Astori
The first word is a tragic one.
Davide Astori, the former captain of Serie A side Fiorentina, passed away at the age of 31 on March 4th. The whole football world mourned his death.
Ballon d'Or
Finally, a new winner - Luka Modric, the captain of Croatia and the core engine of Real Madrid, beat Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to win the Ballon d'Or, ending their 10-year duopoly of the award.
Modric also won the UEFA Player of the Year and the FIFA Best Player - a perfect personal treble in 2018.
Croatia
Once cast in the underdog role, Croatia made it to the World Cup final with a resounding performance, outshining Argentina, Columbia and England on their way. Unfortunately, they eventually failed to beat France in the final.
Thank you, Croatia, there may have been no happy ending but this has been the most beautiful fairytale in the summer of 2018.
Dramatic
Who could have imagined Roma knocked out Barcelona with a 3-0 victory?
Who could have imagined Loris Karius made two howlers in the Champions League final?
Who could have imagined Cristiano Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane both left Real Madrid after a third straight UCL title?
Football is unpredictable - that's why we love it.
El Clasico
In the first El Clasico without both Messi and Ronaldo in the recent 12 years, Barcelona hammered Real Madrid 5-1 with a dominant performance as Luis Suarez scored a hat-trick in their thumping victory. Julen Lopetegui was eventually sacked after the match.
This game was also voted the BEST match in 2018 by AFers.
France
As we mentioned before, Croatia's fairy tale ended in the World Cup final, and it was the mighty France who overcame their bold challenge with a thrilling 4-2 victory.
Les Bleus bagged their second World Cup trophy home, erasing the memories of their loss to Portugal in the Euro 2016 final in Paris.
Goodbye
Arsene Wenger. Andres Iniesta. Fernando Torres. Jupp Heynckes. Ronaldinho, Didier Drogba and John Terry leaving football. And the names go on...
Did they really leave? Yes. No. Doesn't matter anyway. You are gone but never forgotten.
Hairstyle
Ballon d'Or will anyhow have a final winner - no matter who the player is. But there will never be a winner for the Salon d'Or award!
Pogba's 'Super Saiyan', Neymar's 'Spaghetti', Fellaini shortest-ever haircut... which is your favourite?
Injury
Football can be cheering, but it can also be painful. Injuries are every footballer's nightmare.
Neymar missed nearly the entire first-half of 2018, Laurent Koscielny failed to lift the World Cup trophy with France, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's sit almost entire 2018 out of action, Kevin de Bruyne merely played a whole game in Premier League this season...
Here we wish everyone troubled by injuries a quick recovery.
Juventus
The Serie A giants were arguably the strongest team in Europe - in terms of defence and tactics. And now they have the most powerful weapon on the planet, Cristiano Ronaldo.
With the 5-time Ballon d'Or winner, Juventus are set for another charge for the Champions League title. And the eighth straight Scudetto of course.
King
When Gareth Bale netted his stunning brace to oversee Liverpool, when Paul Pogba and Kylian Mbappe scored to destroy Croatia, when Gabriel Jesus netted the winner to help Manchester City reach 100 points in Premier League...
"That was when I ruled the world."
Liverpool
Let's wind the clocks back a year. Liverpool were still fighting for a top-four place then, with Coutinho soon leaving for Barcelona. Despite the 'Fab Four' on the frontline, the defence of the Reds led by Dejan Lovren and Loris Karius was... you know what I mean.
And now? After entering the Champions League final last season, Liverpool now sit seven points clear of their nearest rivals, the current Premier League champions Manchester City.
Liverpool need a trophy, maybe more than any other top team - and they are close. Closer than ever.
Messi
2018 is not a good year for Lionel Messi - finishing fifth in the Ballon d'Or ranking, stunned by Roma in the Champions League, with his Argentina knocked out in the World Cup by Champions France.
But all these disappointments cannot stop him from shining. The magician netted 51 goals in the whole year, bagged his fifth European Golden Shoe award and was involved in nearly half of Barcelona’s goals in 2018.
To many fans, Messi was the best, is the best, and will always be the best.
Neymar rolling
Neymar had a World Cup to forget as Brazil got eliminated by Belgium in the quarter-final. But the internet treated him worse.
The 'Rolling Neymar' has become one of the most popular football memes in 2018 and was widely spread in the whole internet. Ney, guess you need to focus more on football rather than acting.
Overhead Kick
What's the most unconvincing award this year? Puskas, definitely. Mohamed Salah's goal against Everton won the award but that was even not his best goal last year, to be honest.
Indeed, everyone can have his opinion but I'm pretty sure the overhead kick of Cristiano Ronaldo or Gareth Bale deserved the goal of the year.
Pharaoh
King Mohamed of the House Salah, the First of His Name, King of the Anfield, the Pharaoh and the Egyptian King, Top-scorer of the Premier League, Leader of the Fab Four, the Unstoppable, Breaker of Defence and Protector of the Liver Bird.
And he is not a one-season wonder.
Question
2018 gave us some answers and still leaves us many questions. Who will become the next Ballon d'Or winner? Who will win the Champions League title after Real Madrid dynasty?
We will see in the next year.
Ronaldo
How much impact can a single player have on the entire football world? Cristiano Ronaldo gives you the maximum answer.
From leading Real Madrid to the Champions League title to single-handedly matching Spain in the 3-3 draw, to making his historical move to Juventus... every step he makes can cause an earthquake in the football world.
Sack
Mourinho left Manchester United at the end of 2018 as he suffered again from his 'third-season' curse, while Julen Lopetegui was sacked twice by Spain national team and Real Madrid in less than five months.
Managers come and go, but sacking them stays internal. There won't be another Alex Ferguson or Arsene Wenger in the current football world.
Treble
Last season we once considered winning back-to-back Champions League titles an unbelievable achievement before Real Madrid won it for the third successive times.
Truly there were much controversial on their road to the Champions but the history was already written. No one could deny Los Blancos' success on the European stage in recent years.
UEFA Nations League
A brand new competition for the national teams kickstarted its debut season this year. It brought us some exciting clashes like Netherlands vs Germany but also interrupted the normal fixtures of club football.
Will it be successful? It remains to be seen.
Vichai
Another tragedy this year. Leicester City owner Vichai Srivaddhnaprabha died after his helicopter crashed outside the King Power Stadium.
Enough for the description - that is too heartbreaking. What we need to know Vichai is the man who helped Leicester to 'dream the impossible'.
A kind man, a genuine football lover, and the author of one of football's greatest fairy tales.
World Cup
If we need to choose the biggest football event in 2018, it has to be the World Cup
31 days, 32 teams, 64 games, 169 goals and countless moments to remember.
XIX (Nineteen)
What were you doing at the age of nineteen? Studying in college, or getting your first job?
This year, a 19-year-old kid named Kylian Mbappe scored in the World Cup final to help his national team France become the World Champions.
And he is more than that - winning quadruple with PSG, becoming the first player to win the Kopa Trophy and beating his senior Antoine Griezmann to the French player of the Year.
And he still has much to improve.
Youngster
Kylian Mbappe is not the only youngster shining. Matthijs de Ligt, Frenkie De Jong, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Cengiz Under...
The world will be theirs someday.
Zidane
12 years ago, Zinedine Zidane marked his retirement from the football world with a red card in the World Cup final.
12 years later when everyone thought he was going to build an empire with Real Madrid, he left the club at its peak with glory.
It cost Zidane two and a half years to become the most successful player-manager in the 21st century.
This man is just a mystery.