14/01/04 - About a Ball Awards 2003

The Christmas holiday and New Year period always heralds the arrival of a plethora of predictable football awards ceremonies where undeserving superstars get worthless titles. However, there is one award that stands out from the others and is respected by the players, the media, the fans, and distinguished world leaders alike - the 'About a Ball Awards'.

Our tradition of getting it right where others have failed makes our title the most sought after award in world football. The prestige of winning an About a Ball Award is indescribable - it's the Nobel Prize of football. This year, once again, our award winners have been exceptional in their field, achieving consistent excellence and can consider themselves the outstanding performers of 2003.

In a year with no major international tournaments it is always hard for players to catch the eye and make their case for the overall award, and this year it was a very close contest between three people: Juventus midfielder Pavel Nedved, Arsenal striker Thierry Henry, and Lyon midfielder Juninho. The latter has been in inspirational form and led Lyon to a second successive championship before carrying them through the first stage of the Champions League. His consistency, all-round ability and spectacular free-kicks really caught the eye and who could forget his strike against Bayern at the Olympiastadion? Thierry Henry has had another fine season, but was ultimately disappointed as Arsenal lost out on the championship, with only the FA cup as consolation. He performed well in the Confederations Cup, and scored the winner in an emotional final against Cameroon, but lacked a certain je ne sais quoi, which means that Pavel Nedved is the About a Ball World Player of the Year for 2003.

The Czech captain won Serie A with his club and took them all the way to the Champions League Final, which he unfortunately had to sit out through suspension. Juventus lost on penalties, but they were there thanks to Nedved, who scored the winner in the semi-final versus Real Madrid. His international performances were also exceptional and he led the Czech Republic to top a difficult European Championship Qualifying Group.

Our coach of the year is something of a surprise - someone who was overlooked for most of the other awards, but is thoroughly deserving of this one. Alexander Starkovs led Skonto Riga to a record thirteenth successive league title but he will always remember 2003 for his astonishing achievements in is other role as manager of the Latvian national team. He took the tiny Baltic nation to their first ever major tournament by beating Turkey in a two-legged play-off to qualify for next years European Championships in Portugal. Latvia finished runners-up to Sweden in the group stage and the beat the Turks 1-0 at home before coming from two down to draw away.

Team of the year was a close decision between Latvia, Argentine champions and World Club Cup winners Boca Juniors, and FC Porto, but it goes to the Portuguese for their fantastic treble. Coach Jose Mourinho was unlucky to miss out on the coaches award, but his team certainly did him proud, winning the Portuguese title, beating Uniao Leiria 1-0 in the cup final and capping it all by beating Celtic 3-2 after extra time in a fantastic UEFA Cup final in Sevilla.

Young Player of the Year for 2003 was another tough decision and few players really stood out but who could be more deserving than River Plate's Fernando Cavenaghi? The striker only turned twenty last September but has shown maturity beyond his years and topped the Argentinian scoring charts for much of the season before going off to star in the FIFA World Youth Championship where he scored four times before Argentina went out in the semi finals to eventual winners Brazil.

The Old Player of the Year Award was the most straightforward of all. There was only one real contender - the peerless Paolo Maldini. AC Milan's veteran defender has lost none of his class and was approaching his 35th birthday when he captained his club to victory in the Champions League final. He's showing no sign of slowing down this season, having helped Milan to mount another title challenge.

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