CANNAVARO’S GONG

Remember a time when Ronaldo and Lionel Messi didn’t hog the Ballon d’or? Nope, us neither. But in 2006, Italy’s Fabio Cannavaro won out ahead of Gigi Buffon and Thierry Henry, becoming the first defender since Matthias Sammer in 1996 to scoop the award. A flawless World Cup had done it, with his Azzurri conceding just two goals before lifting the trophy. Real Madrid snapped him up for a bargain € 7m after the Calciopoli scandal.