|
|
|
05/21/13 01:20:00
Printable Page
05/21 13:17 CDT Chelsea tops AP poll after winning Euro title
Chelsea tops AP poll after winning Euro title
By STEVE DOUGLAS
AP Sports Writer
MANCHESTER, England (AP) -- Chelsea surged to the top of the weekly Associated
Press global soccer poll after winning the Europa League and qualifying for the
Champions League for the 11th straight season.
There was a Chelsea player at the top of the player rankings, with Fernando
Torres sharing first place with Bayern Munich winger Franck Ribery. The Spanish
striker regained his goal-scoring form to impress the 14 voters on the panel.
"Great week for Torres and `Spanish' Chelsea in the last days with (Rafa)
Bentez," said Orefeo Suarez, from Spain's El Mundo. "The Spanish coach said
Torres is coming back with him to the level he had in Liverpool."
Torres scored the opening goal in the 2-1 victory over Benfica in the Europa
League final before firing home the winner against Everton on the final day of
the Premier League season, securing the team third place in the standings. He
had previously netted just once in his previous eight matches.
"He had to be under a fair amount of pressure considering his scoring
troubles," said Tom Timmermann, of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Chelsea edged Bayern into second place - but the German side could be back on
top spot next week if it wins the Champions League final against Borussia
Dortmund on Saturday.
Ribery looks in prime form for that match, after scoring twice in a wild 4-3
win over Borussia Moenchengladbach in which Bayern came back from conceding
three times in the opening 10 minutes.
"If there was any doubt that Franck Ribery has been Bayern's most important
player this season, the Frenchman put them to rest on the final day of the
Bundesliga season scoring twice and laying on a further two assists in another
world-class performance," said James Thorogood, of Bundesliga.com.
Atletico Madrid was rewarded for its victory over city rival Real Madrid in the
Copa del Rey, climbing to third in the team poll and having two players -
goalkeeper Thibault Courtois (fourth) and striker Radamel Falcao (ninth) - in
the top 10 of the player rankings.
"What a Friday night at the Bernabeu for Atletico Madrid," said Julian
Bennetts, from Hayters news agency in England. "They had not beaten their old
rivals Real Madrid in 14 years until their incredible victory in the Copa del
Rey, and they celebrated with understandable gusto."
To extend the week's Chelsea theme, Courtois is on loan to Atletico from the
London club, which is widely reported to be one of the many teams chasing the
signature of Radamel Falcao this summer. Romelu Lukaku, who was third in the
player poll after getting a second-half hat trick for West Bromwich Albion in a
5-5 draw with Manchester United, is also a Chelsea player.
Arsenal placed fourth thanks to wins over Wigan and Newcastle that capped an
end-of-season recovery and clinched the fourth and final Champions League berth
in the Premier League. By sealing the Portuguese title, FC Porto was fifth and
Barcelona sixth after beating Valladolid 2-1 in the Spanish league.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic stole some of the spotlight from David Beckham in the
midfielder's final home match from Paris Saint-Germain, scoring a double in a
3-1 win over Brest in the French league for eighth place in the player list.
His 29 points put him just behind AC Milan striker Mario Balotelli, whose
converted penalty helped AC Milan into next season's Champions League, but
ahead of Falcao and Robin van Persie (10th).
___
AP Global Soccer Rankings for the week ending May 20.
Based on 14 voters: 10 points for first, nine for second, etc. Previous
rankings in parentheses.
Teams:
1. Chelsea (3), 108 points.
2. Bayern Munich (4), 91.
3. Atletico Madrid, 83.
4. Arsenal, 55.
5. FC Porto (6), 52.
6. Barcelona (1), 49.
7. Manchester United (4), 35.
8. AC Milan, 34.
9. Real Sociedad, 24.
10. Paris Saint-Germain (5), 21.
___
Players:
1. Franck Ribery (9), 72 points.
(tie) Fernando Torres, 72.
3. Romelu Lukaku, 54.
4. Thibault Courtois, 45.
5. Branislav Ivanovic, 37.
6. Gareth Bale, 35.
7. Mario Balotelli, 30.
8. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, 29.
9. Radamel Falcao, 25.
10. Robin van Persie, 23.
|
