The most notable 2007–08 FC Bayern Munich season additions were the man Zinedine Zidane called "the jewel of French football" and who else?
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2007–08 FC Bayern Munich season Prior to the beginning of the 2007–08 season, Bayern Munich underwent a major restructuring of the team, releasing or retiring nine players while adding ten others to the squad, most notably Luca Toni and Franck Ribéry. The season started with Bayern winning the DFB-Ligapokal, followed by a shootout win in the DFB-Pokal against Wacker Burghausen on 6 August 2007. On the first day of the 2007–08 Bundesliga season, Bayern achieved a 3–0 victory over Hansa Rostock. As the season progressed, Bayern continued in first in the league table, eventually winning the championship. Bayern also won the 2007–08 DFB-Pokal, thereby completing the double. International success was thwarted by Zenit Saint Petersburg, however, when Bayern suffered a 4–0 defeat in the second leg of the semi-final after a draw at home. The 2007–08 season was goalkeeper Oliver Kahn's last season with Bayern.
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Franck Ribéry Franck Henry Pierre Ribéry (] ; born 7 April 1983) is a French professional footballer who plays for German club Bayern Munich. He is a former France national team player. He primarily plays as a winger, preferably on the left side although being right-footed, and is known for pace, energy, skill and precise passing. Ribéry is described as a player who is fast, tricky and an excellent dribbler, who has great control with the ball at his feet. Since joining Bayern, he has been recognised on the world stage as one of the best French players of his generation. The previous talisman of the French national team, Zinedine Zidane, has called Ribéry the "jewel of French football".
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Gérard Houllier Gérard Houllier, OBE (] ; born 3 September 1947) is a French football manager and former player. His past clubs include Paris Saint-Germain, Lens and Liverpool, with whom he won the FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup in 2001. He then guided Olympique Lyonnais to two French titles, before announcing his resignation on 25 May 2007. He became manager of Aston Villa in September 2010. He also coached the France national team between 1992 and 1993. He assisted Aimé Jacquet in the FIFA World Cup 1998, was part of UEFA's and FIFA's Technical Committee in the 2002 and 2006 World Cup finals, and technical director for the French Football Federation during the 2010 finals. In June 2011, he stepped down from club coaching, leaving his managerial role at Aston Villa, following frequent hospitalisation over heart problems.
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Maximiliano Moralez Maximiliano Nicolás "Maxi" Moralez (born 27 February 1987) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Major League Soccer club New York City FC. He is nicknamed "frasquito" (English: little flask).
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Antoine Raab Antoine Raab (born Anton Raab; 16 July 1913 – 12 December 2006) was a German football player and manager. Raab spent most of his career in France after having escaped Nazi Germany, being prosecuted and incarcerated for refusing to give the Nazi salute at a football game.
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2008–09 UEFA Champions League The 2008–09 UEFA Champions League was the 54th edition of Europe's premier club football tournament and the 17th edition under the current UEFA Champions League format. The final was played at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on 27 May 2009. It was the eighth time the European Cup final has been held in Italy and the fourth time it has been held at the Stadio Olimpico. The final was contested by the defending champions, Manchester United, and Barcelona, who had last won the tournament in 2006. Barcelona won the match 2–0, with goals from Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi, securing The Treble in the process. In addition, both UEFA Cup finalists, Werder Bremen and Shakhtar Donetsk featured in the Champions League group stage.
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Choc des Olympiques The Choc des Olympiques ("Clash of the Olympics") is the name of the football local derby between two major teams in French football with "Olympique" in its names – Olympique Lyonnais and Olympique de Marseille. The French major football broadcaster Canal+ calls this game "Olympico" referring also to El Clásico. It specifically refers to individual matches between the teams. Unlike Le Classique, the rivalry has no bad blood within it and, instead, stems from the competitiveness of the each club's players, managers, supporters, and presidential hierarchy. The rivalry is often cited as being particularly important as both clubs are of high standard in French football and the championship is regularly decided between the two. Marseille and Lyon (along with Saint-Étienne and Paris Saint-Germain F.C.) are the only French clubs to have won the French first division four straight times with Marseille doing it on two occasions.
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Zidane (name) Zidane most commonly refers to Zinedine Zidane (born 1972), a French footballer and manager.
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Kurt Zouma Kurt Happy Zouma (born 27 October 1994) is a French professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Stoke City, on loan from fellow Premier League club Chelsea, and the France national team.
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Enzo Fernández Enzo Alan Zidane Fernández (born 24 March 1995), simply known as Enzo, is a French footballer who plays for Spanish club Deportivo Alavés as a midfielder.
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2014–15 FC Barcelona season The 2014–15 season was Futbol Club Barcelona's 115th in existence and the club's 84th consecutive season in the top flight of Spanish football. It was one of the most successful seasons in the club's history as they clinched the Treble by winning La Liga, Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League. By doing so, the Catalans became the first European team to twice win the domestic double as well as the highest continental tournament, after winning their first treble in the 2008–09 season. Barcelona's success was due to a large extent to their formidable forward trio composed of Lionel Messi, Neymar and summer signing Luis Suárez, who scored an unprecedented total of 122 goals in all competitions to become the trio with most goals in Spanish football history.
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2007–08 Liverpool F.C. season The 2007–08 season was the 116th season in Liverpool Football Club's existence, and their 45th consecutive year in the top flight, which covers the period from 1 July 2007 to 30 June 2008.
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Marc Degryse Marc Gabriel Degryse (born 4 September 1965), nicknamed "Le Lutin d'Ardooie" ("The Imp of Ardooie") and "The Little One", is a Belgian retired footballer who played as a forward.
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Maxi Rodríguez Maximiliano Rubén "Maxi" Rodríguez (] ; born 2 January 1981) is an Argentine footballer who plays for Uruguayan club Peñarol. Nicknamed "La Fiera" (Beast in English), he is commonly used as a winger on both flanks but can also operate as an attacking midfielder.
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2007–08 Premier League The 2007–08 Premier League (known as the Barclays Premier League for sponsorship reasons) season was the 16th since its establishment. The first matches of the season were played on 11 August 2007, and the season ended on 11 May 2008. Manchester United went into the 2007–08 season as the Premier League's defending champions, having won their ninth Premier League title and sixteenth league championship overall the previous season. This season was also the third consecutive season to see the "Big Four" continue their stranglehold on the top four spots and places in the UEFA Champions League.
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Olivier Bernard Olivier Bernard (born 14 October 1979) is a French former footballer. He announced his retirement after leaving Newcastle United on 16 May 2007. He is currently the owner and CEO of Durham City.
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2008–09 FC Barcelona season In 2008–09, Futbol Club Barcelona started a new era with a new manager, former player and Barcelona Atlètic coach Pep Guardiola, who led the team to the first treble in Spanish football history. After selling off high-profiled players such as Deco and Ronaldinho, Barcelona played scintillating football throughout the season, winning the Copa del Rey, La Liga and the UEFA Champions League. This Barcelona squad is considered as one of the best in history.
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Ballon d'Or 2005 The 2005 Ballon d'Or, given to the best football player in Europe as judged by a panel of sports journalists from UEFA member countries, was delivered to the Brazilian midfielder Ronaldinho on 28 November 2005. On 24 October 2005, was announced the shortlist of 50 male players compiled by a group of experts from "France Football". There were 52 voters, from Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Scotland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, Wales and Yugoslavia. Each picked a first (5pts), second (4pts), third (3pts), fourth (2pts) and fifth choice (1pt).
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2013 UEFA Super Cup The 2013 UEFA Super Cup was the 38th UEFA Super Cup, an annual football match organised by UEFA and contested by the reigning champions of the two main European club competitions, the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League. The match featured Bayern Munich, the winners of the 2012–13 UEFA Champions League, and Chelsea, the winners of the 2012–13 UEFA Europa League. It was played at the Eden Arena in Prague, Czech Republic, on 30 August 2013, and was the first to be held away from the Stade Louis II in Monaco since it became a one-legged match in 1998.
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Rafael Benítez Rafael Benítez Maudes (] ; born 16 April 1960) is a Spanish professional football coach who is the manager of Premier League club Newcastle United. He is the only manager in history to have won the UEFA Europa League, UEFA Super Cup, UEFA Champions League and the FIFA Club World Cup.
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Willy Sagnol Willy Sagnol (born 18 March 1977) is a former French international footballer who played as a defender and current manager of Bayern Munich. He spent much of his professional career playing for Bayern Munich in Germany's Bundesliga. He was also part of the French squad at the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship, 2002 World Cup, Euro 2004, 2006 World Cup and Euro 2008.
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Julien Cools Julien Cools (born 13 February 1947) was a Belgian football player who won the Belgian Golden Shoe in 1977 while at Club Brugge. Discovered as a junior at SK Retie Branddonk of Antwerp and made his name with Beringen FC. Signed by FC Bruges in 1973 where his reputation for non-stop running in the midfield made him an international regular. Helped FC Bruges to the Belgian league titles in 1975-76,76-77 and 77-78 plus the Belgian Cup in 1977. In Europe Cools was a runner-up in the 1976 U.E.F.A.Cup Final and 1978 European Cup Final, Bruges losing both finals to Liverpool. Rated by World Soccer Magazine as Bruges` best player in that 1978 Final.