Best Striker in the World now

[JuveFE]

I've skimmed through the 7 pages of this forum and cannot believe that nobody has mentioned Fernando Torres?!?

Fernando Torres!

Title of the thread is right now and right now he's not the best in the world.

Plus I think he's hurt.

[Stinky Shinguards]

Title of the thread is right now and right now he's not the best in the world.

Plus I think he's hurt.

Was hurt... Right Now, he is the BEST:

Fernando Torres came off the bench to inspire Liverpool to victory as Rafa Benitez's men left it late to see off Fulham at a flood-lit Anfield.

I invite you to watch him in action vs. Newcastle this weekend.

[schafer]

You seem to have rather simplistic ideas about the world of football: if you seriously believe ManU offloaded Ruud because he wasn’t good enough or not suited to their style of football, you probably also believed Ferguson when he said that he replaced Stam with Blanc because the latter was a better player.

There's a thread in the United forum specifically discussing United's striker situation, and one of the points brought up about Van Nistelrooy is that he doesn't really fit what seems to be the mold of strikers under Ferguson, that SAF prefers players like Yorke, Cole, Saha, Sheringham etc. who may not be the most prolific, but fit better in their respective United teams. It was also pointed out that Van Nistelrooy was the first United striker since Mclair to score 20 league goals, yet in between that time United were incredibly successful. They won the treble with a player in Andy Cole who was notoriously inconsistent in front of goal, but offered so much else as an individual and in a partnership with Yorke that his lack of clinicality didn't really matter.

NOTE: That does not mean that Van Nistelrooy is a bad player or not up to the standard of a club like United, he just doesn't fit the style which SAF wanted to achieve.

Ruud was crowned topscorer in two of Europe’s biggest leagues. Who else has done that? I agree that there are different types of strikers, one the pure goalscorer and the other the more alround forward. But you cannot become topscorer in two leagues that are both high quality yet completely different in terms of footballing style if a goalscoring machine is all you are.

Cruyff agrees with you about Ruud btw, said he doesn’t rate him as a footballer. Van Basten by contrast DOES highly rate Ruud, not only as a striker but also as an alround footballer. I reckon that if anyone’s got the right to rate a striker, it’s Marco van Basten. No?

I never, to my knowledge, said I don't rate Van Nistelrooy ( I wouldn't want to be caught dead agreeing with Cruyff ;)). What I was saying was that he fits an example of a where a player who is more prolific doesn't necessarily fit the team's system the best, and therefore a combination of other factors may be more important than goalscoring.

I also don't see the problem of labelling Van Nistelrooy a goalscoring machine. That doesn't mean he doesn't have excellent footballing qualities, as he clearly does (great first touch, incredible upper body strength) but he utilizes them mostly for the purpose of getting goals himself.

[bigdogsoccer21]

im going with totti...so nasty. but van nistlroy's up there too

[johan neeskens]

There's a thread in the United forum specifically discussing United's striker situation, and one of the points brought up about Van Nistelrooy is that he doesn't really fit what seems to be the mold of strikers under Ferguson, that SAF prefers players like Yorke, Cole, Saha, Sheringham etc. who may not be the most prolific, but fit better in their respective United teams. It was also pointed out that Van Nistelrooy was the first United striker since Mclair to score 20 league goals, yet in between that time United were incredibly successful. They won the treble with a player in Andy Cole who was notoriously inconsistent in front of goal, but offered so much else as an individual and in a partnership with Yorke that his lack of clinicality didn't really matter.

NOTE: That does not mean that Van Nistelrooy is a bad player or not up to the standard of a club like United, he just doesn't fit the style which SAF wanted to achieve.



I never, to my knowledge, said I don't rate Van Nistelrooy ( I wouldn't want to be caught dead agreeing with Cruyff ;)). What I was saying was that he fits an example of a where a player who is more prolific doesn't necessarily fit the team's system the best, and therefore a combination of other factors may be more important than goalscoring.

I also don't see the problem of labelling Van Nistelrooy a goalscoring machine. That doesn't mean he doesn't have excellent footballing qualities, as he clearly does (great first touch, incredible upper body strength) but he utilizes them mostly for the purpose of getting goals himself.

If Van Nistelrooy wasn't suited to ManU, why then did he score that many goals for them? It seems to me that ManU fans as usual are trying to blindly justify every decision Ferguson makes.

Also, I would like to turn the discussion around. At ManU, Ruud stayed in the box mostly because that's what was asked of him. At PSV, he had a much free-er role, just like he does now for Holland. I could look up a YouTube video for you of a young Ruud nearly scoring against Brazil in one of his first appearances for Holland: he dribbled through the defence and then tried to backheel it in, showing amazing technical skill. So he does have all those qualities; it seems however that ManU were interested only in him as a poacher and under-utilised his other qualities.

[revelationx]

If Van Nistelrooy wasn't suited to ManU, why then did he score that many goals for them? It seems to me that ManU fans as usual are trying to blindly justify every decision Ferguson makes.

Also, I would like to turn the discussion around. At ManU, Ruud stayed in the box mostly because that's what was asked of him. At PSV, he had a much free-er role, just like he does now for Holland. I could look up a YouTube video for you of a young Ruud nearly scoring against Brazil in one of his first appearances for Holland: he dribbled through the defence and then tried to backheel it in, showing amazing technical skill. So he does have all those qualities; it seems however that ManU were interested only in him as a poacher and under-utilised his other qualities.

The reason RVN left Man U was simply he had a falling out with Fergie. He was dropped for the League Cup Final for Saha and subsequently displayed a poor attitude in training towards the coaching staff and other players (notable C Ronaldo). In effect he became a disruptive influence in the Man U dressing room. It is this aspect rather than his performance on the pitch that led to his sale. Real Madrid took the opportunity to swoop when Fergie had decided to sell him because of these off-field problems. The fact that Man U were relatively unsuccessful during RVN's spell at OT is purely because that time coincided with Chelsea and Arsenal having incredibly consistent seasons. Fergie has displayed on numerous occasions his ruthlessness in ejecting players who fall out with him - Becks, Stam etc. Unlike certain other clubs, Man U is ruled by the Manager alone and player power is not a problem.

As a fox in the box RVN is incredible, his long range goals stats are surprisingly low. This is obviously an indication of his playing style and strengths.

[JuveFE]

Was hurt... Right Now, he is the BEST:

Fernando Torres came off the bench to inspire Liverpool to victory as Rafa Benitez's men left it late to see off Fulham at a flood-lit Anfield.

I invite you to watch him in action vs. Newcastle this weekend.

I've seen him play plenty of times. And as of right now he is not the best in the world. Don't get me wrong I think he's good but he's not the best.

I wouldn't put him above Toni, RVN, Klose or even Totti.

[johan neeskens]

The reason RVN left Man U was simply he had a falling out with Fergie. He was dropped for the League Cup Final for Saha and subsequently displayed a poor attitude in training towards the coaching staff and other players (notable C Ronaldo). In effect he became a disruptive influence in the Man U dressing room. It is this aspect rather than his performance on the pitch that led to his sale. Real Madrid took the opportunity to swoop when Fergie had decided to sell him because of these off-field problems. The fact that Man U were relatively unsuccessful during RVN's spell at OT is purely because that time coincided with Chelsea and Arsenal having incredibly consistent seasons. Fergie has displayed on numerous occasions his ruthlessness in ejecting players who fall out with him - Becks, Stam etc. Unlike certain other clubs, Man U is ruled by the Manager alone and player power is not a problem.

As a fox in the box RVN is incredible, his long range goals stats are surprisingly low. This is obviously an indication of his playing style and strengths.

I agree with most of what you're saying. I was merely arguing against the ManU fans who claim that Ruud was got rid off for football reasons.

[schafer]

If Van Nistelrooy wasn't suited to ManU, why then did he score that many goals for them? It seems to me that ManU fans as usual are trying to blindly justify every decision Ferguson makes.

As opposed to a Holland fan blindly defending every perceived attack on a Dutch player?;)

He scored so many because he was an incredible goalscorer, but I think you saw last year with the kind of flowing football United played with goals coming from all over the pitch and their title triumph that maybe in the long run, they are better off without Van Nistelrooy. They scored more league goals last season than they had in any season since RvN's first at the club.

Also, I would like to turn the discussion around. At ManU, Ruud stayed in the box mostly because that's what was asked of him. At PSV, he had a much free-er role, just like he does now for Holland. I could look up a YouTube video for you of a young Ruud nearly scoring against Brazil in one of his first appearances for Holland: he dribbled through the defence and then tried to backheel it in, showing amazing technical skill. So he does have all those qualities; it seems however that ManU were interested only in him as a poacher and under-utilised his other qualities.

It's not a question of his technical ability so much as it other qualities. He scored an incredible goal against Fulham by beating several players, he's certainly displayed incredible technique over his entire career. Pace, though, seems to be a key ingredient in the new United side, Van Nistelrooy isn't especially quick. He tended to stay central whereas Saha will drift wide to open up space. He was very singleminded in and around the box, whereas Tevez and Saha are more aware of better positioned teammates (they aren't as adept at finishing as he is, obviously). I don't think Van Nistelrooy would have been completely comfortable having to interchange positions with Rooney, Ronaldo and Giggs, and even if he was it would be against his instincts, IMO. Maybe it is a question of how he was being utilized, but it seems odd to me that if Van Nistelrooy was truly comfortable playing the type of football SAF seems to want his current side to play, that it was never really implemented during Van Nistelrooy's time at the club.

There were some personality issues too which played a big part as revelationx as highlighted. I personally don't think that was the only factor, as in terms of goalscorers, Van Nistelrooy is the best and I would think that if SAF wanted to keep him, he would've found a way. I just think that the style of play had something to do with it, it's perfectly feasible that despite being arguably the best striker in his generation, he perhaps wouldn't fit with a certain style of football as well as some other less talented individuals, in the same way Henry, Drogba, Trezeguet, Shevchenko, etc. are probably not suited to certain types of football.

I don't think I'll convince you (or you me) so what say we just agree to disagree? I can see this discussion becoming very circular.

[Diego Maradona]

Best one in terms of goals right now is

Ruud van Nistelrooy

Man the dutch have a habit of producing goal scorers like Van Basten, Cyruff and Ruud van Nistelrooy

[the_man_from_japan]

well according to the balon d'or committe leo messi is up for the award as a forward so i'll go with messi

[JD75]

I'm going to go with Toni.

Not only he has he scored something like 14 goals in 17 games for Bayern and Italy this season but he's much more skilled with the ball than people give him credit for. He's also the focus of everybody's defense and with at least one man marking his every move.

He's invaluable to teams because he opens everybody else up. I'm almost positive that Italy have not lost a competitive match with Toni in the starting 11. Obviously there is more to Italy's success than just Toni but I think it's a pretty striking fact.

[Prawn Sandwich]

I agree with most of what you're saying. I was merely arguing against the ManU fans who claim that Ruud was got rid off for football reasons.
It wasn't just footballing reasons but there were some - United became more fluid up front after Ruud left and scored more goals as a team (despite no one player scoring at the rate Ruud did when he was there). Whether that fluidity came about due to Ruud's absence or would have happened anyway with the on-going maturity of players like Ronaldo and Rooney is up for debate, my personal feeling is that we were a little too predictable up front with Ruud in the team

[italian soccer guy]

L. Messi !! Rooney second, Christiano Ronaldo could be considered a winger and third.

[everythingfootball]

Out of your list:

Going by current form any of these

Fernando Torres
Didier Drogba
Obafemi Martins
Wayne Rooney

Going by the players history:

Thierry Henry
Ronaldo
Samuel Eto'o
David Trezeguet
Adriano
Raul
Robinho
Rivaldo
Henrik Larsson

[RealMadridFan220]

I haven't had a look at this thread for a while now and I think it is time to revise my list of almost two years ago. So here goes... feel free to say any other strikers you think should be on here, as i'm sure i might miss some out.

Emmanuel Adebayor - Arsenal
Robin Van Persie - Arsenal
Kim- AS Nancy
Klaas Jan Huntelaar - Ajax
Thierry Henry- Barcelona
Samuel Eto'o- Barcelona
Lionel Messi- Barcelona
Lukas Podolski - Bayern Munich
Luca Toni- Bayern Munich
Miroslav Klose - Bayern Munich
Benni McCarthey- Blackburn
Roque Santa Cruz- Blackburn
Nelson Haedo Valdez- Borussia Dortmund
Marko Pantelic- Borussia Dortmund
Jan Venegoor Of Hesselink- Celtic
Didier Drogba- Chelsea
Yakubu Aiyegbini- Everton
James Mcfadden- Everton
Tamudo- Espanyol
Adrian Mutu- Fiorentina
Giampaolo Pazzini- Fiorentina
Christian Vieri- Fiorentina
Ikwechukwu Uche - Getafe
Zlatan Ibrahimovic- Internazionale
Adriano- Internazionale
David Suazo- Internazionale
Alessandro Del Piero- Juventus
David Trezeguet- Juventus
Vincenzo Iaquinta- Juventus
Tom De Melo- Le Mans
Mustapha Riga- Levante
Salva Ballesta- Levante
Fernando Torres- Liverpool
Andrej Voronin- Liverpool
Peter Crouch- Liverpool
Karim Benzema- Lyon
Wayne Rooney- Manchester United
Carlos Tevez- Manchester United
Louis Saha- Manchester United
Djibril Cisse- Marseille
Mamadou Niang- Marseille
Ronaldo- Milan
Alberto Gilardino- Milan
Fillipo Inzaghi- Milan
Obafemi Martins- Newcastle
Michael Owen- Newcastle
Mark Viduka- Newcastle
John Utaka- Portsmouth
Nwankwo Kanu- Portsmouth
Euzebiusz Smolarek- Racing Santander
Raul- Real Madrid
Ruud Van Nistelrooy- Real Madrid
Javier Saviola- Real Madrid
Florent Sinama Pongolle- Recreativo De Huelva
Llorente- Real Valladolid
Kome- Real Valladolid
Vincenzo Montella- Sampdoria
Kevin Kuranyi- Schalke

[KumarsS]

Pretty good list, except I'd add:

Mario Gomez - VfB Stuttgart
Antonio Di Natale - Udinese
Sergio Aguero - Atletico Madrid

[Perú FC]

I'd add:

- Salvador Cabañas (America)
- Jefferson Farfán (PSV Eindhoven)
- Lisandro López (FC Porto)
- Radamel Falcao García (River Plate)
- Paolo Guerrero (Hamburg)
- Óscar Cardozo (Benfica)
- Germán Denis (Independiente)

P.D.: Serbian Marko Pantelic plays in Hertha Berlin :).

[Teso Dos Bichos]

well according to the balon d'or committe leo messi is up for the award as a forward so i'll go with messi

There is a big difference between a forward and a striker. We are discussing the latter and therefore Messi does not merit inclusion.

[Tito Santana]

Benjani (Portsmouth)
Anelka (Bolton)
Ibrahimavic (Inter Milan)
Van Nisterooy (Real Madrid)
Totti (Roma)
Adebayor (Arsenal)
Didier Drogba (Chelsea)
Yakubu Aiyegbini (Everton)
and thats my list