For some time now, I’ve been working on some lists of the greatest ever players in each position. Some of you might have seen my own thread on the greatest players in English league history www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=620289 or the thread that inspired it by Gregoriak of their German equivalents https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=420539 Basically over the coming months I will reveal the 100 best players (in my opinion) in each position, who have ever graced the game. These will be the finest footballers to kick a ball since the codification of the game in 1863. Let me start by outlining some of the criteria that I have applied: 1. Peak performance. How good were they at their very best. 2. Longevity and consistency. How long did they perform well for. 3. Achievements. Where did they get to in the game, how much did they win and what style did they do it in. Furthermore I have excluded all players aged below 28 today, as I do not feel they have a sufficient "body of work" on which to be judged. All eligible current players have probably been judged slightly more harshy than they might be as it is difficult to fully evaluate a career until it is over. These criteria naturally favour some of the players from the bigger nations and bigger clubs. I’m afraid that is largely unavoidable. But if you disagree with any of my selections then please let me know. That is what these threads are for. This is just a bit of fun and I've tried to include players across all eras. I'm not pretending it is in any way definitive, but it's there for some debate and hopefully a few people (including myself) can learn a bit more about some forgotten greats. I’d like to thank some of the members of the BigSoccer history group for their input on this as well. Please do not post your thoughts in this thread. I will set up a designated discussion thread for these threads. I will delete any posts in this thread. Please though do contribute. I am really going to try to get this forum back on track, but I will need the input of many members of this board. If you have any feedback or questions about this then please put them in the discussion thread. https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1245347 To help people understand the positions of the players I have created this thread on the history of tactics as well as providing definitions of each position to make it easier. https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1269077 Enjoy!
100. Francisco Valdes Offensive midfielder Chile 19/3/1943 52 caps (9 goals) Clubs: Colo-Colo, Unión Española, Deportes Antofagasta, Colo-Colo, Santiago Wanderers, Cobreloa, Colo-Colo, Deportes Arica http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_Valdés
99. Lajos Detari Playmaker Hungary 24/4/1963 61 caps (13 goals) Clubs: Honvéd, Eintracht Frankfurt, Olympiakos, Bologna, Ancona, Ferencváros, Genoa, Neuchâtel Xamax, VSE St. Pölten, BVSC Budapest http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lajos_Détári
98. Fyodor Cherenkov Playmaker USSR 25/7/1959 34 caps (12 goals) Clubs: Spartak Moscow, Red Star Saint-Ouen, Spartak Moscow http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fyodor_Cherenkov
97. Willy van der Kuijlen Offensive midfielder Holland 6/12/1946 22 caps (7 goals) Clubs: PSV Eindhoven, Maastricht http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Willy_van_der_Kuijlen&oldid=343929408
96. Carlos Manuel Playmaker Portugal 15/1/1958 42 caps (8 goals) Clubs: CUF, Barreirense, Benfica, Sion, Sporting Lisbon, Boavista, Estoril http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Manuel
95. Uli Hoeness Offensive midfielder West Germany 5/1/1952 35 caps (5 goals) Clubs: Bayern Munich, Nuremberg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uli_Hoeneß
94. Kristen Nygaard Offensive midfielder Denmark 9/9/1949 36 caps (11 goals) Clubs: IHF Aarhus, AZ Alkmaar, Nîmes Olympique http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristen_Nygaard_(footballer)
93. David Kipiani Playmaker USSR 18/11/1951 19 caps (7 goals) Clubs: Lokomotiv Tbilisi, Dinamo Tbilisi http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Kipiani
92. Rai Offensive midfielder Brazil 15/5/1965 51 caps (17 goals) Clubs: Botafogo, Ponte Preta, São Paulo, Paris Saint Germain, São Paulo http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raí
91. Raich Carter Inside-forward England 21/12/1913 13 caps (7 goals) Clubs: Sunderland, Derby County, Hull City http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raich_Carter
90. Andrej Kvašňák Playmaker Czechoslovakia 19/5/1936 47 caps (13 goals) Clubs: Dukla Pardubice, Jednota Košice, Sparta Prague, K.R.C. Mechelen, Viktoria Žižkov, TJ Turnov, Tatran Zličín http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrej_Kvašňák
89. Alexander Zavarov Playmaker USSR 20/4/1961 41 caps (6 goals) Clubs: Zorya Luhansk, SKA Rostov, Zorya Luhansk, Dynamo Kiev, Juventus, Nancy, Saint-Dizier http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oleksandr_Zavarov
88. Frank Arnesen Offensive midfielder Denmark 30/9/1956 52 caps (14 goals) Clubs: Fremad Amager, Ajax, Valencia, Anderlecht, PSV Eindhoven http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Arnesen
87. Krassimir Balakov Playmaker Bulgaria 29/3/1966 92 caps (16 goals) Clubs: Etar Veliko Tarnovo, Sporting Lisbon, Stuttgart http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krassimir_Balakov
86. Juan Manuel Asensi Playmaker Spain 23/9/1949 41 caps (7 goals) Clubs: Elche, Barcelona, Puebla, Oaxtepec http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_Manuel_Asensi
85. Alexei Mikhailichenko Playmaker USSR/CIS/Ukraine 30/3/1963 30 caps (9 goals) Clubs: Dinamo Kiev, Sampdoria, Rangers http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexei_Mikhailichenko
84. Giuseppe Giannini Playmaker Italy 20/8/1964 47 caps (6 goals) Clubs: AS Roma, Sturm Graz, Napoli, Lecce http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giuseppe_Giannini
83. Branko Oblak Playmaker Yugoslavia 22/5/1947 50 caps (8 goals) Clubs: Olimpija Ljubljana, Hajduk Split, Schalke 04, Bayern Munich, Spittal http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Branko_Oblak
82. Paulo Sousa Central midfielder Portugal 30/8/1970 51 caps (0 goals) Clubs: Benfica, Sporting Lisbon, Juventus, Borussia Dortmund, Internazionale, Parma, Panathinaikos, Espanyol http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paulo_Sousa
81. Julio Cesar Uribe Offensive midfielder Peru 9/5/1958 39 caps (9 goals) Clubs: Sporting Cristal, Cagliari, Sporting Cristal, Junior Barranquilla, América de Cali, Club América, Sporting Cristal, América de Cali, Tecos UAG, Sporting Cristal, Independiente Medellín, Envigado Fútbol Club, Carlos A. Mannucci http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julio_Cesar_Uribe
80. Luis de la Fuente Playmaker Mexico 17/1/1914 ? caps Clubs: Club de Fútbol Aurrerá, Real Club España, Racing de Santander, Real Club España, Club América, Real Club España, Atlético Corrales, Vélez Sarsfield, Club Deportivo Marte, CD Veracruz http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luis_de_la_Fuente
79. Ásgeir Sigurvinsson Playmaker Iceland 8/5/1955 45 caps (5 goals) Clubs: ÍB Vestmannaeyjar, Standard Liège, Bayern Munich, Stuttgart http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ásgeir_Sigurvinsson
78. Abedi Pelé Offensive midfielder Ghana 5/11/1964 73 caps (33 goals) Clubs: Real Tamale United, Al Sadd, Dragons l'Ouémé, Real Tamale United, Niort, Mulhouse, Marseille, Lille, Marseille, Lyon, Torino, 1860 Munich, Al Ain http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abedi_Pele
77. Safet Sušić Offensive midfielder, forward Yugoslavia 13/4/1955 54 caps (21 goals) Clubs: FK Sarajevo, Paris Saint-Germain, Red Star Saint-Ouen http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safet_Susic