Another calendar year is about to pass by and it’s been another huge 12 months in football, so Sports Pundit has decided to take a look back.
January
Chelsea laid out a stunning £49.5m for Liverpool striker Fernando Torres on deadline day. The fee was the fourth biggest in football history. The Reds spent £35m of that cash on Andy Carroll from Newcastle. Both have since failed to totally prove their worth, with the former really having a year from hell.
Earlier in the month, Roy Hodgson is sacked at Liverpool, with club legend Kenny Dalglish returning to the helm. Meanwhile, Edin Dzeko leaves Wolfsburg for Manchester City for a record-breaking fee of around 31 and 35 million euros.
Japan won the 2011 Asian Cup with a 1-0 extra-time victory over Australia in the final in Qatar. Tadanari Lee struck a fine volley for the winner, clinching the Samurai Blue its fourth Asian Cup in six attempts.
February
FC Copenhagen became the first ever Danish club to compete in the final 16 of the Uefa Champions League but bowed out 2-0 on aggregate to Chelsea.
Arsenal’s long wait for silverware continues after they lose the final of the English Carling Cup to Birmingham City 2-1.
March
Tottenham’s dream run in the Uefa Champions League comes to an end at the hands of Real Madrid.
April
German club Schalke 04 stunned reigning European champions Inter Milan 5-2 at the San Siro in the Uefa Champions League, before eliminating them 7-3 on aggregate at the quarter-final stage.
Borussia Dortmund confirm their status as German champions after a 2-0 win over FC Nurnberg, meanwhile Bayern officially sacked Louis van Gaal.
Fernando Torres finally scores his first goal for Chelsea, in his 13th appearance for the club, a 3-0 win over West Ham.
Real Madrid win the Copa del Rey after Cristiano Ronaldo’s extra-time strike clinches a 1-0 win over FC Barcelona in the decider.
May
FC Barcelona win the Uefa Champions League after defeating Manchester United 3-1 in the final in London, with Pedro putting them ahead, before Wayne Rooney levelled. The Spaniards would find the goals in the second-half with Lionel Messi netting on 54 minutes, before David Villa sealed the win on 69 minutes.
Earlier in the month, Barcelona sealed the Spanish La Liga title with a 1-1 draw with Levante. Barca would win the title by four points from Real Madrid.
AC Milan clinched its first Scudetto since 2004, with a scoreless draw away to AS Roma confirming them as Italian champions and ending their rivals Inter’s run. AC Milan would eventually win the title by six points from Inter, who were Coppa Italia winners.
Manchester United clinch the English Premier League title, but miss out on the FA Cup, with Manchester City lifting the trophy after a 1-0 win over Stoke City in the decider.
FC Porto completed a stunning 2010-11 season, where they won their domestic league having dropped just six points, also claiming the Europa League crown after a 1-0 final victory over Sporting Braga. It was just the beginning for boss Andre Villas-Boas who would go on to coach Chelsea.
June
Mexico won the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup after a thrilling 4-2 final victory over rivals USA. El Tri had to come from 2-0 down to win a superb final in Pasadena, with many Mexican fans outnumbering locals during the tournament. Javier Hernandez was the star of the Gold Cup with seven goals.
Sepp Blatter was re-elected as Fifa president unopposed at the 61st Fifa Congress held in Zurich. His victory came amid much conjecture following Mohamed bin Hammam’s decision to drop out of the race. Bin Hammam, along with Jack Warner, would later be banned from football for life for corruption in the bid process.
July
Uruguay won the 2011 Copa America after a tournament full of shocks as Brazil and Argentina bowed out at the quarter-final stage. Uruguay won the final 3-0 over Paraguay, with Luis Suarez and Diego Forlan getting the goals in the decider in Buenos Aires. Memorably, Paraguay reached the final having failed to win one game in normal or extra time.
Japan memorably won the 2011 Fifa Women’s World Cup, stunning the favourites USA in the final on penalties. Japan became the first Asian nation to win a Fifa World Cup with their 3-1 spotkicks victory.
Mexico also lifted the Under-17 Fifa World Cup on home turf, having swept their group before knocking off Uruguay 2-0 in the decider.
August
Brazil were crowned Under-20 Fifa World Cup champions after winning the tournament in Colombia, with a hard-fought 3-2 decider victory over Portugal in extra-time. Oscar was the hero with a hat-trick in the final.
Cesc Fabregas leaves Arsenal for FC Barcelona in a deal rumoured to be worth £35million. Samir Nasri also leaves the Emirates for big-spending Manchester City. At the end of the month, Manchester United smash a depleted Arsenal 8-2. The Gunners start the season poorly.
The Spanish La Liga season is delayed after a player strike. Italy’s Serie A also suffers a similar setback.
September
Carlos Tevez falls out of favour at Manchester City after refusing to come off the bench in a Uefa Champions League clash against Bayern Munich. Boss Roberto Mancini says after the game, that the Argentine will never play for the club again. He didn’t in 2011.
October
Manchester City move well clear in the English title race after demolishing city and title rivals Manchester United 6-1 at Old Trafford.
November
Wales manager and former English Premier League star Gary Speed was found dead at his home aged 42.
December
Barcelona claimed another title after winning the 2011 Club World Cup with a comfortable final victory over South American champions Santos. However, striker David Villa broke his leg at the tournament, ruling him out for the rest of the season.
Manchester United is knocked out of the Uefa Champions League by Swiss champions FC Basel, relegating them to the Europa League. Manchester City are also eliminated.
Brazilian great Socrates passed away aged 57.