The 24th installment of Barney Corkhill's Greatest Ever series is here!
In this series, I will look at the greatest talents to grace various sports. Here, I continue to look at football, this time counting down the top 10 strikers of all time.
In this list I have included out and out strikers and support strikers. This was probably even harder to whittle down to ten than the central midfielders list!
Enjoy!
10. Romario (BRA)
The fact that a player with over 1000 goals to his name only comes tenth on this list speaks volumes about the quality of the others who make up the top ten. There have been few, if any, better goal-poachers in football history and perhaps no-one is better deserving of the "genius of the goal area" tag bestowed on him by Johan Cruyff.
A journeyman at club level, Romario is perhaps best associated with Vasco de Gama, where he started and finished his illustrious career. In between those times, Romario picked up a whole host of silverware, namely four Rio de Janeiro State Leagues, three Dutch Cups, three Dutch leagues, and a Spanish League.
At international level he was a key part of the 1994 World Cup winning Brazil squad, and he went on to win 85 caps, scoring 71 goals. Along with the World Cup success in 1994, Romario was awarded the Golden Ball for Player of the Tournament, and later was named the FIFA World Player of the Year.
9. Arthur Friedenreich (BRA)
"The King of Football" is a tag that has since been taken away from him by a certain fellow countryman, but Arthur Friedenreich was a deserving recipient of that title before the world have ever even heard of Pele.
There remains some confusion over his goalscoring achievements, but either way, they are outstanding. Some sources claim Friedenreich scored 1239 goals in 1329 games, while others suggest it was 1329 goals in 1239 games.
Both are records any striker would die for, and are comparable to the man who took his "King of Football" crown.
8. Marco Van Basten (NED)
Had his career not been cut short by an ankle injury aged just 27, Marco Van Basten could very well be higher up in this list. His all-round play won him many admirers, and also helped his teams win many trophies.
During his career, he managed to win a Cup Winners' Cup, three Dutch League titles, three Dutch Cups, three Serie A titles and two European Cups. He was also an indispensable figure in Holland's 1988 European Championships success, scoring a spectacular volley in the final to help secure the trophy.
Individually he was voted FIFA World Player of the Year in 1992, and on three occasions (1988, 1989, and 1992) was awarded the prestigious Ballon d'Or. No player has won it more times, with only Cruyff and Michel Platini being able to match his tally.
7. Fernando Peyroteo (POR)
If you are looking for the greatest goal-scorer of all-time, you need look no further than Fernando Peyroteo. No other player in history can match Peyroteo's goals to game ratio.
While playing for Sporting, Peyroteo scored 331 goals in 187 games. Yes, you read that right. His record of 1.68 goals per game is unparalleled in world football. He often scored multiple times in a game, once scoring nine times in one match.
He also scored eight goals in another match. On three occasions he netted six times in a match, while he hit five goals on twelve occasions and four goals seventeen times.
6. Ronaldo (BRA)
Yes, "the Phenomenon" Ronaldo only makes it to sixth place, such is the quality of the players ahead of him. During the late '90s and early '00s, Ronaldo was the most feared player in the world, and for good reason.
His time at Inter Milan was hampered by injury, but he still did enough to secure a move to Real Madrid's "Galacticos". During his career, Ronaldo won a Brazilian Cup, a Dutch Cup, a Cup Winners' Cup, a Spanish Cup, a UEFA Cup and two La Liga titles.
The success continued at international level, where he was part of the Brazil side that won the 1994 and 2002 World Cups. It is widely regarded that Ronaldo's lack of fitness was a key factor in Brazil losing the 1998 final, such was his importance to the side.
He has twice been named the European Player of the Year, and three times named the FIFA World Player of the Year, a record only Zinedine Zidane can match. He is also the record holder for most goals scored in World Cup competition, getting his 15th during the 2006 tournament.
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