From when he signed with Barcelona, up until about late 2006 or early 2007, Ronaldinho was deemed the best player in the world. There was no argument about it.
However, many would agree with me when I say that Ronaldinho is no longer the world's best player. The only problem is that no one can seem to agree on who is the best in the world. Personally, I don't think that there absolutely has to be a "best" player in the world, but I would like to hear the opinions of others on who they think is the best.
Cristiano Ronaldo seems to be the favorite in this competition. Last year he had a total of 42 goals in 48 appearances, an amazing feat. Ronaldo can get by any defender with his broad arsenal of fancy moves, and he has been known to set up a few goals for others.
Then again, had John Terry made that deciding clutch penalty kick in last year's Champion's League final, then it would have been Ronaldo's fault. Ronaldo did a variety of stepovers before finally sending his penalty shot straight into the hands of Petr Cech, one of the best goalies in the world, but weak when it comes to penalty kicks.
Maybe your vote is for Kaka. He beat out Ronaldo to win the European Player of the Year award in 2007. Kaka had considerably less impressive stats than Cristiano Ronaldo last year, however, stats do not measure success.
Kaka is one of the players who gives one-hundred percent of his heart and soul into every game. He realizes he is lucky to be playing after a career-threatening injury hit him during his days in Sao Paulo. Kaka can play any midfield or forward position, and was instrumental in Milan's Champion's League success in 06-07 netting ten goals during the tournament.
Plagued by injuries last year, Frank Lampard has fallen out of this discussion for most, but he deserves to be here. He can score twenty goals which is very impressive for a midfielder. He is also one of the more accurate free kick takers, and is often called upon to take Chelsea's penalties, even with the likes of Michael Ballack on the team.
The most recent player to enter the discussion for best in the world is "El Nino," Fernando Torres. Few knew who he was when he was playing in Spain for an under achieving Atletico Madrid. He had 82 goals in 214 appearances, but his career didn't take off until he signed with Liverpool in the summer of 2007. Last year he netted 24 goals in 33 appearances, a ratio that shows his consistency for goal scoring.
If Liverpool have any success this year, it will surely be because of Torres, not to take credit away from Steven Gerrard.
Some may still think that Ronaldinho is the best. After all, we really didn't see much of him last year. This was due to him missing games often due to injuries. Maybe a fresh start with AC Milan is what is needed for Ronaldinho. Then again, he will be playing alongside Kaka, and it seems as though Kaka's contributions to Milan will overshadow Ronaldinho's.
A dark horse in this competition, in my opinion, is Wayne Rooney. He is often overlooked simply because of the fact that he plays with Cristiano Ronaldo. Rooney also gives his fair share of contributions too.
He has a decent goal to appearance ratio, scoring in just less than half of his appearances. He is also one of the more controversial figures in the world of football, and is not much of a fan favorite, except for with the Manchester United faithful.
This is by no means anywhere near a complete list of contenders for "world's best player."
Personally, my vote is for Kaka. Feel free to voice your opinion on who you believe dominates the pitch.
10 comments Last one added 10 months ago — Leave a Comment
Thomas 10 months ago
Ronaldo is the best in terms of skill. but i think Kaka' is best all around.
Lampard hasnt quite showed himself to be the best yet. he needs to keep injury-free.
rooney is great and i agree that he gets overlooked. however, he hasnt scored as many goals to be considered the best.
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olly hurst 10 months ago
Lampard? You've got to be kidding me! All he does is shoot at every opportunity, its no wonder he scores 20 a season. Other than that it is ridiculous to even consider him.
And Kaka the best? Just because he had a good champions league campaign in 2007, but what else has he achieved. Disappointment with Milan domestically and a failure at the 2006 world cup.
Ronaldo is a clear winner. He was the key player in bringing back to back titles to United as well as a Champions League, and has also brought mediocre Portuguese national sides to the Euro 2004 final and the world cup semi final. On top of that, Ronaldo has flair and skill as well as an end product, which is shown by his forty two goals last season (not even as a striker) and numerous assists. He is also strong in the air, quicker than anyone with the ball at his feet and is deadly at set pieces.
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jim cramer 10 months ago
Ronaldo is best, Messi is a close 2nd....for big games Messi is better because Ronaldo usually chokes under pressure and Messi thrives on it.
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leneesh alakkat 10 months ago
why don't you even consider messi !!!???. I agree Ronaldo and Kaka are best, they are so creative and goal scorers aswell. this is funny to see Frank's name among them !!. he is not a creative player. only in chelsea he can suceed,because they made the play around him. And he is not a better penalty taker than michael ballack, but the fact is that he is a local boy of chelsea. And because of that ,he is the one taking all of chelsea penalties, he could score more than 20 goals in a term but not with national team.
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Darwin Beton 10 months ago
Seriously now, not even a mention of Messi in the whole article. Anybody who saw the Barca - ManU champion's league match saw Messi outperform Ronaldo in every aspect of a forward's game. Sure ManU won 1-0 but that came from Zambrotta screwing around and giving the ball to Giggs(i think) just outside the penalty box. ManU didn't even deserve the goal, Park was the only one who even bothered playing like a forward for them for both matches. Sure you said that this isn't a complete list, but how you thought of putting Lampard and Rooney before Messi on a world's best footballer list is beyond me, and if Rooney is there because of a decent goal to apperance ratio then Eto'o sure as hell deserves to be up there too.
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Anthony Sanchez 10 months ago
Messi no question.He is on another level to everyone else.
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Kevin Williams 10 months ago
yeah when i was writing this i even forgot to mention messi a huge mistake on my part but like i said its by no means a complete list i just jotted down the first 5 or 6 players that come to mind.
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AC Milan 10 months ago
messi is def a contender, of your options, I still choose Kaka, comparing the supporting cast of both teams during thier champions league triumphs, kaka had WAY less to work with, but carried milan right through to the final.... what did ronaldo do that year in that rainy game against Milan??? Nothing! all his fancy dance moves and skills meant nothing in the rain, Kaka however performed without a hitch, and I don't even need to mention how he caused two man u "elite" defensemen to collide into eachother with one little flick of the ball.
As a leader, you can't even compare, Ronald is a crybaby, and he is scared of big games... Kaka by Far!
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Anthony Sanchez 10 months ago
Kaka performed without a hitch against a manchester united team playing two full backs in central defence because 3 out of 4 first choice defender were injured.Not putting kaka down but that is a bad example.
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suf max 10 months ago
kaka is the best player in the world because he shows his heart and passion in the game.
and a true brazillllian.
such as pele,rivaldo,ronaldo,robinho,adriano, and the one and only the unmistakable ronaldinho.
which means brazil is and always will be the best.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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