All time top five of favourite players

Stan

Stan

Allez les Lionceaux !!!
12 September 2002
Not much football action and yet i want to discuss football things...so why not give an all time favourite top five for football players.
Mine are certainly not the best ever players, they simply are players thati really loved....

1. Giuseppe Giannini: AS Roma central midfielder in the late 80's and the early 90's. A fantastic player with vision. Certainly not the most effective player but to me the most elegant.

2. Fernando Redondo: another elegant player, but this one was effective as hell. The best defensive midfielder i ever saw...i remeber a beautiful goal against Man Utd...

3. Eric Cantona: a fantastic player, a great character and on top of that a very intelligent human being...left Man Utd for the right reasons...and then there was his Jekyll and Hyde personality...

4. Arnold Muhren: for the same reasons as Giannini. The poor men's Giannini although he was more succesfull in terms of silverware...

5. Hans Bouwmeester (Hans who???): Dutch playmaker who was once considered as Cruijff's succesor, who flopped his carreer and ended up at my favourite team...RWDM (now Brussels)....played lots of great matches and was one of the most fair players i ever saw...
 
Most of mine are City based due to obvious reasons but again they were never the best players in the world:-

1. Georgiou Kinkladze: The best dribbeler of a ball ive ever seen in a City shirt, and my Favorite ever player Was infamously bought on the back of a video by our chairman and moved on to ajax when we were relegated but never fullfilled his potential.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rg57cOivaQc

2.Ali Benarbia: A true playmaker with great vision came to us at the end of his carear but could rip teams apart with his passing.

3.Shaun Goater:"feed the goat and he will score" a true hero, Knowhere near a top footballer but always found the back of the net.

4.Gazza: Italia 90 was the 1st world cup i can remember properly as i grew up, and is where the world first noticed Paul Gasgoine.

5.Lee Sharpe: Contriversal one for me, didnt really love him but he had a profound effect on the way i played football as a kid!

Stan i know what you mean about Redondo a great midfielder:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhJc0M-lIis
 
Nobody would agree with my choices but I'll list them anyway.

1. John Aldridge: Ex-Liverpool, Aldo came to Tranmere and ended up as manager - gave me some memories that I'll never forget, such as Tranmere reaching the English league cup final. What a day we had at Wembley. At the time you were never quite sure about him - he led us to defeat several then-Premiership teams in the cups including Middlesbrough, Everton, Leeds, Southampton (3-0 down at half-time, 4-3 to us at full-time - Andy Gray rates this as one of his top-three cup upsets) and Bolton (on more than one occasion, hence why we're now bitter rivals), but our form in the league was so bad that we were relegated! The memories he gave to the fans were worth the sacrifice though; by far.

2. Andy Parkinson: Trained in the same class as Michael Owen at Lilleshall, scored v Middlesbrough in the league cup and his goal was mentioned in every newspaper the next day - he ran from his own box, beat four opposition defenders and scored the most amazing goal I've ever seen in the flesh. He was born where I was born, and he is the only player that my father has ever, ever praised (everybody else is "greedy" or "overpriced", he never EVER praised another footballer - he very rarely praises anything that isn't in the form of bacon or sausages). He was a hero. Injury struck shortly after his wondergoal though, and from then on, he ran straight into defenders rather than around them. He could have been big.

3. Michael Owen: I can just barely remember his Liverpool debut - I was sitting in a caravan in the middle of nowhere desperate to go home. But that night on Match Of The Day I saw this guy come from nowhere and dance around the defence. I've been a fan ever since, and his goal against Argentina in 98 had the street in euphoria. I hope he can recover fully and give us more.

4. Joe Cole: Every time he puts on an England shirt I feel like we've got somebody out there who is actually giving 100%. He will do a few neat tricks but he will also give everything, and watching him at the World Cup last year gave me hope for the future. If we could just sort out the other nine players (excluding Gerrard) then we'd be alright.

5. Tony Adams: Not much to write here. Compared to him, England's current central defenders are utter crap. And the guy had an alcohol addiction to battle on the side, so he may never have reached his full potential. One of the few players who I really "miss" and wish could somehow come out of retirement.

If I had to do a top ten then the rest would be Thierry Henry (I wasn't watching football when Cantona was at his prime, but Henry was the first foreign footballer I saw who made me think "wow, this guy is incredible, there's more to football than English players"), Paul Gascoigne (my fondest memory of Euro 96 was that goal - you know the one), Alan Shearer (my second fondest memory of Euro 96 was his performances - he's another one of those few players that I really "miss"), Paolo Di Canio (lit up Match Of The Day whenever he was on, he would always do something incredible) and Steven Gerrard (my girlfriend's one and only favourite player - she's forcing me to write this).
 
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1) Gaetano Scirea

An international regular for over a decade, Scirea was the model libero. A player of elegance, class and agility he was above all a leader and a superb organiser of the play. Another vital member of the Juventus-inspired 1982 World Cup winning team, Scirea could break and make attacks equally comfortably. After retiring from an impressive career, he was appointed as Dino Zoff's assistant at Juventus but tragically died in a car crash while on a scouting mission in Poland.

2) Allan Simonsen

Dane who won European Footballer Of The Year with Borussia Monchengladbach in 1977. Simonsen scored his club's equaliser in that year's European Cup Final against Liverpool (although he couldn't prevent a 3-1 defeat) and converted the penalty to beat England at Wembley and take the Danes to the 1984 European Championship finals in France. Broke his ankle in the first match of that tournament and never recaptured his form, failing to make the Denmark squad for Mexico 86.

3) Arnold Muhren

Still the greatest Dutch contribution to English football, ahead of his Ipswich team-mate Franz Thijsen and Dennis Bergkamp. Won the 1981 UEFA Cup with the East Anglians, a result which made Ipswich probably the smallest town ever to win a European trophy. Missed out on the 1978 squad and his country couldn't qualify for 1982 or 1986.

Enjoyed a last hurrah at the age of 37 as a member of in the team that won the 1988 European Championship - it was his long diagonal pass that Marco van Basten volleyed home for his glorious third in the final against the Soviet Union - but never played in a World Cup.

4) Liam Brady

Another Irishman with a sad tale to tell. After years of playing in mediocre Eire teams, the artistic Brady found himself at odds with manager Jack 'Long Ball' Charlton when his country finally rustled up a team and a set of tactics good enough to get them to a World Cup. Having missed the Republic's 1988 European Championship campaign, he played in the qualifiers for Italia 90 but made his last appearance three weeks before the tournament started in a friendly against Finland.

Having graced Arsenal teams of the late Seventies and early Eighties known more for their fight than their finesse, Brady made his way to Italian club football, where he proved both popular and effective.

5) Hristo Stoichkov

Possibly the greatest Bulgarian player. Stoitchkov earned global acclaim after winning the Spanish Primera Division four consecutive times and taking his club to Champions League glory in 1992.

At World Cup 1994, Hristo Stoichkov was awarded the Golden boot as the top goal scorer of the tournament as he miraculously led his country to the semi-finals and Golden ball (France football magazine).

Apart from his numerous awards and trophies, Stoichkov gained much popularity because of his aggressive on-pitch temper. His relentless attitude was known to irritate his opposition and enthrall his fans who preserve his image close to their hearts.
 
1. Eric Cantona - the only arogant person I have ever liked.
2. Frank Worthington - A genius that was ahead of his time.
3. Gabriel Batistuta - Best striker I have ever seen.
4. Roy Keane - in his prime, he was worth two players.
5. Kevin Francis - Giant in all senses of the word. 120 goals in two and a half years for Stockport.
 
My biased top 5:


1. Dennis Bergkamp My first reall football memories lie with Dennis Bergkamp. To me he was just a bit more of a genius than Litmanen. Especially his lob goals.
2. Jari Litmanen Nobody thought we could find a good follow-up for Bergkamp. Litmanen came out of nothing, and people all forgot Dennis. Ask any Ajax-fan who his favourite Ajax player ever is and 9 out of 10 will say Litmanen.
3. Edgar Davids I never saw a player combine football with so much power and will. Will to win at any cost.
4. Dani Most beatifull player I ever saw playing. The technique, the class, the flair. Such a shame he broke his own carreer :(
5. Frank Rijkaard No explanation need, I think. Brilliant player.
 
1-Batistuta : Great header and volley master. Loved his goals.
2-Beckham : Love the way he passes and shis long shots. Big advantages.
3-Pires : We have a lot of very good players in France, but Pires is the one I prefer. When Marseille won after his goal that hit both of the posts against Chelsea in 2000, I knew he was going to be amazing. In July he gave us the Euro Cup after a great assist for Trezeguet.
4-Delpiero : Was great 10 years ago, is still great nowadays and will be great again next season.
5-Bergkamp : Pure class.
 
From what I remember or have seen, heres my five in no particular order since they are all great:

Gianfranco Zola - Was always clean, very talented and turned down Chelsea's big money to help Cagliari.

Paolo Maldini - Always a legend to me, was my first favourite player and my first jersey was a Maldini top. Still consider him to be legendary and very talented. Was a Milan player since the age of 16, and now his number 3 is reserved for any future Maldinis.

Gabriel Batistuta - Lethal, dangerous and passionate. Played for Fiorentina for 9 years, even in Serie B and always knew how to score.

George Weah - My favourite striker of all time. 2nd jersey I ever purchased. I was so sad when we sold him, he was a legend and always scored loads of goals. I remember the time he partnered Roberto Baggio for Milan for a while, and both of them enjoyed their football.

Alessandro Nesta - Still see him as the world's best center back. When we missed him this season, there was such a huge difference in our team. His return for the 2nd Bayern game showed how good he was. He is very clean at tackling, and has amazing composure. I think he is one of Milan's best signings in the last 10 years.
 
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Mines are biased towards the mighty gers.

Gazza - Complete and utter legend. Will we ever see players of this ilk at Ibrox again? Probably not.

B.Laudrup - Scored the winning goal V dundee Utd to wrap up 9 titles in a row. A completely elegant footballer who had a sharp burst of pace.

Ally McCoist - Legend on and off the pitch. Had Rangers at heart , and gave his all in every game he played. Glasgow's answer to Roy of the rovers.

Richard Gough - The type of defender you dont see anymore. Really under-rated , kept us going all the way through 9IAR. Even int he latter stages of his career palying in England , he still had some of the best strikers in the world visit his back pocket.

Andy Goram - Not often you see a goalie who is as passionate as this guy. People say pigs dont fly , this one certainly did , a thorn in every celtic player in the late 80's side.
 
1. Ruud van Nistelrooy
- I cant tell you how I love this player. I would like to have him back to ManU, miss him.
2. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
- What can I say, a true legend for me. 20LEgend!
3.George Best
- Havent seen him playing, only clips, but he was the very best!
4 and 5.Zinedine Zidane/Cantona/Maradona/Giggs/Keano
-Cant choose. Zidane fantastic, Cantona legend,Maradona the best player ever imo and Giggs absolute fantastic player and Keanos fucking magic!
 
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Maradona: simply pure magic. He did the things everyone only can imagine.

Romario : Best finisher.

Zidane : Pure Elegance.

Schmeichel: I'm not afraid to point that he was the best goalkeeper in soccer history.

Ayala: Although in his beginings he made some mistakes. The most complete CB I ever saw.
 
This is the kind of thread that everybody wants to write in but nobody reads. :mryellow:
 
eric cantona - everything u need in the game /goal against liverpool fa cup

dennis bergkamp - pure touch / goal aginst argies in world cup

gabriel batistuta - 1 being argie and his shree goal scoring abilty

ryan giggs - most underated player in england / european football
cant for get his goal fa cup against arsenal.. just like g.best

leo messi.... he gonna eventually be the savbiour of argentina...
 
Jürgen Kohler

Gabriel Batistuta

Diego Maradona

Marco van Basten

Gary Lineker
 
Who would've guessed that Batistuta is the most popular player out there?


Roberto Baggio - My first football idol. When I wasn't really interested in football whatsoever, I loved watching Baggio play.

Del Piero - class personified

Camoranesi - What a character, one of the most underrated footballers of the last years ( some would say most overrated :mrgreen:). Does everything brilliantly.

Ciro Ferrara - Noone matches his charisma.

Maradona - To be honest, before my time. I just love watching his play though.
 
I tried Gerd. I really did. Believe me. But I failed. :|

So I apologize in advance for not sticking to your rules in this thread but it is simply WAY TOO hard or nearly impossible (for me anyway) to put down a top 5 or even top 10/20 list, when I'm grateful and thankful to sooooooo many different footballers of past and present that have come and gone or are still with us that have entertained us a great deal with either their charismatic behaviour, unbelievable set of skills or both. :8):

So I apologize but if I were to ever post in this thread, it'd have to be in a post like this or I probably wouldn't post here at all (As then I'd feel, I'm not putting an honest opinion). And I think deep down, you understand what I'm saying ;) and probably prefer I post this than no words from me at all :) or at least that's what I think/hope so anyway. :mrgreen: :p
So I'll try to put a few of my very most favourites here quickly, my friend, before I head out.

My 3 top joint favourites:

  • Javier Zanetti
  • Ryan Giggs
  • Youri Djorkaeff

    Followed very closely by the following names in the below list in addition to a few I'm avoiding putting names down of because I don't want this filtered list to get any bigger than it already is.

  • Zambrotta
  • Dennis Bergkamp
  • Patrick Kluivert
  • Marc Overmars
  • Jari Litmanen
  • Diego Tristan
  • Henrik Larsson
  • Raul
  • Buffon
  • Kaka
  • Roberto Carlos
  • Robert Pires
  • Stefano Fiore
  • Brian McBride
  • Javad Nekounam
  • Mustapha Hadji
  • Fabio Cannavaro
  • Alessandro Nesta
  • Cristian Chivu

  • Roberto Fabian Ayala: (Unlike most others on my list, I actually don't like the person (the real guy) but you can't help but just simply ADMIRE the man's set of skills as an effective footballer (central defender) or deny his legendary status. He's one of the best defenders the world of football probably has ever seen (not just one of the best in the past decade) and he'd be one of the best examples to watch videos of, so future central defenders can study and pay close attention to his anticipation, marking, tackling, aggressiveness, timing of challenge and basically learn the beautiful ART of great defending from. I'm pretty sure many great youth level coaches all around the world already have recorded hours of video footage from this guy and the likes of Nesta, Maldini and Cannavaro to show as part of 'training' for aspiring future youth central defenders)

  • Ahmadreza Abedzadeh
  • Jeremy Janot
  • Gary Speed
  • Phillip Cocu
  • Gianfranco Zola
  • Alan Shearer
  • Stevie G
  • Luis Enrique Martinez! (Remember him! :p )
  • Bebeto
  • Ivan Zamorano (I got one word for ya, 'H-E-A-D-I-N-G :eek: )
  • Juninho Pernambucano
  • Jan Koller
  • Berbatov
  • And of course, who can ever forget, Zizouuuuuu!! :8):

EDIT:

Jack Bauer said:
This is the kind of thread that everybody wants to write in but nobody reads. :mryellow:
Click to expand...

:mrgreen: :lol: :lmao:

Hahah good point. ;)
Nah, but in all seriousness, a few people do read. Gerd/Stan will for sure ;) and I have read every post until now as well. :)
 
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well, here are my favourite ones.. I've chosen only among players I've seen playing myself, so no Pele or Maradona or even Van Basten here.. just players I've seen myself. and being I an AC Milan fan, it's obvious that quite all of the best players I've seen played for AC:

Zvonimir Boban: a great midfielder, and probably my favourite player at all. He was just.. perfect!!

Nascimento de Araujo Leonardo: even if he's not one of the best players ever, he surely is one of my favourite ones.. he had got technique, skill and a godlike left foot.. amazing!!

Manuel Rui Costa: a hell of a player, and he took AC Milan's #10 shirt from Boban.. 'nuff said!!

Javier Zanetti: no way, one of the best defenders that you can see playing nowadays. I'm lucky having seen him playing live several times..

Gennaro Gattuso: he never gives up, never. He does all the work for his teammates and never gets as much credit as he deserves. I admire him for this.
 
It's hard too remember evereyone but I will try:
I won't list the too old ones cause I just saw on videos.

1. Romario (Absolut legend, What a guy! 1002 goals for him)
2. Redondo (Pure class, Heads up all the time)
3. Larsson (Goals & dreadlocks, What a match!)
4. Valdo (I bet no one remember him but gotta have one former Cruzeiro, he was a great playmaker played for Benfica and PSG too)
5. Maldonado ([Chile DMF] This guy is superb, best slider I've ever seen)

I like many others too specially Stone Cold Strikers and Playmakers
 
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PLF said:
WHOLE POST :)
Click to expand...

Cracking list, for me the 90's95ish ownwards
had the golden age of football.

It's just not the same as today there are some
great players going on to great things but it
is just not the same.

Like PLF i'm going to derail the thread a bit and
list some of my favourite players of the past.


Gabriel Batistuta - My favourite striker of all time
Zinedine Zidane - The best player i've ever seen
Marsel Desailly
Rai -Brilliant attacking midfielder at PSG
Paulo Sousa - Remember him? like Redondo he was
robbed of a great career due to injury.
Predrag Mijatović
Davor Suker - Suker Chip!
Robert Prosinečki
Stefan Effenberg
Luis Figo
Rivaldo - He was unstoppable during his Barca days

I'm off to go stick on ISS Pro Evolution 2...
 
Well as this thread is your FAVOURITE players (not necessarily the best players) then here goes...

1. Charlie Nicholas - My hero growing up. Had ridiculous skill but loved the lifestyle a bit too much! Champange Charlie they called him!! :lol:

2. Anders Limpar - in 1990-91 he was unbeleiveable. Almost won us the title singlehandedly. I love the fact that he had never had a bet before joining Arsenal and meeting Paul Merson, he now owns a chain of betting shops in Sweden!! :lmao:

3. Tony Adams - Committed, immense defender. Came through the early donkey taunts to lead by example for both club and country. A legend.

4. Franco Baresi - This man doesn't need any introduction!!

5. Marco Van Basten - One the the greatest players ever to play the game. Such a shame his career was ended prematurely. He was immense for Milan and who can forget his goal in the Euro '88 final?
 
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Kleimann said:
Zvonimir Boban: a great midfielder, and probably my favourite player at all. He was just.. perfect!!

Nascimento de Araujo Leonardo: even if he's not one of the best players ever, he surely is one of my favourite ones.. he had got technique, skill and a godlike left foot.. amazing!!

Manuel Rui Costa: a hell of a player, and he took AC Milan's #10 shirt from Boban.. 'nuff said!!
Click to expand...


Almost forgot them! Rui Costa has one of the highest assist numbers for Milan. I remember the year we signed Kaka, 2004, I was in the shop after the first match of the season (Ancona) ready to buy Rui Costa's shirt... but they ran out of R's, so thats when I bought my Kaka shirt without knowing anything about him.

Leonardo - Legend! His ball control! Everything! I also met his daughter(she went to my school) and wife!

Boban - Incredible midfielder. I remember his passing and shooting. I feel he is a little underrated.
 
1. Mark Hughes - Unrivalled for technique and presence. Never before or again will there be a better technician of volleying a ball. My favourite of all-time.

2. David Beckham - Still the best at what he does. His ability to pin-point crosses and free kicks is unimaginable.

3. Diego Maradona - All I ever saw of Maradona was from video clips and vague memories from the Italia '90 World Cup, but he did things with a ball that nobody thought was possible. A truly innovative footballer. The best ever in my opinion.

4. George Best - As with Maradona, I'm too young to remember him playing, but his class and pace was unrivalled. Never seen anybody keep a ball the way Best did it.

5. Clarence Seedorf - Football personified. One of the most passionate players I've ever seen. His desire, ability and will to win is backed up by his 4 Champions League winner's medals.

Ruud van Nistelrooy was a close 6th, but there was already 3 United players in there!
 
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