Wilfried Zaha : The rising star..

His full name - Dazet Wilfried Armel Zaha. More popularly known as Wilfried Zaha. He was born in the country of Ivory Coast, but later on moved over to South London in England with his family at the age of 4. He recently celebrated his birthday on the 10th of November, turning 20. He plays as a winger for Crystal Palace. His performances have also earned him 5 England U21 appearances. Recently he was also selected in the senior England squad for the match against Sweden on the 14th of November at the Friends Arena

Age - 20
Club - Crystal Palace
Appearances - 110
Goals - 17 
Assists - 10

His inclusion in the England squad is quite controversial as he hasn't even played in the Premier League. More over, there also have been better choices, in terms of players, have been ignored. It has been said that his inclusion in the England squad is to prevent him from being capped by his country of birth, that is Ivory Coast, as he is still eligible to play for his country of birth according to FIFA rules, until he makes his England debut.

Didier Drogba is also said to have intervened in this matter. Zaha recently said, "Didier called me and I was shocked, to be honest. He’s a humble guy and he was just talking to me about the Ivory Coast.

"I was born in the Ivory Coast but all I know is England. It’s 50-50 at the moment but it’s a choice I will have to make at some stage"

"I’ve been with the Under 21s and, now that I am with England, I will have to make a decision."

But at this stage it can also be noted that he will still be eligible to play for Ivory Coast even if he makes his debut for England against Sweden as according to FIFA rules, this match is a Non-competitive match.

Recently he even said that the Premier League is the place to be. Many clubs are said to be tracking Zaha. Stoke City and Wigan were after his signature, and now even Manchester United are said to be in the fray.

Considering that already at the age of 20 and with over 100 Championship appearances with Crystal Palace he is ready to make it to the big stage. With Crystal Palace looking good in the Championship, we could see him playing in the Premier League next season with his current club.

Although he plays on the right wing, after watching some of his videos, it came to my notice that he loves to come infield quite often. He has pace and love taking on defenders, a feature which most young Englishmen lack. Never is shy to take a shot on goal. Although he is good player right now, he still has a long way before he reaches that Premier League level. Nevertheless, a rising star.

Ballon D'or?

The Ballon D'or literally means 'Golden Ball'. Its inception was in the year 1956. The award was conceived by France Football's chief magazine writer Gabriel Hanot, who asked his colleagues to vote for the player of the year in Europe in 1956. Hence at that time this award was only presented to European players playing for a European club and hence players of Non-European nations were ineligible for this award. This however was changed in the year 1995 when it allowed non-European players to be eligible for the award if they played for a European club. While later in the year 2007 any player in the world became eligible for this award. Another noticeable thing is that the selection is done by football journalists

The first person to win the Ballon D'or was an English footballer Stanley Matthews who played for Blackpool. After the rule change in the year which allowed Non-European players to be eligible, it was a Liberian player George Weah who won the Ballon D'or while playing for AC Milan. Three players have won the award three times each - Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini and Marco van Basten. The last Premier League player to win the FIFA Ballon D'or was Michael Owen

Later in the year 2010, Ballon D'or and FIFA player of the year were merged, and came to be known as the FIFA Ballon D'or. Leo Messi became the inaugural winner and won it again in the following year. The FIFA Ballon D'or for 2012 is scheduled for January 7th, 2013 in Kongresshaus, Zurich (Switzerland)

Like every year, 23 player shortlist is made. The shortlist for the 2012 FIFA Ballon D'or includes -

Sergio Aguero (Manchester City/Argentina), 

Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid/Spain), 

Mario Balotelli (Manchester City/Italy), 

Karim Benzema (Real Madrid/France), 

Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus/Italy),

Sergio Busquets (Barcelona/Spain), 

Iker Casillas (Real Madrid/Spain), 

Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid/Portugal), 

Didier Drogba (Shanghai Shenhua/Ivory Coast), 

Radamel Falcao (Atletico Madrid/Colombia), 

Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Paris St Germain/Sweden), 

Andres Iniesta (Barcelona/Spain), 

Lionel Messi (Barcelona/Argentina), 

Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich/Germany), 

Neymar (Santos/Brazil), 

Mesut Ozil (Real Madrid/Germany), 

Gerard Pique (Barcelona/Spain), 

Andrea Pirlo (Juventus/Italy), 

Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid/Spain), 

Wayne Rooney (Manchester United/England), 

Yaya Toure (Manchester City/Ivory Coast), 

Robin van Persie (Manchester United/Netherlands), 

Xavi (Barcelona/Spain)

Neymar and Drogba are the only players playing for a Non-European club in the shortlist, while Yaya Toure and Didier Drogba the only Africans that make the shortlist. Gianluigi Buffon and Manuel Neuer are the only goalkeepers that make the shortlist. Rooney, the only player representing England, while the same applies to Van Persie win Nederlands
So, what do you make of this?