Pavel Nedvěd (born 30 August 1972 in Cheb) is a retired Czech football midfielder. He is one of the most successful Czech players to emerge from the newly formed Czech Republic, winning numerous accolades with Lazio and Juventus, inlcuding the last ever Cup Winners' Cup. Widely regarded as one of the finest midfielders of the modern era, he was the recipient of the prestigious Ballon d'Or in 2003, only the second Czech player to receive this honour, and the first since the break up of Czechoslovakia. Nedved was also the recipient of the 2nd Golden Foot award in 2004. Nedved was also a key member of the Czech Republic team which reached the fianl of Euro '96, during which he garnered much international attention. He was also later given the international captaincy. Well known for his energy and tireless runs, as well as his goal scoring ability, Nedved was nicknamed Furia Ceca ("The Czech Fury", an Italian wordplay on the phrase Furia Cieca, meaning "Blind Fury") by Juventus fans. Nedvěd retired after the 2008–09 season after 19 years as a professional. He played 664 club games, scoring 146 goals, and was capped 91 times for the Czech Republic, scoring 18 times. source wikipedia.org and read more on wikipedia.
