With the 2012-13 English Premier League (EPL) title having been decided, IBNLive runs the rule over the most valuable players. Enjoy!
David de Gea: The Manchester United goalkeeper was slammed by critics initially for committing errors but the young Spaniard proved everyone wrong in the second half of the season, giving spectacular performances one after the other and kept nine consecutive clean sheets to asserts himself as United's No. 1 custodian.
Pablo Zabaleta: Zabaleta has surely been the most underrated player for Manchester City. He is a useful player because he can play on both sides of the pitch either as a defender or a defensive midfielder. The Argentine is physically strong and provides the much needed strength in the defence.
Jan Vertonghen: The Tottenham Hotspur defender was surely Andre Villas Boas' signing of the season. He was rock solid as a centre half and scored important goals as well. He was equally commanding on the left flank of the Tottenham defence. He was one of the main reason to help Spurs finish fifth in the EPL this season....
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08:04 AM, May 21, 2013
Amsterdam: Matchwinner Branislav Ivanovic said Chelsea deserved to win the Europa League with a 2-1 success over Benfica on Wednesday after a "difficult season". The Serbian defender headed a stoppage-time winner from a corner to secure a second successive European trophy for the Premier League side after they won the Champions League for the first time last season. "This team deserved this, because we have had a very difficult season...
09:59 AM, May 16, 2013
Amsterdam: A stoppage-time header from Branislav Ivanovic helped Chelsea become the first English club to win all three of UEFA's major trophies as they beat Benfica 2-1 in the Europa League final on Wednesday. The Serbian defender sent the London club's fans wild with delight when he climbed high at the far post to meet a Juan Mata corner and place a header back across helpless goalkeeper Artur into the...
02:51 AM, May 16, 2013
Stuttgart: Top-seeded Maria Sharapova got through another tough test in outlasting Ana Ivanovic 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 on Friday to advance to the semi-finals of the Porsche Grand Prix. Sharapova, the defending champion, needed more than 3 hours to overcome Lucie Safarova a day earlier. This one was an hour shorter but perhaps just as intense. "It was hard to get my body going, I needed some time to warm up...
08:47 AM, Apr 27, 2013
London: Liverpool striker Luis Suarez has been banned for 10 matches by the English Football Association for biting an opponent during a Premier League match. The suspension rules the Uruguay international out for the final four league matches of this campaign and the first six of next season. The FA said in a statement released Wednesday that an independent panel said the regular suspension for violent conduct of three games...
07:51 PM, Apr 24, 2013
London: Liverpool forward Luis Suarez has disputed the English FA's view that his punishment for biting Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic at the weekend merits a longer punishment than the usual three-game ban. The FA said in a statement on Tuesday that the Uruguayan international has accepted a charge of violent conduct but "has denied the FA's claim that the standard punishment of three matches is clearly insufficient for this offence". The...
03:37 AM, Apr 24, 2013
London: Luis Suarez found himself in the familiar position of being an outcast on Monday, charged by the Football Association, fined by Liverpool, and rebuked by the government for biting an opponent a day earlier. In a Premier League match broadcast globally on Sunday, Suarez bit Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic's arm. Although he escaped punishment during the game, Suarez now faces a lengthy ban. "The incident was not seen by...
10:57 PM, Apr 22, 2013
London: Luis Suarez has been fined by Liverpool for biting an opponent, and has been offered anger management counseling by England's footballers' union. The Uruguay striker dug his teeth into Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic's arm during Sunday's Premier League match before netting a last-gasp equalizer to clinch a 2-2 draw. Suarez announced Monday on Twitter that "for my unacceptable behavior yesterday the club has fined me today." He wants the...
03:42 PM, Apr 22, 2013
Liverpool: In the latest chapter of Luis Suarez's controversial career, the Uruguayan bit the arm of Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic during Sunday's 2-2 draw in the Premier League and apologised a few hours later. Suarez, who served a seven-game suspension for a bite during a Dutch league match in 2010, was foiled by Ivanovic as he attempted to kick the ball between the center back's legs in the penalty area....
08:18 AM, Apr 22, 2013
London: Chelsea condemned Paolo Di Canio to a losing start as manager of relegation-threatened Sunderland, coming from behind to win 2-1 and rise to third in the Premier League on Sunday. Cesar Azpilicueta's own goal on the stroke of half-time gave Di Canio the perfect start, but Sunderland collapsed after the break. The game's second own goal two minutes into the second half saw Matthew Kilgallon inadvertently hook the ball...
10:08 PM, Apr 07, 2013
The Serbians have nothing to lose when they visit bitter Balkan rivals Croatia in a World Cup Group A qualifier on March 22 and raucous fan support can only put pressure on the home side, Serbia right back Branislav Ivanovic said. ...
06:17 PM, Mar 14, 2013
Agnieszka Radwanska beat an error-prone Ana Ivanovic 6-1, 7-6 (6) to reach the Qatar Open quarterfinals. ...
10:24 PM, Feb 14, 2013
Former No. 1-ranked Caroline Wozniacki and Ana Ivanovic eased into the second round of the Qatar Open with straight-set victories on Monday. ...
10:28 AM, Feb 12, 2013
Agnieszka Radwanska has won her 13th consecutive match of the year, advancing to the Australian Open quarter-finals with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Ana Ivanovic on Sunday. ...
03:07 PM, Jan 20, 2013
Ivanovic is now up against No.4 Angieszka Radwanska, while Li Na plays Julia Goerges of Germany. ...
10:51 AM, Jan 18, 2013
Novak Djokovic and Ana Ivanovic led Serbia into the Hopman Cup final, winning their singles matches on Friday over Germany. ...
09:21 PM, Jan 04, 2013
Chelsea scored five goals in a masterful second-half display to beat old rival Leeds 5-1 on Wednesday, setting up a meeting with Swansea in the semi-finals of the League Cup. ...
08:11 AM, Dec 20, 2012
Prague: Lucie Safarova will open the Fed Cup final for the defending champion Czech Republic against Ana Ivanovic of Serbia. The 17th -ranked Safarova is 3-2 against the 12th-ranked Ivanovic, who is former No. 1. "It would be great to start with a lead," Safarova said at the draw ceremony at Prague City Hall. "That's what I'm going to try and I'm looking forward to." Eighth-ranked Petra Kvitova, who led...
07:42 PM, Nov 02, 2012
Moscow: Ana Ivanovic advanced to the quarterfinals of the Kremlin Cup on Thursday by beating qualifier Valeria Solovieva 6-1, 6-4. The 11th-ranked Serb broke Solovieva three times in the 19-year-old Russian's second match on the WTA Tour. Ivanovic, whose best result this season was a semifinal appearance in Indian Wells in March, will be playing in her fifth quarterfinal. The 2008 French Open champion is looking for her 12th career...
06:35 PM, Oct 18, 2012
Linz: Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium defeated two-time champion Ana Ivanovic 6-4, 6-0 Friday in the quarterfinals of the Generali Ladies. Top-ranked Victoria Azarenka, fifth-seeded Julia Goerges and Irina-Camelia Begu also advanced to the semi-finals. Flipkens, who is ranked 66th and had to qualify for the main draw, trailed 3-1 before winning 11 of the next 12 games. "It's incredible that I've beaten her," Flipkens said. "I tried to play my...
07:10 PM, Oct 13, 2012
