Sir Geoff Hurst

Born 8 December 1941 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, Sir Geoffrey Charles Hurst MBE (Geoff Hurst) is a retired England footballer best remembered for his years with West Ham. 

Geoff Hurst made his mark in World Cup history as the only player to have scored a hat-trick in a World Cup final. His three goals came in the 1966 final for England in their 4–2 win over West Germany at the old Wembley. Such an achievement was made all the more remarkable by the fact that he was only five months and eight games into his international career, and was not considered his country's premier center forward.

Geoff Hurst was initially a strong-running midfielder but was converted to a striker by manager Ron Greenwood. West Ham won the FA Cup in 1964 with Hurst scoring the second equalizer in a tight and exciting 3–2 victory over Preston North End at Wembley. A year later, Hurst was back at Wembley for the final of the European Cup Winners Cup against 1860 Munich, and West Ham won 2–0. The following season he was in the West Ham side which lost the League Cup final on aggregate to West Bromwich Albion.

In February 1966 he was given his debut for England by manager Alf Ramsey. Geoff Hurst was named in the 22-man World Cup squad for the finals in England. Ramsey’s decision paid dividends as Hurst scored three goals to help England wins their World Cup title.

 

Geoff Hurst remains the most recent British-based player to notch a double hat-trick in a top-flight league match: he achieved this remarkable feat in a First Division match against Sunderland at Upton Park on 19 October 1968, which saw the Hammers defeat the Wearsiders 8-0.

Geoff Hurst wound down his career with Stoke City, West Bromwich Albion, Seattle Sounders (NASL). After Seattle, Hurst played in Kuwait and then signed for Cork Celtic. 

Upon his retirement from playing, Geoff Hurst moved into management and coaching. He was assistant to his ex-West Ham boss Ron Greenwood after the latter took over the England job in 1977, player-manager of Telford United and manager of Chelsea from 1979–81. He joined Chelsea, then in the Second Division, before the 1979–80 season, initially as assistant manager to Danny Blanchflower. When Blanchflower was sacked, Geoff Hurst was appointed manager. [source : Geoff Hurst]

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Wayne "Wazza" Rooney

Wayne Mark Rooney (born 24 October 1985) is an English footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Manchester United and the England national team. He was nicknamed with "Wazza" he is compared with former England player Paul "Gazza" Gascoigne.

Wayne Rooney was born in Croxteth, Liverpool to Thomas Wayne and Jeanette Marie Rooney (née Morrey). He grew up supporting his local club Everton; his childhood hero was Duncan Ferguson. At age nine, Rooney joined the youth team of Everton, for whom he made his professional debut in 2002. 

Wayne Rooney spent two seasons at the Everton, before moving to Manchester United for £25.6 million in the 2004 summer transfer window. Since then, United have won the Premier League four times, the 2007–08 UEFA Champions League and two League Cups with Rooney in the team. He also holds two runner-up medals from both the Premier League and the Champions League. Wayne Rooney is the third Manchester United player to score 100 Premier League goals, joining Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes. 

Wayne Rooney made his senior international debut in 2003 at seventeen, the same age at which he also became the youngest player to score an England goal. He played at UEFA Euro 2004 and scored four goals. He also briefly became the competition's youngest goalscorer. He is frequently selected for the England squad and also featured at the 2006 and 2010 World Cups. Rooney has won the England Player of the Year award twice, in 2008 and 2009. As of March 2011, he has won 70 international caps and scored 26 goals.

In 2009-10, Rooney was awarded the PFA Players' Player of the Year and the FWA Footballer of the Year. As of 2011, he is the third highest-paid footballer in the world, with an annual income of €20.7m (£18m) including sponsorship deals. [source : Wayne Rooney]

Wayne Rooney Pictures and Wallpapers
 

Ruud van Nistelrooy

Rutgerus Johannes Martinus van Nistelrooy, born July 1, 1976), better known as Ruud van Nistelrooy, is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a striker for Málaga CF in Spain's La Liga. He is the second-highest goalscorer in Champions League history with 60 goals. Van Nistelrooy is a three-time Champions League top scorer, as well as a top scorer in three different European domestic leagues.

Ruud Van Nistelrooy who nicknamed with Ruudtje began his career with Den Bosch, before moving onto Heerenveen, eventually making a name for himself at PSV Eindhoven where he won two Dutch leagues. His goalscoring record at PSV attracted attention from Manchester United; a deal was in place in the summer of 2000, but because of injury problems his move was secured a year later for a then British record fee of £19m. His time at United was successful, winning the Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup and FA Community Shield, along with winning the Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year twice. Van Nistelrooy hit 150 goals in just 219 games for United, as well as being their all time European record goalscorer, but fell out of favour towards the end of his tenure. Real Madrid then secured his services in 2006. 

On 23 January 2010, van Nistelrooy signed an 18-month contract with Hamburg with the German club until June 2011. Van Nistelrooy scored his first two goals for Hamburg on 13 February 2010 against Stuttgart in the 75th and 77th minutes of a 3–1 win, after entering the game just a few minutes prior. Totally Ruud van Nistelrooy has played in 42 games and scored 17 goals with Hamburg SV.

Ruud van Nistelrooy has 70 caps and 35 goals for the Netherlands. He made his debut for the national team in a friendly match against Germany on 18 November 1998. However, the cruciate ligament injury which postponed his transfer to Manchester United also ruled van Nistelrooy out of Euro 2000.

On 1 June, 2011, van Nistelrooy arrived to Málaga to sign a one-year contract with the La Liga club on a free transfer. [source: Ruud van Nistelrooy]

Ruud van Nistelrooy Pictures and Wallpapers

 

Didier Drogba

Didier Yves Drogba Tébily (born 11 March 1978) is an Ivorian footballer who plays in the centre forward  position. He currently plays for Chelsea in the Premier League and is the captain and all-time top scorer of the Côte d'Ivoire national football team. He has scored more goals for Chelsea than any other foreign player and is currently Chelsea's sixth highest goal scorer of all time. His key attributes include his physical strength, ability in the air, and his power to retain possession of the ball.  

After playing in youth teams, Drogba made his professional debut aged 18 for Ligue 2 club Le Mans. A late bloomer, he signed his first professional contract aged 21; it was not until the 2002–03 season that he realized his potential, scoring 17 goals in 34 appearances in Ligue 1 for Guingamp. During the same season he made his first international appearance for Côte d'Ivoire, in September, and scored his first international goal the following February. He moved to Olympique de Marseille in 2003 for £3.3 million. His scoring success at Olympique de Marseille continued, finishing as the third highest scorer in Ligue 1 with 19 goals and helped the club to reach the 2004 UEFA Cup Final.

Drogba moved to Chelsea the following season for a record breaking fee of £24 million, making him the most expensive Côte d'Ivoire player in history. In addition, he scored decisive goals in the 2005 Football League Cup Final and in the 2005 FA Community Shield and helped the club win their first ever Premier League title.  

Drogba came to prominence as one of the world's foremost strikers in 2006 as he won the league title with Chelsea again and captained the national team for the first time.

In the 2006 World Cup he scored Côte d'Ivoire's first ever goal of the competition and he was chosen as the 2006 African Footballer of the Year. The next season he finished as top scorer in the 2006–07 Premier League with 20 goals and also scored the winning goals in the 2007 Football League Cup Final and FA Cup Finals. He won the FA Cup for the second time in 2009, scoring the equalizer in the final. In the 2009–10 season Drogba proved instrumental in Chelsea winning their first double in the club's history. He won his second Golden Boot with 29 goals, and scored the only goal in Chelsea's victory over Portsmouth in the 2010 FA Cup Final. This goal makes him the only player to score in six English Cup finals.

Drogba is credited with playing a vital role in bringing peace to his country. After Côte d'Ivoire qualified for the 2006 World Cup, Drogba made a desperate plea to the combatants, asking them to lay down their arms, a plea which was answered with a cease fire after five years of civil war. Drogba later helped move an African Cup of Nations qualifier to the rebel stronghold of Bouake; a move that helped confirm the peace process. His involvement in the peace process lead to Drogba being named as one of the world's 100 most influential people by Time magazine. [source : Didier Drogba]

Didier Drogba Pictures and Wallpapers

Kenny Dalglish

Kenneth Mathieson "Kenny" Dalglish (Scottish pronunciation: 'kɛni: dɛɫgli:ʃ') MBE (born 4 March 1951) is a former Scottish footballer and current manager of Liverpool F.C. In 2009, he was named by FourFourTwo football magazine as the greatest striker in post-war British football.

In a 20-year playing career, Dalglish played for two teams, Celtic and Liverpool, achieving success with both. Dalglish is the most capped Scottish player, with 102 appearances. He and Denis Law also share the record for most goals for Scotland, with 30 each.

Dalglish began his career with Celtic and became the team captain in 1975. Between 1971 and 1977 he won four Scottish First Division titles, four Scottish Cups and one Scottish League Cup. In 1977, Bob Paisley paid a British transfer record of £440,000 to bring Dalglish to Liverpool.

His years at Liverpool marked one of the club's most prolific periods: he won seven league titles, three European Cups and five domestic cups. For these achievements, he is nicknamed King Kenny, and he was placed first in Liverpool's list of "100 Players Who Shook the Kop". Dalglish became player-manager of Liverpool in 1985 following the Heysel Stadium Disaster and brought the team a league and FA Cup double in his first year in charge, beating Merseyside rivals Everton in the process. During his six-year tenure from 1985–1991, Liverpool won the league championship three times and the FA Cup twice.

Kenny Dalglish joined Blackburn Rovers in 1991 and he turned the Second Division side into Premier League winners in 1995. His move to Newcastle United in 1997 was less successful. Dalglish was appointed Director of Football at Celtic in 1999 but a stint as caretaker manager ended in an acrimonious departure the following year.

Between 2000 and 2010 Dalglish focused on charitable concerns, founding The Marina Dalglish Appeal with his wife to raise money for cancer care. On 8 January 2011, Dalglish became Liverpool's manager for a second time, after the departure of Roy Hodgson. [source : King Kenny]

Kenny Dalglish Pictures and Wallpapers

 

Alan Shearer

Alan Shearer OBE, DL (born 13 August 1970) is a retired English footballer. He played as a striker in the top level of English league football for Southampton, Blackburn Rovers, Newcastle United and for the England national team. 

Alan Shearer is widely considered as one of England's best ever strikers, being both Newcastle's and the Premier League's record goalscorer. After retiring as a player, Shearer now works as a television pundit for the BBC. Toward the end of his playing career, Shearer worked towards gaining the UEFA Pro Licence, and expressed a desire to eventually become a manager. In 2009 he briefly left his BBC role to become Newcastle United's manager in the last eight games of their 2008–09 season, in an unsuccessful attempt to save them from relegation.

A native of Newcastle upon Tyne, Shearer made his professional debut with English top-flight club Southampton in 1988, scoring a hat-trick in the process. During several years on the south coast, he became known for his classic style of play, strength and goalscoring ability; he soon received an international call-up along with a transfer to Blackburn Rovers in 1992. 

Shearer established himself as a player in northern England; he became a regular in the England squad, and his 34-goal tally helped Blackburn secure the Premier League title in 1994–95. He was named Football Writers' Association Player of the Year in 1994 and won the PFA Player of the Year award in 1995. The 1995–96 season saw Shearer make his first Champions League appearances and finish as the top scorer in the Premier League with 31 goals. He was also top scorer at Euro 1996 with England, scoring five goals, and in the 1996–97 Premier League, with 25 goals.

A world-record £15 million move to his boyhood heroes, Newcastle United, followed the Euro '96FA Cupcaptain in 1996 and Newcastle's captain in 1999, he retired from international football following Euro 2000, having amassed 63 appearances and 30 goals for his country. tournament, and Shearer spent the remainder of his career with the club. While he would never emulate the success of his time at Blackburn Rovers, Shearer won runners-up medals in the Premier League and with Newcastle, and a second PFA Player of the Year award. After being named England's captain in 1996 and Newcastle's captain in 1999, he retired from international football following Euro 2000, having amassed 63 appearances and 30 goals for his country.

As well as his media work, he has raised substantial amounts of money for various national and local charities, both within and outside of sports. Shearer is an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), a Deputy Lieutenant of Northumberland, a Freeman of Newcastle upon Tyne and an honorary Doctor of Civil Law of Northumbria and Newcastle Universities. [source : Alan Shearer]

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