FIFA Reveal Ballon d´Or Shortlist

Barcelona forward Lionel Messi and Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo have made the 23-man shortlist for the 2011 FIFA Ballon d'Or award.

Manchester United players Wayne Rooney and Nani have also made the cut alongside the likes of Luis Suarez and Sergio Aguero.

The list is dominated by 2010 World Cup winners Spain with seven candidates to win the trophy, while 2011 Copa America holders Uruguay have two players in contention to take home the award.

Meanwhile, three German players still have a chance to win the Ballon d'Or, while Argentina and Brazil will have to settle for two candidates.

Anzhi Makhachkala striker Samuel Eto'o is the only African player to have made the cut.

Champions League holders Barcelona are the best represented club team on the list with eight players up for nomination.

The winner of the award will be revealed at the Zurich Kongresshaus on January 9, 2012. On December 5, 2011 FIFA and France Football will announce the names of the three men who have received the most votes.

Last year's award was won by Messi ahead of his Barcelona team-mates Iniesta and Xavi.

Full list: Eric Abidal, Karim Benzema (France), Sergio Aguero, Lionel Messi (Argentina), Iker Casillas, Cesc Fabregas, Andres Iniesta, Gerard Pique, David Villa, Xabi Alonso, Xavi (Spain), Cristiano Ronaldo, Nani (Portugal), Dani Alves, Neymar (Brazil), Samuel Eto'o (Cameroon), Diego Forlan, Luis Suarez (Uruguay), Thomas Muller, Mesut Ozil, Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany), Wayne Rooney (England), Wesley Sneijder (Netherlands)

Raul Eyes Real Future

Raul has been assured by Real Madrid that he will have a role at the club when he has ended his playing career, according to the Spanish striker's agent.

Raul, 34, is under contract at Schalke until next summer after rejecting the opportunity to experience the Premier League with Blackburn during the transfer window.

Schalke have indicated that Raul could be offered another deal but, at this stage of his career, the player is already starting to think about life after he hangs up his boots.

And Raul's representative, Gines Carvajal, has revealed that his client is planning to return to the Santiago Bernabeu following his retirement.

"Raul is turning 35 years of age and he is under contract until June 2012. He needs to know how the current season will turn out," Carvajal told the Spanish-based Terra media.

"We have agreed that the end of the season is a perfect moment to discuss the future.

"It is agreed that he will be given a role at Real Madrid when he hangs up his boots and has retired from the game."

Raul began his career at Real and achieved legendary status before leaving for Schalke on a free transfer 12 months ago.

Fergie Rubbishes Barca Talk

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson believes Barcelona is not the greatest team of all time and does not think there is 'any sense' in trying to compare them with great teams from the past.

Barcelona beat United in the Champions League final back in May to claim their third European crown in six years.

Pep Guardiola's men have also won La Liga three years in a row and that dominance both in Europe and domestically have led to many calling them one of the greatest sides of all time.

When quizzed on the issue Ferguson agreed that Barca were a world-class team but were only good enough to rank alongside famous sides of the past.

"It's certainly among the best sides of all time. But so was the Milan side with Franco Baresi, (Carlo) Ancelotti, (Roberto) Donadoni and the Dutch players," Ferguson told Corriere dello Sport

"There's a short memory in football. Now everyone says Barcelona is a fantastic squad, but at the time they said the same thing about Milan.

"I don't think there's any sense in asking which is the best team of all time. The important thing is to remember that a certain squad was special.

"That makes me think of the Dutch squads in the 70s, Bayern and Celtic, which beat Inter in the European Cup in 1967. That was a squad in which the players were born within a 25-kilometre radius."

Premier League Clubs Reveal Cost Of A Day At The Game

Blackburn Rovers marketing manager Simon Williams believes the club's commitment to making football affordable has helped them produce the best value matchday offer in the Premier League.

A survey by BBC Sport showed Rovers offer better value deals for adults without season tickets, than the rest of the top flight.

Rovers offer £10 adult tickets for several games a season - meaning fans can enjoy the match, a pie, a program and a cup of tea for just £17.50. That's in comparison to Liverpool, where the cheapest day out available is £46.95.

"We made a conscious business decision four years ago to put bums on seats at Ewood Park through cheap season tickets and £10 tickets for certain category games," said Williams.

"And this has been a great success with the fans, pushing our average home attendance up by several thousand to 25,000. That's fantastic considering the town has a population of 130,000.

"The players have gone on record to say how much the atmosphere in the stadium has improved and how it drives them on. So it does make a difference."

Unsurprisingly, clubs in London are generally more expensive, with Arsenal (£100), Chelsea (£87) and Tottenham (£80) having the highest cost of matchday tickets in the country. However, Chelsea's cheapest ticket is £23.50. Champions Manchester United and cross-city rivals City compare relatively well - United's cheapest day out is £35.60 while City's cheapest ticket is £25.

Newcastle United were the only club of the 104 surveyed in England, Wales and Scotland not to disclose their matchday prices.

In a statement, the Premier League said it did not interfere with prices, but made clear that games were expected across the division to be 92 per cent full this season.

The statement said: "Individual Premier League clubs decide at what level to price their match tickets. What is clear is that they all work extremely hard to fill their grounds with varied pricing pitched at fans with different budgets and needs."