Italian and Real Madrid defender Fabio Cannavaro won this year's European Footballer of the year. This year means a lot because a defender won the award. usually the award is given to strikers and midfielders, but this year Cannavaro came out on top with a total of 173 votes. Trailing behind him was fellow Italian G.Buffon, and in third came French striker T.Henry. Last year's winner Ronaldinho came in fourth. Once Fabio Cannavaro won the award, the first thing he plans on doing with it is taking it to Naples where the town holds a special place in his heart. A big part of his success included winning the World Cup this past summer with Italy. Not only was he part of the Azzuri winning the cup, but as well as the Juventus scandal that rocked the Serie A.; thus causing him to leave Turin and join Madrid. No matter what, he does indeed deserve to win this year for all of the hard work and drama he has gone through. It is very nice to see the award given out to an Italian and someone who has made a great impact on the football world.