World-beater or back to the training ground?
Do you think you know your football? If so, test your knowledge with our world football quiz. How many of the 20 questions can you get right?
1. Which Dutch coach managed Trinidad and Tobago at the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ in Germany?
A. Dick Advocaat B. Co Adriaanse C. Leo Beenhakker
2. In which year did Alessandro del Piero join Juventus?
A. 1989 B. 1993 C. 1998
3. In which country’s highest league is there no club called Barcelona?
A. Ecuador B. Uruguay C. Spain
4. Which country does Manchester City striker Benjani Mwaruwari represent?
A. Senegal B. Zimbabwe C. Nigeria
5. In which country did the inaugural FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup take place in 2006?
A. Germany B. China C. Russia
6. In which league do Deportivo Toluca play?
A. Mexican B. Honduran C. Guatemalan
7. Which former international player is not currently the coach of his national team?
A. Marco van Basten (the Netherlands)
B. Matthias Sammer (Germany)
C. Slaven Bilic (Croatia)
8. What size of pitch has the International Football Association Board (IFAB), football’s law-making body, set down for “A” international matches in newly built stadiums?
A. 110×50 metres B. 100×70 metres C. 105×68 metres
9. Trond Sollied, who has held coaching positions in Greece and Belgium among other countries, is to coach Dutch team Heerenveen in the 2008-2009 season. Which nationality is Sollied?
A. Swedish B. Danish C. Norwegian
10. When did the FIFA Confederations Cup make its debut?
A. 1992 in Saudi Arabia B. 1999 in Mexico C. 2001 in Korea and Japan
11. Austrian league leaders Red Bull Salzburg lost 7-0 at home to Rapid Vienna in March. What new record did this result set?
A. It was the highest score worldwide on artificial turf.
B. It was the heaviest ever defeat experienced by then Salzburg Giovanni Trapattoni throughout his long coaching career.
C. It was Rapid’s highest victory since 1953.
12. Sergei Barbarez has played in German football since 1991. Which national team does the forward play for?
A. Bosnia-Herzegovina B. Spain C. Croatia
13. From which club did Argentinian striker Fernando Cavenaghi join Bordeaux in 2007?
A. Spartak Moscow B. Steaua Bucharest C. River Plate
14. What is the nickname of Portugal’s footballing legend Eusebio?
A. “The black panther” B. “The merry waiter” C. “The fearless plough”
15. Which women’s national team won the coveted Algarve Cup this year?
A. China PR B. USA C. Germany
16. Which club did the Argentinian internationals Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano play for in the 2006-2007 season?
A. Portsmouth B. Manchester United C. West Ham United
17. Who are the defending champions in the AFC Champions League?
A. Urawa Red Diamonds B. Shanghai Shenhua C. Qatar SC
18. According to the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, how many teams may a player be registered to play for during one season?
A. Three B. Fosr C. Two
19. Which milestone did Inter Milan reach on 9 March?
A. 100 home matches without defeat B. 100 years of existence C. 100 titles in all competitions
20. Who scored the winning goal for Egypt in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations 2008?
A. Mohamed Abouterika B. Mido C. Hossam Hassan

Martin Demichelis
Born: 20 December 1980 in Justiniano Posse, Argentina
Nickname: Micho
Position: defender/midfielder
Nationality: Argentinian
Height: 1,84m
Weight: 78kg
Clubs: 1995-1998: Complejo Deportivo. 1998-2003: River Plate. Since July 2003: Bayern Munich.
Honours: 1999: winner of Argentinian Apertura. 2000, 2002 and 2003: winner of Argentinian Clausura. 2005 and 2006: winner of German league and cup double. Eight caps for Argentina, one goal.

20 Questions 20 Answers – Martin Demichelis
1. What does football mean to you?
It’s the sport that I enjoy so much that I turned professional; that’s why I respect and love it so much. It is a gift to be able to make a living from something as wonderful as the sport that is close to your heart. In short, it means more than many things in my life.
2. Which club did you support as a child?
Complejo Deportivo, the club from my home town of Justiniano Posse, and in professional football, River Plate.
3. Did you ever have an idol?
Yes, in football, Diego Maradona and Fernando Redondo.
4. What is your fondest footballing memory?
It would be unfair to single out one, so I’d prefer to mention the different milestones in my career, my first-division debut, winning the championship, moving to Europe and being called up to the national team.
5. What has been your biggest disappointment in football?
Not making Argentina’s squad for the 2006 World Cup.
6. If you had not become a footballer, what would you have become?
I don’t know exactly, because my parents were educated I would have had to continue my studies and I would no doubt have done something related to football or sport.
7. What is your favourite type of music?
Ciuirteto Por Porvenir from Cordoba.
8. And your favourite book?
Driven from Within by Michael Jordan.
9. Your favourite film?
Men of Honour, starring Robert de Niro.
10. Which is your favourite city? Buenos Aires.
11. What is your favourite food? Barbecued meat with my friends or family.
12. What is your favourite hobby?
Watching football or surfing the internet.
13. What do you spend most of your money on?
14. What was your first job?
Working as an office junior for River Plate when I finished secondary school.
15. Who has been the most influential figure in world history?
Jesus.
16. What are you scared of?
War, violence and world poverty.
17. What was the worst moment in your life?
When I left home at 15 to start out in this profession, my mother died.
18. How do you see the future of the world?
As an optimist, I never lose the hope that things will improve in every sense.
19. Where would you like to go on holiday?
I would like to travel the world with my family after ending my football career.
20. Whom would you most like to meet?
Michael Jordan.

YES or NOW?
Do you now speake perfect German? – No
Will you become a coach when you retire? – Yes
Is Kaka the best player in the world right now? – No
Do you like horse riding? – Yes
Is it possible to compare Lionel Messi with Diego Maradona? – No

Lucas Radebe
Born: 12 April 1969 in Diepkloof (Soweto), South Africa
Nationality: South African
Nickname: “The Chief”
Clubs: 1990-1994: Kaizer Chiefs (113 matches, 5 goals). 1994-2005: Leeds United (200 matches, 2 goals).
Honours: 1991 and 1992: South African league championship winner. 1996: Africa Cup of Nations winner. 1998: took part in the FIFA World Cup™. 2000: FIFA Fair Play Award winner. 2002: took part in the FIFA World Cup™. 70 caps and 2 goals for South Africa.
Miscellaneous: married and father of two children.

Lucas Radebe – The Smile Of The Chief
For many years, Lucas Radebe was South Africa’s most famous footballer and captain of the national team. Now 39 years old, he is a highly successful corporate ambassador in his home country.
Traverse any major thoroughfare in metropolitan South Africa and you are bound to be confronted with the smiling image of Lucas Radebe. The former Bafana Bafana captain is ironically more of an icon since he hung up his playing boots than he ever was during his illustrious career. Radebe, who has just turned 39, has become a highly successful corporate ambassador, linked to six different companies who use him to promote their products.
Need a credit card? Radebe will show you the bank with the best deal. Seeking a good health plan and medical insurance policy? Lucas knows the people with the right package. And, of course, do not forget to give your teeth a polish at least three times a day … just as Radebe does.
His venture into the business world and the growing demands on his star profile mean that Radebe needs to be as agile as he was when defending for his national team, English giants Leeds United and Kaizer Chiefs. And while he is itching to get back into the game, Radebe finds himself in a vortex of corporate activity as an excited South Africa looks forward to hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ finals. “I grew up in a sporting family and I learnt very early on to love the game, but I had no idea where it would take me,” he says.
CHARITY WORK
Radebe captained South Africa at two World Cups™, spent ten seasons at Leeds United in England and was named winner of the FIFA Fair Play Award in 2000. Persistent knee injuries meant premature retirement, but not before he had become South Africa’s most capped international. But even if he is no longer playing, his image is omnipresent and he remains one of the heroes of the South African game.
Radebe’s days are now taken up with corporate appearances, advertising shoots and business meetings. “Football is such a short career, it is important to ensure that life afterwards also allows you to live well.” But now more than ever, Radebe continues his charity work, which is why he won the FIFA award eight years ago. “I a Ways wanted to give back to the community; my dream is to see the game back in the schools in the townships. That’s where I started and I want more to have the chances that I was given … I feel footballers now carry a lot of responsibility.”
Radebe has come along way from the dusty streets of Soweto, where he grew up amid the violence of the apartheid regime. As a teenager he was shot as police confronted demonstrating youths but recovered. His parents eventually sent him out of Soweto to the sedate rural setting of Zeerust, where his talent for football became evident. Although he first played as a goalkeeper and even won national honours between the sticks at amateur level, it was as midfielder that he was first spotted, thus paving the way for his return to Soweto in 1990 to join the fabled Kaizer Chiefs.
A BORN LEADER
Three years later, while playing for South Africa in Australia, he was spotted by Leeds United. The English club had originally sent a scout out to watch Phil Masinga, the giant Bafana Bafana forward, but were so impressed with Radebe that they bought both players. Radebe cost GBP 250,000, still regarded as one of the best buys to date by Leeds.
The move to Britain proved the making of Radebe, bringing out his leadership qualities and giving him the confidence he needed to vastly improve his game. But he most needed courage and resolve to overcome a serious knee injury early on during his stay at Elland Road, which kept him out of the game for 13 months.
He only just made it back in time to help South Africa win the 1996 Africa Nations Cup and play for Leeds in the English League Cup final. After manager George Graham converted him from midfield to centre back, Radebe’s qualities became more evident and as the seasons progressed he was made captain of the club, the first African to skipper a team in the English Premier League.
“You need a bit of luck to get those opportunities,” he reflects, “but you also have to work for it; you have to work for your achievements and make sure that you succeed. It doesn’t come easy. You know, there is a lot of commitment and sacrifice that is needed. To be respected in Britain you have to be really, really strong, both mentally and physically. South African people are strong naturally. I got a lot of inspiration from that. It is a question of how you show it, in the way you play. Mentally and physically, no doubt about it, you have to show your skills when you get the chance.”
TOO RELAXED
At Leeds, he was respectfully called “The Chief”, a reference to his leadership role and his African heritage. Radebe still keeps a house in the Yorkshire city and commutes with his family, but his endorsement deals mean he spends much more time in South Africa these days.
“To be honest I never thought I’d reach this level. I never thought I’d play for Leeds, I never thought I’d play professional football. I never thought I’d play for Kaizer Chiefs. I believe that if you have got talent, follow it and do the best you can and something will come up for you to do. I never really followed someone else’s trail; I just always followed where my heart and my head channelled me,” adds Radebe.
He still wants to get involved with coaching and management but admits his life is not controlled by some master plan for his future. “Nah, no! I’m just too relaxed! I don’t even take myself too seriously. This is life; you’ve got to enjoy yourself. Live today like it’s the last day,” he laughs.