Another year has come and gone, and it's time to look back at what was. This is part of a series of year-end recollections and in this piece we're going to take a look at some of the best moments and personalities of the past 12 months.
PEOPLE AND PLACES OF THE YEAR
APOEL Nicosia. APOEL is, obviously, not a person, but a team. But they epitomize Michel Platini's plan to "spread the wealth" in the Champions League. The Cypriot minnows stunned all observers by qualifying for the knockout stages even as the Manchester giants crashed and burned into the Europa League. It was lovely to see such success in a competition that is increasingly dominated by money.
Qatar. And then there's Qatar, the tiny Gulf state that won the rights to hold the 2022 World Cup in controversial fashion. Allegations of bribery and bid-rigging have dogged the future hosts as well as very substantial questions about the nation's summer climate. Qatar claim that that they can make air-cooled stadia that will keep the players and fans cool at 80 degrees, and they well might. How they are going to to keep the rest of the country cool in summer time temperatures that hit 110 in the shade is a question they don't seem to want to address.
Johnny Saelua. The player for American Samoa - now coached by Thomas Rongen - set what is believed to be a landmark when she became the first transgender player to take the pitch in a World Cup qualifier. Saelua, born male, is a member of a small sub-set of Samoans known as the fa'afafine: they are raised as women and widely accepted in Pacific culture. Moreover, with Saelua on the field, American Samoa recorded their first ever win in a qualifier, beating Tonga 2-1.
Lineswoman Sian Massey was at the centre of a sexism controversy which cost the jobs of two high-profile TV commentators. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Sian Massey. The pony-tailed lineswoman didn't get much notice until a game between Liverpool and Wolves. There, she was berated by two commentators for "blowing" an offside call in spectacularly sexist fashion. She was right, the commentators were wrong, and those pundits were sacked. The good part? The incident began a very public discussion over just how far women have come in sport — and the answer is, not far enough. Massey, for her part, just got on with her job and remains on the touchline.
Chuck Blazer. The CONCACAF v.p. stunned world soccer when he turned in his president, Jack Warner, for corruption. Blazer, a member of the powerful ExCo, has subsequently had both his motives and his finances questioned (he also stepped down from the regional body), but his whistle-blowing was the first major crack in FIFA's facade. The long-term effects are still unknown, but no one doubts that the Swiss organization is rotten at its core any longer.
Sepp Blatter. The all-powerful don of FIFA ended the year looking a very embattled man. His latest embarrassment was tone-deaf remarks on racism and football, but the real damage was done in the summer when the scope and depth of corruption at his organization was finally laid bare. He's playing a rearguard action right now, hoping that folks will have short memories, but they won't.
John Terry. The best and the worst of English football found himself in the dock as the year ended over alleged racist taunting of QPR defender Anton Ferdinand. No one doubts Terry's heart and drive on the field, but many question why he remains the captain of the English national team when he seems to show astonishingly poor judgement in other aspects of his life. He is the unintentional poster child for the strains in the Premier League, an old-school talent on a new-money team – which apparently holds Victorian attitudes.
Gary Speed. The Wales national team manager's suicide shocked all of world football. Although the reasons for Speed's death are not known if there was anything good to come out of this tragedy it was that people finally started talking openly and honestly about the prevalence of mental health issues. That's cold comfort. The game lost a true gentleman and brilliant athlete.
Lionel Messi. Still the best footballer on the planet and the best advertisement for the game. Deceptively slight, mesmerizingly creative and stunningly fast, Messi has changed our perception of what footballers can and cannot do. He benefits from having Xavi and Andres Iniesta around him, no doubt, but only a churl (or an unrealistic Argentina fan) would think of him as anything but top-class.
Oscar Tabarez. The Uruguayan coach led his team to a stunning Copa America triumph this summer, giving La Celeste their 15th crown but the first in 16 long years. Luis Suarez, Diego Forlan and young keeper Fernando Muslera won over fans worldwide for their play, and El Maestro burnished his credentials as one of the game's great tacticians.
BEST OF 2011
Team of the year: Barcelona. Anyone who doubted that the Catalans are the team of this generation needed only to watch them take apart Manchester United at Wembley in May. Even the dogged performance of Wayne Rooney wasn't enough to overcome the tidal wave that is this Barcelona side. They are simply that much better than anyone else in the world.
Player of the year: Lionel Messi. See above.
Coach of the Year: Sir Alex Ferguson. Pep Guardiola's teams play far better football. Oscar Tabarez is arguably the best national team coach right now. But give the old gaffer credit. He keeps dating winning teams even if it sometimes seems he is using baling twine and safety pins just to field an eleven. United don't always play attractive football, in fact, they can be downright miserable to watch. But they win.
An American abroad: Clint Dempsey is integral to Fulham's success (Photo by Ian Walton/Getty Images)
American Player of the Year: Clint Dempsey. You could go with Brad Friedel, Tim Howard or even Landon Donovan here, and make a solid case for any of the four. But Dempsey is irreplaceable to Fulham in a way his colleagues are not. He set a record for Premier League goals scored by an American earlier this season, and as we write this, he has netted four in his last six games, helping pull Fulham out of the doldrums. How long he stays at Craven Cottage is an open question as well - a sign of just how good a player he has become.
Best game: Newcastle 4, Arsenal 4, (February 5, 2011). A wild game that sank the Gunners — but showed that Newcastle had hope for next season. Even partisans have to admit that this was one of the most thrilling matches in Premier League history, with rapid-fire scoring and a high-wire four-goal collapse by the Londoners that would ultimately reveal how hollow they truly were.
