411s Top 50 Football Players in the World - Part One: 50 41
Posted by on 07.30.2007
Before you click people, a little message: some of you call this sport soccer. There will be no Peyton Manning in this list. Just a heads up. Anyway, numbers 50 to 41, One Click Away.
Welcome to this five-column feature to whet the appetite for the arrival of the new season. We're all pumped, aren't we? It's going to be class. Until then, we have this Top 50 Players in the World feature running every day until Friday, before a European football pre-season roundtable next Monday. Plus, all the usual columns. You may be sick of us by the start of the season, but at least we'll have you psyched for the kick-off on August 11th.
Anyway, its day one of the feature, and this is the way it worked. The following writers produced lists of their top fifty current footballers, in ranked order. Each person's number one pick received fifty points, their number two pick received forty-nine points, all the way down to one point for their fiftieth pick. Six writers' produced lists so the maximum points on offer was three hundred. Its all basic stuff. Anyway, the writers' who have contributed lists and blurbs are:
Anyway, let's get the first ten players in the history books:
50. Carlos Puyol (Barcelona) 50 points
Colin Pigeau: You could be forgiven for overlooking Puyol as one of the top centre-halves around. He just doesn't seem to come up. Looking at him in a strictly achievement-oriented fashion, one must be impressed. He's the defensive lynchpin and captain of what has been, arguably, the best team on the planet for the last number of years. Two La Liga titles consecutively, not to mention finishing even on points with this year's champion, and a Champions League. The lad must be doing something right, because he makes Victor Valdes look better than he is. Now all he needs to do is get that mop of his to go up, like Valderrama.
49. Diego (Werder Bremen) 50 points
Tim O'Sullivan: After his 92nd minute equaliser at the spanking new Wembley, Gary Lineker turned to his BBC pundits and said, "we don't know much about this player do we?"
Apart from Leonardo, that was certainly the case in the studio and it emphasises the ignorance the British media have on the European game especially for teams that don't make the latter stages of the Champions League. Diego is a classic example of this. He is one of the best attacking midfielders in the world, and Lineker, Hansen and Shearer had never heard of him.
After an inconsistent spell at Porto, the Brazilian playmaker went to Werder Bremen on the cheap, and became the Bundesliga's standout player.
48. David Beckham (LA Galaxy) 51 points
Morgan Marx: Go on. Criticize his looks. Take a shot at the Spice Girls reunion. Mention the ridiculous Disney advertisement in which he played the part of Sleeping Beauty's dragon slayer. But don't bring up his football. While David Beckham will always remain a polarizing figure for his off the pitch exploits, no one can question his level of play in the first half of '07. Beckham was an instrumental piece in Madrid's championship run, ending their long hardware drought (3 whole years!). The 50-yard passes and driving free kicks get all the coverage, but it was Beckham's drive and determination that spurred his team on. How many other top flight athletes, left for dead by both club and country, would have continued to show up, give their all, and sacrifice for the greater good? Beckham did, making his critics (Fabio Capello, Ramon Calderon, Jim Rome) look foolish in the process. Now it's on to LA and the task of making soccer popular in the US. You doubt his chances? Something tells me that fits Sir David Beckham just fine.
Just no more platinum blonde hair. Please.
47. Fabio Cannavaro (Real Madrid) 52 points
Daniel Wilcox: The Fifa World Player of the Year is widely recognised as one of, if not the best defender in the world. While he is certainly not the biggest of defenders, he manages to be a dominant force in the back line of both club (Real Madrid) and country (Italy). Cannavaro captained Italy to a World Cup triumph in 2006. The Italian also has tremendous speed for a defender, and also has a great sense of anticipation allowing him to be a problem for any opposing striker. As well as all of his tremendous attributes on the field, Cannavaro was voted "Sexiest Player" of the 2006 World Cup. Not that that counts for anything, I'm just saying. What?
46. Owen Hargreaves (Manchester United) 54 points
Morgan Marx: Well, the easy part is over. Owen Hargreaves has pushed his stock as high as it could go before finally cashing in. He's been considered the best Englishman to play outside the Premiereship, he was England's best performer not named Beckham at the '06 World Cup, and he's seen as a better choice for the national team than Frank Lampard. And while winning league titles and country cups at Bayern Munich is no small feat, Hargreaves is about to hit the big time. A $30million move to Manchester United brings with it a whole new set of responsibilities and requirements. With Man U's surprise success at home, Hargreaves will be expected to help the team repeat in the Prem and score some silverware from abroad. Will Hargreaves be up to the task? A score of Red Devil's fans certainly hope so.
45. Patrick Vieira (Inter Milan) 56 points
Colin Pigeau: The man who led the charge to break Man United's lock on the Premiership. The man who kept an imperious Arsenal side focused and together. Patrick Vieira was the complete midfielder and leader. A behemoth who would run from box to box for days, and woe to he who had the ball. When Vieira comes to tackle, he'll just run right through you. While you're still lying on the ground in pain, Vieira's already gotten rid of the ball and started an inspirational run back down the field. He plays a more marginal role at Inter, but they would do well to give him some more freedom, as he knows how to command. Leadership and determination are what have gotten Patrick Vieira onto this list.
44. Robin Van Persie (Arsenal) 56 points
Ian Wright: There's no doubt that Robin Van Persie is a remarkably gifted footballer and that's obviously reflected by his appearance in this list. But despite that I can't help but feel that Van Persie has a huge amount of unfulfilled potential, partly because it seems no one has really figured out where his best position is. Arriving at Arsenal initially as a left winger his composure on the ball and shooting ability soon led him to be dubbed the new Dennis Bergkamp and it became more common for him to take a more central position.
However, that role never really was a comfortable fit for him, he lacks the vision of his elder compatriot and it was only at the start of this third season at Arsenal where he began to be thought of in terms of being Robin Van Persie as opposed to being a successor to Bergkamp or as a left wing rival to Arjen Robben who moved from Holland to England the same year he did. It was at this point, that he began to play in the role that he seems most comfortable with, as an out an out striker capable of scoring incredible goals. Last season saw him make use of his clever feet to get away from defenders on a regular basis and there were plenty of opportunities to witness his shooting power but he also demonstrated a previously unknown eye for goal and he combined all three qualities to reach double figures in the goal charts before his season was ended in January when he broke his foot whilst scoring the equalising goal against Manchester United in the Premiership.
Next season is a potentially huge one for Van Persie. With Thierry Henry's departure from The Emirates he's in a position to become the main man in Arsenal's attack and if he manages to play a full season he certainly looks capable of becoming a twenty-goal-a-season striker. If he does fulfil that potential by the start of next season we could be talking about a player who never mind being one of the top fifty players in the world is one of the top twenty.
43. Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich) 63
Tim O'Sullivan: To say that I'm disappointed Arsene Wenger didn't loosen the purse strings (or the principal/method strings) for this player is quite the understatement. Despite Beckenbaur's obvious swing and Bayern's historic status, his transfer to a Bundesliga side minus Champions League football is both bewildering and frustrating. This should be Ribery's time to shine on the grandest stages in football, and for the next season he won't truly be able to do that. Perhaps a good domestic campaign will give the French starlet the perfect opportunity to make his mark at Euro 2008. Either way, this quirky winger has the potential to be one of the games most exciting stars.
42. Filipo Inzaghi (Milan) 64 points
Daniel Wilcox: While Inzaghi may have passed his prime, when you look at his club record the common denominator is a plethora of goals. The Italian has played for the biggest clubs in Italy, including Juventus and A.C. Milan, and his reputation for scoring goals is unquestionable and has earned him the honour of being one of Italy's most prolific goal scorers of all time. Even now, Inzaghi has proven himself to be a tremendous asset up front, scoring both goals in Milan's Champions League triumph in May 2007. Whatever accusations are thrown his way, be it his diving tendencies or the idea that he is always simply "in the right place," the Italian prefers to do his talking on the pitch and answer the critics by doing what he does best putting the ball in the back of the net.
41. Daniel Alves (Sevilla) 64 points
Morgan Marx: When you stand out over players like Carlos Tevez, Javier Mascherano and, well, Eddie Johnson, you must be doing something right. When you happen to play at right back, the plaudits are all the more impressive. In 2003, Daniel Alves starred as the only international based player on a loaded Brazilian squad at the FIFA World Youth Cup. In 2007, Alves has begun his career for the senior squad, appearing as a substitute for Brazil in the Copa America. The dazzling winger/full back stands as the heir apparent (along with Maicon and Marcelo) to the spots held down by stalwarts Roberto Carlos and Cafu. Having won UEFA Cups, Copa Del Reys, and nearly stealing a La Liga title with Sevilla, Alves looks to be on the move towards bigger and brighter settings. When you're attracting the interest of AC Milan and Chelsea, you must be doing something right.
So, that's part one in the history books.
We'll be back tomorrow with numbers 40 to 31. Until then .
