The 100 greatest players of all time

Baggio

Very few players have dominated the latter stages of a World Cup like Roberto Baggio did in 1994

70. Thierry Henry

Career span 1994-
Country France: 123 caps, 51 goals
Clubs Monaco, Juventus, Arsenal, Barcelona, New York Red Bulls
Position forward
Medals 1 World Cup, 1 European Championship, 1 Champions League, 6 domestic titles (2 England, 2 Spain,1 France, 1 USA Eastern); 4 domestic cups (3 England, 1 Spain)

The great contradiction of Thierry Henry’s career is that his finest form never quite coincided with his most prized medals.
This is not to repeat the misguided charge that Henry was “not a big-game player”. He did, after all, score the quarter-final goal that put defending champions Brazil out of the 2006 World Cup. Before that, he had recharged a faltering Arsenal with the hat-trick against Liverpool that ensured their invincible season. And, bookending all of those feats, he had terrorised defences in Euro 2000 before proving a steady – and occasionally spectacular – presence on the wing for Barcelona’s historic treble.

But, in that 2008-09 campaign as well as France’s international double between 1998 and 2000, Henry was only ever a supporting actor in contrast to the star-turn he proved for Arsenal in between.

Which is not to take away from his highlights at Highbury. Henry was the player most responsible for the 2002 double, 2004 title and he even scored five goals in 11 games on the way to the 2006 Champions league final. As Arsene Wenger enthused, he could “take the ball in the middle of the park and score a goal that no one else in the world could.”

At his best, he was one of the most exquisite footballers ever seen. But, contrarily, his best moments never quite saw that.

Ability 85
International 73
Club 74
Total 77.3

 

69. Ladislao Kubala

Career span 1944-67
Country Czechoslovakia: 6 caps, 4 goals; Hungary: 3 caps; Spain: 19 caps, 11 goals
Clubs Ganz, Ferencvaros, Vasas, Pro Patria, Hungaria, Barcelona, Espanyol, Zurich
Position forward
Medals 2 Fairs Cups, 4 Spanish titles, 5 Spanish cups

“Thanks to Kubala,” former Barcelona player and scout, Pepe Samitier once said, “football moved from being an operetta to become an opera.”

Certainly, his career was filled with dramatic extremes. He should, for example, have been on the Torino plane that crashed into the Superga hills on 4 May 1959. Only illness to his son prevented him travelling with the side after agreeing to play in a friendly against Benfica.

Otherwise a pawn of history, Kubala was denounced as a delinquent on leaving Communist Hungary before finding himself hijacked for all kinds of propaganda purposes in post-Civil War Spain.

But it’s also funny how history turns out.

The story goes that, on signing for Barcelona in 1950, the club’s representatives had to get him drunk so he wouldn’t realise he was heading for Camp Nou instead of the Bernabeu. It was initially Real Madrid Kubala thought he was signing for.

Such were Kubala’s subsequent successes at Barcelona between 1951 and 1953, however, that Real Madrid simply had to respond. And they did so by ensuring the Catalans certainly wouldn’t get Alfredo Di Stefano.

And so arrived one of football history’s great turning points. In a wicked ironic twist, Kubala’s wild living – and the drinking Barca had apparently encouraged at first – would curtail his career at the top. By contrast, Di Stefano’s discipline and drive would completely transform Real Madrid. They went from a moderate team to a mega institution.

There can be little doubt, however, that both Kubala and Di Stefano were equivalents in terms of ability. When asked to compare the two, Samitier was diplomatic. “I will simply say that no one like these two players has until now produced football of such beauty and entertainment.”

In his brilliant history, Barca, Jimmy Burns describes Kubala as a playmaker who “brought a combination of skills that the club had until then rarely seen. He was quick on and off the ball, demonstrated extraordinary control when dribbling, showed an unrivalled vision and was always accurate in shooting and deadfalls.”

More importantly, though, “it was around Kubala’s charisma and footballing skills that Barca overcame its post-war loss of confidence and shattered organisation, developing one of its strongest and most successful teams.”

Kubala immediately inspired the club to successive league and cup doubles between 1951 and 1953. But it was the second of those that secured his mythical status. Kubala recovered from a bout of tuberculosis that doctors said could end his career to belatedly fire Barca to the title.

All those extremes couldn’t be contained to the pitch though. Just before a 1955 Fairs Cup game, Kubala lead a group his teammates to a late-night brothel. The club didn’t just strip him of the captaincy. They ordered a private detective to monitor his private life.

And a notorious disciplinarian like Helenio Herrera was never going to stand for such hedonism. As the new manager’s Barcelona took flight from 1958, they returned from one European trip only for Kubala to be asked if he had anything to declare at the airport. “Yes, two bottles of whiskey,” he responded… before pointing to his stomach.

It was little coincidence that Kubala’s career waned as Herrera’s rose. And, in that sense, it’s possible Herrera might have fulfilled his potential even more had he got to perform properly in the nascent European Cup.

But he had already made history – even if he was occasionally used by it.

Ability 90
International 61
Club 81
Total 77.3

 

68. Frank Rijkaard

Career span 1980-95
Country Holland: 73 caps, 10 goals
Clubs Ajax, Sporting, Real Zaragoza (loan), Milan, Ajax
Position midfelder
Medals 1 European Championship, 3 European Cups, 1 Cup Winners Cups, 7 domestic titles (5 Dutch, 2 Italian), 3 Dutch cups

Arrigo Sacchi would accept no alternatives. Despite president Silvio Berlusconi’s attempts to push other players in his direction, the Milan manager knew who he wanted in the summer of 1987: Frank Rijkaard.

The Dutch midfielder, after all, was a classic “universalist” as Sacchi would call it – equally proficient breaking up attacks as making them. The latter was most emphatically seen at Milan. Sacchi would use Rijkaard’s force and power to great effect in his pressing game – not least in the 1990 European Cup final when the Dutchman motored through the Benfica defence to score the game’s only goal.

In the same showpiece five years later, he would frustrate Milan using his other qualities. Louis van Gaal guided Ajax to the 1995 Champions League partly through his utilisation of Rijkaard as a wisened head at the back.

Not that we saw that side of him in 1990, of course. Rijkaard losing his temper was part of the reason Holland lost their World Cup second-round game against Germany. But then he had already been a focal point in the Euro 88 victory. And so many other victories thereafter.

Ability 77
International 75
Club 80
Total 77.3

 

67. John Charles

Career span 1948-74
Country Wales: 38 caps, 15 goals
Clubs Leeds United, Juventus, Leeds United, Roma, Cardiff City, Hereford United, Merthyr Tydfil
Position forward, centre-half
Medals 3 Italian titles, 2 Italian cups, 2 Welsh cups

Not Diego Maradona. Not Marco Van Basten. Not Ronaldo. Not Zinedine Zidane. The player at the top of Serie A’s greatest foreign imports is none other than the ‘gentle giant’ John Charles.

Part of that is undoubtedly down to the period he joined. Before Charles arrived, Juventus hadn’t won a title in six years. After it, they won Serie A three times in four years, with one of them part of a double.

By then, he had also been at the heart of Wales’s greatest ever international achievement as they reached the last eight of the 1958 World Cup. Only a Pele goal put them out, with Charles missing the game through injury. Brian Glanville wondered what might have happened had he been fit, since he had given opposition teams “immense trouble” throughout.

Indeed, one of his greatest gifts was undoubtedly his sheer presence, which helped him reach “a world-class level” – according to Bobby Robson – as a centre-half and centre-forward. Not to mention in two different countries.

Ability 80
International 76
Club 76
Total 77.3

 

66. Arie Haan

Career span 1969-85
Country Holland: 35 caps, 6 goals
Clubs Ajax, Anderlecht, Standard Liege, PSV Eindhoven, Seiko
Position defensive midfielder
Medals 3 European Cups, 2 Cup Winners Cups, 6 domestic titles (3 Holland, 3 Belgium), 4 domestic cups (3 Holland, 1 Belgium)

According to David Winner’s touchstone book on Dutch football, Brilliant Orange, Arie Haan was the most underrated player of the 1970s golden age for the country.

Not by himself of course. Haan actually accumulated more medals than any other individual of the period – as he always made sure to point out.

“Cruyff may have been the best, but I won more. And that’s what football is about.”

Whatever the truth of that, Haan arguably typified Total Football even more than Cruyff. Across his career, he moved from defensive midfield to libero to playmaker and ultimately striker. More importantly, he excelled in each.

Having been one of the midfield motors of the European three-in-a-row alongside Johan Neeskens, Haan was then moved into central defence by Rinus Michels for the 1974 World Cup. The idea was that the Dutch would be an even more aggressive, progressive team with Haan’s passing ability initiating attacks from just in front of the main centre-half. It worked superbly… until the final when his lack of actual defensive abilities allowed Rainer Bonhof to charge past him and set up Gerd Muller for the deciding goal.

Haan somewhat made up for that in the next tournament as his long-range rocket against Italy put the Dutch back into the final. Thereby, he also fulfilled one of Cruyff’s predictions from his youth.

“That lad has gunpowder in his shoes,” Cruyff enthused on first seeing Haan. “Watch him, he’ll develop himself tremendously and he will demonstrate his rickets from distance.”

Anderlecht certainly saw the best of that, as Haan’s goals effectively secured the first of two Cup Winners Cups. But, evidently, there was so much more to Haan’s game.

Ability 77
International 80
Club 75
Total 77.3

 

65. Roberto Baggio

Career span 1982-2004
Country Italy: 56 caps, 27 goals
Clubs Vicenza, Fiorentina, Juventus, Milan, Bologna, Inter, Brescia
Position forward
Medals 1 Uefa Cup; 2 Italian titles; 1 Italian Cup

So much talent. So few actual trophies to show for it.

To an extent, Baggio’s problem was timing. Despite proving himself one of the most prolific Italian penalty-makers, for example, he went and missed the most infamous spot-kick in the country’s history. Shortly after that, he fell out with Marcello Lippi just as Juventus embarked on the most successful era in their history. And he then joined Milan in 1995 just as theirs was coming to an end.

If Baggio didn’t exactly lift many trophies, however, he did lift a lot of spirits. Not least at USA 94. In effect, Baggio dragged Italy to the final. He scored the last-minute equaliser against Nigeria in the last-16, the late quarter-final winner against Spain and then tore Bulgaria apart in the semi-finals. In terms of match-winning influence in latter-stage games, there have been very few players who have matched Baggio’s in that World Cup. It remains one of the competition’s great individual displays, whatever followed in the final.

But then that tournament also illustrated his eternal difficulty in Italian football. When the side went down to 10 men in the opening round against Norway, manager Arrigo Sacchi sacrificed his star turn in order to keep the structure of the system. In essence, Baggio was always too effervescent – as well as headstrong – to fit into the country’s rigid tactical approaches of the time.

It ensured he finished with few medals. But plenty of memories.

Ability 88
International 75
Club 70
Total 77.67

 

64. Samuel Eto’o

Career span 1997-
Country Cameroon: 103 caps, 50 goals
Clubs Real Madrid (Leganes, Espanyol, Mallorca); Malloca, Barcelona, Inter, Anzhi Makhachkala
Position striker
Medals 2 African Cups of Nations; 3 Champions Leagues; 4 domestic titles (3 Spain, 1 Italy); 3 domestic cups (1 Spain, 2 Italy)

Off the pitch, Samuel Eto’o has always had something of a reputation for difficulty. He departed Real Madrid with the hierarchy complaining that “he leaves a lot to be desired as a person” before eventually falling out with Pep Guardiola at Barcelona. And even beyond his difficulties with Spain’s big two, his career has been punctuated by training-ground spats, troubles with teammates and even an accusation that he had issued a reporter with a death threat.

But the offset has always been that, on the pitch, Eto’o has made life much easier for everyone except the opposition.

Firstly, through his goals. Between 2002 and 2011, Eto’o has enjoyed a ratio of a goal every 1.6 games. And two of his strikes, of course, were the equaliser in the 2006 Champions League final and the opener in the 2009 event. Talk about a striker that produces on the biggest stages.

But it was the Champions League final that he didn’t score in which illustrated Eto’o’s other main quality: his endeavour and selflessness. For Inter, Eto’o admirably adapted his game to prove a right-winger-cum-right-back. There can be no questioning his commitment when he’s actually playing.

Nor can you question his commitment to his continent. A very vocal and proud African, Eto’o is fittingly the Cup of Nations’ all-time leading scorer. And that has brought Cameroon two titles, in 2000 and 2002. The only caveat to his international career is that, in three World Cups, he has never driven his country to the second round.

He was much more successful, of course, in driving managers mad. But also in winning them trophies.

Ability 80
International 70
Club 83
Total 77.67

 

63. Omar Sivori

Career span 1954-69
Country Argentina: 19 caps, 9 goals; Italy: 9 caps, 8 goals
Clubs River Plate, Juventus, Napoli
Position striker
Medals 1 Copa America; 6 domestic titles (3 Argentina, 3 Juventus); 2 Italian Cup

When Omar Sivori took to the field, he used to roll down his socks and provocatively expose his shins in order to show hack-happy defenders he wasn’t scared. His audacious dribbling ability did, after all, invite a lot of overzealous tackles. So exceptional was Sivori’s effervescent technique, that defenders found it immensely frustrating to get close to him. And, at just five-foot-six, he probably felt that he needed to make a statement beyond his size. In truth, though, Sivori was well able to handle himself. He was sent off on 10 occasions in his Serie A career – a record at the time – and once had to be slapped by John Charles to calm down.

Normally, however, the two got on much better. Indeed, despite their drastically different playing styles and personalities, Charles and Sivori complemented each other perfectly at Juventus. The little forward would destroy teams before the big Welshman would finish them. Their partnership led to three titles for Juventus and a 1961 Ballon D’Or for Sivori.

The Argentine, of course, qualified for the award at that point because he had by then switched nationality to Italy. Having decided to take one of the many lucrative offers from Europe after lighting up the Argentine championship with River Plate, he was effectively declared a non-person by his country’s association. And that despite helping their side to the 1957 Copa America.

He didn’t enjoy success with Italy as the side exited in the first round of his only World Cup. But that never affected his standing as one of the most spectacular players to ever appear in Serie A.

Ability 85
International 70
Club 78
Total 77.67

 

62. Juan Schiaffino

Career span 1943-62
Country Uruguay: 21 caps, 8 goals; Italy: 4 caps, 0 goals
Clubs Penarol, Milan, Roma
Position attacking midfielder
Medals 1 World Cup, 1 Fairs Cup, 7 domestic titles (4 Uruguay, 3 Milan)

In the summer of 1951, all of Italy’s elite seemed determined to bring Schiaffino to his ancestral home. Roma had readied a bid of half a million pesos, Juventus had even sent Fiat patron Gianni Agnelli to Montevideo.

Unsurprisingly, however, Penarol simply wouldn’t let him go.

The previous summer, after all, Schiaffino had confirmed his precocious ability with a key goal on the greatest stage of all. After Uruguay had just about managed to keep Brazil down to a goal in the 1950 World Cup decider, Schiaffino silenced the 200,000-strong crowd with an emphatic equaliser.

It set Uruguay on the way to their most glorious moment, as well as setting a trend for the player himself. As Brian Glanville wrote, the midfield schemer possessed “exquisite ball control, a gimlet eye for the telling pass and a left foot which scored many an important goal”.

Ironically, it was only after a World Cup in which Schiaffino didn’t score – but did prove himself as one of the globe’s pre-eminent players – that he got his move to Italy.

Following a series of performances that propelled Uruguay to the 1954 semi-finals, he finally got his move to Milan. And continued that trend.

Eventually moving to centre-forward, Schiaffino scored many a key goal on the way to three Serie A titles as well the strikes that put a post-Munich Manchester United out of the 1957-58 European Cup and the opener in that season’s final.

It wasn’t enough to interrupt Real Madrid’s run of five European Cups. But then it was also rare that any opposition interrupted Schiaffino’s rhythm.

Ability 77
International 80
Club 75
Total 77.67

 

61. Bobby Moore

Career span 1958-77
Country England: 108 caps, 2 goals
Clubs West Ham United, Fulham
Position centre-back
Medals 1 World Cup, 1 Cup Winners Cup, 1 FA Cup

Alf Ramsey put it pretty plainly.

“Without Bobby Moore, England would never have won the World Cup… he was the spirit and the heartbeat of the team.”

And, as much as the focus has always rightfully been on 1966, it’s often forgotten that team went on for some time. With Moore anchoring the backline and underpinning every attack, England only six times in five years and also reached the semi-finals of Euro 68. Indeed, Moore was central to the side’s most cherished moment. It was during the flight of his sublime, searching pass for Geoff Hurst that some people ran onto the pitch.

The curiosity in his career, however, is not just that Moore only enjoyed a moderate medal haul at West Ham. It’s that it almost cost him a place at 1966. By that summer, Moore was itching to leave East London. But, since he was at that point between contracts, it meant he was technically ineligible for a Fifa competition. So, for the good of England, Ramsey forced Moore and West Ham manager Ron Greenwood into the same room and got them to sort out the situation.

The result, of course, brought Moore’s country their greatest triumph. But it arguably cost him a more success-laden club career.

Nevertheless, Moore’s personal performances within West ham’s mid-table struggles should not be underestimated. Although he was neither the fastest nor the most forceful in the air, he overcame all of that with startling speed of thought. As Jock Stein once exasperated, “there should be a law against him. He knows what’s happening 20 minutes before everyone else.”

And it also ensured he was a few levels above almost every other defender in history.

Ability 85
International 80
Club 67
Total 77.67

 

Contents

Share your opinion

791 comments
Jejdjjd
Jejdjjd

Maldini 52?! Are you on crack? Greatest about this list is that CRonaldo isnt there. Finally someone who understands football.

The best 10 are Messi Ronaldinho Zidane Maldini Pele Maradona Baresi Xavi Iniesta Rivaldo

SKull
SKull

I'm so tired of the Pele nagging. He counts goals he scored in the Brazilian army and is a greedy sellout. More than enough reason to put Maradona above him. A true rebel and creative genius.


PS: Van Basten, Bergkamp, Ibrahimovic, Giggs, Voller, Socrates, Zico, Eder, Junior, Batistuta, Montero, Totti, CR7, Nesta, Roberto Carlos. I can list people who probably need to be on this list for quite some time here.

tk753
tk753

pele should be number 1 by far,the most complete player ever,this guy jumps like Michael Jordan,amazing speed,use both lengs, dribbling,passing shoot acurancy,the guy has it all.3 wc.,over 1000 goals the best by far.maradona dribble past 5 English players who are very slow and not so great,he maradona dint play with best players???hahaha, he had careca who score 91 goals in year,what special is maradona,because he play with week teams and win championships? big deal, messi and Ronaldo they can take the worst team or club of any country and they can win championships like maradona

andyzidane
andyzidane

@tk753 Did Pele really score over 1000 goals? Really?? 


"messi and Ronaldo they can take the worst team or club of any country and they can win championships" Again, really?? When did this happen?


It's debatable to name at least 2 Brazilians being 'better' than Pele. I don't think anyone could name 2 Argentinians being 'better' than Maradona.

tk753
tk753

@andyzidane @tk753  messi takes the argentina to the final in wc 2014,just like maradona in 1990,ronaldo take portogal to the final in euro 2016 and win the title,so how you say that this not happen?Ronaldo and messi prove that they can take the worst teams and win world titles,maradona dribbling past these England players so easy because they are not top class defenders and you can say that goal is the goal of the centrury?messi and pele dribbling past 5 or 6 players every time and far better dribblers tha maradona.also in Napoli maradona have players like careca di Napoli who are world class at the time,so how maradona wins everything of his own?

andyzidane
andyzidane

@tk753 @andyzidane

Messi didn't win though, did he? Maradona did.

C. Ronaldo won the Euros (and he wasn't on the pitch!), not a World Cup. The South American equivalent is the Copa America. Pele never won that.


"you can say that goal is the goal of the centrury?"

When did I say this?


I never said Napoli didn't have world class players? I'd probably put Ferrara and Zola ahead of Careca and Di Napoli, but never mind. Look at it in the context of the competition. Napoli had AC Milan, Juventus, Roma, and Inter to contend with. Messi and Ronaldo just have to worry about each other's teams (Barca / Madrid).

tk753
tk753

@andyzidane @tk753  ok,messi dint win the wc,but don't forget,he has a last chances to win the wc 2018,at the age of 31 like pele in  the 1970 wc.maybe I was wrong about the goal of the centrury,you dint say that,sorry.



maradona won some titles with Napoli, but he never won a champions league with Napoli,that say you something?


did maradona win the copa America? no



did maradona win the wc 1990? his performance was great like wc 86? no



maradonoa has played the same position like pele, did he scores more goals than pele? no



maradona is one of the best players ever, no doubt but because he take Napoli and argetina to the top, dosent mean that pele cant do that.its insane,pele was the most complete number 10

of all time.far more complete player than maradona and a better person than maradona

.

andyzidane
andyzidane

@tk753 @andyzidane hey Harry, thanks for the reply.


First things first, I think it's pointless comparing honours at international level.

Neither Pele nor Maradona won the Copa America. So what?

Messi does have more chances to win the World Cup, I hope he does. But even if he doesn't, he's still one of the greatest. I could accept people calling him the greatest when he retires.

Maradona didn't win the WC in 1990. So? I didn't say he did? The fact is, he dragged Argentina to the finals of '86 and '90. He won it when he was the best player in the world, and 4 years later, he was unfit, and didn't deserve to win it anyway.

Pele is credited with 3 World Cup victories, but let's not forget that he barely played in 1962.


Secondly, Maradona and Pele DID NOT play in the same position. Pele is a forward. A goalscorer. Maradona is a playmaker. He makes goals.


Everybody is entitled to their opinion, and that's what makes the game of football we all love. Pele was a great footballer and you believe he's the most complete player that ever lived. I respect that. I can agree that he has an abundance of physical attributes which make him more effective than Maradona. But technical ability? He's no better than Garrincha in his day, and he's certainly not got the technique of Diego Maradona or modern day Leo Messi.


Good night.

tk753
tk753

@andyzidane @tk753 ho is harry??? maybe you must be thinking about someone else, i see someone in the site with the name harry ho was a ''love'' with pele but dosent mean that i am that guy,i share you.



You are right, pele and maradona is a contest with no winner, everyone has there own opinion, some people say that Ronaldo, messi, zidane, Brazilian Ronaldo, cruyff are the greatest  and many more. But we can agree that all these players give us the  beauty of football and so many good moments.

rishiagrawal55
rishiagrawal55

top 10 should be 


1. ronaldhinio

2. messi

3. cruyff

4. maradona

5. pele

6. zidane

7. brasilian ronaldo

8. berkamp

9. maldini

10.peter schmicel                    

Aceace1133
Aceace1133

Ronaldinho first are you stupid? Given he was a fantastic player of course but people forget one important thing about ronaldinho he only was truly great for 3-4 seasons. How good was he at AC Milan. Truth is he wasn't great at Milan he was a shadow of his former self and failed at Milan while he not even 30. Someone like zidane won was great throughout his whole years for example he comes out of retirement at the age of 34 to guide his team o the world cup final the biggest stage of them all and even after headbutting someone he was still named the best player of the fifa world cup 2006. Ronaldinho was brilliant but only for a few years that's all.

SKull
SKull

@Aceace1133 He's a Barcelona fan. What do you expect from a pig but an oink? He's probably never watched another football team play.

AlexChulkin
AlexChulkin

Good list as of 2011. Today I'd like to replace the last 8 with Xabi Alonso, Busquets, Ramos, Robben, Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Suarez (the second one in this 100, lol), Lahm and Klose. But anyway this rating is adorable.

AlexChulkin
AlexChulkin

And Gerard Pique instead of Desailly of course. 

DaveScamper
DaveScamper

So If Messi wins 2 or 3 world cups he's gonna be the best ever. I'm sure about that.

AlexChulkin
AlexChulkin

@DaveScamper @AlexChulkin in Russia he'll be 31, in Qatar - 35. Are you sure that he'll still be the imperious figure in the Argentina team? Are you sure that the Albiceleste will be able to win 2 WCs in a row regarding the actual level of competition? 

xPhrime
xPhrime

Where THE FUCK is Hans Krankl?! He should at least be 50-30.... Also Papin should be in the list.

RizwanNazirAhmed
RizwanNazirAhmed

Are you serious???? Ronaldinho should be ATLEAST in the top 10! I can not believe that you put the most gifted player in history at 39, you put luis suarez ahead of him? You should be ashamed!!!

adamrhbrown
adamrhbrown

@RizwanNazirAhmed The Luis Suarez on this list is the Spanish one from the 1960s. And if Ronaldinho was 'the most gifted player in history', shouldn't his era as the best player in the world been a lot longer than 2 years?


In any case, the list is nearly 4 years old and needs updating, but it looks as though Miguel has abandoned the project, which is a shame.

baggio1994
baggio1994

Bobby Moore so far down and Platini? Really now...Laudrup(as good as he was) and Sandro Mazzola better than Baggio. Which wino picks these?


baggio1994
baggio1994

A flawed list....firstly: baggio can't be 60 odd and below some of those people ahead of him(trophies aren't skills) and Maradona can't be above Pele(how can Pele's international rating be 84.  to Maradona's 89 even if you do give him a 1% nod over Pele in ability). Plus remember ability is not just dribbling and control(areas I do rate Maradona above Pele in). Ability should mean total: Pele was two-footed and better in the area, equal or almost in passing and free-kicks etc. Pele first. Messi not in top ten(most over-rated ever). Baggio in top ten.

Davidoss08
Davidoss08

Can this list be updated? I'm curious to see if CR7 has made it and where he fits in.

RodrigoBasques
RodrigoBasques

guys pele has done everythinng right in his carreer you seem to forget the hand of god goal him smelling cocaine and giving it to children and maradona vs romario romario completely mugged him off he says he could get past anybody wouldnt even be able to get past my 3 year old cousin

andyzidane
andyzidane

@RodrigoBasques Pele was a great ambassador for the sport. A superb footballer. But why highlight factors about Maradona which have nothing to do with his ability? At least Diego had the balls / cojones to play in (and win) European football.


Interesting that you mention Romario, though. I would prefer him in my team ahead of Pele. And Ronaldo. And Garrincha.

Tanvir 86
Tanvir 86

Well if you are an Englishmen then you cannot possibly understand why people love a rebel and hate an establishment.. Someone from a third world country can understand that very easily.. Someone from Latin America can precisely define it... but Europeans and Yankees cannot even imagine it... i will save the history lesson for another time..

 

Apart from having a very close relationship with Military dictators and FIFA's crooked bastards,, Pele did one thing for which many brazilians despise him-- HE FORGOT HIS ROOTS... he forgot where he came from,, he forgot the slum where he was brought up,, he forgot the shanties and hoodlums of Rio.. you say he is not evil.. Millions and Millions of people attended Garrincha's funeral in 1983...where was Pele??? Where was garrincha's great teammate??? Pele wasn't playing in 1983 oh no,, he retired in 1977..  Instead of attending his teammate's funeral,, Pele was busy in cuddling with his new buddies in FIFA..he was busy shaking hands with Reagan and the Queen ,Pele felt that it was more important to meet with these famous people rather than attending the funeral of his beloved teammate.. and you still DARE to say that Pele is not evil??????

 

Yes Pele did dedicate a goal to the poor childrens of brazil.. Hypocrites say very bright things at the beginning but in the end they give nothing... Pele did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING for the poverty of Brazil.. Pele was a lover of luxurious things.. he ran away to USA in 1974,, he starred a film with Stallione and launched his own video game in 1980.. he simply CHOSE to forgot about these poor childrens.. Once Pele climbed the ladder of fame,, he never even looked back at his native Brazil...

 

You can even see it today.. Millions of brazilians are in the streets protesting the corruption of this current government.. Millions of dollars are being invested for the World Cup but none in Healthcare.. Romario and Rivaldo understood the pulse of the people and they are already preparing to start a historic revolution in brazil to overthrow this crooked bastards.. but is PELE saying?? he is saying that People "should leave the streets and go back home and not create any chaos.The government is doing the right thing".. It INFURIATED the brazilians masses like wildfire.. Pele has become so distanced from his own people that he cannot even understand their pulse..

 

Di Stefano wasn't born in a slum like Garrincha,Pele,Maradona,Rivaldo,Romario.. Di Stefano had european descent and ultimately,, he fled to Europe to serve his forefathers.. He was born rich and he never cared for the poor.. In his playing days,, Di stefano didn't like Didi at all because he was from a very poor background.. that was reason why Real Madrid always kept Didi at bench while Stefano was running the show.. i never liked Di stefano but also i cannot disagree that he is one of the greatest in history..

 

Then you may ask that why do I Hate Pele So much???   I hate him so much because I LOVED him so much.. Before i knew about Pele's cuddling with FIFA and other bastards,, I loved Pele just like Garrincha, just like Maradona, just like Rivaldo, just Ronaldinho.. After all,, they all grew up in the dirtiest of slums.. i was six years old when Maradona was tearing apart the English in 1986 and from then on i started to dig the history to find players having a similar background to maradona.. i found Garrincha and Pele and while Pele was with FIFA,, i was not aware of that at that time.. Many years later when i did found out about Pele's real Face,, i was very shocked indeed.. Just like when Figo betrayed barca and went to Madrid,, Barca fans wrote in a banner-- "We Hate you so much because We loved you so much".. it was exactly my feeling with Pele..and while i continued to agree that he was one of the greatest in history along with Maradona and Garrincha,, i lost all the love for him..

 

Garrincha's tale is a sad one but he came to this planet to give joy to his people through the means of football and his people received the joy with open arms.. he only understood the language of football and he didn't even know the format of the 1958 and 62 World Cups.. the chilean newspaper rightfully said: "Which planet is Garrincha from??" We may not know that ever again but Brazil's love for him refuses to die........................................................................

snakehips
snakehips

Good time to remember Tom Finney.Very few would have seen him play.But not only brilliant - dazzling speed + goals + loyal to one club.But a gentleman off the pitch as well.

Tanvir 86
Tanvir 86

30 years has passed since Garrincha died..  Yet the brazilians always says "We always label the rising stars as the Next Pele because we know there will always be ONE garrincha".. Many Latin American Poets were absolutely fascinated by the miracles feats that Garrincha conjured everyday.. the great Eduardo Galeano said these words:

"In the entire history of football no one made more people happy. When he was out there, the pitch was a circus ring, the ball a tamed animal, the match a party invitation. Garrincha nurtured his pet, the ball, and together they created such mischief that people almost died laughing. He jumped over it, it gambolled around him, hid itself away, skipped off and made him run after it. And on the way, his opponents ran into each other."

 

Manuel Francisco dos Santos aka GARRINCHA--the most beloved brazilian player of all time......

 

 

adamrhbrown
adamrhbrown

 @Tanvir 86 Pele and Garrincha provide an interesting personality contrast, but I still don't get why you feel people should automatically love the rebel and hate the establishment figure. Why wouldn't the vast majority of Brazilians love both of them? (Those who remember them at least.) It would be like Argentine fans loving Maradona and hating Messi or English fans loving Paul Gascoigne and hating Bobby Charlton.

adamrhbrown
adamrhbrown

 @snakehips  @Tanvir 86 Thanks. It's also worth mentioning that even if Pele could be said to have cuddled up to the military dictatorship, why does di Stefano never come in for the same vitriol from Mr. T? He was used by Franco's regime in much the same way, and he wasn't even Spanish!

 

As it happens, I watched the documentary Pele and Garrincha - Gods of Brazil a couple of days ago. It made the point that Garrincha wasn't always popular while he was actually alive, certainly in the latter part of his career.

 

Plus, there was the footage of Pele scoring his '1,000th goal'. Media myth or not, he took that moment to speak out - passionately - on behalf of starving children. Hardly the words of someone who had sold his soul entirely.

 

Don't get me wrong, Pele is a bit of a corporate whore (there's even a joke in The Simpsons about it), but he's not evil.

 

By the way, 'Menotti didn't pick Maradona because he was a Pele-lover'. What a bizarre statement. Clearly, he was very much a Didi man.

andyzidane
andyzidane

@adamrhbrown @snakehips the boy @Tanvir 86 's posts have been littered with bizarre comments for many many months now. I personally believe that Maradona is the greatest footballer of all time and prefer other Brazilians (such as Ronaldo) to Pele; but everyone is entitled to their own opinion without facing Tubby's abuse.

snakehips
snakehips

This is about the greatest 100 players of all time.

So why has the Pele v Maradona debate dominated virtually all comments so far?

It has become tedious + looks like the writers of these posts don't know any other players.

 

Sansho
Sansho

Pelé easily the greatest ever, ahead of the master of total football Cruyff. Maradona has benefited from myths and ignoring his faults and failures.

 

Before Pelé, Brazil had never won a world cup nor did they for 24 years without him. He was outstanding aged 17 in 58 world cup as well as in 1970. He made Santos the best club in the world, dominating Brazilian clubs with other great players and destroying the top European clubs, Benfica (hat-trick in Benfica), and Milan. He was top scorer in the Intercontinental Cup. In his time, South American clubs were easily a match for European. He had a magnificent scoring record in cup finals as well as overall, including against European clubs and countries. He was declared a national treasure by the Brazilian government, not allowed to play for as foreign club till the 70s

 

Maradona was sent off in one world cup, cheated in another and was disgraced in another, He had a poor scoring record in cup finals and for Napoli in Europe. He never won the top continental cup. Without him during his career Argentina won a world cup and the Copa America twice, but he never won the Copa America. He improved Argentina's win-loss record by only 0.8% compared with his absence during his career, whereas Pelé improved Brazil by 11.25%.

 

Pelé was a more complete player; great header, athletic, 2-footed, passer, shot, dribbler, vision; Maradona was mainly one-footed- so much for so-called technique. Pelé had a better temperament and Maradona was a cheat not only with infamous handball "goal" but also drugs.

Tanvir 86
Tanvir 86

 @Sansho DID PELE EVER WIN COPA AMERICA???????? PELE WASN'T SENT OFF IN ANY GAME?????????? WAS MARADONA A STIRIKER LIKE PELE???????????

 

i don't have the patience to argue with another maradona-hater like you... i will only say that you have never watched GARRINCHA... Pele doesn't come even close..

Tanvir 86
Tanvir 86

 @Sansho do you even know the full of history of maradona??????????????

 

you talk like you are a great analyst but instead have a relentless grudge against maradona..

 

first, maradona was very unlucky to miss out on the 1978 WC.. he was the even younger than pele and he ripping everything in the argentine league.. but for some  reasons, menotti didn't chose him.. as menotti was an eternal Pele-lover, he feared that his darling's record of the youngest player to enter the WC will be broken if maradona is chosen.. at the final moment, menotti leaves out the blistering 16-year old maradona.... the whole argentina was shocked... but maradona didn't lose hope.. in came the 1979 youth WC, where maradona absolutely ripped everything by scoring 7 magnificent goals and winning it single-handedly.. just like pele in the late 50s, maradona was the greatest under-20 player in the late 70s..so to say maradona was a "ghost" in his youth is a pure indication of HATRED towards him..

 

maradona 82's appearance was bad because of that HAGGARD menotti's reluctance and egoistic passarella's ARROGANCE.. it was never maradona's fault.. he was a victim of those dirty "football" politics which was also why barca's president Nunez refused to play him in regular La liga matches..and let's not forget, maradona got injured by the WORST TACKLE OF ALL TIME by the butcher of bilbao which further increased doubts and rumors about maradona..

 

but maradona BURIED everything in 1986.. scored the GREATEST GOAL MANKIND HAS EVER WITNESSED on 22 June 1986, Azteca stadium.. not only did he dribble past half the english team, he controlled the ball superbly on the puddles of water on that pitch.. even more mind-boggling is that he accelerated at such a blistering pace on the right side of field, ordinary left-footers find it difficult to run in the right-side, but instead of slowing down, maradona accelerated with lightining pace and dribbled effortlessly past the english to score an absolutely legendary goal that took him to very pinnacle of football.. it was THE ULTIMATE EXPRESSION of how far an individual player's impact goes on his team.. and throughout the whole 86 WC, maradona emphatically proved what a ONE-MAN team can do...

 

pele protagonist??????????? i assume you have never heard of Vava,garrincha,amarildo,tostao,carlos alberto, gerson,rivelino... pele's golden teammates who helped him SO MUCH... who did maradona play with????? burruchaga,careca,giordino,valdano.. maradona's average-ish teammates who couldn't even dribble past a player properly let alone helping maradona...

 

The list of footballers who said maradona is the greatest and infinity:

 

Zidane: the greatest ever

 

2: Careca: admiteas was far better than pele

 

3: Bobby Charlton: the greatest footballer

 

4: Gullit: he was from another world

 

5: Marco van Basten: The Greatest footballer ever

 

6: Former manager of england bobby robson: hate him or love him he was the greatest player of all time.

 

7: Zola: he was the god of football

 

8: Ronaldhino: hes was my idol and greatest

 

9: won player of the century at fifa 2000 awards

 

11: Ze Roberto and R. Carlos: Maradona was without doubt the greatest

 

12: Bearzot: Maradona is football

 

13: Sacchi on sky: Maradona is the best player in the world

 

14: Baggio: Maradona all players dream

 

15: gentile: Maradona better than Pelè

 

16: Boscov: Maradona can not be compared

 

17: Sivori: maradona the best in the world

 

18: Cantona: Maradona is greatest art.The

 

19: Eusebio: Maradona was the greatest

 

20: Maldini: Maradona is Maradona

 

– "Ruud Gullit: Diego Maradona is the best ever in my opinion". goal.com, 29 July 2012 – "Lionel Messi: Diego Maradona is the greatest of all-time". SoccerAnchor, 7 September 2011 – "Rummenigge: Maradona better than Pele". The Times of India, 12 November 2008 – "Paolo Maldini: Maradona best ever, Ronaldo close second" Paolo Maldini fan page, 21 July 2008 – "Gary Lineker: Diego has been the best player without a doubt, better than Pele" SoccerBlog, 25 March 2006 – "Glenn Hoddle: Diego Maradona is the greatest player of all time". SoccerBible, 22 July 2010. – "Ryan Giggs: Maradona is the best of all time". tribalfootball, 11 October 2011. – "Rio Ferdinand: In my eyes Maradona is the best footballer ever". fifa.com, 7 November 2008 – "Mario Kempes: Maradona is absolutely the best". ESPN soccernet, 18 April 2005. – "Aguero: It is disrespectful to compare me to Maradona". Mirro Football, 20 November 2011. – "Frank McGarvey: Diego Maradona was world's best player". Daily Record, 30 October 2008. – "Gordon Smith: Maradona was the best player I ever saw play the game". Daily Record, 30 October 2008. – "Trevor Edwards: Maradona is best" Central Telegraph, 11 April 2012 – "Maradona’s still number one". The Sun, 29 April 2011. – "Considered by many as the greatest football player to have ever walked the face of the earth". FIFA.com

 

 

berdutzalin
berdutzalin

@Tanvir 86 @Sansho was about to wrote smthing similar after reading lots of these pro pele comments.

Yes,pele has the numbers besides him,but you can't compare carlos alberto''s brazil golden team with maradona's underdogs argentina.

Maradona undercome the odds everywhere he went,carrying his team mostly in crucial matches. He had not so easy career as pele,cause of injuries,drug addiction,and lower teammates.

What maradona did overall,pure genius.

Personally,i admire zidane's plays the most,cause he was my childhood idol so it's not about taking sides or smthing.

Also i believe Gherghe Hagi should be at least me

ntioned here.

Tanvir 86
Tanvir 86

Today is undoubtedly a sad day for football.. The greatest Portuguese player in history, the black Panther, a man who reinvented the art of scoring goals in the 1960s-- Eusebio has passed away from this world at the age of 71...

 

He stamped Portugal's name in the football map with his explosive goals in the 1966 WC... At that WC, much of the world was disappointed with Pele's epic failure but Eusebio exploded just at the right time to fill up the vacuum.. obviously, eusebio remained in Pele's shadows for the most of 60s,, but his domination in the European Cup was second to none.. and for that,, he remains an unfettering figure in the golden history of football..in my list of 100 greatest players,, he is no.12

 

May peace rest upon his Departed Soul............................................

ronaldofenomenon
ronaldofenomenon

with all the respect to maradona he is one of the greatest ever but  pele was better. if you look some old videos of pele was amazing,his dribbling,ball control and shoot was much better than maradona, who forgot the match against uruguay 1970 world cup pele performed the best skill ever.yes maradona win the biggest poll of fifa, but was voted by young fans who dont see pele play,in the other hand pele wins win the poll  by lengendery players who wins golden balls, if you dont believe watch here http://www.rsssf.com/miscellaneous/best-x-players-of-y.html. its funny some compare the poll of maradona and the poll of pele WHY??? because  these footballers who are legends of these sport knows far more tons than football fans.

Tanvir 86
Tanvir 86

 @ronaldofenomenon i do remember the MISS OF THE CENTURY when the "Almighty Pele" did everything right against uruguay but then failed to score an OPEN goal.. When maradona dribbled against england,, nothing was open yet he still scored and that also against a 6'3 Shilton covering the goal..if pele scored on that night in 1970 then he MIGHT have reached the level of maradona but unfortunately that never happened..

 

why don't you see the even older videos of garrincha??? that will make pele look like a ball boy..

 

obviously,, "Legendary" players like Beckenbeur,Platini shared the same bed with pele in FIFA so it no surprise that FIFA would honour their favorite poster boy with that hilarious award.. Legendary players like Di Stefano,Bearzot,Baresi,Maldini who stayed far away from FIFA's A$$ said that Maradona was greater than pele.. so you decide which group of Legend's comments are you going to approve??? the fans already gave their verdict quite emphatically in three Worldwide polls.......

 

 

ronaldofenomenon
ronaldofenomenon

 @Tanvir 86 Alfredo Di Stefano: "The best player ever? Pele. Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are both great players with specific qualities, but Pele was better."  your propaganda agaist pele is amazing,first off all you dont have proves that pele kiss  the ass of fifa. in a tv show, maradona and pele show there skills who has better heeding, pele beats maradona, if you dont bealave watch here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSRz3IZKhUg.all the legends like cruyff,Beckenbeur,di stefano voted pele and maradona voted by the fans.end of story

ronaldofenomenon
ronaldofenomenon

 @andyzidane  @Tanvir 86 maybe you dont understand my worlds, the video shows that pele has better ball control and proves his better that maradona,yes maradona is one of the best ever but pele is better, just  symple if you watch the video

Tanvir 86
Tanvir 86

 @ronaldofenomenon HAHAHAHA.... what a pathetic video.. oh wow, a 73-year old pele has better ball control than a 53-year old Maradona,, so that makes him a greater player????????????!!!!!!!

 

Pele himself said DiStefano is the greatest player of all time... Messi?? Cristiano Ronaldo??? even a 10-year old boy having an average knowledge about football history will say that Pele is greater than these two.. But when it was asked to Distefano about Pele AND maradona,, He picked Maradona... Beckenbeur shares the bed with pele in FIFA and they also ran Viagra campaigns together.. so it is a no-brainer that beckenbeur would vote for his lifetime partner.. the legends who were not slaves to FIFA ,,they all said that maradona is the greatest..

 

You can now masturbate by watching that hilarious video.. Trolls like you have no place in this great site...

ronaldofenomenon
ronaldofenomenon

 @Tanvir 86 this show was the year 2000 maradona was 40 and pele was 60, you  blame maradona every time,the video show that maradona lose the ball and again you said that maradona is greater than pele,you said that pele kiss the ass off fifa and all the biggest football organizations but you dont prove it,if you watch the brazilian ronaldo dribbble skills and technique is far more better than maradona,i think the only part that maradona is better than pele is the free kicks.

Tanvir 86
Tanvir 86

 @ronaldofenomenon  you are that same troll by the name of Harry1996,,, changing names won't hide your retarded character..

 

as i've said many times before,, if you love pele so much then give him a call.. Make love with him using the cheapest viagras and then post the videos on youtube.. this site is for those people who can debate both subjectively and objectively using their vast knowledge about the rich history of football and not by posting pathetic rubbish youtube videos.. thus, you are not eligible to comment on this site by default..So stop wasting time and make that call to Pele before he runs to FIFA to sleep with Beckenbeur....

 

Tanvir 86
Tanvir 86

 @ronaldofenomenon  you are that same troll by the name of Harry1996,,, changing names won't hide your retarded character..

 

as i've said many times before,, if you love pele so much then give him a call.. Make love with him using the cheapest viagras and then post the videos on youtube.. this site is for those people who can debate both subjectively and objectively using their vast knowledge about the rich history of football and not by posting pathetic rubbish youtube videos.. thus, you are not eligible to comment on this site by default..So stop wasting time and make that call to Pele before he runs to FIFA to sleep with Beckenbeur....

ronaldofenomenon
ronaldofenomenon

 @Tanvir 86  again and again you dont aswer in my question about pele kiss the ass of fifa and you fall to see in this symple video that maradona lose,you can talk trash every time but you dont proove nothing,1970 pele do the greatest skill ever, maranona never do something like that,in the era off pele, the ball was more harder to control than maradona era,who is harry1996, maybe someone who support pele?i dont give a shit.i just say my option,but there are more important thinks in life about pele and maradona

ronaldofenomenon
ronaldofenomenon

 @Tanvir 86 maybe my english is not so good  but  you cant avoid the truth,cruyff,beckebauer,platini,di stefano,zico said pele, all this players kiss the ass of fifa?hahahaha.you can say anything you want but you dont proove a thing.

nismoz
nismoz

 @ronaldofenomenon  @Tanvir 86 @ Ronaldofenomenon, instead of judging a players true strength based on other retired footballers comments, why dont u use ur brain and watch the standard of football in Pele's era? did u ever ask urself the question if gk even used gloves back in the 60s? did 4-2-4 formation play a major factor in helping the attacking team? did man marking even exist back then? have u even watched a game of the champs league in the 60s? how many subs were allowed in each game when pele was playing? how many games did Pele really played in 1962 wc? when u find out all the answers for that question i suggest u watch the serie a matches that Maradona played in Napoli in the late 80s and do a serious comparison on the defence both players faced! Real Madrid could win 5 champs league in the late 50s but no team has even come close to it since. what does that tell u? Football standards has gone up 3 notch since Pele's days!