The Ballon d’Or female finalists were unveiled last week and Germany’s Nadine Angerer, Brazil’s Marta and USA’s Abby Wambach made the cut. All three ladies are phenomenal players and it must be also said that they each had a memorable year in football.
Angerer who won the Euro 2013 with Germany this year, was also the first ever recipient of the UEFA Best Women’s Player in Europe Award. That feat makes her a favourite to pick up next year’s Ballon d’Or in Zurich, although her list of victories speak for themselves.
As summed up by Angerer’s teammate, Bianca Schmidt : “Nadine was our best player. She is the reason why we are European champions”.
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Meanwhile, five-time World Player of the Year award recipient Marta, cannot be discounted too. She led Swedish side Tyreso to the first UEFA Women’s Champions League quarter-final in their history.
Reigning FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year, Abby Wambach, also became the first American recipient to receive the award in a decade last January. Wambach is a six-time winner of US Soccer’s Athlete of the Year award, and proclaims Mia Hamm to be her idol.
“When I look in the mirror I don’t see a person who’s made the kind of impact that Mia Hamm made on the game. She’s still my idol, the greatest player and the greatest team-mate. She achieved so much in so many different ways. What she did for women’s soccer can’t be measured. She was happy for me, and now I can’t wait for someone to break my record,” – Wambach.
