From Heroes to Zeros at WC 2010

[bholas]

The World Cup is certainly a stage which can make or break careers. For some it offers an opportunity to find their mark and have a shot at glory, but for some, who already have a larger-than-life status, it becomes extremely hard to live up to their reputation.

Massive crowd, national responsibility and wide expectations are the factors which contribute to the nerves and make matters worse for these big names. Here's a look at some of the players who entered the tournament on a high but left on a disappointing note, making them from Heroes to Zeros.

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[bholas]

Cristiano Ronaldo

Be it his s****s on the field or his affairs off it, Cristiano Ronaldo continues to hog the headlines for every thing that he does. But this time he was in news for wrong reasons. Scoring one goal in the last two years, spitting into the camera and his failure to credit Spain for the win, all earned him the infamous title of a 'spoilsport' at this edition of the World Cup.

[bholas]

The old and young Maradonas

While one of them was searching for glory as a player, the other was trying to find it as a coach. Lionel Messi, who has already won the FIFA player of the world award and Diego Maradona, a two-time World Cup winner, both failed to click as player and manager and slumped to a humiliating 4-0 defeat at the hands of Germany.

[bholas]

Wayne Rooney

England star striker came into the World Cup after an excellent season with Manchester United where he scored 34 goals. Expectations were even higher with him being one of the most highly rate strikers in the world, but in the World Cup he was often let down by poor first touches and lack of penetration. He scored no goals in four matches that he played.

[bholas]

Dunga

Carlos Caetano Bledorn Verri, commonly known as Dunga, was looking to become only the second man in the history of the sport to win the title as both the captain as the coach. His tactics to prefer form over experience backfired as Brazil put up a rather immature performance against the Dutch losing 2-1 after leading in the first half.