who is the true soccer god?

I just found this lil gem of Pele (It's quite difficult finding vids of him tbh):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRrRqQ80uAM&search=pele

class goal, class skills in whatever generation you are in

Also, people rave about Ronaldinho's flip-flap as one of the latest showboating skills of the modern game....invented by Rivelino.

And well Maradona, I don't know where to begin. People talk about Messi being a potential world star....I'll say that if Messi reaches the top of his potential, he still wouldn't be able to match Maradona.
 
The argument of whether a aprticular player who was phenomenal in his time would be as exceptional in our time has always been highly heated and interesting. Would Maradona's quick dribbling and eye for goal be equally successful now against quicker and stronger defenders? Would Pele's speed, power and eye for a goal be as overpowering now as in his day?

I have oftentimes mulled this over and with time came to the conclusion: Why not?

The school of thought that defenders are much stronger and quicker really does not take into account that attackers have also accrued much speed and strength over the years? Now who is to tell me that if Pele towered over everybody else in his day due to his God-given talent, drive and work-ethic he wont be as successful now as before. We need to understand that as soccer evolves so do the players. A player who showed a knack for embracing that evolution and further contributing to it in his day, can do so in any time era. The premise of this sort of argument must not be that if you take Pele or Maradona as they were in the past and put them in a time machine...........The premise should be that if Pele or Maradona were born in this day and age with the same God-given potential and present day facilities, resources, medical treatment, Psychological services, team assistance, increased commitment to the game etc, would they be as successful? Of course, simply because they would start out on an equal footing with everybody else and excel because they are, as rockykabir put it, GENIUSES.
 
Oh yes I believe that too IF they were born in this time. But if they are born in there own days and are put in a time machine then they would be nothing in this time. They will be stopped easily by the normal defenders. If I woudl be taken into a time machine to the past I know I could be a hero in Pele's days.
 
You honestly think that any talented 2006 midfielder is technically better, mentally faster, more decisive and with a greater spirit than Maradona?

This is not like the 100 mts races, where technology and medicine determine how good a generation of athlets is. So, "fast" in the 60's is definitely "not as fast" in this decade. I accept it. But I just won't but that argument on football.

Surely players now run more, and due to this there are less spaces to create good football. But because of that, there are also a lot of "robot players" nowadays whose only contribution is to run continuosly, even the playmakers (this position is almost disppearing). Not many players today can be considered talented. There are good players... in terms of effectiveness, but very few of this "natural born" talents. Lampard would be a perfect example. He's not a genious, he's just a very good modern footballer.

Now, a reversed example: if Riquelme would have belonged to the 40's, you would all be like "NO WAY he could have played nowadays, he was SOOOO slow" and shit. But there you have it: he's one of the best players in the spanish league, Argentina's playmaker, and just leaded Villareal to the CL semifinals. So, as long as you're physically slow but (taking Riquelme as an example) you are mentally quicker than the other 21 machines running around you in the field, you will always be the one called "different".

Mind is still more important than any other attribute. That's why Riquelme is "different" and Ballack is "a great player", see the difference?
 
I'll say it was much tougher then....tackling from behind was the norm. Also, the ball was a lot heavier. You definitely had to have a lot of skillage to get by. A lot of lightweights in the modern game simply wouldn't have survived back then imo....
 
Amsterdammer said:
You know why? If Pele was put in a time machine and ended up in this time and he played against a normal team he would NEVER break through the defense because he has an old way of playing that is completely become normal now everybody can do that but in HIS days it was something from another planet. The same like Maradona. In his days it was a dribble who nobody could stop, but if he was put in a time machine and send here he would never be succesfull with his dribble.
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I think this is horseshit mate.

Maradona would breeze past players. He wasn't just relying on skill; it was skill, power and pace.

Pele was amazing 66,- he wouldn't cut it in 86 let alone 06.

Maradona would be the best in the world in 66, he was in 86 and would be well up there nowadays.

Maradona for me.

---------------Yashin

--Jorginho-----Moore----Maldini

------------Beckenbauer-------------
Garrincha-------------------Best----

Pele---------Maradona------Cruyff---

------------Van Basten----------
 
I wasn't around to Pele or most of Maradona's career, but I have seen many videos dedicated to the two players and I am convinced that there is nobody better than Maradona. I have yet to see anyone do the things he's done.
My personal favorite though would have to be the Legendary Striker Gabriel Omar Batistuta. Out of all these so called 'next Batistuta' that are always popping out of Florance and Argentina I have yet to see a player come close. I doubt there will ever be a better striker.
 
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Amsterdammer said:
That completely crap! He would NEVER dominate today's game. Even Maradona would not! Every defender now knows how to defend guys like that. Ronaldinho now thát's hard to defend and Maradona ánd Pele don't posses the skills of Ronaldinho..........it's just a difference in time man you can't compare.
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HAHA you must be 12 or something right?

The defending in peles (and maradonas) day was far more brutal than now.
Pele got kicked out of the 1966 world cup in a famous incident at goodison park, maradona got kicked out of spain by some horrific tackles that you dont see today. If maradona played in todays game with todays referees he would wipe the floor with eveyone!

your telling me that a fancy-dan player like ronaldo (man-u) manages to breeze past defenders yet maradona wouldnt. get real.

also you keep mentioning ronaldinho. he is nothing compared to these two mentioned players, in time maybe he will come close but I cant see it.

also just because he has been arguably the best player in the world for the last 2 seasons dont mean he's classic. the only modern players who is classic is Zidane.

Zidane in his prime was head and shoulders above ronaldinho in his prime
do you have a short memory? (or are you actualy 12?) remember when zidane first went to madrid for those first 3 seasons he was boardering on immortal. and already a worldcup winner.

gordonbennit
 
lumlum said:
My personal favorite though would have to be the Legendary Striker Gabriel Omar Batistuta. Out of all these so called 'next Batistuta' that are always popping out of Florance and Argintina I have yet to see a player come close. I doubt there will ever be a better striker.
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You're right about Batigol. They tried to compare him and Shearer for a time but Shearer was nowhere near.
Compare him to Crespo. Bati was miles better
 
Well Pele is better IMO, but not by far... But as I didn't saw any of them playing, I can't say nothing about it...
The best player I saw in my short life (I'm 20) is Ronaldinho...
And I think we can discuss this like 2-4 years from now when we will be pretty glad to see in their best form "the new Pelé" (Ronnie) and "the new Maradona" (Messi) playing together at the best team in the world: BARCELONA...
So I think these both players will be the best of this decade and they have the potential to be the best players ever...
People will fully desagree with me, but what can I say??
This is my opinion...
 
marukomu said:
You're right about Batigol. They tried to compare him and Shearer for a time but Shearer was nowhere near.
Compare him to Crespo. Bati was miles better
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True that Shearer was never in any point in his career as good as Batistuta in his prime... but over the span of the 2 careers, there is no argument.

Alan Shearer = God
 
I would have to say Martin Keown, hiw prowess and unique finishing ability in front of goal coupled with the speed of a gazelle makes him my ideal soccer God.

keown02.jpg


Keown = God
 
Pelé for me is the greatest, ive saw this thread SOOOO many times on other sites , every football forum has a thread about this...

I think the only player that could have came close to Pele was Ronaldo, i mean around WC 1998 he was unstoppable and i reckon if he never got injured for the 3 years when he did, he may just have been the greatest.
 
Shearer and Battistuta were exactly the same. No skills at all, just oportunism, spirit, and good shooting. Batistuta couldn't create a goal opportunity by himself, he would just get the ball somewhere near the area and shoot as hard as he can. I overheard trained horses can be taught to do that as well, but they are not allowed to play professionaly.
 
drunkenmonkey said:
i'll take that as a joke
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Nope.

To rephrase what I meant.

Batistuta (Say around 96-97) was better than Shearer ever was imo.

But Shearer was better generally year after year, But never in his career reached the ability of Batistuta in that one year.

But over the span of the 2 careers. Shearer no question.
 
1. Maradonna
2. Cruijff
3. Romario (cant believe nobody names him)

I have seen alot of footage about Pele and have a dvdbox of him, but I still cant really judge him. From what I know, he was just waaaaay ahead of his time; an ultimate scoring machine. But I never saw Pele do things the current players never did... its just basically very fast dribbling and finishing in the box. Maradonna and also Cruijff did things I will probably never see again in current football. However, Pele was more better a player than everybody in his time, than Maradonna and Cruijff in theirs.
 
drekkard said:
Lucky me, I could watch all of them play at Nou Camp!
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Yes, and I also thought of Ronaldinho, but is still too early to call... Bergkamp will always hold a special place in my heart I just love Ajax and Barca!
 
Glavisted, I suppose when you say Luis Gento you mean Paco Gento, or Luis Suárez, ¿right? :)

I think that stating "Which Is Number One™" is pointless: there are too many factors to consider.

- They played in different times.
- Some had huge club success, others huge international success, others a combination, others none.
- Some played along some superstars, others built the team mostly on their own.
- Some were amazing playmakers, others were incredible scorers.

I think it is easier to establish who has been the best player during a small period of time, and from that you can get who have been the top players of all time. I'd say:

1950's - Alfredo DiStéfano
1960's - Pelé
1970's - Johann Cruyff & Franz Beckenbauer
1980's - Diego A. Maradona
1990's - Ronaldo
2000's - Zinedine Zidane

You will find that these periods mostly overlap, as Ronaldo and Zidane are more mid-to-late 90's and early 2000's, and Maradona is early 1990's too. But this is fairly good as a representation of the best players of each time. Now, there's a group of players that not having been among the all-time super greatest best-of-their-time players, are too good not to be mentioned. These are:

Marco Van Basten (late 80's early 90's), Romário da Souza (early 90's), Gabriel Batistuta (early 90's), Eusebio (60's), Bobby Charlton (60's), Lev Yashin (early 60's), Michel Platini (early 80's), Gerd Müller (early 70's), Roberto Baggio (early 90's) and Ronaldinho (00's).

Thus, it is not fair to choose, say, Maradona above Pelé. Maradona failed to achieve the maximum in his however brilliant club career, while Pelé won every possible title both with Santos and Brazil. Pelé won 3 WC's, and though had an arguably better team than Maradona in 1970, he also won two more WC's. Maradona on the contrary played in a time when being a superstar was harder, his private life hurt his professional career, and was a complete leader to Boca Juniors, Napoli and Argentina. Plus, he almost won a WC on his own. Therefore, it is unfair to compare.

Ronaldo could have been the greatest of all time had it not been for his severe knee injury, which forced him to change his gameplay, though he kept being the best striker in the world for many years after. Van Basten also had a terrible injury that cut his career. But don't forget that Johan Cruyff and Franz Beckenbauer were great club players, won a lot of individual accolades and European Cups, and also did great with their National teams. Alfredo DiStéfano was the best player of the 50's, won 5 European Cups, 2 argentine, 4 colombian and 8 spanish leagues, 1 intercontinental cup, 1 copa américa, 2 European Footballer of the Year, the Super Ballon D'Or... and covered a much bigger part of the pitch than Maradona or Pelé.

It is impossible to choose between them. Zinedine Zidane might be the one player that has touched my heart more when watching him play, but that's because I usually prefer playmakers than strikers. There's a group of six or seven súper players (DiStéfano, Pelé, Cruyff, Beckenbauer, Maradona, Ronaldo and Zidane), and anyone of those can be dubbed The Greatest One™.
 
Oh, oh, oh! I forgot Michael Laudrup! The most elegant player I've ever seen in my entire life! :D
 
Maradona had a great ball control, did lots of tricks and was a good player. But wasn't a very good scorer. Pele was better just because of that: good at fancy dribling, good in BOTH legs, good with his head and jumped very high. Pelé was a much more complete player, scored A LOT and achieved great things that Maradona couldn't (hadn't good teammates, wasn't on top of major soccer since the beginig of his career (Pelé was 17 years when he won his first world cup) and had drug problems (cost his career and 94 cup).

Some even say that Maradona only could maintain his playing in the 90s while he was under the euphoric influence of cocaine.

And to all people that say that in the 60s there wasn't any kind of marking in Pelé:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7nO-u4hf6U&search=pele

The two videos of pelé are from the same DVD, the first has some sound problems in the last minute, but the second doesn't have the same image quality:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icbntQJ351k&mode=related&search=pele
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vy2LI6y5rDI&search=pele

For me the top 3 are:
1- Pelé
2- Maradona
3- Garrincha
 
Diego Armando Maradona.

Son of God or Devil, I haven't decided, but surely something out of this world.

Please take your time to watch this video, a summary of the creativity of this unrepeatable soccer player. The goals shown here are not scored in a brazilian league of the 60s... most of what you see is scored in ITALY and SPAIN in the 80s and 90s. Mind that and RESPECT that.
PS - Also funny to see the "Zidane roulette" made 10 years before :).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tCoMtPuL3Q&search=Maradona

I used to be a "Pelé" but after doing some research on the past of both players and specially watching available footage I found out unseen stuff from Maradona that completely changed my perspective.

My "rational" reasons to pick Maradona as the best there was:

1 - The times
Pelé, like other players like Di Stefano, Puskas and Eusébio were fortunate enough to catch part of an era in which sliding and vicious taclking was the exception, not the rule. They also caught part of an era in which tactics gave space to creative players (eg: in the 70s Brazil used a 4-2-4, those tactics gave enough space in the midfield for creative players, and before the 4-2-4 there were even more "open" tactics that favoured attacking and not defensive football, the exception being the 60s italian catennacio). Also a small detail: keepers were also obviously not as technically developted as today. If you watch closely Yashin you will realize that many of todays quality keepers to exacly the same things he did (against much faster balls, although easier to stop in terms of weight). It's common to see late 50s and 60s videos in which keepers seemed... ridiculous.

2 - The Leagues
Maradona played in the 2 most challenging leagues of his time: the spanish and italian. Pelé never left Brazil, which can hardly be ever seen as tough as the european leagues, specially defensively. One needed to see Pelé playing in Italy in the 80s or 90s to check what he would have accomplished.

3 - The Teams
Pelé always played surrounded by the best. Not only in the Brazil wonderfull national teams he participated in but also in Santos, which was, in his time LOADED with the best brazilian players you could find. That really helps an exceptional player to shine even more.
On the other hand Maradona never really played in a top team. He came closer to that in Barcelona, but in Italy he wen't to a club which was nothing before him and that was nothing after him. Maradona CARRIED Napoli on his back, with the help of other 3,4 great players they had, but it was Maradona's influence that made Napoli live what they went through. A memorable moment was seeing the napoli team sing in the locker rooom the chant "I've seen Maradona" while he entered the room, after being champions, for everyone knew that it was maradona who made it happen.

Even in WC moments, in which I think Pelé was more influential, the difference between the teams they played was enormous. One cannot compare Argentina in 82 or 86 with any of the teams in which Pelé was WC, they were simply outstanding.

Conclusion:
I'm not saying Pelé didn't have the quality to do exacly the same, under the same circunstances, than Maradona. What I'm saying is that we are in the presence of 2 truly Godlike players but one of them wen't through harder tests than the other, and still delivered as much magical moments as the other. So... for me the one who wen't down the harder road deserves the credit.

Maradona is a soccer dream.
I finish leaving another video that shows the Napoli Maradona... check this out it's absolutely incredible. Then check the teams Milan and Juve had when Maradona clinched the 2 titles for Napoli.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TClYDs3yG74&search=maradona napoli

PS - when I was a (even more) stupid kid I used to hate maradona due to his drug problems.
 
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Canavarro can do all those "Maradonna type" moves. That's why he desereves the WC 2006 "golden balls" award. Right?
 
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