Best two players from each decade (1950s to 2010s)

[DC80]

Any disagreements with the top two players from each decade in the video?


Not old enough to remember pre 1980s, but from what I’ve seen, I’d have Garrincha at #2 from the 1950s, George Best at #2 from the 1960s, and in the 1980s Zico must be pushing Platini hard for the #2 spot. Wouldn’t argue with any of the others. Making a prediction for the 2020s, Mbappé over Neymar

 

[Haffa]

Henry? Good player but not Top 2.

 

[AusKnightRKO]

Henry? Good player but not Top 2.

Not going all Arsenal home boy here, but in his prime he was absolutely unplayable, it’s a shame 07-10 were wasted at Barca, if he had gone to a club where he was the main striker he would have torn the league apart.

 

[Tommy Smith]

Assuming players can only be included once, 1980s onwards for me...

80s
1. Diego Maradona
2. Lothar Matthaus (a very close 2nd)

90s
1. Zinedine Zidane
2. Ronaldo

2000s
1. Ronaldinho
2. Xavi

2010s
1. Lionel Messi
2. Cristiano Ronaldo

 

[Tommy Smith]

Btw how good were the 80s/90s when the likes of Platini, Zico, Socrates, van Basten, Baresi, Maldini, Guulit, Laudrup, Romario, Baggio, Rijkaard, Hagi, Stoichkov, Bergkamp, Cafu, Rivaldo just off the top of my head couldn't get a look in.

What's fascinating is that despite the major increases in money and coaching, the number of contemporary great players isn't anywhere near as deep as it was.

 

[saint.nick]

Btw how good were the 80s/90s when the likes of Platini, Zico, Socrates, van Basten, Baresi, Maldini, Guulit, Laudrup, Romario, Baggio, Rijkaard, Hagi, Stoichkov, Bergkamp, Cafu, Rivaldo just off the top of my head couldn't get a look in.

What's fascinating is that despite the major increases in money and coaching, the number of contemporary great players isn't anywhere near as deep as it was.

I blame modern coaching. As successful as Guardiola is, his kind of coaching is so micro-managing and mechanical that players are losing the ability to truly express themselves and also think for themselves to the extent that they could in the 90s and beforehand. When you straitjacket players like that, less of them are going to be able to distinguish themselves as all-time greats

 

[saint.nick]

Assuming players can only be included once, 1980s onwards for me...

80s
1. Diego Maradona
2. Lothar Matthaus (a very close 2nd)

90s
1. Zinedine Zidane
2. Ronaldo

2000s
1. Ronaldinho
2. Xavi

2010s
1. Lionel Messi
2. Cristiano Ronaldo

Don't get me wrong, Xavi was great, but also overrated IMO

 

[Tommy Smith]

Don't get me wrong, Xavi was great, but also overrated IMO

I think what makes Xavi so great for me is that he was at the fulcrum of Pep's 'tiki taka' style.

Now I personally believe the style is now ultimately a failure because it requires a group of ridiculously high level players to succeed.

And that's why it worked at Barca in that golden period. They had Xavi, Iniesta, Messi, Villa, and Eto'o at the tip of it to make tiki taka work.

And Xavi was always at the heart of it all. And it took a player of his immense skill, vision and presence to pull it off; because since then it's frankly been a disaster - gobbled up by teams playing deep with great, lightning quick counter attacking ability.

My equal 2nd choice btw (I wanted to put him alongside Xavi) would have been Pirlo. Another genius playmaker who played deeper. And probably the best I've seen in that position.

 

[DC80]

Don't get me wrong, Xavi was great, but also overrated IMO

Wow. Seriously. Granted it’s your opinion, but you are very wrong.

That’s the greatest central midfielder who has ever played the sport, ever. Bar none. Go to 5:20 in the video, remember that he had an entire career of doing that.


All that success for Spain and Barcelona, he is the brains in both teams. Nobody controlled a game like he did. The master at keeping possession, his trademark 360 degree turns to spin away from the opposing midfielder, pinpoint pass to a teammate and then would find space to receive it again. Always open, always recycling the ball. He is untouchable in midfield. If he’s “overrated” then everyone is.



Initially I thought either Platini (as in the video) or Zico as the 2nd best of the eighties, but that’s because I completely forgot Van Basten. There’s a sequence of goals just after 11 minutes which reminded me just how clinical a finisher he was.

 

[DC80]

Assuming players can only be included once, 1980s onwards for me...

80s
1. Diego Maradona
2. Lothar Matthaus (a very close 2nd)

90s
1. Zinedine Zidane
2. Ronaldo

2000s
1. Ronaldinho
2. Xavi

2010s
1. Lionel Messi
2. Cristiano Ronaldo

Matthaus is up there. In an all time XI I’d have him next to Xavi in central midfield.

Zidane ahead of Ronaldo Zidane wouldn’t agree with. Ronaldo could do what Zidane could do but in fast forward (see la roulette at 43 seconds). The Ronaldo at Barca and the first two years at Inter was probably the greatest striker since Pelé.


Xavi is a great call for #2. Torn between him and Thierry Henry. The best Premier League player ever, for a three year period (2002-2005) Henry was frightening, and the only better player on the planet was Ronaldinho.

 

[DC80]

Btw how good were the 80s/90s when the likes of Platini, Zico, Socrates, van Basten, Baresi, Maldini, Guulit, Laudrup, Romario, Baggio, Rijkaard, Hagi, Stoichkov, Bergkamp, Cafu, Rivaldo just off the top of my head couldn't get a look in.

What's fascinating is that despite the major increases in money and coaching, the number of contemporary great players isn't anywhere near as deep as it was.

Not sure about that tbh. Mbappé, Modric and Hazard are not a bad one, two three at the World Cup, with no Messi, Ronaldo or Neymar on the list.

There’s a much greater spread of talent being developed around the world than ever before. My own team Liverpool, three world class Africans: Mo Salah from Egypt, Naby Keita from Guinea, Sadie Mane from Senegal. Potentially the first world class American in Christian Pulisic. Top class Asian players like Son from South Korea, Kagawa from Japan. That Belgium vs Japan game at the World Cup, Kagawa was the best player on a pitch also featuring Eden Hazard.

The game was already global years ago, but it’s only becoming even more so. With that there will be a constant conveyor belt of top class talent in greater volumes than previous.

 

[pennywisealfie]

Pretty good video. I'd probably put Baggio at 2 in the 90s. I think Zidane's best seasons were in the early 2000s, so I would put him at 2 there over Henry.