Manchester United vs Manchester City, Bournemouth vs Tottenham starting line up.

Man Utd XI: De Gea, Valencia, Jones, Smalling, Rojo, Schweinsteiger, Schneiderlin, Mata, Ander Herrera, Martial, Rooney.
Subs: Depay, Carrick, Blind, Romero, Fellaini, Lingard, Darmian.

Man City XI: Hart, Sagna, Kompany, Otamendi, Kolarov, Fernando, Fernandinho, De Bruyne, Toure, Sterling, Bony.
Subs: Zabaleta, Caballero, Jesus Navas, Mangala, Demichelis, Roberts, Iheanacho.

Bournemouth XI: Boruc, Francis, Cook, Distin, Daniels, Ritchie, Surman, Gosling, Pugh, King, Murray.
Subs: Rantie, Smith, Kermorgant, Stanislas, Federici, O'Kane, Bennett.

Tottenham Hotspur XI: Lloris, Walker, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Rose, Dier, Dembele, Lamela, Alli, Eriksen, Kane.
Subs: Mason, Vorm, N'Jie, Trippier, Townsend, Onomah, Wimmer.

Kick off: 3:05 pm.

Aston Villa sack Tim Sherwood.

Aston Villa have sacked manager Tim Sherwood along with his coaching team of Mark Robson and Ray Wilkins.

The three were summoned by Chief Executive Tom Fox to the club's Bodymoor Heath training ground this morning to be told they were being relieved of their duties.

Fox and Villa owner Randy Lerner decided to act after Saturday's 2-1 defeat by Swansea which left the Midlands club stranded in the relegation zone after six defeats in a row. 

Former Manchester United and Everton manager David Moyes heads the list of potential replacements as Villa seek a man to rescue them after taking just four points from the first 10 games.

Is Jose next?

Source:Dailymail.

West Ham vs Chelsea, Aston Villa vs Swansea and other 3pm EPL matches.

West Ham XI: Adrian, Jenkinson, Collins, Tomkins, Cresswell, Noble, Kouyate, Lanzini, Payet, Zarate, Sakho.
Subs: Randolph, Carroll, Valencia, Obiang, Ogbonna, Jelavic, Antonio.

Chelsea XI: Begovic, Zouma, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta, Matic, Ramires, Willian, Fabregas, Hazard, Costa.
Subs: Baba, Oscar, Falcao, Mikel, Traore, Amelia, Loftus-Cheek.

Aston Villa XI: Guzan, Hutton, Richards, Lescott, Richardson, Bacuna, Gana, Ayew, Grealish, Agbonlahor, Gestede.
Subs: Westwood, Traore, Amavi, Sanchez, Gil, Bunn, Crespo.

Swansea XI: Fabianski, Naughton, Fernandez, Williams, Taylor, Ki, Shelvey, Ayew, Sigurdsson, Montero, Gomis.
Subs: Britton, Nordfeldt, Eder, Rangel, Cork, Bartley, Barrow.

Norwich XI: Ruddy, Martin, Bennett, Bassong, Brady, Redmond, Tettey, Howson, Jarvis, Hoolahan, Mbokani.
Subs: Whittaker, Grabban, Jerome, Rudd, Dorrans, Olsson, O'Neil.

West Brom XI: Myhill, Dawson, McAuley, Evans, Brunt, Sessegnon, Fletcher, Yacob, McClean, Rondon, Berahino.
Subs: Olsson, Chester, Gardner, Anichebe, Lambert, McManaman, Lindegaard.

Leicester XI: Schmeichel, Simpson, Morgan, Huth, Fuchs, Albrighton, Drinkwater, Kante, Schlupp, Mahrez, Vardy.
Subs: De Laet, King, Kramaric, Okazaki, Dyer, Schwarzer, Inler.

Crystal Palace XI: Hennessey, Kelly, Hangeland, Dann, Mariappa, Cabaye, McArthur, Sako, Puncheon, Bolasie, Campbell.
Subs: Speroni, Bamford, Zaha, Jedinak, Mutch, Delaney, Ledley.

Stoke XI: Butland, Johnson, Cameron, Wollscheid, Pieters, Adam, Whelan, Shaqiri, Krkic, Arnautovic, Joselu.
Subs: Ireland, Wilson, Afellay, van Ginkel, Walters, Given, Crouch.

Watford XI: Gomes, Nyom, Britos, Cathcart, Ake, Watson, Capoue, Abdi, Deeney, Anya, Ighalo.
Subs: Prodl, Behrami, Paredes, Guedioura, Ibarbo, Diamanti, Arlauskis.

Kick off: 3:00 pm.

Two gay Premier League football stars are to come out before the start of next season.

Two Premier League players are preparing to come out as gay - which would make them the first British footballers to make the announcement while still playing at the top levels of the game.

One of the men is believed to be an England international star and both have already told their families and friends and have the full support of their respective clubs and the Football Association.

The Daily Mirror reports the men will come out publicly before the start of the next season.

Source:Dailymail.

Arsenal vs Bayern Munich, Dynamo Kiev and other UCL starting line up.

Arsenal XI: Cech; Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal, Cazorla, Coquelin, Ramsey, Özil, Alexis; Walcott.

Subs: Macey, Debuchy, Chambers, Gibbs, Arteta, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Giroud.

Bayern Munich XI: Neuer, Thiago, Lewandowski, Costa, Alonso, Boateng, Bernat, Lahm, Vidal, Müller, Alaba.

Subs: Martinez, Rafinha, Kirchhoff, Coman, Kimmich, Gaudino.

Dynamo Kiev XI: Shovkovskiy, Danilo Silva, Dragovic, Vida, Khacheridi, Sydorchuk, Rybalka, Gonzalez, Buyalskiy, Yarmolenko, Kravets.

Subs: Rybka, Antunes, Miguel Veloso, Petrovic, Garmash, Gusev, Junior Moraes.

Chelsea XI: Begovic, Zouma, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta, Ramires, Matic, Willian, Fabregas, Hazard, Costa.

Subs: Blackman, Baba, Mikel, Oscar, Traore, Kenedy, Falcao.

Bate XI: Chernik, Palyakow, Hayduchyk, Milunovic, Mladenovic, Stasevich, Alyaksandr Valadzko, Nikolic, Maksim, Valadzko, Gordeichuk, Signevich.

Subs: Soroko, Yablonskiy, Karnitskiy, Aleksiyevich, Ryas, Mozolewski, Baha.

Barcelona XI: Ter Stegen; Alba, Bartra, Pique, Alves: Mascherano, Roberto, Busquets; Neymar, Suarez, Munir.

Subs: Bravo, Vermaelen, Mathieu, Adriano, Rakitic, Sandro and Gumbau.

Kick off: 7:45 pm.

23-man shortlist for Ballon d'or and coach of the year award.

BALLON D'OR SHORTLIST: Sergio Aguero (Argentina/Manchester City), Gareth Bale (Wales/Real Madrid), Karim Benzema (France/Real Madrid), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal/Real Madrid), Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium/Manchester City), Eden Hazard (Belgium/Chelsea), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Sweden/Paris St Germain), Andres Iniesta (Spain/Barcelona), Toni Kroos (Germany/Real Madrid), Robert Lewandowski (Poland/Bayern Munich), Javier Mascherano (Argentina/Barcelona), Lionel Messi (Argentina/Barcelona), Thomas Muller (Germany/Bayern Munich), Manuel Neuer (Germany/Bayern Munich), Neymar (Brazil/Barcelona), Paul Pogba (France/Juventus), Ivan Rakitic (Croatia/Barcelona), Arjen Robben (Holland/Bayern Munich), James Rodriguez (Colombia/Real Madrid), Alexis Sanchez (Chile/Arsenal), Luis Suarez (Uruguay/Barcelona), Yaya Toure (Ivory Coast/Manchester City), Arturo Vidal (Chile/Bayern Munich).

COACH OF THE YEAR SHORTLIST: Massimiliano Allegri (Juventus), Carlo Ancelotti (Formerly of Real Madrid), Laurent Blanc (Paris St Germain), Unai Emery (Sevilla), Pep Guardiola (Bayern Munich), Luis Enrique (Barcelona), Jose Mourinho (Chelsea), Jorge Sampaoli (Chile), Diego Simeone (Atletico Madrid), Arsene Wenger (Arsenal).

Source:Dailymail.

Watford vs Arsenal starting line up.

Watford XI: Gomes, Nyom, Prodl, Cathcart, Ake, Capoue, Watson, Abdi, Deeney, Anya, Ighalo.

Subs: Gilmartin, Britos, Paredes, Holebas, Behrami, Ibarbo, Berghuis.

Arsenal XI: Cech, Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal, Coquelin, Cazorla, Ozil, Alexis, Ramsey, Walcott.

Subs: Macey, Gibbs, Chambers, Debuchy, Arteta, 

Oxlade-Chamberlain, Giroud.

Kick off: 5:30 pm.

Everton vs Manchester United, Chelsea vs Aston Villa and other 3pm Epl matches.

Everton XI: Howard, Coleman, Stones, Jagielka, Galloway, McCarthy, Barry, Lennon, Barkley, Naismith, Lukaku.
Subs: Robles, Kone, Mirallas, Deulofeu, Osman, Funes Mori, Browning.

Man Utd XI: De Gea, Darmian, Smalling, Jones, Rojo, Schneiderlin, Schweinsteiger, Mata, Ander Herrera, Martial, Rooney.
Subs: Depay, Carrick, Blind, Fellaini, Lingard, Andreas Pereira, Johnstone.

Chelsea XI: Begovic, Azpilicueta, Terry, Zouma, Baba, Loftus-Cheek, Fabregas, Ramires, Willian, Pedro, Costa.
Subs: Oscar, Hazard, Mikel, Remy, Matic, Cahill, Blackman.

Aston Villa XI: Guzan, Hutton, Richards, Lescott, Richardson, Gana, Westwood, Grealish, Ayew, Gil, Gestede.
Subs: Bacuna, Sinclair, Traore, Amavi, Sanchez, Bunn, Crespo.

Southampton XI: Kelvin Davis, Cedric Soares, Fonte, Van Dijk, Bertrand, Steven Davis, Wanyama, Mane, Ward-Prowse, Tadic, Pelle.
Subs: Yoshida, Clasie, Rodriguez, Romeu, Juanmi, Gazzaniga, Caulker.

Leicester XI: Schmeichel, Simpson, Huth, Morgan, Schlupp, Albrighton, Drinkwater, Kante, Fuchs, Vardy, Okazaki.
Subs: De Laet, King, Dyer, Mahrez, Benalouane, Schwarzer, Inler.

West Brom XI: Myhill, Dawson, McAuley, Evans, Brunt, McClean, Fletcher, Yacob, Sessegnon, Berahino, Rondon.
Subs: Olsson, Chester, Gardner, Anichebe, Lambert, McManaman, Lindegaard.

Sunderland XI: Pantilimon, Yedlin, O'Shea, Kaboul, Jones, Larsson, M'Vila, Cattermole, Gomez, Fletcher, Borini.
Subs: Van Aanholt, Bridcutt, Brown, Johnson, Defoe, Graham, Mannone.

Man City XI: Hart, Zabaleta, Otamendi, Mangala, Sagna, Fernandinho, Toure, Jesus Navas, De Bruyne, Sterling, Bony.
Subs: Kompany, Fernando, Nasri, Caballero, Demichelis, Roberts, Iheanacho.

Bournemouth XI: Boruc, Francis, Cook, Distin, Daniels, Smith, Gosling, Surman, Ritchie, O'Kane, Murray.
Subs: MacDonald, King, Kermorgant, Federici, Bennett, Cargill, Pugh.

Crystal Palace XI: Hennessey, Kelly, Hangeland, Dann, Souare, Cabaye, McArthur, Zaha, Puncheon, Bolasie, Gayle.
Subs: Bamford, Campbell, McCarthy, Jedinak, Sako, Delaney, Ledley.

West Ham XI: Adrian, Jenkinson, Tomkins, Collins, Cresswell, Kouyate, Noble, Lanzini, Payet, Moses, Sakho.
Subs: Randolph, Carroll, Zarate, Valencia, Obiang, Ogbonna, Jelavic.

Kick off: 3:00 pm.

Tottenham vs Liverpool starting line up.

Tottenham XI: Lloris, Walker, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Rose, Dembele, Alli, Lamela, Eriksen, Chadli, Kane.

Subs: Vorm, N'Jie, Trippier, Townsend, Wimmer, Winks, Davies.

Liverpool XI: Mignolet, Clyne, Skrtel, Sakho, Moreno, Can, Lucas, Milner, Coutinho, Lallana, Origi.

Subs: Toure, Allen, Ibe, Bogdan, Randall, Sinclair, Teixeira.

Kick off: 12:45 pm.

Jose fined £50,000 by FA.

Jose Mourinho has been given a suspended one-match stadium ban and fined £50,000 by the Football Assocation.
The charge comes after the Chelsea manager admitted a breach of FA rules in relation to post-match media comments.
Mourinho was charged for misconduct following the game against Southampton at Stamford Bridge on Saturday October 3.
It was alleged his remarks constituted improper conduct in that they alleged and/or implied bias on the part of a match official or match officials and/or brought the game into disrepute.
Mourinho's suspended stadium ban will be immediately invoked should he be found by an Independent Regulatory Commission to have committed a further breach of FA Rule E3 for any comment or statement to or through the media before October 13, 2016.

Source:Skysports.

Ronaldo breaks record.

Cristiano Ronaldo has received a record fourth Golden Boot after topping Europe's goalscoring charts for the 2014/15 season.
The Real Madrid star scored 48 goals in 35 La Liga appearances last term to win the honour for the third time at Madrid, with his other triumph coming during the 2007/08 season at Manchester United.
It means Ronaldo becomes the first players in the awards' illustrious 47-year history to win the accolade four times.

Source: Skysoorts.

The golden boot that Wayne Rooney will be presented with at Wembley.

Wayne Rooney will miss England's Friday-night clash with Estonia at Wembley, but that will not ruin what is set to be a special occasion for the nation's new all-time record goalscorer.

England captain Rooney will be presented with a golden boot on the famous turf ahead of Friday's European Championship qualifier by England's second-highest scorer, Sir Bobby Charlton.

The image below gives a first glimpse at the 24-carat gold-plated commemorative prize that the 29-year-old will parade in front of an expected 75,000-strong crowd at the national stadium.

Source:Dailymail.

Chelsea announce signing of Marco Amelia.

Chelsea have completed the signing of Marco Amelia on a free transfer, as cover for injured first-choice goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.

The 33-year-old was a free agent after leaving Serie B side Perugia in the summer and has been training with the Premier League champions.

Chelsea announced the news on the club's website, confirming the former AC Milan goalkeeper will wear the No 32 shirt and is available for selection when Aston Villa visit Stamford Bridge on October 17. 

Source:Dailtmail.

Jurgen Klopp lands in Liverpool.

Jurgen Klopp jetted into Merseyside on Thursday afternoon as Liverpool looked set to wrap up his appointment as their new manager.

The former Borussia Dortmund boss has been in talks with Liverpool's hierarchy - they have been led by Fenway Sports Group president Mike Gordon and Chief Executive Ian Ayre - and discussions are almost complete.

Klopp has agreed a deal of at least three years and he can expect to be paid a salary of more than £4million per season.

The German flew into Merseyside on a private jet to complete formalities ahead of an official unveiling at 10am on Friday morning, which Liverpool described on Twitter as 'a major club announcement.'

Source:Dailymail.

FIFA suspend Sepp Blatter, Michel Platini and Jerome Valcke.

Sepp Blatter, Michel Platini and Jerome Valcke have all been provisionally suspended by FIFA's ethics committee for 90 days.
FIFA presidential candidate Chung Mong-joon has been banned for six years and fined 100,000 Swiss francs, the ethics committee has announced.
Outgoing FIFA president Blatter and UEFA president Platini - who had been favourite to succeed 79-year-old Blatter - will now not be involved in any football activity for the next three months while investigations continue. The 90-day suspension can also be extended by a further 45 days.
A statement from FIFA's ethics committee said: "The adjudicatory chamber of the ethics committee chaired by Hans Joachim Eckert has provisionally banned FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter, UEFA president and FIFA vice-president Michel Platini, and FIFA secretary General Jerome Valcke (who has already been put on leave by his employer FIFA) for a duration of 90 days. The duration of the bans may be extended for an additional period not exceeding 45 days."The former FIFA vice-president Chung Mong-Joon has been banned for six years and fined 100,000 Swiss francs. During this time, the above individuals are banned from all football activities on a national and international level. The bans come into force immediately.

Source: Skysports.

Chelsea give Mourinho their full support.

Chelsea have offered manager Jose Mourinho their 'full support' after he survived a meeting of the club's board, but say he will have to turn their season around without splashing the cash in January.
The club have now issued a statement on their website, which reads: 'The club wants to make it clear that Jose continues to have our full support. 'As Jose has said himself, results have not been good enough and the team's performances must improve.

'However, we believe that we have the right manager to turn this season around and that he has the squad with which to do it.' 

Source:Dailymail.

Liverpool sack Brendan Rodgers.

Brendan Rodgers has been sacked by Liverpool after their 1-1 draw with Everton in this afternoon's Merseyside derby.

The result left the Anfield club with just one win in their last nine games and that has brought his time there to an end.

Source:Skysports.

Arsenal vs Manchester United & Swansea vs Tottenham Hotspur starting line up.

Arsenal XI: Cech, Bellerin, Mertesacker, Gabriel, Monreal; Coquelin, Cazorla; Ramsey, Ozil, Sanchez; Walcott.

Subs: Ospina, Debuchy, Chambers, Gibbs, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Campbell, Giroud.

Manchester United XI: De Gea, Young, Smalling, Blind, Darmian, Carrick, Schweinsteiger, Mata, Rooney, Memphis, Martial.

Subs: Romero, Jones, McNair, Schneiderlin, Valencia, Fellaini, Wilson.

Swansea XI: Fabianski, Rangel, Fernandez, Williams, Taylor, Ki, Shelvey, Ayew, Sigurdsson, Montero, Gomis.

Subs:  Nordfeldt, Tabanou, Bartley, Cork, Barrow, Routledge, Eder.

Tottenham XI: Lloris, Walker, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Davies, Alli, Dier, Chadli, Eriksen, Lamela, Kane.

Subs: Vorm, Trippier, Wimmer, Carroll, Dembele, Townsend, Clinton.

Kick off: 4:00 pm.

Everton vs Liverpool starting line up.

Everton XI: Howard, Browning, Jagielka, Funes Mori, Galloway, McCarthy, Barry, Deulofeu, Barkley, Naismith, Lukaku.
Subs: Robles, Gibson, Oviedo, Kone, Lennon, Osman, Holgate.

Liverpoo XI: Mignolet, Can, Skrtel, Sakho, Clyne, Milner, Lucas, Moreno, Coutinho, Sturridge, Ings.
Subs: Gomez, Lallana, Allen, Origi, Ibe, Bogdan, Rossiter.

Kick off: 1:30 pm.

Jose Mourinho says Chelsea can sack him if they want.

Jose Mourinho insisted he will not be walking away from Stamford Bridge after watching Chelsea's season hit a new low with a crushing 3-1 home defeat by Southampton.

The defiant manager urged everyone at the club to 'stick together' and is convinced Chelsea can still finish in the top three, despite their worst start to a season for 37 years — when they were relegated.

'I don't run away,' he said. 'Two, if the club wants to sack me they have to sack me because I'm not running away from my responsibilities or my team.'

Mourinho admitted that confidence in his squad is at rock bottom, adding: 'The team try but they collpase because they are in such a low moment.'

Mourinho has described the start of this season as 'the worst of his career' but he is convinced he is the right man to lead Chelsea out of trouble.

'I'm more than convinced that we can finish in the top four and in a season so bad, finishing top four is OK.

'If the club sacks me they sack the best manager this club ever had. This is a moment for everyone to take responsibility and stick together.

'The players have to play until the end of the season with champions on their shirt and I want to work. I have a big ego, I consider myself the best. This hurts me a lot — it hurts me as a professional and hurts me because I love the club.'

Source:Dailymail.

Russian Manchester United fan put flag in space.

Alexey Yakovlev, a Russian fan of the Premier League's most successful club, decided to take his team to new heights by putting a United flag in space.

Yakovlev gave the flag to a friend on the International Space Station, orbiting the Earth in 2014, and it was above the planet for 169 days.

'I decided to send the MUFC flag to bring some space energy to the club,' said Yakovlev, who wants to hand the flag over to the club when they visit CSKA Moscow later this month.

'I am very proud of what I did because United means a lot to me. We've waved our flag up in space – nobody can make it any higher!', he told Red News fanzine.

Source:Dailymail.

Chelsea vs Southampton starting line up.

Chelsea XI: Begovic, Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta, Ramires, Fabregas, Willian, Oscar, Hazard, Falcao.

Subs: Zouma, Baba, Pedro, Remy, Matic, Blackman, Loftus-Cheek.

Southampton XI: Stekelenburg, Cedric Soares, Fonte, van Dijk, Bertrand, Romeu, Wanyama, Mane, Steven Davis, Tadic, Pelle.

Subs: Kelvin Davis, Yoshida, Long, Rodriguez, Martina, Ward-Prowse, Juanmi.

Kick off: 5:30 pm.

Manchester City vs Newcastle, Sunderland vs West Ham and other 3pm EPL kick off.

Aston Villa XI: Guzan, Hutton, Richards, Lescott, Amavi, Crespo, Westwood, Gueye, Veretout, Gestede, Sinclair.
Subs: Bacuna, Richardson, Ayew, Sanchez, Gil, Bunn, Grealish. 

Stoke XI: Butland, Johnson, Cameron, Wollscheid, Pieters, Adam, Whelan, Walters, Krkic, Arnautovic, Diouf.
Subs: Muniesa, Ireland, Joselu, Afellay, Van Ginkel, Given, Crouch.

Bournemouth XI: Boruc, Francis, Cook, Distin, Daniels, Ritchie, Gosling, Surman, Pugh, King, Murray.
Subs: Smith, Kermorgant, Federici, Tomlin, O'Kane, Bennett, Cargill.

Watford XI: Gomes, Nyom, Prodl, Cathcart, Ake, Abdi, Watson, Capoue, Anya, Ighalo, Deeney.
Subs: Britos, Paredes, Guedioura, Ibarbo, Diamanti, Dyer, Arlauskis.

Sunderland XI: Pantilimon, Yedlin, O'Shea, Coates, Jones, Cattermole, M'Vila, Lens, Toivonen, Borini, Fletcher.
Subs: Van Aanholt, Brown, Larsson, Rodwell, Gomez, Defoe, Mannone.

West Ham XI: Adrian, Jenkinson, Reid, Tomkins, Cresswell, Kouyate, Noble, Lanzini, Payet, Moses, Sakho.
Subs: Randolph, Zarate, Obiang, Collins, Jelavic, Antonio, Oxford.

Norwich XI: Ruddy, Whittaker, Martin, Bassong, Brady, Jarvis, Tettey, Dorrans, Howson, Hoolahan, Jerome.
Subs: Mbokani, Rudd, Lafferty, Redmond, Olsson, Ryan Bennett, O'Neil.

Leicester XI: Schmeichel, Simpson, Huth, Morgan, Schlupp, Albrighton, Kante, Drinkwater, Fuchs, Okazaki, Vardy.
Subs: De Laet, King, Ulloa, Mahrez, Benalouane, Schwarzer, Inler.

Man City XI: Hart, Zabaleta, Otamendi, Mangala, Kolarov, Fernando, Fernandinho, De Bruyne, Silva, Sterling, Aguero.
Subs: Sagna, Caballero, Bony, Jesus Navas, Demichelis, Iheanacho, Garcia.

Newcastle XI: Krul, Janmaat, Mbemba, Coloccini, Mbabu, Sissoko, Wijnaldum, Anita, Gouffran, Mitrovic, Perez.
Subs: Williamson, Cisse, De Jong, Lascelles, Thauvin, Elliot, Tiote.

Kick off: 3:00 pm.

Nike introduce new winter ball.

With winter fast approaching, the new vibrant Nike Ordem 3 has been shown for the first time.

On Friday, pictures of the vibrant winter ball, which will first be used during the weekend matches beginning on October 24, have emerged.

Rather than going for last season's yellow design, Nike have changed the colour by choosing a yellow and orange scheme.

Source: Dailymail.

Ballon d'Or list released.

Football's leading stars have been named in the race to win the game's most coveted individual prize, but there are plenty of surprises on this year's list.

While Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will once again resume their personal battle to take home the award, the list also includes some names who barely play top-flight football.

The Ballon d’Or long list in full

Claudio Bravo - Barcelona

Javier Mascherano - Barcelona

Andrés Iniesta - Barcelona

Lionel Messi - Barcelona

Ivan Rakitic - Barcelona

Neymar - Barcelona

Luis Suárez - Barcelona

Gareth Bale - Real Madrid

Karim Benzema - Real Madrid

Sergio Ramos - Real Madrid

Cristiano Ronaldo - Real Madrid

Luka Modric - Real Madrid

James Rodríguez - Real Madrid

Toni Kroos - Real Madrid

Giorgio Chiellini - Juventus

Paul Pogba - Juventus

Alvaro Morata - Juventus

Arturo Vidal - Juventus/Bayern

Andrea Pirlo - Juventus/New York City FC

Carlos Tevez - Juventus/Boca Juniors

Robert Lewandowski - Bayern

Arjen Robben - Bayern

David Alaba - Bayern

Thomas Müller - Bayern

Manuel Neuer - Bayern

Wilfried Bony - Manchester City

Yaya Touré - Manchester City

Sergio Agüero - Manchester City

Nicolás Otamendi - Valencia/Manchester City

Kevin de Bruyne - Wolfsburg/Manchester City

Diego Costa - Chelsea

Willian - Chelsea

Thibaut Courtois - Chelsea

Eden Hazard - Chelsea

Edinson Cavani - PSG

Zlatan Ibrahimovic - PSG

Javier Pastore - PSG

Wayne Rooney - Manchester United

David de Gea - Manchester United

Memphis Depay - PSV/Manchester United

David Ospina - Arsenal

Alexis Sánchez - Arsenal

Antoine Griezmann - Atlético Madrid

Jackson Martínez - Porto/Atlético Madrid

Carlos Bacca - Sevilla/Milan

Giovani dos Santos - Villarreal/LA Galaxy

Philippe Coutinho - Liverpool

Son Heung-min - Bayer Leverkusen/Tottenham

Christian Atsu - Everton/Bournemouth

Paolo Guerrero - Flamengo/Corinthians

Eduardo Vargas - QPR/Hoffenheim

Gary Medel - Internazionale

Harry Kane - Tottenham

Alexandre Lacazette - Lyon

Andrés Guardado - PSV

Carlos Sánchez - River Plate

André Ayew - Marseille/Swansea

Massimo Luongo - Swindon/QPR

Shinji Okazaki - Mainz/Leicester



Source:Dailymail.

Cristiano Ronaldo receives special award after breaking Real Madrid goalscoring record at a Bernabeu ceremony.

Cristiano Ronaldo celebrated becoming Real Madrid's top goalscorer of all time at a ceremony at the Santiago Bernabeu, with all his team-mates present to support his achievements as the Portuguese superstar admitted he had been a 'bit of a b******' with the media.

The likes of Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and Marcelo watched on and applauded the 30-year-old Portuguese star, as well as his mother, son, and agent Jorge Mendes.

Although official records state he is only level with club legend Raul, on 323 goals, Ronaldo himself believes, along with the club and Spanish newspaper Marca, that he scored his 324th against Malmo in the Champions League on Wednesday, thereby breaking the record.

Source:Dailymail.