Football Special Report: Top 10 Greatest Strikers of All Time (Part 4)
There have been great strikers in the history of the great game called football but to tag them into “10 greatest strikers” of all time is a difficult job. However, following are the top 10 strikers from bettor.com
Writing about midfielders is very hard, but writing about strikers is even harder because of how many players tried to make a name for themselves and tried to score goals. However, the list does not only include goal scoring strikers but also the support strikers.
Enjoy!
3. Ferenc Puskas (Hungary)
Ferenc Puskas was the best player that Hungary has ever produced. He was part of two greatest football playing sides in the history of the game. Firstly, the Hungarian team and second, the Spanish club Real Madrid. Hungary’s magical Magyars were simply known to be the “golden team” when Puskas was a part of it. On the other hand, Real Madrid were “all-conquering” in the early 60s and that was also when Puskas used to play for the Spanish club.
Throughout his career, he was known to be the “Galloping Major” and during his time as a football player, he managed to win five Hungarian League titles along with five Spanish League titles. He was also a success in Europe, as he helped his club win three European Cups. His goal scoring tally is also fabulous, as he is still widely regarded as the best shooter in the history of the game. At the end of his career, he managed to score 514 goals in only 529 matches, which is a record on its own.
For his country, he was simply a phenomenon. He scored 84 times in only 85 appearances, although he could not lead them to win a FIFA World Cup. He helped his country win the 1952 Olympics and also managed to take them to the final of the 1954 FIFA World Cup. The odd thing about this striker is that he managed to play for 2 different countries, Hungary and Spain. However, he played for Spain for only 4 times and did not score a single goal.
2. Diego Maradona (Argentina)
There are always mixed reviews about the Argentinean legend, Diego Armando Maradona. Some love him for what an amazing player he was, while some hate him for what he did with his career after being involved in drugs. The quality that the left footed winger possessed was simply unmatchable by any player in the world, till his time. However, the young Lionel Messi is being compared to the Argentinean legend time and time again.
Maradona’s pace, technique along with his dribbling skills and unpredictability were simply unmatched and unparallel and only a few players in the world are capable of doing what he used to do with the ball.
The abilities that he possessed helped him become a “legend” in the eyes of the world and for his country, Argentina. His quick feet and dribbling skills helped him win titles at club level and also at international level. Diego Armando Maradona helped his teams to win a lot of silverware, as he managed to win the Argentinean League title along with a Spanish Cup and also two Serie A titles and also the Italian and UEFA Cup. Such a great record is kept by less footballers and Diego Maradona is one of them. The titles that he won in the Italian Serie A were with a team named Napoli. Napoli was a second or third class graded team and they were not even known as a “major” force in the Italian league but it was Maradona who single handily helped the Italian club become a force and he helped them win two Serie A titles along with an Italian Cup. Napoli, under Diego Maradona, enjoyed their best times in this history of Serie A.
He was not only a player at club level, he single handily took the Argentinean team to the final of the FIFA World Cup 1986 and managed to win the title by scoring the two fabulous goals, which were later known as the “Hand of God” and the “Goal of the Century.” He was a right winger for every club that he played for and the Argentinean number 10 still managed to score 34 times in only 91 appearances that he had for the Argentinean team.
He is still known to be a legend in the eyes of the Argentineans and also the world, while there are still mixed reviews as he started taking drugs later on in his life and was not allowed to play football for a long time.
There was an internet poll conducted by FIFA and it was to determine which player was to be given the award of the “player of the century.” Almost all the players that are mentioned in this list were included in the “poll” and it was Diego Maradona, who single handily took over each and every single one of them. He managed to win over 50% of the votes, while the others shared the other half of the percentages amongst themselves. However, FIFA did not give him the award and said that he should share the award with the all-time Brazilian legend and the favourite of many football fans from around the world, Pele.
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