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!
Just a reminder that this thread will contain a number of players who wouldn't be classic wingers, but will contain the following groups: Lateral midfielder: A midfielder who plays on the flanks but is likely to play slightly infield from the touchline and in a deeper position than a winger. They will rarely look to dribble past players and are more likely to play crosses from deep or drift further infield to link play. (Example: David Beckham) Winger: A midfielder who hugs the touchline and looks to beat his marker through a combination of pace and trickery. They will be responsible for supplying crosses for the centre forwards to attack. (Example: Ryan Giggs) Outside left: In a four or five man attack, the widest players on the pitch. Essentially wingers with even greater license to attack, and no defensive responsibilities. Rarely heavy goalscorers these were primarily creative players who would stick to their flanks. (No contemporary example) Wing forward: The outside forwards of an attacking trio. Often very attacking wingers who will cut inside to shoot or seek to dribble past their markers, they can be heavy scorers but will also act as creators for a central striker. (Example: Lionel Messi)
100. Florent Malouda Left-winger France 13/6/1980 57 caps (4 goals) Clubs: Châteauroux, Guingamp, Lyon, Chelsea http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florent_Malouda
99. Ulrik Le Fevre Left-winger Denmark 25/6/1946 37 caps (7 goals) Clubs: Vejle BK, Borussia Moenchengladbach, FC Brugge, Vejle BK http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulrik_Le_Fevre
98. Harry Kewell Left-winger, forward Australia 22/9/1978 46 caps (13 goals) so far Clubs: Leeds, Liverpool, Galatasaray http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Kewell
97. Jimmy Mullen Outside-left England 6/1/1923 12 caps (6 goals) Clubs: Wolverhampton Wanderers http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Mullen_(footballer_born_1923)
96. Nicola Berti Left-midfielder Italy 14/4/1967 39 caps (3 goals) Clubs: Parma, Fiorentina, Internazionale, Tottenham Hotspur, Alaves, Northern Spirit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicola_Berti
95. Francisco Jose Carrasco Winger Spain 6/3/1959 35 caps (5 goals) Clubs: Barcelona, Sochaux, Figueres http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_Carrasco
94. Roland Sandberg Outside-left, left-forward Sweden 16/12/1946 37 caps (15 goals) Clubs: Atvidabergs FF, Kaiserslautern, Kalmar FF, BK Häcken http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roland_Sandberg
93. Davie Cooper Left-winger Scotland 25/2/1956 22 caps (6 goals) Clubs: Clydebank, Rangers, Motherwell, Clydebank http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Davie_Cooper
92. Gyula Rákosi Left-winger Hungary 9/10/1938 41 caps (4 goals) Clubs: Ferencvaros http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gyula_Rakosi
91. Erwin Kremers Left-winger West Germany 24/3/1949 15 caps (3 goals) Clubs: Borussia Mönchengladbach, Kickers Offenbach, Schalke 04 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erwin_Kremers
90. Kily Gonzalez Left-winger Argentina 4/8/1974 56 caps (9 goals) Clubs: Rosario Central, Boca Juniors, Real Zaragoza, Valencia, Internazionale, Rosario Central, San Lorenzo, Rosario Central http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kily_Gonzalez
89. Galimizjan Khusainov Left-winger USSR 27/6/1937 33 caps (4 goals) Clubs: Krylia Sovetov Kuibyshev, Spartak Moscow http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galimzyan_Khusainov
88. Karol Jokl Left-midfielder Czechoslovakia 29/8/1945 27 caps (11 goals) Clubs: Slovan Bratislava, Baník Prievidza http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karol_Jokl
87. Lars Bastrup Left-winger Denmark 31/7/1955 30 caps (10 goals) Clubs: Silkeborg IF, IHF Aarhus, Offenbacher Kickers, IHF Aarhus, AGF Aarhus, Hamburger SV, IK Skovbakken, Ikast fS http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lars_Bastrup
86. Paolo Barison Left-winger Italy 23/6/1936 9 caps (6 goals) Clubs: Venezia, Genoa, A.C. Milan, Sampdoria, A.S. Roma, Napoli, Ternana, Bellaria http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paolo_Barison
85. Jan Capkovic Outside-left Czechoslovakia 11/1/1948 20 caps (6 goals) Clubs: CH Bratislava, Slovan Bratislava CH Bratislava http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Capkovic
84. Peter McParland Left-winger, forward Northern Ireland 25/4/1934 34 caps (10 goals) Clubs: Dundalk, Aston Villa, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Plymouth Argyle, Atlanta Chiefs http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_McParland
83. Fernando de Napoli Left-midfielder Italy 15/3/1964 54 caps (1 goal) Clubs: Rimini, Avellino, Napoli, AC Milan, Reggiana http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fernando_De_Napoli
82. Alfred Aston Winger France 16/5/1912 31 caps (5 goals) Clubs: Red Star FC, RC Paris, Red Star FC, Angers SCO, Stade Français Paris, CA Paris, CS Fontainebleau, AC Amboise, FC Tours http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Aston
81. Siegfried Held Winger, centre-forward West Germany 7/8/1942 40 caps (5 goals) Clubs: Kickers Offenbach, Borussia Dortmund, Kickers Offenbach, Borussia Dortmund, Preussen Münster, Bayer Uerdingen http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siegfried_Held
80. Jesper Olsen Left-winger Denmark 20/3/1961 43 caps (5 goals) Clubs: Næstved, Ajax, Manchester United, Næstved, Bordeaux, Caen http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesper_Olsen
79. Ze Roberto Left-winger, box to box midfielder Brazil 6/7/1974 84 caps (6 goals) Clubs: Portuguesa, Real Madrid, Flamengo, Bayer Leverkusen, Bayern Munich, Santos, Bayern Munich, Hamburg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ze_Roberto
78. Ezio Pascutti Left-winger Italy 1/6/1937 17 caps (8 goals) Clubs: Bologna http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ezio_Pascutti