Barcelona Won UEFA Champions Legue

Manchester United discovered what it is like to lose a European Cup final as brilliant Barcelona ruled Rome on Wednesday, securing a comfortable 2-0 win.

If there is any consolation in failure to become the first side to retain the trophy in the Champions League era, it is that they lost to a side as fluent and brilliant to watch as they are.

Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi scored the goals either side of half-time but to single those two out for special praise would be unfair on their team-mates, and particularly Xavi, who was simply awesome.

For once Cristiano Ronaldo could provide no magic of his own, instead getting increasingly frustrated as defeat loomed.

Shakhtar Donetsk Won UEFA Cup

Shakhtar Donetsk became the last winners of the UEFA Cup by defeating Werder Bremen 2-1 in the final in Istanbul last night.

Mircea Lucescu's team also became the first Ukrainian side to win a European trophy thanks to Jadson's winner in extra-time.

The final - the last to be played before the competition is rebranded as the Europa League next season - finished all square on 90 minutes after Naldo had equalised Luiz Adriano's opener.

Jadson made it a trio of Brazilian scorers when his weak effort trickled past Werder goalkeeper Tim Wiese in the 97th minute to give Shakhtar the trophy.

North Queensland Fury cancelled its tour to Sabah

Fans of former Liverpool great, Robbie Fowler here will be disappointed after Fowler’s Australian club, North Queensland Fury cancelled its tour to Sabah that was initially scheduled at the end of May.

The club’s chairman, Don Matheson in a letter to the organiser of the tour here, Borneo Sports and Adventure, said the decision follows the cancellation of next month’s Intercontinental Cup U23 tournament due to the threat of swine flu in Malaysia.

He said the club had no choice but to follow the example set by FAM and the Malaysia’s Health Ministry.

“The team is heading into its debut Hyundai A-League season and this decision is about the long term well-being of the players. I was in Kota Kinabalu in 2008 and it is a beautiful place with great sporting facilities.

“I sincerely hope that arrangements can be made for our marquee player, Robbie Fowler and our team to make it to Sabah in 2010. I want to sincerely apologise to all local fans and we wish Sabah all the best in their remaining games for the 2009 season” said Matheson.

Meanwhile, touching on the cancellation, Borneo Sports and Adventure’s MD, Scott Ollerenshaw said “We are obviously disappointed to make this announcement, however the worldwide flu virus is simply out of our control.”

“An enormous amount of work has been carried out behind the scenes to make this tour possible and no one is more despondent that myself with this announcement” he said while thanking all the parties for their assistance.

He said that those who have bought tickets will be refunded and remineded those who have purchased the tickets to produce them at the same venue where they purchased the tickets.

He said those who would like more information can contact Ferdah at 088-249002.

Meanwhile, Ollerenshaw said that they were in negotiations to bring an English Premier League team to Sabah next year but did not disclose any further details.

He also said that the Borneo Football Cup has so far seen 10 junior teams from Australia confirming their participation in the tournament, adding that this was almost a 400 per cent increase compared to last year.

“This is a testament to our belief that sports tourism in Sabah will grow from strength to strength over the next few years” he added.

Manchester United v Barcelona - Champions League Final Preview

The 2009 European Champions League final will be played between Manchester United and Barcelona in Rome.

Barcelona won in a dramatic fashion, beating Chelsea in away goal rules to capture that elusive second final spot.

Meanwhile, Manchester United progressed in a comprehensive fashion, beating Arsenal in their away match 3-1 to capture the first final spot. Park Ji-sung gave the lead in early minutes and Cristiano Ronaldo was spot on target with his two second-half goals.

While United is trying to hold on to the title it won in Moscow last year, Barcelona is chasing its third title and hoping to end the English Premier League's recent dominance in European soccer's most prestigious competition.

This champions League final promise to be an interesting match as both teams had secured the domestic leagues trophy. It is a meeting of perhaps the two most entertaining clubs in Europe, both of them with big-name forwards who enjoy taking opponents apart with their imaginative interpassing.

United manager Sir Alex Ferguson will have his three main strikers - Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and Carlos Tevez with Cristiano Ronaldo also attacking from the wings.

Guardiola usually sends his trio of strikers - Lionel Messi, Thierry Henry and Samuel Eto'o out together, and they have rewarded him with a combined 69 league goals out of a total of 100.

Both teams will be without some key players in the final through suspension and injury.

Defender Eric Abidal was sent off against Chelsea on Wednesday and will be suspended for the final, as will Daniel Alves, who picked up a second yellow card in the competition. Also missing for Barca will be center half Rafael Márquez. But Guardiola will have Carles Puyol back after serving a ban.

United midfielder Darren Fletcher will get that experience this time, after being harshly sent off for bringing down Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas in the semifinal second leg.

The final of the Champions League will be played in Rome on May 27th.

10 Facts About Wayne Rooney

Full Name : Wayne Mark Rooney

Birthday : 24th October 1985

Place of Birth : Croxteth, Liverpool, England

Position : Striker

Wayne Rooney is an amazing forward, however, he is sometimes criticized for his bad temper and him swearing a lot in matches.

Facts

1. Manchester United just signed Wayne Rooney before the summer transfer window was closed. When Manchester United signed him, he was 18 and Manchester United gave him an great contract with great clauses

2. Wayne Rooney burst onto the Old Trafford stage in September 2004, netting an unforgettable hat-trick against Fenerbahce on his debut

3. Wayne was only sixteen years old when he first played for Everton againts Tottenham Hotspur at Goodison Park

4. Rooney became the youngest player to play for England when he earned his first cap in a friendly against Australia on 12 February 2003 at seventeen, the same age in which he also became the youngest player to score an England goal. Arsenal youngster Theo Walcott broke Rooney's appearance record by 36 days in June 2006

5. Rooney met his wife, Coleen Rooney (née McLoughlin), while both were in their final year of secondary school. They married on 12 June 2008 after six years of dating

6. Wayne clocks up 9.70 m/s. And that’s not too far off the pace of a sprinter like Maurice Greene who weighs in at just over 10 m/s

7. Rooney has signed lucrative contracts with Nike, Nokia, Ford, Asda and Coca Cola. His marketing value is estimated at €46 million, making him the third-highest rated football player behind Ronaldinho and David Beckham. As a side note, he is featured on 500 million Coca-Cola cans

8. Rooney’s childhood football hero is former England and Newcastle United striker Alan Shearer

9. Rooney has a cross tattoo on his upper right arm and a Coleen tattoo on his left

10. During a football match, on average Wayne walks for 4,000m, jogs for 4,800m, runs for 1500m, light sprinting for 1000m and 500m sprinting

"I love playing football but I think I am like everyone else, I hate losing and love winning. And if the time comes when I am not disappointed when things are definitely not going right, then that's when people should worry"

FC Barcelona La Liga Champion 2008-09

Barcelona was crowned Spanish champion for the 19th time on Saturday as holder Real Madrid gifted the title to its bitter rival after a 3-2 defeat at Villarreal. It was Barcelona’s second trophy inside four days, following its Kings Cup win over Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday, as it notched a league and cup double for the first time since 1998.

Manchester United EPL Champions 2008-09

Manchester United was crowned Champions of England for 3rd time in succession. Its 18 title overall, no 11 for Ryan Giggs and Sir Alex Ferguson

Robbie Fowler to Play against Sabah

Borneo Sports and Adventure Holidays is delighted to announce that Liverpool FC legend Robbie Fowler and his new team, the North Queensland Fury from Australia are coming to Kota Kinabalu to play against a Sabah Selection team.

There will be a Corporate Dinner at Pacific Sutera Grand Ballroom on the 26th May and the match will take place at the Likas Stadium on the 27th May. I would also like to sincerely thank both the Sabah Sports Ministry and Sabah Football Association for endorsing this event.

All fans of the English Premier League will be aware of Robbie Fowler’s legendary status with the world-famous Liverpool Football Club where he played over 250 games and scored 128 goals. Fowler also won 26 England caps, scoring 7 goals.

In order to make the game more attractive and competitive for the local fans, we have also decided to strengthen the local Sabah state team with the following players:

• Indra Putra Mahyuddin - Kelantan and Malaysian National Team
• Mohd Nor Farhan - Kelantan & Malaysian National Team
• Robbie Gaspar - Australian Foreigner and ex-Rhinos star
• T. A. Musafry - Indonesian National Team Striker

This is a fantastic opportunity for local football fans to see a truly world-class striker play live in KK, in what promises to be a fantastic night of quality football.

Furthermore, special half time entertainment will be provided for the fans with a unique penalty shoot out between former Rhinos coach and current Kelantan coach Peter Butler and former Rhinos foreigner Scott Ollerenshaw.

In order to make the game affordable and accessible for football fans throughout the state, tickets for this game will be sold at:

• Outer ground - RM10
• Grandstand Area - RM20

There will be no tickets sold at the stadium on match day. All tickets will be pre-sold at the following establishments starting Monday the 4th of May:

• All Coffee Bean outlets
• Penampang Futsal
• KK Futsal Arena
• Most schools within KK at the front desk
  

PLEASE NOTE -5% OF THE GATE AND RM100 FROM EVERY CORPORATE TABLE SOLD WILL BE DONATED TO CHARITY.

NORTH QUEENSLAND FURY INFO

North Queensland Fury is a professional Australian team based in Townsville in Queensland. They will be making their debut in the Australian A-League for the 2009 season. Apart from Robbie Fowler, their other high profile staffs include:

1. Ian Ferguson played other 300 games for Scottish giants Glasgow Rangers where he won an amazing 10 Scottish League titles. Ferguson is the coach of North Queensland Fury who will also be speaking at the Corporate Dinner

2. Felipe is a quality foreign player from Brazil

3. Ufuk Talay is a former Australian Olympic player who is returning from a stint in Japan

4. Jacob Timbano is a former Young Socceroo

Man Utd Asia Tour 2009

Kuala Lumpur will be United's first stop on this summer's four-match pre-season tour of Asia.

At a press conference on Tuesday it was confirmed the world champions will play a Malaysia XI at the picturesque Bukit Jalil Stadium on 18 July.

It's eight years since the Reds last visited Malaysia, when 100,000 fans watched a Malaysian All-Stars team lose 6-0 to a strong United line-up. And official tour promoters ProEvents are expecting similarly fervent support this year.

“We are excited to work with the club again, and to bring to Asia one of the most exciting and biggest football clubs in the world", said San Boon Wah, managing director of ProEvents International.

“The club is popular throughout the world and especially so in Asia, where it has a wide fan base. I am sure many football fans, both local and from the region, are thrilled by this opportunity to see the champions in action".

Chief executive David Gill added:

“Our relationship with fans in Malaysia is already well established, with local young people having the chance to learn to play the game the Manchester United way with MU Soccer Schools"

Lionel Messi The Wonderboy

Full Name : Lionel Andres Messi

Birthday : 24th June 1987

Place of Birth : Rosario, Santa Fe, Argentina

Position : Striker/Right Winger

1. He started playing football when he was just five years old at a club which was coached by his father

2. At the age of 11, Leo stop playing football because he have disease called hormone deficiency which disturbing his growth

3. Lionel Messi joined Barcelona in 2000 at the age of 13. Initially playing for the Under 14s, Messi moved up the ranks through the club’s Youth, C and B teams before joining the first team squad in record time

4. In 2003 he debuted for Barcelona in an unofficial game against FC Porto and after one year he debuted officially on Nou Camp against RCD Espaniol and became the third-youngest player ever to play for FC Barcelona and youngest club player who played in La Liga (record broken by Bojan Krkić in September 2007)

5. At 18 Messi played for Argentina in the Under 20 World Cup and won the title. He was also voted best player of the tournament and was its leading goal scorer

6. Argentinean great Maradona has named Messi as his natural successor

7. The Spanish press have nicknamed him ‘Messidona’

8. When he came on to the pitch against Serbia and Montenegro in the 2006 World Cup, Messi became the youngest player to play for Argentina in a World Cup tournament. His goal in this match made him the youngest scorer of this World Cup and the sixth youngest scorer in the history of the tournament

9. The season 2005/2006, the Italian newspaper Tuttosport awarded him the Golden Boy 2005 title for the best under-21 player in Europe

10. Messi’s nickname with the Barcelona fans is Leo