If there is one activity that is of no interest to humanity, it is good to establish the ranking of the best soccer players of all time. But this is not a reason to avoid the heated debates that such a list, necessarily subjective, can generate. Here is our list, almost consensual, but not that much, of the 10 greatest players in the history of football. Just that. Come on, nothing more to say. Otherwise, make your own.
Diego Maradona, “El Pibe de Oro”: a first was needed. He had to be great and have character, so Maradona, necessarily. A guy who hasn’t quite finished his growth (1m72), but that doesn’t prevent him from almost alone winning a world cup in Argentina by scoring two of the goals in passing most legendary of this sport. So yes drugged, doped, and capable of the worst. But his best had no equivalent.
Pelé, “The Man with 1000 Goals (and a few)”: not necessarily original, but nevertheless essential. But the little one (1.69m) Edson Arantes do Nascimento still weighs 3 world cups, around 1200 goals and loyalty to his club, Santos, which has become almost legendary. Today he would play for Barça or Réal. Instead, he advertises Viagra, smiling, thumbs up. like what we can be a great player and …
Johan Cruijff, “The Flying Dutchman”: the kind of guy who has 3 Golden Balls on his chimney, and therefore a large chimney. He is also the guy who listened to the lessons of his coach, a certain Rinus Michels, to make sure that Barça was an almost unbeatable team, before transmitting the magic formula to a good guy named Pep Guardiola. Only missing a world cup that he almost touched with his fingertips and he would have been a little higher …
Ronaldo, “il fenomeno”: we are talking about Brazilian, and not about the gel-covered abs that make the heyday of Real. No, the class striker, who also chained questionable haircuts, was one of the first to combine technique, power, and speed with so much talent. Admittedly, his knees were in crepe paper and could be confused, one day after cooked, with Darcheville. But the goals he threaded like pearls in the biggest European clubs are still the heyday of Youtube.
Franz Beckenbauer, “The Kaiser”: the only defender of this ultimate list, a feat. top. And a record-long as an arm, even in a sling, both as a player and as a coach. The guy who prevented Johan Cruijff from winning a world cup and who, by the way, revolutionized the role of the Libero to give him a touch of poetry. This did not prevent him from becoming an OM coach later for a few months with glasses that were far too big for him. Retraining is complicated.
Zinedine Zidane, “El Mariscal”: one could almost sum up his career with a few headshots in the World Cup finals. But Zizou, it’s a career a little richer than that. Elastic ankles, a ball-handling recognizable among all, a little in the final of champion’s league, a galactic in power, a legendary match against Brazil in 2006. And a face on the arc of triumph one evening in July of 98.
Alfredo di Stefano, “The Man with 3 Passports”: those who have seen him play say of him that it is THE best. Others will tell you that it doesn’t matter. Unfortunately for the former, they are no longer very numerous. Nevertheless, the guy won among other things 5 consecutive Champions Leagues, 2 Ballon d’Or, 8 Spanish championships, just that. Still, he never found the way to the world cup, despite three different national teams. And that in addition it is almost cheated.
Michel Platini, “Le Roi Michel”: or “Platoche” by us. A French genius (in short shorts) that has dreamed a whole generation and opened the doors of foreign football to all French players. Still, record holder of the number of Ballon d’Or won with 3, moreover consecutively, while waiting to be necessarily beaten by Messi … But to be higher in the classification, it would have been necessary to hold the ball at 3-1 to Seville in 1982 against the Germans.
Lionel Messi, “Léo”: at 24, he would normally have nothing to do in this list. Normally. Except that Leo Messi is nothing normal, and each of his matches with Barcelona confirms this. Already 3 times Ballon d’Or (we are sure, we have our sources), it lacks confirmation in the national team. But barring an accident, we can’t see how it wouldn’t end up coming. Ferenc Puskas, “Le Major Galopant”: in the 1950s, Hungary reinvented football and came close to offering the World Cup in 1954. Ferenc will wait until he is 31 years old and 20 pounds overweight to land at Real by Kopa and Di Stefano, and wearer 3 European Champions Club Cups. In total, 625 goals in 631 games.
