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Petr Čech

Petr Čech; born 20 May 1982, is a Czech footballer who plays for Chelsea and the Czech Republic as a goalkeeper. Čech previously played for Chmel Blšany, Sparta Prague, and Rennes. He was voted into the all-star team of Euro 2004 after helping his country reach the semi-finals. Čech also received the individual award of Best Goalkeeper in the 2004–05, 2006–07 and 2007–08 seasons of the UEFA Champions League. In addition, he was named in the FIFPro and UEFA Champions League teams of the season in 2006.

Čech holds a number of goalkeeping records, including the Premier League record for fewest appearances required to reach 100 clean sheets, having done so in 180 league appearances. He also holds a Czech professional league record of not conceding a goal in 903 competitive minutes. In addition, he has a club record at his former club Sparta Prague, having gone 928 minutes unbeaten in all competitions in 2001–02, when his unbeaten run in Czech league competition was combined with his performances in the UEFA Champions League. During the 2004–05 season, Čech went 1,025 minutes without conceding a goal – a Premier League record, until it was surpassed by Edwin van der Sar of Manchester United on 27 January 2009. Čech also won the Golden Glove in both the 2004–05 and 2009–10 seasons. As of 12 January 2013, Čech has kept 137 clean sheets for Chelsea level with David Seaman's record at a single Premier League club.

 Klaas-Jan Huntelaar

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar; born 12 August 1983, nicknamed The Hunter, is a Dutch footballer who plays as a striker for Schalke 04 and the Dutch national football team. Huntelaar is a prolific striker with brilliant technique and athleticism and has been compared in style to players such as Marco van Basten and Ruud van Nistelrooy. Current Netherlands and former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager Louis van Gaal has been quoted saying about the player "in the penalty area, he is the best player in the world, bar none."

Named Dutch Football Talent of the Year and Ajax "Player of the Year" in 2006, Huntelaar was a part of the Dutch side that won the 2006 UEFA U-21 Championship where he became the tournament's leading goalscorer. He was also named as one of two strikers in the UEFA Team of the Tournament. He is the all-time top scorer of the Netherlands U-21 national team with 18 goals in 22 appearances. In domestic competition he finished top scorer in the Eredivisie 2005–06 and 2007–08 seasons. Huntelaar played previously for PSV, De Graafschap, AGOVV Apeldoorn, Heerenveen, Ajax, Real Madrid, and Milan, before joining Schalke in August 2010, for whom he won top-goalscorer in the 2011–12 Fußball-Bundesliga with 29 league goals.

 Nenê 

Anderson Luiz de Carvalho, aka Nenê (born 19 July 1981 in Jundiaí, São Paulo), is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays for Al-Gharafa Sports Club in Qatar Stars League. A left winger, he is most known for his crossing ability, as well as being a free kick specialist.

Nicolas Anelka

Nicolas Sébastien Anelka, born 14 March 1979, is a French footballer who plays for Juventus. Anelka was also a regular starter for the French national team. Former Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti has described him as a quick player with good aerial ability, technique, shooting, and movement off the ball. Anelka began his career at Paris Saint-Germain, but soon moved to Arsenal. He became a first team regular and won the PFA Young Player of the Year Award the following season. Real Madrid signed him for £22.3 million in 1999, a record fee at the time, but he did not settle in well and returned to Paris Saint-Germain in a £20 million deal. Despite regular first team football in Paris, Anelka set his eyes upon the Premier League once more; he went on loan to Liverpool in January 2002 but joined Manchester City for £13 million at the start of the 2002–03 season.

After three seasons in Manchester, he moved to Fenerbahçe for two seasons before returning to England to join Bolton Wanderers – in deals worth £7 million and £8 million, respectively. He transferred to Chelsea from Bolton for a reported £15 million in January 2008. During his transfers over the years, he has built an aggregate transfer cost of just under £90 million. On 12 December 2011, Shanghai Shenhua announced that they had reached an agreement with Anelka to join the team when the winter transfer window opens. After one season there, Anelka joined Italian side Juventus in 2013.

Anelka has played many times at international level and won his first international honours with France at Euro 2000, and won the Confederations Cup the following year. His failure to settle at club level limited his international appearances, but he returned to the national team for the Euro 2008 competition. On 19 June 2010, Anelka was excluded by the French Football Federation from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa for "comments directed against the national coach, Raymond Domenech, unacceptable to the FFF, French football, and the principles they uphold." Two months later, having failed to turn up to his disciplinary hearing, he was banned for France's next eighteen games by the FFF, effectively ending his international career.

Michael Ballack

Michael Ballack (born 26 September 1976) is a retired German footballer. He is among the top goal scorers in the history of his international team. Ballack has worn the number 13 shirt for every team he has played for except for Kaiserslautern. He was selected by Pelé as one of FIFA's 100 Greatest Living Players, and as the UEFA Club Midfielder of the Year in 2002. He has won the German Footballer of the Year award three times – in 2002, 2003 and 2005. Ballack was known for his passing range, scoring ability, ball skills, and commanding presence in the midfield.

Ballack began his career as a youth at Chemnitz, his local team, and made his professional debut in 1995. Although the team were relegated in his first season, his performances in the Regionalliga the following season led to a transfer to Kaiserslautern in 1997. He won the Bundesliga in his first season at the club; his first major honour. He became a first team regular in 1998–99 season and also earned his first senior national cap for Germany. He moved to Bayer Leverkusen for €4.1 million in 1999. The 2001–02 season saw him win a slew of runners-up medals: Bayer Leverkusen finished second in the Bundesliga, German Cup, UEFA Champions League and Germany lost to Brazil in the 2002 World Cup Final.

A €12.9 million move to Bayern Munich led to further honours: the team won the Bundesliga and German Cup double in 2003, 2005 and 2006. Ballack had become a prolific goalscorer from midfield, scoring 58 goals for Bayern Munich between 2002 and 2006. He joined Premier League club Chelsea in mid-2006 and won his first English honours, the FA Cup and League Cup, in his first season at the club. Injury ruled out much of 2007 but he returned the following season, helping Chelsea reach their first ever Champions League final. He also went on to win the FA Cup again in 2009 and then once more as part of a league and cup double in 2010.

Internationally, Ballack has played in the UEFA European Football Championship in 2000, 2004 and 2008, and the FIFA World Cup in 2002 and 2006. Jürgen Klinsmann appointed him captain of the national team in 2004. Ballack scored consecutive game-winning goals in the quarter-final and semi-final to help his country to the 2002 World Cup final, and led his team to the semi-finals of the 2006 World Cup and the Euro 2008 final.

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