21 Jul 2026 21:32:54
After KK’s very sad passing I’ve been looking at Ballon d’Or winners...
I’ve never realised before that Pele and Maradona never even made it in to the top 3 ever. That is an abomination to me. 2 of the greatest players ever to play the game and they never made the top 3?
21 Jul 2026 21:55:38
Think it was a European award at that time....like Micheal Owens? ✌
21 Jul 2026 21:59:12
Just recently, I read about a coach or manager who had voted for Salah in the Ballon D'Or. When they checked later, they saw someone had changed their vote to Messi. Of course, when they asked for clarification, there was no response.
This tells you all you need to know about how these individual prices are being run.
21 Jul 2026 22:02:16
Cheers, Laddie, you are indeed correct.
I feel less outraged now, I can get some sleep tonight. ?
21 Jul 2026 22:11:01
The award was only for European-born players up until 1995, when it was changed to any player at a European club. It became a global award in 2007. George Weah was the first non-European player to win it.
21 Jul 2026 23:07:08
Also, Pele never played for a European club. He surprisingly only played 92 times for Brazil, with 77 goals, winning three World Cups, scoring 12 goals across the 14 World Cup games he played in. The first, when he was just 17.
Plus, over 1,000 goals for his clubs.
His stats are over and above what anyone else has achieved - and given the heavy lead ball, mad tackling, and dreadful pitches of his era - his stats are beyond extraordinary.
Messi was some player, but Pele was on a different level - and never needed a team of bruisers to carry him through a tournament.
My top of all time would be: Pele, Cruyff, Zidane, Souness, Hansen, Kenny, Keegan, Robbo, and then Messi.
21 Jul 2026 23:16:06
You obviously left off Maradona on purpose as the list above is for mere mortals whereas Maradona was a god amongst men in the football sense.
21 Jul 2026 23:45:10
And you forgot the Best.
21 Jul 2026 23:48:15
This the same Pele who included goals from training and friendlies. :P
22 Jul 2026 03:16:38
I don't get the love for Maradona.
Unbelievable talent, sure. But talent isn't what makes you great, it's just a part of what makes you great. Maradona only filled the talent part, everything else was missing.
Aside from him being a cheater, a drug cheat and a general despot on the field, he was also a despicable person off the field.
22 Jul 2026 06:25:44
Hsf, you've clearly never watched him play. When you have, come back mate. Simply the best.
22 Jul 2026 07:09:57
Marco Van Basten is often forgotten, absolute beast of a striker.
22 Jul 2026 08:00:57
Maradonna played on crap pitches, no referee protection, hatchet men and still was absolutely class, Messi couldn't have coped with that, the goat.
22 Jul 2026 08:57:03
You can't compare eras. We probably saw DM only during some WC tournaments and a bit of Serie A on C4. Now it's wall to wall football coverage, and we can watch Messi eating his breakfast on our phone if we wish. So it's easy to be swallowed up by that, and it's easy to forget about the past.
Maradona was the best of his time. Messi the best of this. The best, or my favorite, football player I have ever seen in my opinion is Zidane. So neither of the above.
22 Jul 2026 09:27:45
@Monster, countries tended to play less international matches per season back in the 69's. LFCS_MANGO, did you ever see Pele play?
22 Jul 2026 09:35:46
You can't have a list of the best players in the past 60 years or so that doesn't include the Belfast Boy. Naturally, right footed but trained himself to use his left footy to such effect that most people thought he was left footed, and he used to train on his own, teaching himself to head the ball. He suspended a ball from the ceiling just an inch or so higher than he could reach and kept going until he could head the ball properly, and then raised the rope a little bit more and went through the same process.
Despite the 5th Beatle tag he has a great work ethic. If teams wanted to play football he would outplay them, if they wanted to 'get stuck in' he gave as good as he got.
22 Jul 2026 09:39:45
I forgot to add, my dad thought Duncan Edwards was a far better player than Best. Pretty odd that my dad watched Liverpool from the end of the late 1940s until he passed away 15 years ago, and I have supported the club since the early 1960s (although my memories start in the mid 60s and our individual favourites both played for United - different times in those days I guess).
22 Jul 2026 10:02:06
Same with me, WDW, my dad used to rave about Duncan Edwards.
Pele said Best was the best, and Pele should know more than most.
Maradona also cited Best as an inspiration.
22 Jul 2026 10:06:19
The Fifth Element, George Weah, had such a monumental individual season that France Football had to change the rule to allow him to win it in that 94/95 season, cos not a soul came close to him. And the fact that he was playing for a prime PSG team with the likes of Rai and David Ginola also helped.
So if the likes of Messi, R9, R10 or Salah, Mane etc. won or had a chance of winning this great award, they have "Mister George" to thank for that. A true Hero and Legend.
22 Jul 2026 10:18:44
Personally, I don't think any of them should be considered in the conversation for best 'player of all time'. Could they tackle, switch the play, control the pace of the game, take out 3 players with a pinpoint pass, track back, get their head on the ball, work hard for the team and defend, take free kicks, corners, cross etc etc?
These are all legitimate and important parts of the game that sadly get widely overlooked for the glamour of the goal scoring, which I know is important, but it's nothing without everything I just said above.
Greatest forwards of all time, yeah sure, but players? Not for me.
For me, best players of all time needs to inherently be your b2b midfield generals who grabbed games by the scruff and could do everything those chaps could and more.
I know I'm biased, but for me, I have never seen a more complete football player operating at world class levels in almost every discipline than Gerrard. I am sure there are other out there that have been like him over the years but I've not seen them.
22 Jul 2026 10:31:08
I'll raise you one Zizou Westwood. Different Class.
22 Jul 2026 10:33:26
I agree with wdw. Charlton thought Edward's was better than Pele which is saying something. Could play pretty much anywhere and do the job.
22 Jul 2026 11:20:15
It's always been Maradona for me, partly because he didn't play in great teams, but he won a World Cup and the Scudetto twice with teams which wouldn't compete without him.
22 Jul 2026 11:23:37
Pele good, Maradonna great, Georgie Best.
22 Jul 2026 11:59:29
After watching Messi's behaviour during the recent final, he's off my list. Maybe gamesmanship for him, but downright cheating for me. The man has won so much but he still has to resort to cheating. Greed and avarice.
22 Jul 2026 15:43:01
If R9 had not been injured so badly, he would have been the greatest. I'm a child of Maradona's age, really, but Ronaldo 94-99 was the greatest peak I've seen against arguably the greatest defenders in four different leagues.