6) The Spanish national side emerged as a force to reckon with
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Vicente del Bosque was appointed as the head coach of the Spanish national side back in 2008. Soon after, La Furia Roja became a force to reckon with in world football. Spain went on to win a couple of UEFA European Championships (2008 and 2012) and a FIFA World Cup (2010) over a period of just four years.
Although del Bosque’s men crashed out in the first round of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, they are still one of the favourites to clinch the 2016 UEFA Euro that is to be held in France.
7) The inception of the Lionel Messi-Cristiano Ronaldo rivalry
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are, undoubtedly, two of the most iconic footballers that the world has witnessed in recent years. The inception of their rivalry started in 2009, when Real Madrid purchased the Portugal international from Manchester United for a world record transfer fee of 80 million pounds.
Lionel Messi had established himself at Barcelona by that time since his debut for the Nou Camp-based side, back in 2004. Both the footballers were household names when Ronaldo first arrived in Spain and they were playing in two of the biggest clubs in the world.
The stage was set and to be honest, neither of them has disappointed us until now.
8) Manchester United overtook Liverpool in number of English league titles
Sir Alex Ferguson had once said, “My greatest challenge is not what's happening at the moment (2002-03 Premier League title race), my greatest challenge was knocking Liverpool right off their f*****g perch. And you can print that.”
And that is what the 74-year-old Scott actually did when his team clinched the English First Division title for a record 19th time, back in 2010-11. The Old Trafford-based side went on to win the Premiership once again in 2012-13.
9) The rise of Borussia Dortmund as a European superpower
Borussia Dortmund unveiled Jurgen Klopp as the club’s new manager on 1 July 2008 and just within a couple of years the German manager transformed Dortmund into a European powerhouse.
After a string of mediocre seasons, Dortmund clinched their first Bundesliga title after a gap of eight years. In a league which is highly dominated by a club like Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund sealed their second consecutive Bundesliga title in 2011-12 despite a poor start to the season.
Moreover, Jurgen Klopp’s side finished as the runners-up in the 2012-13 season of the UEFA Champions League. Although Borussia Dortmund lost the final match of the coveted competition to Bayern Munich by 1-2, they had successfully won the hearts of the billions of football lovers all over the globe.
10) Sir Alex Ferguson retired from football management
Sir Alex Ferguson is, without a shade of doubt, one of the best football managers that the world has ever seen. After having managed a number of football clubs like East Stirlingshire, St. Mirren and Aberdeen, the Scottish manager took charge of Manchester United back in 1986.
A man of genius, Ferguson had won 13 Premier Leagues, five FA Cups, four League Cups, 10 Community Shields and a couple of UEFA Champions League among other silverwares during his stay at the Old Trafford-based club.
The 74-year-old Scott who had transformed Manchester United into a fortress, a legacy, retired from professional football management in 2013.
