Messi Akan Pamerkan Ballon d’Or Saat Barcelona vs Malaga

Lionel Messi akan menunjukan Ballon d’Or keempatnya pada pertengahan pekan ini di Camp Nou. Trofi bergengsi itu akan ‘dipamerkan’ menjelang kick-off laga Barcelona melawan Malaga di leg pertama Copa del Rey 2013. Sebuah momen istimewa yang tidak mungkin dilewatkan fans begitu saja.

Sejatinya, ada peluang bagi King Leo untuk melakukan hal ini, pada laga melawan Cordoba, ketika Barca menang besar 5-0. Namun, Messi memutuskan untuk menunda ‘perayaan’ atas penghargaan Ballon d’Or itu, hingga pertengahan pekan ini. Lagipula seminggu lalu, Si Nomor 10 Barcelona hanya duduk di bangku cadangan.
Momen spesial pameran Ballon d’Or di depan puluhan ribu pendukung Barcelona di Camp Nou ini, sudah dirancang sedemikian rupa oleh klub. Seperti dilansir oleh AS, Barca ingin sang bintang memperoleh dukungan penuh dari fans ketika menunjukkan trofi tersebut.
Maka, harga tiket termurah di pertandingan Barcelona vs Malaga, hanya sebesar 9 Euro saja. Sementara itu, untuk para member, akan ada potongan harga tiket sebesar 50%. Sorotan media dan aplaus dari fans adalah sesuatu yang jelas akan terlihat dalam momen spesial ini.
Dua tahun lalu, Messi memamerkan Ballon d’Ornya bersama duo Andres Iniesta dan Xavi Hernandez. Keduanya ketika itu menjadi nominator pula di samping sang pemenang, King Leo. Sebuah momen bersejarah karena tiga pemain Barcelona, menjadi tiga nominator peraih Ballon d’Or; dan Messi berbagi kebahagiaaan memenangi gelar pemain terbaik dunia, bersama kedua rekannya tersebut.

Pertandingan Barcelona melawan Malaga sendiri, menjadi partai unik. Dalam waktu singkat, kedua tim bertemu tiga kali. Akhir pekan lalu, skuad Tito Vilanova menghajar kubu La Rosaleda 1-3 di Liga Spanyol. Dan pertengahan pekan ini serta pertengahan pekan depan, kedua tim bersua lagi di Copa del Rey 2013.

Gelandang serang Borussia Dortmund, Marco Reus, menyanjung bintang Barcelona, Lionel Messi, yang tampil dalam level tinggi secara konsisten.

"Messi adalah teladan yang baik. Ia selalu tampil baik dan mencetak gol di Liga BBVA secara reguler," puji Reus yang disitir Kicker, Senin (14/1/2013).

"Kita harus melakukan hal yang sama, yang bagaimanapun, kami tak bisa melakukannya setiap pekan. Kita bukan mesin dan karenanya, kita kadang berbuat salah," cetus lelaki berusia 23 tahun itu.

Apa yang dikatakan Reus merupakan cerminan penampilan Dortmund saat ini. Juara Bundesliga dua musim beruntun itu kini tercecer 12 poin di belakang Bayern Muenchen yang memimpin di puncak.

"Kami semua paham, kami tak menampilkan permainan terbaik pada paruh musim pertama. Tetapi, mengeluh dan menyamaratakan masalah bukan hal yang layak dilakukan untuk mengatasi situasi ini," tutur mantan pemain Borussia Moenchengladbach itu.

Dortmund akan berhadapan dengan Shakhtar Donetsk di babak 16 besar Liga Champions. Reus pun waspada dengan ancaman raksasa dari Ukraina itu. Namun, ia yakin Donetsk akan memprioritaskan melawan tim selain Dortmund, kalau bisa memilih.

"Di sana temperaturnya mencapai minus 20 derajat (Fahrenheit atau sekitar minus 6 derajat Celsius), bukan? Tentu saja mereka tim kuat. Di lain pihak, mereka mungkin berharap melawan tim selain Dortmund lain kali," papar Reus.

"Tim kami memang sangat disegani (di seantero Eropa)," tandasnya.

Sabtu (19/1/2013), Dortmund akan kembali berlaga di Bundesliga dengan meladeni perlawanan tuan rumah Werder Bremen.

Thiago Mengubah Hidup Messi

Apakah yang paling berarti bagi Lionel Messi di sepanjang 2012? Bukan catatan rekor mencetak 91 gol dalam setahun dan meraih penghargaan Ballon d'Or yang keempat kalinya berturut-turut ternyata. Alih-alih, kata pemain yang dijuluki "si Kutu" ini, yang paling berarti justru adalah kehadiran anaknya, Thiago.

Thiago, yang lahir pada 2 November 2012 dari rahim sang kekasih, Antonella, diakuinya membawa perubahan yang sangat mendasar. "Hidup saya berubah sejak Thiago hadir di dunia ini. Saya bukan pria yang dulu lagi. Ketika Anda punya anak, Anda tidak berpikir dengan cara yang sama lagi," ujar Messi seperti dikutip Tribunnews.com dari Daily Mail.

Sejak Thiago hadir, Messi pun harus melakukan beberapa adaptasi. Ia tak jarang harus begadang untuk merawat buah hatinya itu. "Saya sering bangun di tengah malam dan melihat Antonella sedang memberikan ASI (air susu ibu, Red) kepada Thiago. Saya juga sering memberi Thiago minum lewat botol. Saya hanya seorang ayah yang mencintai anaknya," kata Messi.

Pemain yang baru meraih gelar Ballon d;Or keempatnya ini mengaku bahwa anaknya memiliki banyak kemiripan dengan dirinya. Thiago disebutnya tak bermasalah dan lebih banyak tidur. Sang anak juga pendiam, sama seperti ayahnya.

Ketika Thiago lahir, Messi tidak lupa memamerkan kostum Barcelona berukuran kecil lengkap dengan nama Thiago dan nomor 10, yang merupakan nomor punggung Messi di Barca.

Child labor

Chip-enabled ball

The Chip-enabled association football ball is a football which was invented by Adidas, the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated circuits in Erlangen and the company Cairos Technologies. The ball contains an integrated ASIC-Chip and a transmitter for the transfer of data.^[13] The chip is suspended in the middle of the association football ball and sends a signal to a receiver at the referee's wrist once the ball passed the outer goal-line.
The first tests were performed in Nuremberg. The stadium is equipped with twelve antennas in light masts and other locations distributed around the arena which collect data that is transmitted from the chip. The antennas are connected to a fiber optic cable which routes the data to servers in order to analyze them. The system was first used during the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Peru.
About 80% of association footballs are made in Pakistan. 75% of these (60% of all world production)^[14] are made in the city of Sialkot. Child labor was commonly used in the production of the balls. In 1996, during the European championship, activists lobbied to end the use of child labor. This eventually led to the Atlanta Agreement, which seeks to reform the industry to eliminate the use of child labor in the production of balls.^[15] This also led to a centralization of production, which on the one hand would make it easier for the Independent Monitoring Association for Child Labour (IMAC)^[16]—an organization created to watch over the Atlanta Agreement—to make sure no child labor occurred, on the other hand often forced workers to commute further to get to work. According to the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the problem of eliminating the use of child labor is extremel

Construction

A classic truncated icosahedron association football ball

Glass association football trophy

A truncated icosahedron (left) compared with an association football ball

Most modern association football balls are stitched from 32 panels of waterproofed leather or plastic: 12 regular pentagons and 20 regular hexagons. The 32-panel configuration is the spherical polyhedron corresponding to the truncated icosahedron; it is spherical because the faces bulge from the pressure of the air inside. The first 32-panel ball was marketed by Select in the 1950s in Denmark. This configuration became common throughout Continental Europe in the 1960s, and was publicized worldwide by the Adidas Telstar, the official ball of the 1970 World Cup.

The familiar 32-panel association football ball design is sometimes referenced to describe the truncated icosahedron Archimedean solid, carbon buckyballs or the root structure of geodesic domes.

+ Teamgeist, the official match ball of the 2006 FIFA World Cup

Balls are usually stitched from non-waterproof plastic, similar to the design of the modern volleyballs and Gaelic footballs, and laced to allow access to the internal air bladder.

The official FIFA World Cup association football ball for Germany 2006 matches was the 14-panel Adidas +Teamgeist. It was made in Thailand by Adidas, who have provided the official match balls for the tournament since 1970, and is a "thermally bonded" machine-pressed ball, rather than a traditionally stitched one. Adidas will continue to supply the official association football ball for the 2010 and 2014 World Cups.^[11] In 2010, the official match ball Jabulani's design received criticism, with former Arsenal goalkeeper Bob Wilson describing it as a "beach ball" responsible for a rise in errors by goalkeepers and Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas also called it too rough for the goalies .^[12]

Another ball with an innovative pattern is the 26-panel Mitre PRO 100T.

There are also indoor footballs, which are made of one or two pieces of plastic. Often these have designs printed on them to resemble a stitched leather ball.

History

Spherical footballs were invented shortly before the rules of association football were formalised. In 1855, Charles Goodyear designed and manufactured spherical footballs; these were made entirely of vulcanized rubber.^[9] In 1863, the English Football Association was formed and the rules of association football were established. However, there was no description on the ball size until 1873 when it was decided that the ball "must be spherical with a circumference of 27–28 in (69–71 cm)."
This rule still applies for the association football official matches played today all over the world. The early rules specified a weight of 13–15 oz (370–430 g) which was however changed in 1937 to the current accepted weight, 14–16 oz (400–450 g). At the same time, the association agreed that the official association football ball must be covered in leather or any approved material.
A direct consequence of establishing the laws of the game by the English Football Association was the mass production of association football balls. The first two companies that started producing association football balls in larger quantities were Mitre and Thomlinson from Glasgow. They produced balls made of leather because they wanted to produce good quality association football balls that will retain their form after use. On the other hand, they preferred stitching the panels since that means better quality and better and longer resistance in what the ball concerns. The best covers which resulted in very expensive association football balls were the ones made from the rump of a cow. By the 20th century, the official balls were produced with rubber bladders which were able to withstand heavier pressure.^[10]
Until the 1950s the official balls used during association football matches had dark colors because of the color of the leather. In 1951 a white ball was first permitted to help spectators see the ball easier with the advent of floodlights. Even if they were used earlier in unofficial games, the official association football balls were permitted only in the mid-20th century.

Association football

Main article: Football (association football)

Dimensions

Law 2 of the game specifies that the ball is an air-filled sphere with a circumference of 68–70 cm (27–28 in), a weight 410–450 g (14–16 oz), inflated to a pressure of 0.6 to 1.1 atmospheres (59–108 kPa, 8.6–15.7 psi) "at sea level", and covered in leather or "other suitable material".^[6] The weight specified for a ball is the dry weight, as older balls often became significantly heavier in the course of a match played in wet weather. The standard ball is a Size 5, although smaller sizes exist: Size 3 is standard for team handball and Size 4 in futsal and other small-field variants. Other sizes are used in underage games or as novelty items.

Size 1

These mini-balls are only used for promotional purposes. They are normally made of synthetic material, built up in 32 panels, and they do not exceed 43 cm (17 in) in circumference.

Size 2

This size ball is sometimes used in promotional tournaments and during trainings for children. It is the same size ball used for playing by children under 4. The size 2 association football ball is made of synthetic material, plastic or PVC and it is not bigger than 56 cm (22 in) or heavier than 280 g (10 oz). It is the perfect size ball for practising drills and for improving one's handling skills.

Size 3

The size 3 association football balls are used by players under 8 because the balls are light (they do not weigh more than 340 g (12 oz) and fairly small (61 cm (24 in) in circumference). They are usually made of 32 stitched or glued panels of synthetic materials or PVC. This is also the official size of balls used in handball.

Size 4

The size 4 balls are the standard balls for futsal but they may also be used in practices by players between 8 and 12 years old. They are spherical, weighing no more than 370 g (13 oz) and with a maximum circumference of 66 cm (26 in). They are normally made of leather or other suitable materials.

Size 5

This is the standard ball size with a circumference 69 cm (27 in) ± 0.5 cm (0.20 in) for the FIFA Approved standard (± 1.0 cm (0.39 in) for the lesser FIFA Inspected standard)^[7] used in official FIFA championships all over the world. It is also the most widely used size of ball by players 12 years old or older. A size 5 association football ball could also be made from polyurethane. It is a less soft material that still retains a good feel and is much more durable. This material is a type of plastic, so it can increase the life of the ball dramatically.^[8]