football meant it was the only place to play for the game’s best talents. Maradona played 206 games in the country of his birth before joining FC Barcelona for a then world record fee of £5 Million pounds.

Europe

Maradona described his time at FC Barcelona as the ‘unhappiest period of my career’. He found German coach Udo Lattek’s hard early-morning training sessions unsuited to his lifestyle, and had a relationship with Barcelona’s then president Jose Luis Nunez which was hostile from the off. The free-spirit of Diego quickly found the atmosphere of Barcelona oppressive, he felt the cold, calculated stuffed shirts of the Barca boardroom looked down on him as a naive, uneducated outsider. Maradona was used to getting his way in Argentina, and was not a man who could easily accept authority over his life. Whilst Barcelona as an institution were not a club willing to bend for one man, no matter how talented he was with a football.

The early signs on the pitch however, were promising. The team received a standing ovation leaving the pitch away to Red Star Belgrade in the Cup Winners Cup, after a 4-2 victory with 2 goals each for Maradona and fellow foreign star signing Bernd Schuster. But the ego’s and personality clashes of Nunez, Maradona, Lattek and Schuster meant it was never likely to last. After Maradona had spent his first ever Christmas away from Argentina in a state of depression, and not long after he’d returned from a prolonged absence due to viral hepatitis, Lattek was sacked, which did not displease either of Barcelona’s star players, with Schuster referring to the manager as a ‘drunkard’.

Lattek was replaced by Cesar Menotti, Argentina’s World Cup winning manager who had managed Diego in the Under 20s and senior national side. It was hoped by the Barcelona hierarchy that this would be the man to bring the best out of Maradona.

The appointment of Menotti wasn’t the only thing bringing comforts of home to Maradona’s life. He did everything to recreate the life he’d known in Argentina, acquiring the friendship and services of Argentines living in Barcelona to provide him with Calabresi and sandwiches just like he’d known in Buenos Aires. But whenever Maradona and his clan would hit Las Ramblas, which was often, he had to accept he wasn’t in his beloved Argentina anymore. He was in a place with wealthy, educated people who looked down on him and his friends, fuelling Maradona’s inferiority complex which he battled all his life due to his poor upbringing.

It was also during this time in Barcelona that Maradona first began taking cocaine, and though he was able to keep this a secret from Barca, some reports of his activities including regular house parties into the early hours with prostitutes in attendance did make it back to an increasingly exasperated board. The Maradona-Nunez conflict continued to intensify, with Jorge Cyterszpiler, Maradona’s then agent responding to comments from Nunez in the press by phoning him and calling him a “son of a bitch”.

4 Days before the King’s Cup final between Barcelona and hated rivals Real Madrid, Nunez refused to allow Maradona to travel to Munich for a testimonial match, a lack of liberty which infuriated Maradona. The team were able to capture the trophy however, beating Real 2-1 with a 90th minute winner, in a game both Maradona and Schuster ran. It had been a turbulent debut season however to say the least, the team had finished 4th behind Athletic Bilbao, Spanish champions for the first time in 27 years, and the two Madrid clubs. They had also been dumped out of the Cup Winners Cup by Austrian minnows Memphis. Maradona scored 23 goals in 35 appearances but injuries and illness had limited him to just 20 league games and 11 goals.

Maradona’s second year was to be defined by yet another rivalry, this time that of coach Menotti and Athletic Bilbao manager Xavier Clemente. In a war of words due to differing football philosophies similar to that of Brian Clough and Don Revie in England, Menotti made public his disdain for what he considered (not without reason), the thuggish football of Bilbao saying “the day they decide to be a bullfighter rather than a bull on the pitch it will play better football.” Clemente responded saying he would take no lessons from an Argentine who spent more time pursuing women than teaching football skills. The stage was set for a series of violent matches to take place between the sides that season. With Barca leading Bilbao 2-0 at the Nou Camp early in the season, Goikoetxea, subsequently named ‘the Butcher of Bilbao’ delivered one of the most brutal fouls Spanish football had seen on Maradona. Menotti demanded Goikoetxea be banned for life, as it was he was hit with a 10-game ban instead. This came as little consolation for Maradona who had long complained about the harsh treatment he received from defenders in Spain due to little protection from referees. This tackle, feared possibly career threatening at the time, kept him sidelined for 3 months.

A few weeks after his return to fitness, Maradona lined up to face Bilbao again, this time at the San Mames stadium. Maradona led his team heroically through another brutal match, scoring both goals in a 2-1 win for his side in one of the dirtiest matches seen at the stadium. Maradona’s duels with Bilbao didn’t end here though, and they would reach a stunning conclusion in the 1984 King’s Cup final infront of 100,000 spectators and half of Spain’s watching public. After a 1-0 defeat featuring the usual Bilbao treatment whenever Diego went near the ball, and racist insults towards him regarding his Father’s native American Indian ancestry, he was given a ‘fuck off’ sign by unused Bilbao substitute Sola, and Maradona subsequently knocked him to the floor before kneeing him out cold. Chaos ensued with a mass brawl involving all the players, with flying kicks everywhere you looked. Maradona was at one stage knocked to the floor with a Bilbao player standing over him, when out of nowhere a teammate jumped in with a huge kick to the players back sending him flying. Maradona left the pitch with his Barcelona shirt torn, he would never wear one again. The brawl resulted in 60 people being injured as fans rained missiles down on players, coaches and photographers.

The board had seen enough, Maradona’s time with Barcelona was up. He scored 38 goals in 58 games for the club. There had been some highs, beating Real Madrid in the Kings Cup and the short lived Spanish League Cup final, where after scoring one of the all-time great El Clasico goals in the 1st leg at the Bernabeu he was given a standing ovation by the Real supporters. But there had also been just as many lows, and overall Maradona had failed to do what he was signed to do, establish Barcelona as Spain’s number 1 team again. A move was required for all parties, as Maradona’s spending and bad business moves made on his behalf had left him with so much debt only a huge signing-on fee would take care of it. This came in the shape of another world record fee, £6.9M to Italian Club Napoli. Both Maradona and Barcelona would benefit from the move, as under Terry Venables Barcelona won their first league title for 11 years by 10 points (in the days of 2 points for a win) and reached their first European Cup final the following year, losing on penalties to Steaua Bucharest. Ironically it took the departure of Maradona to get Barcelona to do what his arrival was supposed to do for them.

Ronaldinho chose long-time sleeping giants Paris Saint Germain when better teams were perhaps interested in signing him for one reason only, to ensure he would be a regular starter in order to convince Brazil manager Scolari that he should be the 3rd name in the attack alongside Ronaldo and Rivaldo. For the first few months, his plan seemed to have backfired spectacularly. After getting the all clear to play from Fifa, after a messy legal procedure between PSG and Gremio, he still struggled to get the all clear to start from manager Luis Fernandez, so was forced to watch players such as Gabriel Heinze, Mauricio Pochettino, Jay Jay Okocha and Nicolas Anelka from the bench for much of the time before being introduced into games in the second half more often than not.

This slow start was doubly concerning due to the form back home of Ricardo Kaka who was banging them in for Sao Paulo. At the half way stage, it looked likely it would be Kaka starting for Brazil and if Ronaldinho didn’t find some form, he would be a doubt to even make the plane.

Ronaldinho began to make an impact before the winter break, and after it his fortunes had an even greater upturn. Okocha went to the African Cup of Nations and Anelka was loaned to Liverpool. Ronaldinho was going to become the main man in the PSG attack, if he could seize his chance. He scored in the first 4 games back, including a brace against Guingamp.

By mid-march he was making it look easy, looking as though nothing was more simple to him than dribbling through a defence and beating the onrushing goalkeeper as he did not once but twice against Troyes.

Despite only starting half the league games, Ronaldinho finished the season confirming himself as PSG’s best and most important player, aswell as their top scorer with 13 goals and earning a place in the Ligue 1 team of the season.

Ronaldinho returned for his second season at PSG as a World Cup winner, however his upward trajectory at Paris which had begun in the second half of his first season would not continue without dips. Manager Luis Fernandez criticised Ronaldinho’s enthusiasm for Parisian nightlife, claiming he focused on it more than Football. Another source of frustration for him was a typical one for managers dealing with Brazilian players, the long trips back home Ronaldinho took during the season, which Fernandez bemoaned never ended when scheduled. Ronaldinho fired back at his manager’s criticism that “it seems to bother him that I am happy.”

The league campaign was a very disappointing one to say the least for PSG, finishing 7 places lower than in Ronaldinho’s first season, coming in 11th place. On a personal level, there was some satisfaction for Ronaldinho in winning the award for Ligue 1 goal of the season, with a brilliant solo goal against Guingamp. Accelerating suddenly before the first man has even had a chance to get close to him, he plays a one-two around another, then dinks the ball over a slide tackling defender, waits for the ball to drop then dribbles into the box, throws a stepover to make space for the shot then lifts the ball quite wonderfully over a helpless goalkeeper. Pure Ronaldinho magic.

Paris also reached the Coupe de France final after 2 goals from Ronaldinho in the semi-final got them there, however they were beaten by Auxerre in the final with a last minute winner. With a season outside of Europe on the horizon, it was time for Ronaldinho to move on to the next phase in his career. He scored 25 goals in 77 games for the Parisians.

Maradona & Ronaldinho moved to Europe aged 22 and 21 respectively, and both spent 2 seasons with their first European club. Both displayed the talent that made them at times unstoppable, but the flashes of genius were accompanied with a lack of consistency needed to go beyond the promise and potential they were showing to become as great as they undoubtedly could be. In this time, both players also discovered a love of a certain party lifestyle which would remain throughout their respective careers.

Peak

75,000 Napoli supporters packed into the Stadio San Paulo to see the official presentation of Diego Armando Maradona as a Napoli player. For all present that day, the Saviour had arrived. As one local newspaper put it “despite the lack of a mayor, houses, schools, buses, employment and sanitation, none of this matters because we have Maradona."

Maradona found himself feeling instantly more at home than he had ever felt at Barcelona. The poor background he came from aswell as having a Mother of Italian descent gave Maradona an immediate affinity with the city of Naples, in the poorer, economically disadvantaged South of Italy. He could also relate to the feeling of being looked down upon that Neapolitans felt from those in the more affluent and politically prioritised North.

During Maradona’s time in Italy, the North v South hatred was at its peak. The Maradona signing itself had political motivations. Upon hearing of Juventus’ interest in signing the Argentine, Napoli were determined to get one over on the more illustrious then-champions, who already boasted that summer’s standout player at Euro 84, Michel Platini. After his experience with Schuster, Maradona was reluctant to again share the limelight so was instead happy to join the side in the Southern region, a region that had never produced a Serie A winner. Napoli, a club formed in 1926 had to that point won just 2 major honours, both Coppa Italia’s.

Though the team he was joining had a modest history to date, the league he would playing in was by far the best and most competitive in the world. Though a defensive league with emphasis put on the ‘Cattenacio’ style of play, featuring tight man-to-man marking and a sweeper, Maradona could atleast rely on better protection from referees than he’d received in Spain.

Unlike in Barcelona, where the snobbery in high society left Maradona on the outside, Maradona found in Naples he was embraced wherever he found himself in Italy’s most densely populated metropolis, including alongside the Camorra, the Neapolitan Mafia, who had extraordinary influence in all matters in the city at this time. Carmine Guiliano, of the powerful Guiliano clan was only too eager to place himself alongside Naples’ new messiah. And Maradona for his part seemed to find himself more comfortable in this company, than he’d ever felt with the distant and alien Barcelona hierarchy.

Hellas Verona were champions for the only time in their history in Maradona’s debut season, with Napoli having to settle for 8th place. This improved to 3rd in the following year, though off the pitch Maradona had his first serious problems with long-time girlfriend Claudia.

Maradona’s 3rd season saw him hit the peak of his considerable powers. Fresh off the back of inspiring Argentina to the 1986 World Cup trophy, his encore was delivering Napoli to the promised land as they took their first ever Scudetto, with a league double over Juventus proving decisive. Winning Serie A sparked a week-long party in Naples, so often the butt of the North’s jokes, it was they who were laughing now. Maradona had put Napoli and the entire city of Naples on top of Italy, and in doing so his standing amongst the people could not have been any higher. In the eyes of the adoring Neapolitans he was more than a footballer, more than a man even.

Maradona and Napoli were unable to retain their crown, ending the season with 4 losses and 1 draw as they lost out to Milan by 3 points. This was the season problems between Maradona and Napoli president Corrado Ferlaino began to materialise. Napoli who had so far accepted his unwillingness to be controlled had grown frustrated at his missing of training sessions and the following season with Maradona injured or missing from training all the more regularly, Napoli ended further away from the Scudetto. Though still 2nd they finished 11 points behind Internazionale and were beaten in the Coppa Italia final. Things reached their lowest moment to date that season when Maradona took himself off just 17 minutes into a game due to injury, this was greeted with jeers and whistles from the supporters who had once revered him as their King. This infuriated Maradona, but there was redemption in the Uefa Cup which Napoli won beating Stuggart in the two-legged final, after dispatching Juventus and Bayern Munich to reach it.

But Maradona was beginning to feel trapped again. This feeling was exacerbated by him finding out about Olympique Marseille’s interest in signing him only after Ferlaino had rejected the offer. An increasingly frustrated Maradona began lashing out and making enemies in the media, who did not accept his outspoken complaints without backlash.

After a slow start to the 89-90 season, with the World Cup that summer looming ever closer, Maradona’s motivation soared again and he had his most prolific season for Napoli, scoring 16 in 28 league games as they finished 2 points above Milan to take the Scudetto for the 2nd time in 4 years. Maradona had responded to the adversity by climbing back to the top, it was the final time in his career he would sit there.

“Ronaldinho was responsible for the change in Barca. It was a bad time and the change that came about with his arrival was amazing. In the first year, he didn’t win anything but people fell in love with him. Then the trophies started coming and he made all those people happy. Barca should always be grateful for everything he did.” - Lionel Messi.

Though it would maybe be a stretch to compare the FC Barcelona that Ronaldinho joined in 2003 to Napoli, the fact is the club was not in a good place. Trophyless for 4 seasons, having gone through 6 different managerial reigns in that time, the club hadn’t finished above 4th for 3 years and the season prior to the Brazilian's arrival, Barca had their worst league position for 15 years, coming in 6th, as 3 different managers tried and failed to turn their fortunes around. Making matters even worse during this trophy drought, their bitter rivals Real Madrid had taken their star captain Luis Figo and just to rub it in had won 5 major honours including 2 Champions League titles. It was them enjoying the stability of one coach, with all this silverware coming under Vincente Del Bosque.

2003-04 brought Barcelona a new President Juan Laporta, a new manager in Frank Rijkaard and now it needed a new star player. Laporta earmarked 3 players of which he felt 1 was needed to bring Barcelona back to the top: Thierry Henry of Arsenal, David Beckham of Manchester United or Ronaldinho of PSG. Henry had unfinished business left at Arsenal, Florentino Perez made Beckham his latest and most glamorous Galactico to date, leaving Ronaldinho. And though Real Madrid passed up on him, with the words of a Real Madrid executive “He is so ugly that he’d sink you as a brand” reflecting Real Madrid’s new Business first, Football second approach which had led to the bizarre sacking of Vicente Del Bosque, the path to Ronaldinho was not completely clear for Barcelona. Premier League Champions Manchester United were very close to securing the 23-year old but in the end they couldn’t get it over the line and instead had to settle for a skinny 18-year old winger from Sporting Lisbon.

Ronaldinho started as he meant to go on in his very 1st league match at the Camp Nou. With Barca trailing to Sevilla, he received the ball on the left inside his own half and 8 seconds later he had the ball in the net. Arriving into the Sevilla half he cut inside past one then another and let fly from 30 yards, it was in as soon as it left his foot, cannoning in off the crossbar with the keeper beaten by unbelievable power and precision.

The Brazilian was unable to prevent the Catalans 5th season without silverware, but 03/04 was a big improvement on the previous year. After a bad start saw Barca in 12th place after 18 matches, the team put together a run of 17 league games without defeat featuring 14 wins, including away at the Bernabeu for the first time since 1997. Ronaldinho provided the game-winning assist in the 86th minute with an immaculate chip to Xavi who scored with a finish equal to the pass. In the end the team finished in 2nd place, behind Champions Valencia but above Real Madrid who had gone backwards under Carlos Quieroz, opening an opportunity for a new force in Spain.

04/05 saw the arrival of Samuel Eto’o from Real Mallorca who proved the ideal partner for Ronaldinho in attack. Barca became the Champions of Spain for the first time since 1999 but were stopped in the Champions League by Chelsea, who beat them 4-2 at Stamford Bridge despite a very memorable Ronaldinho goal.

"It's like someone pressed pause and for three seconds all the players stopped and I'm the only one that moves." — Ronaldinho

Ronaldinho scored 13 goals in his 2nd season, the same as Maradona managed in his 2nd season for Napoli, but 05/06 would see Barcelona’s star man go up another level and take the club with him. In 29 league games Ronaldinho scored 17 and assisted another 18, but to focus on numbers would be to downplay what the Brazilian was doing on a weekly basis at the time. He was making La Liga defenders look as out of their depth as amateurs would against him. How could they hope to stop him when he was using skills they had never even seen let alone come up against before? At this time Ronaldinho alone was worth the entrance fee, you knew he’d do something to bring a smile to the face of every single spectator, and maybe a shake of the head due to sheer disbelief at the audacity of the tricks Ronaldinho would not only attempt but pull off.

And this was not just reserved for the defenders of Espanyol or Real Zaragoza, Ronaldinho treated every match, every opponent the same, no matter the importance of the game, he was going to play it his way.

Never was this more apparent than when Barcelona travelled to the Bernabeu in November of 2005. It was in this month that Ronaldinho won the Balon D’or for the one and only time, winning above English midfielders Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard to add it to his FIFA World Player of the Year awards for 2004 and 2005. He shown why he was the number 1 player in the world in what was the first El Clasico for the future world’s best player, a young long-haired Argentine. But on this occasion it was the senior players, and one in particular who stole the show. With Eto’o giving the visitors an early lead, Ronaldinho doubled it just before the hour mark first skinning Sergio Ramos, before leaving Ivan Helguera and Iker Casillas flat footed and helpless to stop the genius in full flow.

However he wasn’t done yet. 20 minutes later, running past Sergio Ramos with an ease which was only matched in the finish, which left Iker Casillas shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders, perplexed and powerless. At this point, certain sections of the Madrid fanbase felt obliged to applaud Ronaldinho. And not just 1 or 2 either. As the Barcelona players celebrated with their maestro, many Madrid fans can be seen on their feet giving a standing ovation to the man who had single handedly demolished their team. They knew their Galacticos of Beckham, Raul, Zidane, Robinho and Ronaldo had been thoroughly outclassed by the player deemed too ugly to sign. There was nothing ugly about his performance that night, as he took Real apart with a beautiful simplicity, becoming the first Barcelona player to win applause from the Bernabeu since Diego Maradona.

The result was indicative of the gulf that had developed between Barca and Real, as Barca retained their title finishing 12 points clear of their rivals. And in the Champions League Barca were also able to enact revenge on Chelsea before meeting AC Milan in the semi-finals. Just a single goal was scored in 180 minutes, coming from a sumptuous Ronaldinho through ball and finished expertly by Ludovic Guily. The final saw FC Barcelona meet Arsenal, and despite an early red card for the Arsenal keeper, Barca trailed with 15 minutes to go but were able to turn the game around to win just their 2nd European Cup ever and first since 1992. In 45 games Ronaldinho scored 26 and assisted 24, he was the top provider in both La Liga and the Champions League.

After a hugely underwhelming World Cup, Ronaldinho was able to pick up right where he left off at Barcelona atleast, scoring 21 La Liga goals in 32 matches, the highlight being a special overhead kick against Villarreal. However Barca missed out on the title, due to their head to head record with Real Madrid. With both clubs finishing on 76 points, a 2-0 Real Madrid win in November decided the destination of the title and Barcelona’s far superior goal difference, with more scored and fewer conceded counted for nothing. This was tough to take, but Ronaldinho had racked up 50 goals and 38 assists in 2 seasons. And at 27, Barcelona’s number 10 appeared for all the world to have many years left at the top..

Coming Down

Following the 1990 World Cup which saw Maradona lose the final, the game after declaring Italian fans “hijo de putas” as the cameras panned on him for whistling out the Argentine national anthem in the Stadio San Paulo, supposedly his Kingdom, things would go from bad to worse on his return to the stadium for Napoli.

For now there was a drive in the police’s scrutiny into organised crime in Naples, and noone with connections to the Camorra was guaranteed immunity, including Diego Maradona. His time of everyone turning a blind eye to his off-field activities was up. It was the worst kept secret around that drug problems were beginning to affect his football, and media hints about the dark hole Maradona was falling down with the grip drugs had over him were appearing more and more frequently.

As police investigated the Camorra, listening into conversations, Maradona found himself being taped by police, requesting cocaine and prostitutes. This led to a police investigation into Maradona, meanwhile Napoli chose this time to abandon their lax random drug testing regime, and Maradona was randomly tested twice, both by Napoli doctors and outside doctors brought in by the club. Both tests returned positive. Diego returned to Argentina, but there was no escape to his problems. A police raid at a house he was staying at found him asleep next to grams of cocaine, he was arrested.

Maradona received a 15-month ban from football, having his final season with Napoli cut short after scoring just 6 goals in 18 league games and 10 in 26 in all competitions. His final goal for the club felt like a fitting one at the time, a consolation penalty in a 4-1 defeat away to Sampdoria. Napoli finished the season in 8th, where they finished in Diego’s 1st season with the club. The cycle had been completed and Maradona’s Neapolitan dream had turned into a nightmare.

In 07/08 Ronaldinho found himself afflicted with regular injuries for the first time in his career. It couldn’t be put down to bad luck. He had lost his motivation and had stopped looking after his body. His partying and lack of dedication to training saw him lose his peak physical condition. Barcelona’s best and most important player just the season prior, Ronaldinho found that even when he was fit a place in the starting 11 was now hard to secure with the continuing emergence of Lionel Messi and the signing of Thierry Henry.

Barcelona had a poor season, finishing 18 points behind Champions Real Madrid and 10 points behind 2nd placed Villarreal. It signalled the need for a change. Rijkaard was to be replaced in the summer by former Barca midfielder Pep Guardiola, and Juan Laporta declared Ronaldinho needed a new challenge to revive his career. Ronaldinho’s season ended prematurely with an injury, after 9 goals in 26 games, numbers almost identical to Maradona’s last season in Naples. Ronaldinho’s final goal also came in a away defeat where his side shipped 4, as they went down 4-2 to Atletico Madrid. Though the Brazilian’s goal was a touch more special, coming with a spectacular overhead kick.

Just a year on from seeming irreplaceable for Barcelona, Ronaldinho was now surplus to requirements. He joined AC Milan, after rejecting Manchester City who under their new Abu Dhabi owners had placed a bid of £25.5 million.

Maradona and Ronaldinho played by far the best and most consistent football of their career for their 2nd European club. Maradona scored 115 goals in 259 Napoli games, Ronaldinho 94 in 207 for Barcelona. Not including penalties Maradona scored 73 and Ronaldinho 75.

Country

Maradona made his Argentina debut in 1977 aged 16 though missed out on making the World Cup squad the following year which Argentina hosted and won. Diego had to make do with the 1979 World Youth Championships instead, where he netted 6 in 6 including 1 in the final in a 3-1 win over the Soviet Union.

Maradona’s first World Cup came in 1982, in the country he was then plying his trade. Expectations on Barcelona’s new signing were huge, but it didn’t go to plan. He scored in just 1 of the 5 matches he played, a brace against Hungary and was sent off against Brazil, as his frustrations at his repeatedly rough but unpunished treatment at the finals reached boiling point.

Maradona entered the 1986 World Cup with his head in a bad place. With an illegitimate child on the way, conceived from an affair, Maradona was grateful for something to occupy his focus and he played the tournament like a man with nothing on his mind other than to lead his team to glory. In the Quarter-Finals Argentina met England in the first match between the sides since the Falklands War.

The match came to epitomise Maradona’s legacy as he scored the 2 most famous goals ever within 4 minutes of each other. After England defender Steve Hodge could only lift the ball back in the direction of his own goal, the 5 foot 5 Maradona rose in the air to direct the ball over the outstretched fist of the 6 foot Peter Shilton. Just like the England keeper, Maradona went at the ball with his hand but in such a way both the referee and the linesman missed it. Diego later described the goal as being a “little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God”. The goal subsequently became known as ‘the Hand of God’. If Maradona’s first goal demonstrated his win or die mentality, the second showed the pure artistry of the game’s most gifted genuis. Receiving the ball in his own half, Maradona dribbled past anyone in a white shirt before rounding Shilton and slotting home ‘the goal of the Century’. Maradona had secured his place as Argentina’s favourite son, restoring much needed national pride after the humiliation of the Falklands defeat.

3 days later Maradona single-handedly took Belgium apart, again scoring a brace including another spectacular solo goal. A world cup winning assist in the final against West Germany gave Maradona 5 goals and 5 assists in 7 matches, he played every minute for his side. In the best individual performances ever produced at the FIFA World Cup, Maradona scored or assisted 10 of Argentina’s 14 goals.

The 1990 tournament was the second time Diego played a World Cup in the country where he was playing his club football and he was counting on the support of the Naples people to help him and his team retain the trophy. All seemed to be well after Argentina bounced back from a shock 1-0 defeat to Cameroon by beating the Soviet Union in Naples infront of a supportive crowd, Maradona’s hand again playing a part as he handled on the line to prevent a certain Soviet goal and again got away with it. A 1-1 draw with Romania meant Argentina scraped through in 3rd place and met Group C winners Brazil in the round of 16. Maradona got revenge for 1982 as he produced his best moment of the tournament to brilliantly set up the only goal of the game for Cannigia.

After beating Yugoslavia in a shootout despite a miss from Maradona, Argentina met Italy in Naples. Maradona aimed to stoke tensions between the North and the South, encouraging Neapolitan’s to support the man who had brought their football club so much success and joy, instead of their National side with him saying “The Italians are asking Neapolitan’s to be Italian for a day, yet for the other 364 days in the year they forget all about Naples.” His attempt ultimately proved unsuccessful evidenced by the whistling out of the Argentina national anthem, but Maradona scored the decisive kick in the shootout to put his side into their second successive World Cup final. They would meet Germany again, but that’s where the similarities would end, as the 3-2 final of 4 years ago was replaced with a dour, bad tempered game which Germany won 1-0.

After returning from a 15-month suspension for drug use, Maradona was left out of the Argentina squad which won the 1993 Copa America, but during a humiliating 5-0 home defeat to Colombia in a World Cup Qualifier, the fans began to chant for Maradona, their cries getting louder as one goal after another hit the back of their net. The saviour answered their calls, captaining the side as they narrowly squeezed past Australia in the qualification play-off.

In the months approaching the World Cup, Maradona was more motivated than he’d been for years. Training harder than ever at a remote farm free of all distractions, he had a dramatic weight loss, transformed from the bloated out of shape Diego the world had become familiar with. Intense training, a drastic diet, vitamins, minerals, weight reduction drugs and short-term energy providing drugs were responsible for Maradona dropping almost 3 and 1/2 stone.

Diego’s lack of confidence in conventional medicine meant he relied on his own personal doctors to get him in the best condition possible for USA 94, these being Fernando Signorini and bodybuilder Daniel Cerini. Signorini had serious concerns about Cerini due to the use of anabolic steroids by his girlfriend in a bodybuilding contest which led to a positive drugs test in 1989, but nobody in Team Maradona ever dared speak out against another member of the team, if that person had Maradona’s trust.

And just like Maradona had complete faith in his team, the Nation of Argentina aswell as his own teammates had complete faith in him to power them to a successful World Cup. And their faith seemed well placed after the opening game which saw Argentina take Greece apart 4-0 with a Batistuta hattrick. Maradona made it 3-0 on the hour mark, after a passage of teamplay which highlighted the extent to which the team was playing on the same wavelength. Maradona’s celebration was his most famous ever, as he ran straight at the camera, wide eyed with passion running through him.

At half-time during Argentina’s 2nd match, a 2-1 win over Nigeria, Maradona was one of two players on each side drawn for a random drugs test. At full time Maradona left the field hand in hand with a nurse, riding a wave of positive emotion after back to back World Cup wins. He was about to come crashing down.

Maradona tested positive. An over the counter, weight reducing drug containing a FIFA banned performance enhancing supplement provided to him by Daniel Cerini was responsible. The relationship and lack of trust between Cerini and Argentina team doctors was so bad that neither was kept up to date with what the other was giving to him, so Argentina were left unaware of the drugs Maradona was taking. Though given the controversy surrounding Cerini they could’ve taken a guess, but noone would dare challenge a Maradona man, all that mattered to anyone was that he was on the pitch. Well after this he wouldn’t be as he received his 2nd 15-month ban in 4 years.

FIFA found Diego not guilty of consciously taking performance enhancing drugs, and believed he was unaware of its components. But regardless he was hit with a ban for breaching Fifa doping regulations. Here Maradona’s history as a drug user went against him. At the Mexico 86 World Cup a Spain player was found to have PED’s in their system, but he escaped punishment with only his doctor being banned. There was no such luck for Maradona who never wore the shirt of his beloved Argentina again. Argentina’s World Cup too effectively ended there as without their talisman they lost to Bulgaria and Romania who knocked them out.

Like Maradona, Ronaldinho also garnered some attention for his performances in a FIFA World Youth Championships, the U’17s version which took place in Egypt in 1997 with Brazil romping to the title scoring 21 goals for the loss of just 2.

1999 was a very busy year for Ronaldinho on the international scene, first he appeared in the U’20 World Championships, before receiving his first cap for the senior team in a 3-0 win against Latvia. Ronaldinho was 19 at the time and in just his 2nd season as a pro, this became even more impressive when he was selected for the 1999 Copa America and scored his first goal for the Selecao at the tournament. It was the other 2 R’s: Ronaldo and Rivaldo who were the stars of the show though, as they helped themselves to 5 goals apiece, as Brazil won the trophy. It was the following week at the Confederations Cup where the teenager truly broke out on the International scene, as he scored in every game bar the final, winning the award for best player and top scorer with 6, including a semi-final hattrick against Saudi Arabia. Brazil went down 4-3 in the final though to hosts Mexico.

The following year Ronaldinho was part of the U’23 squad that competed at the Summer Olympics in Sydney. He was in fine form heading into the tournament, scoring 9 goals in 7 pre-tournament games but the Olympics itself was a disappointment with Brazil exiting at the Quarter-Final stage.

At the 2002 Japan/Korea World Cup Ronaldinho scored 2 and assisted 3 as his country won their 5th title. The victory held many parallels with Maradona’s triumph with Argentina in 1986. Like then, Brazil became champions 8 years after their previous win. And like Maradona, Ronaldinho met and beat England 2-1 in the Quarter-Finals. With England leading 1-0 and the first half drawing to a close Ronaldinho received the ball just inside his own half and took off dribbling, running straight at the heart of the English defence. After beating Ashley Cole with a stepover and a turn of acceleration he kept his cool to slip a perfectly weighted pass to Rivaldo who didn’t disappoint.

Just as Maradona did in the ‘Hand of God’ game, Ronaldinho made his 2nd key contribution to the final outcome just a few game minutes after his 1st. 5 minutes into the second half, Ronaldinho stood over a free kick 40 yards out. With keeper David Seaman off his line anticipating a ball into the box, the ball instead flew over his head and landed just under the crossbar and inside the post. The goal was considered a freak, a stroke of good luck for Ronaldinho with him mishitting an attempted cross. And many people still hold that opinion to do this day, but I do not. The ball is so far away from any Brazilian player, I can’t see how a player as talented as Ronaldinho could misdirect a ball so bad as to completely miss out everyone on his team. Seaman was stood in a bad position, too far off his line for a keeper of short stature and Ronaldinho saw an opportunity to go for goal and executed it perfectly. This goal being dismissed as an accident I think is of great disservice to the Brazilian. But regardless just like the Hand of God goal Maradona scored, Ronaldinho also caused an England keeper to feel great embarrassment.

A red card shown to Ronaldinho prevented it from being a perfect afternoon for him as it forced him to miss the Semi-Final. Both Maradona and Ronaldinho’s sole World Cup victories also featured a 2-0 win over Belgium and victory in the final against Germany.

Ronaldinho’s next tournament was the 2005 Confederations Cup which he also won, receiving man of the match for his performance in a 4-1 final win against Argentina in which he also scored. Hopes were high heading into the 2006 World Cup that Brazil could retain the trophy. But the 3 R’s of Rivaldo, Ronaldinho and Ronaldo which worked to devastating effect in Japan and Korea, was replaced by a top heavy attack of Kaka, Ronaldinho, Adriano and Ronaldo. All these stars together didn’t gel as Ronaldinho turned out the worst performances of his stellar international career and Brazil were eliminated in the Quarter-Finals.

Two years later at the Beijing Olympics Ronaldinho was selected as one of Brazil’s overage players as they took the Bronze medal, but he was cut from a Dunga’s initial 30-man squad for the 2010 World Cup, where Brazil were unable to improve upon a Quarter-Final exit. Ronaldinho was captain for a 2013 friendly against Chile, but was not called up for the Confederations Cup that year that Brazil won or the 2014 World Cup they hosted.

Maradona won 91 caps for his national side scoring 34 goals and Ronaldinho won 97 caps, including atleast one a year for 14 years and scored 33 goals. Both men scored 7 in their most prolific years for their country.

Reaching the End

After serving his first 15-month ban Maradona joined his former Argentina manager Carlos Bilardo at Sevilla. Overweight and undisciplined Maradona rarely performs and doesn’t endear himself any further to his employers by spending many nights in a local brothel with his teammates. His lack of fitness and absence from training leads Bilardo to feel unable to trust him to finish a game and he substitutes him. Maradona calls him a “son of a bitch” as he leaves the field. In the dressing room, the two come to blows with Diego later saying “we punched the shit out of each other.” The game would be his last in a Sevilla shirt.

Maradona is then offered a reprieve at Newell’s Old Boys but seems unable to motivate himself. The energy boosting drugs he’s taking at the time mean that after an initial burst of energy he fades badly in games. His stay is shortlived.

Whilst serving a second drugs ban, Maradona tries his hand at management with Deportivo Mandiyu, but they are relegated in a match where Diego is seen on camera calling the referee “a thief, a liar and a gutless coward without balls.” When the ban is over Maradona returns for a second spell with his beloved Boca Juniors where the curtain comes down on his career on his 37th birthday after 31 games spread across 3 seasons.

Ronaldinho scored his 1st goal for Milan in a 1-0 derby win over Internazionale. However after a good start, he struggled with fitness and often started games from the bench. A lack of dedication in training and late night partying led departing manager Carlo Ancelotti to declare “The decline of Ronaldinho hasn't surprised me. His physical condition has always been very precarious. His talent though has never been in question."

Ronaldinho did much better in his 2nd season under Leonardo, a fellow Brazilian who was more lenient towards his nighttime activities. Ronaldinho scored 12 and assisted 14, more than anyone else in that season’s Serie A. Likely Milan’s best player that season, he scored 2 braces against Juventus, home and away, and a hattrick against Sienna. However the following season, the arrivals of Robinho and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, plus the stricter coach Massimiliano Allegri saw Ronaldinho’s time in Milan come to an end. Referring to a night Ronaldinho was spotted out in the early hours a couple of days before a Milan Derby, Allegri said in a press conference that “it was not an hour for an athlete to be awake.” That quote applied to many nights during Ronaldinho’s stay in Italy, one night at a Music festival he was implored by Milan fans to go home in order to be ready for training tomorrow, the Brazilian just laughed and told them not to worry. He was determined to enjoy himself and didn’t care who saw him.

This would change when he returned home to Brazil and joined Flamengo, with the club setting up a telephone hotline if they spotted the new club captain enjoying a night out, such were there frequency. 20,000 Flamengo supporters were present for Ronaldinho’s unveiling and although there was some good moments such as when he hit a hattrick during a 5-4 win against Santos in a game they’d trailed 3-0 in, he in the end cancelled his contract and sued Flamengo over lack of payment.

Ronaldinho then joined Atletico Mineiro and won the Bola de Ouro (league’s best player) award in his 1st season. In his 2nd season he won the Copa Libertadores, the first in Mineiro’s history, with Ronaldinho contributing 4 goals and 7 assists to the success. Mineiro lost the first leg of both the semi and the final 2-0 but won both ties on penalties. Ronaldinho was awarded the 2013 South American Footballer of the Year. At the FIFA World Club Cup, following a semi-final match Ronaldinho was mobbed by the players of Raja Casablanca, as they stripped him for souvenirs as a memento from sharing a pitch with their idol.

Ronaldinho then moved to Mexico side Queretaro where the highlight came in an away fixture to Club America where he scored twice in a 4-0 win and received a standing ovation from the home fans. Things were not as positive at his next and final club Fluimenese, where he appeared just 9 times before deciding to quit the club, no longer happy with his level. Maradona scored 311 goals in 589 games in club football and Ronaldinho 266 in 699. Both players will be fondly remembered by everyone who saw them on a football pitch, for their contribution to the beautiful game.

Sources: Hand of God The Life of Diego Maradona by Jimmy Burns, The making of Ronaldinho- how the Brazilian superstar broke through at PSG (FourFourTwo Magazine), Remembering Ronaldinho’s excessive Milan Nights (Bleacher Report)

#maradona #diegomaradona #maradona10 #ronaldinho #fcbarcelona #barca #napoli #football #soccer

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