Sports Personality of the Year 2011

Usually on BeeTeeSports, I mainly cover football stories, because that's my main interest. But for tonight, we shall be looking at the Sports Personality awards for 2011 (just to clear up confusion, this has nothing to do with a sportsman’s personality, it's how well they've done throughout the calendar year in their own respective sports). No footballers are on the shortlist this year, which suggests that we tend to be better in other sporting activities (which is of course, true). Among the nominees are two cricketers, three golfers, two runners, a boxer, a tennis player and a cyclist. It will be quite a long read if I was to analyse the achievements of each individual athlete, so I will discuss my top three candidates for this year...

3RD: Mo Farah

Farah started the year in spectacular fashion. Before April, he had already managed to smash the record for the 5000m indoor record in a time of 13:10.60, win gold at the 3000m indoor championships and also come first in the New York half-marathon (in a very respectable time of 1:00:23). All of these achievements were probably helped by his move to the United States in February to join up with trainer Alberto Salazar. During June/July, he broke British records in the Diamond League meetings at Monaco and Oregon. By the time of the World Athletic Championships, the Somalian-born athlete was full of confidence and showed to the world how good he was by winning silver in the 10,000m and gold in the 5000m (his less favoured event of the two) to top off a good year for the long distance runner.

2ND: Mark Cavendish

Cavendish had a rather slow start to the season, not winning a race until Stage 6 of the Tour of Oman in late February. However, he will be most remembered this year for his tremendous success during the Tour de France. He won five stages of the tour to finish top of the Points Classification tables, despite having points docked off during stages 18 and 19. He finished with a total of 334 points, the highest amount scored since Erik Zabel won in 1997. Mark also became the first British cyclist to top the points table. Other notable achievements during the calendar year include winning the UCI Road World Championships for Great Britain and Grote Scheldeprijs, as well as receiving an MBE as recognition of his accomplishments  

1ST: Luke Donald

The newly crowned world number one certainly had his triumphs throughout the calendar year. He won the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship in February, beating the then world number one Martin Kaymer 3&2 in the final round. He also managed to pick up one more PGA Tour win and two more European tour wins, which helped him to becoming the first player ever to top the PGA Tour and European Tour money lists in the same year (earning about £7.8m overall). Donald enjoyed success in the Masters, finishing tied in the top four, which was his highest finish in a major during the year. Although a major victory still eludes Donald, his current form suggests that he will most definitely win one during 2012...

The ceremony kicks off at 8pm on BBC1, and if you have faith in BeeTeeSports, you might want to put a lucky wager on Luke Donald to win.

Can Spurs be serious title contenders?

Tottenham Hotspur went into Sunday's game against Stoke on the back of one of their best starts ever to a Premier League season. They had won their last six league games, holding an unbeaten run that stretched from the end of August. Spurs sit fourth in the table, only seven points behind leaders Manchester City. This impeccable attitude has certainly showed that Harry Redknapp's side can go toe-to-toe with the big boys of the league, but do they have what it takes to finish top of the pile come May?

This season, Spurs' squad seems to be the strongest it has ever been in recent years. Their midfield is possibly the best in the country; Lennon and Bale on the wings, Parker and Modric in the centre with Van Der Vaart playing in the CAM position. Between them, they have netted a total of 18 goals in all competitions. Aaron Lennon has the blistering pace that has seen him score incredible solo goals in recent weeks whilst Bale is also good with his movement and crossing. Scott Parker, former PFA players player of the year, and £40m valued Luka Modric have the ability to control the game with such ease. Whilst VDV is always a goal scoring threat and can provide the passes for the striker up front or even joining the attack as a second attacker.

It is also evident that they have depth in striking roles. Adebayor currently has the edge over his closest rivals, but they would easily be able to fill his boots if needed. Jermaine Defoe is a pacy striker who is able to cause some trouble to any defence that he comes into contact with, whilst Pavlychenko is a well-established international striker for his home country of Russia. Depending on what team they are facing, each player has his strengths that will accommodate for their style of play.

In addition, there is the manager. Harry Redknapp is one of the most experienced managers in the league, who has successfully taken Spurs from relegation candidates to Champions League quarter finalist in three years, so who knows what he is capable of during this season. Redknapp is also a wise spender in the transfer market, one of his best signings being Rafael Van Der Vaart (a Real Madrid, Dutch international) for a measly £8 million. During the January transfer market, he is quoted saying that he will make a "big signing" for the north London club, so that can only be good news for their title hopes.

Finally, unlike the other league contenders (namely Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea) Tottenham do not need to face the exhausting prospect of European football in the coming weeks and months, after being knocked out of the competition a few hours ago. The Manchester clubs will be playing their trade in the Europa League (Thursday nights, channel five if you need reminding) whilst the Blues are still in the hunt for that elusive Champions League trophy. Spurs' players will be much more rested when it comes to decisive games, so maybe their Europe exit was a blessing in disguise.

In conclusion, it will be tough for the north Londoners to try and fight their way to lead the table until the end of the season, but something tells me that they will be able to give it a good go, as long as they are able to bounce back quickly from that stoking on Sunday (which in their defence, they should have won).

United they stood, United they fell (FC Basel 2-1 Manchester United)

Manchester United only needed a point to advance to the next stage of the Champions League, and only Swiss champions FC Basel stood in the way of an inevitable advance to the last 16. But as we know, football is such an unpredictable game...

The pressure was certainly on the United team. Although they may be much stronger than the Heiko Vogel's side, the Swiss champions had the fantastic home support that saw them win seven out of their last eight matches at St. Jakob Park. But from the early signs, it certainly seemed that Man United were not playing for the point they needed to get through, but for all three! Dominating possession in the opening minutes with solid build-up play, Park managed to turn a defender on the edge of the box and execute a curling shot, flying over the both. Basel weren't going to be frightened though, managing to break into the United half and have a few crosses that left De Gea scrambling. But on the eight minute mark, they did a bit more then trouble him. A cross flew into the box, Smalling went down under a challenge and the ball eventually arrived on the opposite wing to Shaqiri, whose low ball deflected off of the young United goalie's leg and into the path of Marco Strellar, who volleyed emphatically into the net. This was the Basel striker's fourth goal in consecutive games, and certainly his most important one, his team had the upper hand.

Man United responded, attacking the home end and winning two corners in quick succession, but unfortunately they both evaded all who dwelled within the Basel box. They continued in similar fashion to how they started the game, maintaining a majority of the possession and looking to find an equaliser. They were now allowing their full backs to join the attacking surge, with Chris Smalling breaking down the wing to deliver a searching ball, but no United player was able to latch onto it and it was saved by the 23-year old Swiss stopper Yann Sommer. Man United missed their best chance of the game on the half hour mark though, Nani hit a low cross into the path of Rooney, who completely, hopelessly misses the ball, and the incoming Park could only bundle into the arms of the goalie.

Another corner came, another corner went. Giggs’ inswinging left footer was met by a defensive clearance and almost allowed Basel to break. It seemed that the more United attack, the more vulnerable they become. A plus side for United was the danger of wingers. Nani was making darting runs onto the wings and making crosses, also having attempts on goal in the process. Giggs was looking to play penetrating balls through the defence, which he did successfully on the 34th minute, resulting in a decent save from Wayne Rooney's effort and this was followed a few minutes later when Young had a tame shot from outside of the box after a United free-kick for handball.

The Red Devil's evening went from bad to worse on the 42nd minute, Vidic and goal-scorer Streller tangled to try and get the ball, with the Basel striker falling awkwardly on the defender, causing a twist in the right leg. He left the pitch on a stretcher and was replaced by fellow centre-back Jonny Evans. Basel then had a rare attacking spell after being on the back foot for the past half an hour, trouble-making winger Shaqiri ran down the wing and took an ambitious shot towards De Gea's goal, but it was saved by the young Spaniard. Both teams went into the break fairly satisfied, Man United certainly dominated the half but were behind. If they didn't score in the upcoming 45 minutes, then their next European game would be in the Europa League.

Sir Alex’s men nearly started the half in the best possible way. The versatile figure of Giggs put another great ball into the path of Rooney, who squared to curl it round the keeper, but it went just wide. Immediately after, the ever-present Nani made another run and shot, only for it to be caught by the welcoming hands of Sommer. Almost replicating the first half, Basel then broke away and crossed into the United box, the ball fell to Shaqiri, who had ample time to get his shot away, but luckily for United, it went over. More chances came and went for Basel, Alexander Frei's free-kick was tipped over well by De Gea (with the resulting corner being cleared away) and Fabian Frei (no relation) had his shot blocked by Smalling Finally, Dragovic had a header caught from the resulting corner. United's grip on the game was slowly slipping away, which would have annoyed Sir Alex and his team.

However, despite Basel getting back into the game, United did have a good spell between the 55th and 60th minute. They won two corners and a throw-in from similar position, which eventually resulted in Basel right-back Steinhöfer hitting a beautiful, pin-point volley against his own bar (I have no idea what he was thinking of). Shots from Rooney, Nani and Rooney again in following moments did nothing to threaten the home side's net as Basel continued to ride their luck.

70 minutes in, Manchester United did have a good chance to try and equalise, but it was missed by the head of Rooney after Nani's well worked cross (it was also offside, so technically it wasn't even a chance). Nevertheless, United were starting to regain the authority the once showed at the beginning of the match, holding onto possession but still failing to find an end product. Basel were now looking to keep the scoreline the way it is, even star winger Shaqiri was getting back to block Rooney's shot. The only half chance they had in the next ten minutes was from Phil Jones' cross, which was collected by Sommer. The Swiss side were doing their best to frustrate the Manchurians, even midfielder Granit Xhaka had a half-hearted attempted from 35 yards out, inevitably going wide. But their next attempt was certainly not wasted. Star player Shaqiri got the ball, took it down to the wing and whipped in with his left foot, the curling cross evaded all players except for Alex Frei who was lurking at the far post, and he dived in to head the ball past the hopeless De Gea; what a massive defensive calamity!

In the last five minutes, there was enough time for United to grab a consolation. Welbeck was free on the edge of the six yard box and hit a powerful shot which was well saved, the ball bounced out to Macheda, whose attempt hit the bar from a close distance and it was up to Phil Jones to head the ball over the line. The defence and goalkeeper really should have dealt with it better, but it done nothing to affect the eventual outcome of the game. Manchester United had been knocked out of the group stages for the first time in six years, and Basel go marching on for a chance to win the Champions League trophy. I would not like to be in the Red Devil dressing room right now...

United: De Gea; Smalling, Ferdinand, Vidic (Evans 40), Evra; Nani, Jones, Giggs, Park (Macheda 80), Young (Welbeck 63), Rooney.

Basle: Sommer; Park Joo Ho, Dragovic, Abraham, Steinhofer, Shaqiri, F Frei, Cabral, G Xhaka (Chipperfield 81), Streller, A Frei (Kusunga 86)

BeeTeeSports Man of the Match: Xherdan Shaqiri (8/10)

Who will win the Ballon D'or 2011?

FIFA today announced the shortlist for the Ballon D'or contenders (or for those of you who aren't very nifty with foreign lingo, it is basically the world footballer of the year - the golden ball). Only three candidates make the shortlist, and it was those usual suspects; Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Xavi. So, let's analyse which each candidate has done throughout the calendar year.

Cristiano Ronaldo:

Ronaldo has certainly started this season fantastically well, 17 goals in 14 appearances pretty much says it all (a ratio of 1.2 goals a game) with six assists along the way. Add to that four goals during the Champions’ League group stages, it certainly makes impressive reading. Throughout the year of 2011, he has scored seven goals for his home country and lead them to qualify for the Euro 2012 via the play offs, scoring twice during a 6-2 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina. He ended the season top scorer in La Liga, ahead of arch nemesis Lionel Messi, and also picked up his first piece of silverware with the Copa Del Rey trophy, in which he scored the winning goal against Messi's Barcelona side. Overall, Cristiano has had a marvellous year by the standards of anyone.

Lionel Messi:

The 5'7 Argentinian started the season in the same spectacular fashion as his Spanish challenger, scoring and assisting the exact amount of goals as Cristiano, but playing one game more. During the first cup game of the season (the Spanish Supercup final, the equivalent of the Community Shield) he scored three and assisted two in a 5-4 win against Real Madrid. He then went on to score back to back home hat tricks during the opening weeks of the season. In the first half of the season, he helped Barcelona win the Champions League, scoring and assisting in the final against Manchester United, which proved to be a comfortable victory in the end. Internationally, he has scored four times and assisted ten during the calendar year, in which he made 13 appearances for La Albiceleste.

Xavi:

As you can imagine, Xavi doesn't have the goal-scoring record to match his two rivals, but what he lacks in regular goals, he certainly makes up for in work-rate, passing and general dictating of the game. During 2011, he has helped Barcelona win the Champions League, La Liga, the UEFA Super Cup and the Spanish Supercup. In January, he became the most capped Barcelona player ever with his 549th appearance against Levente, while also winning his 100th cap for Spain two months later. For Spain, he has made ten appearances, scoring twice, and also eased the Spanish team to Euro 2012 qualification. Last season, he was vital to all of Barca's attacks, and made 1165 passes throughout the entire season, whilst this season, he has chipped in with five assists to help his team, as well as four goals.

However, my pick for the world's best footballer has to go to Lionel Messi. He edges ahead of due to his 2011 silverware and head to head statistics against the Spanish winger. The winner is set to be announced on January 9th 2012, it's going to be a close one!

What does the Euro 2012 draw mean for England?

So, the draw has been completed and all of the 16 finalists now know their upcoming fixtures and possible route to the final. The completed groups are as follows...:



GROUP A: Poland, Greece, Russia, Czech Republic

GROUP B: Holland, Denmark, Germany, Portugal

GROUP C: Spain, Italy, Ireland, Croatia

GROUP D: Ukraine, Sweden, France, England



As we can see, group B is certainly the infamous 'group of death' with any of the teams involved having a chance of qualifying (including Denmark, who overcame Portugal to top their qualifying group). Whilst group C and D certainly seem competitive in some aspects, group A is the weakest of the bunch (if you were to add up the world ranking positions of the four teams, it would be a massive 125, compared to just 22 in group B). But I imagine most of you are more interested about the chances of England in this tournament, so let's focus on their competitors...



UKRAINE:

As the second weakest side in the competition, Ukraine will certainly be up against it with the likes of Sweden, France and of course the English, but it would be foolish to rule them out straight away. The 55th ranked side in the world have enjoyed an unbeaten four-game run since October, including an entertaining 3-3 draw against WC semi-finalists Germany. They will also be playing most of their matches in their home country, which will provide them with the massive support they need to possibly emulate the achievements of Greece back in 2004 (when they were hosts). Participating in their second major tournament of the century, they may struggle due to the lack of experience at this level and due to the fact that they haven't faced the competitiveness of qualify, I predicted a bottom finish for the co-hosts.

SWEDEN:

Erik Hamren’s team are the ones to watch in this group in my opinion. The Swede's certainly gave Holland a run for their money during the qualifying campaign, finishing three points behind the Dutch and beating them 3-2 in the process. England should be wary of the threat from top scorer, Zlatan Ibrahimović, as well as the deadly midfield duo of Larsson and Källström, who scored six goals between them during the qualifying stages. With 21 goals in their last 9, including 5-0 wins over San Marino and Finland, the Scandinavians have proved that they are a goal scoring threat, but have lost the last two friendlies against fellow WC finalists Denmark and England. Nevertheless, I am backing the Swede's to grab the second position to progress to the quarters.


FRANCE:

The French certainly showed their very ugly side in their last major tournament, finishing bottom in the group stages with embarrassing scenes along the way (anyone remember that strike?). But the cheese-eating surrender monkeys have certainly turned over a new leaf since the appointment of former Manchester United defender Laurent Blanc as manager. They managed qualify automatically, although it was a bit of a struggle, finishing just one point ahead of the 23rd seeds Bosnia-Herzegovina. They also haven't been able to find the net as easily as they wanted. Les Bleus scored 15 goals during the qualifying stage, the second lowest total out of the group winners (only Greece [14] had scored less whilst finishing first). However, despite this, France has gone an extraordinary run of 17 games unbeaten, which is fairly impressive for a side that have a very minimal goal threat. I just don't see them qualifying from this group... zut alors!

You can probably guess by this analysis that I fully expect England to qualify from the group stages in first position, and possibly go on to the semis, but I'll post my thoughts closer to the time so that I don't tempt fate...