Ryan Giggs vs Luis Figo

[Mighty_Mouse]

Giggs is IMO the ideal of a winger.

Ideal winger... not so sure. He's never been known for his crossing or pinpoint accuracy though he's not terrible at either. Excellent speed and ball control are not the only things needed to be the ideal winger. If you're in doubt, you can watch a little of SWP though I don't think he is anywhere near the quality of Giggs. Figo on the other hand was excellent in all categories, particularly at crossing and pinpoint accuracy. Before anyone comments any further on the issue, I have actually seen more of Giggs than Figo throughout my life.

I would classify Giggs as more of a "utility" player. Someone who's nice to have on the team because of the uncommon qualities he brings. In particular, he has always been a player who could run at defenders and turn them inside out which is pretty rare but not always needed. Unfortunately, Giggs has never been someone who's been absolutely needed to win championships. For all of the team medals and trophies he has won and been a part of, I don't think you could say that he was the difference maker in few (if any) of them. Manchester United probably would have been just fine, if not better, with many of the other good "wingers" of the last 15 years.

I challenge anyone to prove otherwise.

[TKORL]

Giggs has also played in countless positions over the course of his career, as I explained prevously. I'd also wager that he has successfully played in more positions than Figo has done.
Yes, but Figo is superior in the SS position, a position dependent upon skill, creativity, and vision.

But yes, IMO Giggs is the better winger.

[TKORL]

Ideal winger... not so sure. He's never been known for his crossing or pinpoint accuracy though he's not terrible at either. Excellent speed and ball control are not the only things needed to be the ideal winger. If you're in doubt, you can watch a little of SWP though I don't think he is anywhere near the quality of Giggs. Figo on the other hand was excellent in all categories, particularly at crossing and pinpoint accuracy. Before anyone comments any further on the issue, I have actually seen more of Giggs than Figo throughout my life.

I challenge anyone to prove otherwise.

How many wingers are adept in all areas as is Giggs?

[comme]

I challenge anyone to prove otherwise.

No one can prove it because it's speculation about past historical events.

As such it is impossible to prove it either way.

[lanman]

I challenge anyone to prove otherwise.

It doesn't work like that I'm afraid. You cannot just make a claim and then say "prove otherwise" - you have to provide the proof to back up your claim, not the other way round. Otherwise, people can just make all sorts of claims and then say "prove otherwise".

[Teso Dos Bichos]

Yes, but Figo is superior in the SS position, a position dependent upon skill, creativity, and vision.

But yes, IMO Giggs is the better winger.

Giggs also posesses those qualities and has used them while playing in that very position countless times and no doubt more often than Figo. He has also featured on either wing and in central midfield in a traditional 4-4-2 with a defender as his central partner. Despite that he still impressed. Has Figo got the same experience of playing and impressing in multiple positions at the highest level? I don't think so which is why I stated that if you wish to give Figo credit for playing in two positions then Giggs at least deserves the same praise, if not not more.

[Teso Dos Bichos]

I would classify Giggs as more of a "utility" player.

I cut out that particular section as it is the most laughable of everything you have claimed thus far. For all your talk you have still failed to respond to anything I have posted, notably in relation to their respective performances last season. Care to do so now?

[Stud83]

Manchester United probably would have been just fine, if not better, with many of the other good "wingers" of the last 15 years.

I'd like to see a list of wingers you think would've made United a better team without Giggs.

[brassmonkey]

Dark Savante how are European and World Player of the Year irrelevant when judging to see who the better player is??? is it because they are only titles that show who the worlds best player is at that time???

I know this has kind of been answered but those voting awards are crap. Zidane shouldn't have won the FIFA World Player of the year in 2003, he should have won it in 2002. But ridiculously every time a WC rolls around the voters in these things forget the entire season that preceded it. Thats why Ronaldo won in 2002 with Kahn in 2nd place, and why Cannavaro won in 2006 with Zidane, despite having an injury riddled and just plain bad season, in 2nd place. Ronaldinho should have won it easily, with Henry in 2nd place. Henry should have won it instead of Ronaldinho in 2004, but those things, as said, are completely biased against England. As for Figo's two awards: Zidane should have taken the Ballon d'Or in 2000, and Figo wouldn't have won the FWPOTY if Zidane's disciplinary problems hadn't come up, Beckham probably would have. They're popularity contests.

As for the discussion at hand, it's an interesting comparison, but ultimately both are amazing, and they play on opposite sides of the field. They're on my XI for the past ten years(and possibly all time, but those are kind of pointless)

[Mighty_Mouse]

How many wingers are adept in all areas as is Giggs?

Figo for one and his edge in the accuracy category would make him the "ideal winger".

Throughout his career, Giggs did have an area where he had a large edge on Figo. That was making exciting runs that, far too often, resulted in wasted possession and oportunities... I think a lot of fans forgave Giggs for this and turned a blind eye because of the excitement he brought to the game and the fact that Manchester United continued to be successful.

[Mighty_Mouse]

Giggs also posesses those qualities and has used them while playing in that very position countless times and no doubt more often than Figo. He has also featured on either wing and in central midfield in a traditional 4-4-2 with a defender as his central partner. Despite that he still impressed. Has Figo got the same experience of playing and impressing in multiple positions at the highest level? I don't think so which is why I stated that if you wish to give Figo credit for playing in two positions then Giggs at least deserves the same praise, if not not more.

More evidence of you not watching enough of Figo... and the answer is Yes.

[Mighty_Mouse]

I know this has kind of been answered but those voting awards are crap. Zidane shouldn't have won the FIFA World Player of the year in 2003, he should have won it in 2002. But ridiculously every time a WC rolls around the voters in these things forget the entire season that preceded it. Thats why Ronaldo won in 2002 with Kahn in 2nd place, and why Cannavaro won in 2006 with Zidane, despite having an injury riddled and just plain bad season, in 2nd place. Ronaldinho should have won it easily, with Henry in 2nd place. Henry should have won it instead of Ronaldinho in 2004, but those things, as said, are completely biased against England. As for Figo's two awards: Zidane should have taken the Ballon d'Or in 2000, and Figo wouldn't have won the FWPOTY if Zidane's disciplinary problems hadn't come up, Beckham probably would have. They're popularity contests.

As for the discussion at hand, it's an interesting comparison, but ultimately both are amazing, and they play on opposite sides of the field. They're on my XI for the past ten years(and possibly all time, but those are kind of pointless)

While there has been argument over those who have won the award in the past, usually the player that doesn't win and that is being argued for does not finish far behind the man who gets the award.

Ryan Giggs is hugely popular in the football world and has gained a lot of praise throughout his career from his opponents and several established people in the sport. His talents did not go unnoticed and yet I don't recall ever seeing any solid arguments as to when he should have received either award. The same cannot be said for Figo and he has the awards. It's unfortunate for the Giggs fans that Figo takes the edge here.

Its quite funny how the Giggs/Manchester United fans in this thread are quick to dismiss Figo's impact on the Portuguese National team and his Individual Awards. It's the same fans that praise Giggs for the accomplishments and trophies obtained by Manchester United while forgetting that they were a great team and the dominant force in the Premier League during the 90's.

Open your eyes.

[Quaresma]

More evidence of you not watching enough of Figo... and the answer is Yes.

Amen.

figo at the age of 34 had the most assists in serie A

i doubt giggs would have accomplished as much, especially playing centrally as figo does for inter millan,,where the last few games giggs has played centrally and has been largely dissapointing.

figo for inter plays centralluy like he did in that friendly vs man united..which correct me if im wrong but figo was man of the match;)

[Teso Dos Bichos]

Figo for one and his edge in the accuracy category would make him the "ideal winger".

Throughout his career, Giggs did have an area where he had a large edge on Figo. That was making exciting runs that, far too often, resulted in wasted possession and oportunities... I think a lot of fans forgave Giggs for this and turned a blind eye because of the excitement he brought to the game and the fact that Manchester United continued to be successful.

If Figo supposedly has the edge in accuracy then why has Giggs' posted better numbers, with last season being just one example of that. Where was Figo? I don't expect you to answer that because you have consistently done everything in your power to avoid answering any of my questions thus far.

More evidence of you not watching enough of Figo... and the answer is Yes.

The answer is yes because you say it is? It does not work like that. I have listed the numerous positions that Giggs has impressed in and you have failed to either acknowledge that or provide similar for Figo. When will you ever bother to actually contribute to this dicussion and respond to the numerous points I have made and questions I have posed?

While there has been argument over those who have won the award in the past, usually the player that doesn't win and that is being argued for does not finish far behind the man who gets the award.

Ryan Giggs is hugely popular in the football world and has gained a lot of praise throughout his career from his opponents and several established people in the sport. His talents did not go unnoticed and yet I don't recall ever seeing any solid arguments as to when he should have received either award. The same cannot be said for Figo and he has the awards. It's unfortunate for the Giggs fans that Figo takes the edge here.

Its quite funny how the Giggs/Manchester United fans in this thread are quick to dismiss Figo's impact on the Portuguese National team and his Individual Awards. It's the same fans that praise Giggs for the accomplishments and trophies obtained by Manchester United while forgetting that they were a great team and the dominant force in the Premier League during the 90's.

Open your eyes.

Not that at all and you know it. If you wish to pathetically attempt to diminish Giggs' record because he played for Man Utd and Wales then you must diminish Figo's even more for having played for teams like Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Portugal. Of course, I would not expect you to do any such thing because it is completely irrelevant, as is your last post.

Amen.

figo at the age of 34 had the most assists in serie A

i doubt giggs would have accomplished as much, especially playing centrally as figo does for inter millan,,where the last few games giggs has played centrally and has been largely dissapointing.

figo for inter plays centralluy like he did in that friendly vs man united..which correct me if im wrong but figo was man of the match;)

You can say that all you wish but it is a useless statement without any evidence to back it up. Besides, I'm fairly confident that Figo did not even get the most assists on his own team but I'll wait and consider whatever evidence you care to provide. As for Giggs, as I said previously he played in central midfield with O'Shea in a traditional 4-4-2 and impressed. Has Figo done that? Giggs this season has been playing well but his fellow players are currently incapable of finishing his crosses.

[TKORL]

The difficulty lies in comparing because of the different leagues being compared. Ironically, the Premiership has had some of the flashiest dribblers in the world (Giggs among them), and that I suspect is due to the inability of English defenses to handle them. (How many players in Spain or Italy regularly give dribbling performances like Giggs?). Although my vote goes to Giggs, I'm still doubtful that he would do as well in Italy or Spain. It is correct that Giggs has performed quite well against other European teams, however it's a different matter to play against those teams year round.

[Teso Dos Bichos]

I'm not sure how much I agree with that. There are countless dribblers in Spain because the style of football is more open and suited to it. I'd wager there are more than in England and Italy. The former because there are more runners than dribblers (an important distinction to make) and the latter because of the style of football. Obviously certain clubs are exceptions. If you want to be more specific and only discuss wingers then I think the same would be true although the gap between Spain and England would be a lot closer. In relation to Giggs and Italy then I think he would be a success because dribbling is only one facet of his game. Three things lead me to believe he would be a success. He has proven he can perform against Italian teams in Europe, the great interest in signing him from Italian sides like Inter over the last decade and the great success of wingers (take Figo and those at Roma as an example) in Serie A.

[Mighty_Mouse]

If Figo supposedly has the edge in accuracy then why has Giggs' posted better numbers, with last season being just one example of that. Where was Figo? I don't expect you to answer that because you have consistently done everything in your power to avoid answering any of my questions thus far.



The answer is yes because you say it is? It does not work like that. I have listed the numerous positions that Giggs has impressed in and you have failed to either acknowledge that or provide similar for Figo. When will you ever bother to actually contribute to this dicussion and respond to the numerous points I have made and questions I have posed?



Not that at all and you know it. If you wish to pathetically attempt to diminish Giggs' record because he played for Man Utd and Wales then you must diminish Figo's even more for having played for teams like Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Portugal. Of course, I would not expect you to do any such thing because it is completely irrelevant, as is your last post.



You can say that all you wish but it is a useless statement without any evidence to back it up. Besides, I'm fairly confident that Figo did not even get the most assists on his own team but I'll wait and consider whatever evidence you care to provide. As for Giggs, as I said previously he played in central midfield with O'Shea in a traditional 4-4-2 and impressed. Has Figo done that? Giggs this season has been playing well but his fellow players are currently incapable of finishing his crosses.

I'm seriously begining to wonder if you have reading comprehension problems since you seem to gloss over most of what everyone writes.

[Aveirenses]

I dunno what's more hillarious, that most people who replied actually think Giggs is better or that people are trying to compare the two on statistics.

Don't get me wrong statistics are nice on the standardized test and even look dandy on the Discovery Channel. But they don't put things in perspective quite frankly.

Lemme put it this way.

In Italy and Spain you get one tournament where you get to beat crappy divisional teams. In England... they give you two. That's the first one right front and center. It's hard for any player to compete statistically with a player who can go from having a crappy game against Chelsea to scoring a hat-trick and getting 2 assists in what may as well be a meaningless game against some team from some random-chester or pool.

1's a former WORLD PLAYER OF THE YEAR. The other won a shitload of meaningless awards in one country.

Figo has shown something that Giggs hasn't and that's absolute formidability, adaptability, and overall ********ing genius.

Keep in mind, Giggs has nearly 250 games MORE than Figo in his entire career and has only 40 or so goals more career-wise. I'm sure if I was to go and bother to look it up within a damn 17 year period, I would be more than able to find 40 goals that were put in to just one of the random pointless tournaments held in England.

But nevermind that, there is no place that has the exact amount of assists Figo has put in his career, but I'm 100% sure it would make Giggs' look absolutely staggering in comparison, especially if Figo can mount the highest assists tally in what is arguably the most defensive-minded league in the world.

It's absolutely silly to even compare the two. I mean... GIGGS!? Good player, don't get me wrong, but... it's just not right.

[peruytu]

If I were a coach, i'd want Figo, but if I were a fan of a club, i'd go with Giggs. Hard to compare both, since Giggs is a franchise player, Figo is simply a great player sniffing for $$$$$. But I guess if I were a coach and had the Abramovic money, i'd go with Figo, simply because I know that coaches come and go and so do players.

Ok ok I know a deviated from the question: I guess Figo is the better player... unfortunately.

[TKORL]

All players sniff for $$$$$$$. Giggs may have quickly left his club had he played for the likes of Charlton.