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Colombia defender Mario Yepes insists that Real Madrid star James Rodriguez could challenge Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi for this year's Ballon d'Or. Rodriguez has been named on the 23-man shortlist after a brilliant World Cup campaign with Colombia and a big money move from Monaco to Madrid in the summer. Although the 23-year-old is yet to reach the goalscoring heights of Ronaldo or Messi, Yepes is confident his compatriot is showing why Madrid paid upwards of £60million for his talents. +4 Mario Yepes believes James Rodriguez (right) can challenge for this year's Ballon d'Or +4 Rodriguez will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of the current Ballon d'Or holder Cristiano Ronaldo (right) The Colombia captain told Fifa's official website: 'Can James compete with Cristiano Ronaldo and [Lionel] Messi for the Ballon d’Or? I’m sure that given what he achieved at the World Cup, he’s got what it takes to challenge them ...

Real Madrid ’s  Cristiano Ronaldo  is not as skilful as his Barcelona rival  Lionel Messi , according to former England coach Fabio Capello. As Barca superstar Messi nears the La Liga all-time top scorer record – of which he will pass if he nets twice at home to Celta  Vigo  on Saturday - Capello has paid tribute to the four-time Ballon d'Or winner. Messi moved to within one goal of Telmo Zarra's record for Athletic  Bilbao during the 1940s and 1950s, having scored on seven occasions for Barcelona this season. That, however, pales into insignificance in comparison to Ronaldo’s 16 league goals this term – the Portuguese currently 10th on Spain’s leading scorers list. The pair may have a very similar goalscoring record for their respective teams and are the only two active players in Spain’s top flight to have scored over 100 goals, but Russia boss Capello believes that the Barca star –  whom he tried to sign for Juventus in 2005  – has t...

Andy Rubin, Former Head of Android, Departs Google By  CONOR DOUGHERTY   OCTOBER 30, 2014 9:42 PM October 30, 2014 9:42 pm Photo Andy Rubin in 2011. Mr. Rubin was a founder of Android, the mobile operating system behind Google’s smartphones and tablets. Credit  Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Andy Rubin, a high-ranking Google executive who spearheaded the company’s entrance into mobile phones and tablets and was in charge of the company’s nascent robotics group, has left the company. Mr. Rubin is leaving to start a tech incubator focused on start-ups interested in building hardware, he said. “I want to wish Andy all the best with what’s next. With Android he created something truly remarkable — with a billion-plus happy users,” said Larry Page, Google’s chief executive, in a statement. Mr. Rubin’s departure is part of a series of recent executive moves that seem to give Mr. Page more room to focus on the company’s longer-term bets — like robotics — w...

Andy Rubin   Jerome Favre / Bloomberg via Getty Images The shakeups at Google continue. A week after the tech giant reorganized its top management, Andy Rubin, Google’s head of robotics and former head of Android, has confirmed that he is stepping down from the company to launch a new incubator for hardware startups. Rubin  confirmed  the news in  The Wall Street Journal  Friday, stating that he was leaving Google because he wanted to start something on his own. Rubin, who co-founded Android, joined Google in 2005 after the company acquired the mobile operating system, and he proceeded to run the Android division of the company until last year. That’s when he switched roles to head up Google’s robotics efforts, which included a slew of acquisitions. Now, Rubin’s sudden departure is raising new questions about why he would leave the company so soon into his tenure as robotics chief. In an email to the  Journal , Rubin insisted that his decis...

Andy Rubin helped build and expand the Android operating system to one billion users A senior Google executive who spearheaded the launch and expansion of the Android mobile operating system to more than one billion users has left Google for a startup venture, the company announced Thursday. Andy Rubin led the development of Google’s mobile platform until last year, when he briefly took the helm of the company’s nascent robotics unit. He pushed for the acquisition of Boston Dynamics, a robotics company that has made waves with its spry, four-legged machines that can  run like a cheetah . Rubin is leaving the company to launch an incubator for startups focused on developing hardware products, the Wall Street  Journal  reports . CEO Larry Page bid farewell to Rubin in a public statement on Thursday. “I want to wish Andy all the best with what’s next,” Page said. “With Android he created something truly remarkable— with a billion-plus happy users.” Rubin will be su...

Cristiano Ronaldo  and his girlfriend of four years,  model Irina Shayk , delighted fans when they attended an awards ceremony in Madrid, Spain this week. The attractive couple are rarely pictured walking the red carpet together, but the Russian model showed her support for her soccer star boyfriend by accompanying him to the Professional Football League gala. It was a celebratory night for Real Madrid champion Cristiano, who scooped the gongs for Best Forward, Best Goal and Best Player for the 2013-14 Liga BBVA season. CLICK ON PHOTOS TO ENLARGE Cristiano Ronaldo has previously referred to his girlfriend Irina Shayk as his ‘wife’ While Cristiano, 29, cut a dapper figure in a charcoal suit and navy blue tie, his girlfriend Irina drew eyes for her elegant evening gown. The beautiful lady in red flaunted her statuesque figure in a full-length, column dress, which featured cut-out panels on the side and silver embellishments around the waist and neckline. Irina, 28,...

Former Argentina coach, Alejandro Sabella, has insisted Lionel Messi sacrificed himself for his country at the World Cup. Messi’s World Cup performances and his nomination for the best player in Brazil have received much criticism and the debate was revived when  Sepp Blatter stated the 27-year-old didn’t deserve the Golden Ball . Sabella, however, defended the Argentina captain, saying he accepted a deeper role to help the team. "Messi is an example for the national team," the 59-year-old told  Radio La Red . "He put himself at the disposal of the tame and played in solidarity with his team-mates. "I commend Messi for the World Cup he had. He put the group first, before the individual, and he personally sacrificed himself for the benefit of the team." Sabella also insisted Argentina could have won the tournament, if they had been more clinical with their chances in the final against Germany. "We had to deal with a great physical and me...

Most children would give their right arm to meet Cristiano Ronaldo but not, it would appear,  Luka   Modric 's son.  Little  Ivano , who is just four, completely blanked the  Real Madrid  superstar when he had the chance to meet him at the recent La Liga gala awards. Instead,  Ivano  decided to concentrate on his computer game, while daddy Modric  offered up the explanation: "Sorry Cristiano, he’s a bit shy." Or maybe, he's secretly a Lionel  Messi  fan!   [ YouTube , h/t  101 Great Goals ]

Sepp Blatter, FIFA president (Photo:AFP) Published 30 October 2014 We Recommend The three-time World Player of the Year led his side to their first World Cup final since 1990. At  press   conference  in  Russia Wednesday, FIFA president, Sepp Blatter said that Lionel Messi did not deserve the Golden Ball award for best player in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. "I think the decision to give Messi the Golden Ball was incorrect,” said Blatter. “I was surprised when I received the committee’s decision. They told me they had only looked at 10 of the players who took part in the final.” In the past, Blatter expressed that the Golden Ball should have been given to German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, who won the World Cup’s Golden Glove for the best goalkeeper. “Right now I don’t care about the prize,” said the Argentina fordward to AS, back in July. When Messi's awa...

Find out which is the better in the meetings between Spain's biggest sides SIMON RICE      Friday 24 October 2014 144 PRINT A   A   A Who is better - Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo? It is an argument that has rumbled for years, continues to be debated today and will likely be mulled over for years to come. Undeniably, both are incredible players, arguably the best to have ever played the game. Officially, Ronaldo is currently the best in the world as he holds the Fifa Ballon d'Or trophy which recognises as such. His win in January ended four years of Messi winning the accolade. But whilst it is almost impossible to draw a line between them, the  games  between Real Madrid and Barcelona will help define them. They are the biggest stars in football and El Clasico is the biggest stage. El Clasico: Memorab...