In brief
Ronaldo Nazario’s’very rare’ group of GOATs has players like Pele and Maradona, who are true football heroes.
Among the prominent people missing from Ronaldo’s list are Ferenc Puskas, Zinedine Zidane, George Best, Michel Platini, Alfredo Di Stefano, and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Before his career was cut short by injuries, Ronaldo Nazario, one of the greatest football players of all time, was a genuinely formidable force.
Who is the all-time great player? People have been asking this question for a very long time. Given that the two superstars have won 13 Ballons d’Or between them, the response is usually either Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. For a whole generation, they have ruled football. However, Pele and Diego Maradona came before them. Despite Messi and Ronaldo’s rise, the two South Americans, who dominated the sport in their time, are still discussed as the greatest of all time.
Everyone has an opinion about the world’s best football players, but the views of those who made it to the top are slightly more significant. That’s why it’s fascinating to hear from Ronaldo Nazario, the Brazilian Ronaldo, who in a 2022 interview with The Guardian listed eight players he believes belong to a “very special” group among the greatest players of all time. And he left Cristiano out of that.
Although the players on Ronaldo’s list are unassailable, there are a few noteworthy omissions. How could he possibly leave out the talisman from Portugal? Those like Ferenc Puskas, George Best, Zinedine Zidane, Michel Platini, and Alfredo Di Stefano will feel unfairly left out. But who are we to dispute the judgement of a player who is among the greatest strikers in history and has competed at the top level? Let’s examine the seven players he did mention and the reasons they merit inclusion in the GOAT discussion.
Argentina’s Diego Maradona is an attacking midfielder.
Many people consider Diego Maradona to be among the best players in history. Playing in four World Cups, the Argentine helped his country win in 1986. His best club accomplishment was leading Napoli to their first-ever Serie A championship in 1986–87.
A couple of years later, they won their second. In Naples, Maradona memorabilia and graffiti can be seen on practically every street. For every reason, he is revered like a deity throughout the city. He was a fantastical figure who could use the ball at his feet to create magic. Do you recall that goal against England? Amazing.
Statistics for Diego Maradona’s career
Looks
435
Objectives
194
Helps
134
Lionel Messi, a forward for Argentina
From one tale to another in Argentina. Messi may be the greatest, but Maradona is perhaps one of the finest. The Inter Miami player has won everything he could possibly want, and his victory in the 2022 World Cup might have cemented his place in history as the greatest of all time. His 672 goals in 778 games for Barcelona help to explain his genius, but there are too many records and honours to list them all.
However, Messi just doesn’t care about goals. He may be remembered as the greatest goal scorer of all time, but he will also be remembered as the best dribbler, playmaker, and player of all time. His astounding eight Ballon d’Or victories are the most any one person has ever won.
The career statistics of Lionel Messi
Looks
1108
Objectives
858
Helps
420
Johan Cruyff, an attacking midfielder from the Netherlands
He may not be considered the very best, but Johan Cruyff is certainly the most important and revolutionary footballer ever. The Dutchman won three Ballons d’Or in 1971, 1973, and 1974 establishing himself as an Ajax and Barcelona icon. He’s also known for creating the ‘Cruyff’ turn – a talent that is still commonly employed in modern football as a way to effectively beat defenders.
Creating your own move is enough to win a legacy as one of the best footballers of all time, and it wasn’t just on the pitch that he happened to excel. His management career wasn’t awful either for both of those clubs, becoming one of the top managers of all time also.
Johan Cruyff’s career statistics
Looks
599
Objectives
335
Helps
221
Franz Beckenbauer
Germany – Defender
The only defensive-minded player on Ronaldo’s list of seven is Franz Beckenbauer, who is well-deserving of his spot. The German is credited with creating the “modern sweeper” role and is one of only nine players to have won the FIFA World Cup, the European Champions Cup, and the Ballon d’Or. He played nearly 600 times for Bayern Munich, winning every possible award. Beckenbauer was the most dominant force at the back in history, and he was the pinnacle of what a defender could be.
Statistics from Franz Beckenbauer’s career
Looks
724
Objectives
88
Helps
85
Brazil’s Pele Forward
FIFA reports that the Brazilian scored 1,281 goals in 1,363 games, though the numbers are frequently contested. We do know that he is a Santos icon and that he won three World Cups for Brazil. It’s difficult to dispute how significant he has been to football given the calibre of players he has inspired and affected throughout the years. His influence on the game was truly immense.
The career statistics of Pele
Looks
1363
Objectives
1281
Marco van Basten
Netherlands – Forward
Despite playing his final game at the age of 28 due to an ankle injury, Marco van Basten is considered one of the greatest attackers of all time. He was the recipient of the Ballon d’Or in 1988, 1989, and 1992. Along with four Serie A titles and three European Cups with AC Milan, he also won three Eredivisie crowns and the Cup Winners’ Cup with Ajax.
But he flourished not only at the club level. He scored five goals, including the shot against the Soviet Union in the final, and scored 24 goals for the Netherlands, helping them win Euro 1988. If he hadn’t been compelled to retire so early, just think of how much more we could have received.
The career statistics of Marco van Basten
Looks
431
Objectives
301
Helps
92
Brazil’s Ronaldinho, winger
Although Ronaldinho is rarely brought up in the discussion of the greatest of all time, the Brazilian’s brilliance is undeniable. He won the Ballon d’Or in 2005 and was the greatest in the world at the time. Watching Ronaldinho throughout those Barcelona seasons in 2005–06 and 2006–07 was just a blast.
Grinning while putting on top-notch performances and winning games. among the most talented athletes in history. Even if his peak wasn’t as long as some of the other players on our list, it was still one of the most astounding for what we got because he would do things with a football that we had never seen before.
The career statistics of Ronaldinho
Looks
643
Objectives
180
Helps
151
Ronaldo Nazario, a forward from Brazil
Ronaldo ranked himself among the all-time great seven players. And what do you know? He is not to fault. Since Ronaldo was one of the greatest strikers of all time, we will support him for his ego trip. With his Nike Mercurial Vapours and lightning-fast speed, Ronaldo was the first true football superstar and nearly impossible to stop. That is, until his career was in danger of being derailed by those terrible knee problems.
After moving from PSV to Barcelona for a world-record sum, Ronaldo had the world at his feet at the age of 20. The FIFA World Player of the Year award went to him. He shattered the transfer record once more when he signed with Inter a year later, and when he won the Ballon d’Or at the age of 21, he became the youngest laureate. He scored 59 goals in 99 games for Inter Milan before moving to Real Madrid, where he scored an additional 104 goals. Before injuries ultimately took their toll, he spent his final years at AC Milan and Corinthians. What a player, though.
The career stats of Ronaldo
Looks
553
Objectives
360 degrees
Helps
108
