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Join Goal.com in saluting another player worthy of global recognition…

Welcome to Goal.com's regular feature: Goal.com World Player of the Week. Each week our worldwide team of editors will put forward a selected candidate, as chosen by Goal.com International, who deserves recognition for achieving something special that matchday. It won't necessarily be the best player in the world - at least not usually - but whoever we nominate will have done something amazing. It might be for a particularly awesome performance or for something praiseworthy off the pitch - either way, the person in question deserves special attention...

Goal.com World Player of the Week #85: Georgios Samaras (Castrol Ranking: N/A)
Club: Celtic
Country: Greece
Age: 25
Role: Forward
Achievement: Scored twice in the Old Firm derby against Rangers

Georgios Samaras has struggled for goals this season for Celtic and prior to Sunday's Old Firm derby against Rangers had failed to find the net in the Scottish Premier League all term.

Reports suggested that the 25-year-old Greece international could be offloaded in January, with Italian club Lazio and Spanish side Deportivo La Coruna reportedly interested in the services of the former Manchester City forward.

On Sunday afternoon though, it was the Grecian who turned out to be the hero as he scored both the goals against Rangers, leading Celtic to a 2-0 victory. Samaras didn't have the best of first halves at Ibrox but became a Greek warrior in the second.

The former Heerenveen forward's first goal came on 62 minutes and he added his second eight minutes later when he successfully converted the spot-kick he had himself earned.

The result means that Celtic are now four points clear of arch-rivals Rangers at the top of the Scottish Premier League table, although they have played two more games.

Congratulations to Georgios Samaras, Goal.com's 85th World Player of the Week!



Honourable Mentions

Cesc Fabregas - Arsenal (Castrol Ranking: 40)

Cesc Fabregas played his part in two of Arsenal's three matches over the past seven days. Monday last the Spain international midfielder scored one for the Gunners in their 3-1 triumph over Chelsea in the titanic clash in the Premier League, and also had the final touch of the ball that led to Alexandre Song's goal. Against Wigan Athletic the 23-year-old was suspended but he returned against Birmingham City in style on Saturday, linking up well with Samir Nasri and showcasing his creative abilities.

Gareth Bale - Tottenham Hotspur (Castrol Ranking: 50)

Gareth Bale continued to raise his stake in the Premier League this week with back-to-back performances of real quilty. Against Newcastle United on Tuesday the Wales international left back-cum-winger scored the important second goal nine minutes from time in their 2-0 victory and then against Fulham the 21-year-old added to his tally with the winner that helped Spurs consolidate a top four place in the table.

Pedro Rodriguez - Barcelona (Castrol Ranking: 124)

Barcelona were expected to win against Levante at Camp Nou on Sunday evening but were left frustrated by their own ability to take their chances. However, Pedro altered all that just two minutes after the restart when he found the target and added a second minutes later with a brilliant finish. The Spain international came close to scoring a third and had a brilliant game overall.

Takuji Nogawa - Kashima Antlers (Castrol Ranking: N/A)

Takuji Nogawa scored the decisive goal in Kashima Antlers' 2-1 victory over Shimizu S-Pulse in the final of the Emperor's Cup at the weekend. The midfielder found the winner with a perfect free-kick 13 minutes from time to secure a marvellous triumph for Antlers.

Leave your notes of congratulations for Georgios Samaras below, or discuss who else deserves a place in the sun this week...