And Moutinho has been brilliant for them. I really don't get why he never moved to a big club. He looks a level above all his teammates at Monaco everytime I watch them play.
Footballer who carried the whole team
- Thread starter Sky1981
- Start date
Scored important goals, but I'm not convinced that he carried Silva & Aguero. Suarez feels like the obvious shout. De Bruyne at Wolfsburg last season? Not even close to the CL places this season.
Ballack at Leverkusen maybe deserves a shout, even though they failed to win anything. He ran the show for them and finished only one goal short of the top scorer in the league.
Rather than sniping from the sidelines, I'll put forward one of my own.
Baggio at the 1994 World Cup? For sure Italy had an unbelievably solid defence with Maldini, Baresi, Costacurta and others, but they really lacked any zip going forward. And they would have trundled out of the tournament on various occasions if not for the singular intervention of Baggio. He scored 5 out of the 6 goals they netted in the knockout stages, getting them out of jail against Nigeria in the second round with a last-minute equaliser and an extra-time winner, another last-minute winner against Spain in the quarter finals, and then a lovely double in the semi-finals to dispose of Bulgaria. Effectively a one-man attack.
Baggio at the 1994 World Cup? For sure Italy had an unbelievably solid defence with Maldini, Baresi, Costacurta and others, but they really lacked any zip going forward. And they would have trundled out of the tournament on various occasions if not for the singular intervention of Baggio. He scored 5 out of the 6 goals they netted in the knockout stages, getting them out of jail against Nigeria in the second round with a last-minute equaliser and an extra-time winner, another last-minute winner against Spain in the quarter finals, and then a lovely double in the semi-finals to dispose of Bulgaria. Effectively a one-man attack.
They may not have been quite as successful but there's no way you can say he carried the team. It's an insult to the rest of the fantastic players they had throughout that period.
Did Charlie Adam carry Blackpool during their good spell in the PL?
Aubamayang has won games for Gabon off his own ability as I recall.
Steven Gerrard has his flaws but has shown he can lead squads of lesser ability to victory however his selfishness became more apparent as his natural abilities and consistency waned.
Eric Cantona led United to Titles.
Hard to argue for 1/11th of a team leading it solely to glory, Maradona can be as good as he wants but if he's got Jeremy Beadle as his Goalie he won't win anything. Probably better to ask which one player has made the biggest impact relative to their club/s.
Aubamayang has won games for Gabon off his own ability as I recall.
Steven Gerrard has his flaws but has shown he can lead squads of lesser ability to victory however his selfishness became more apparent as his natural abilities and consistency waned.
Eric Cantona led United to Titles.
Hard to argue for 1/11th of a team leading it solely to glory, Maradona can be as good as he wants but if he's got Jeremy Beadle as his Goalie he won't win anything. Probably better to ask which one player has made the biggest impact relative to their club/s.
Thought the same. If it wasn't for him would they have been relegation material for some seasons?Gerrard?
No one player carries a team, the funny suggestions are 'X' but they didn't win anything
I don't think Zidane ever carried France, to be honest. He was a talisman, but on that front you could say Cantona carried United or Messi Barcelona.
Micky Quinn, carried a whole team and local pie caterers at the same time with ease.
I don't think people understand the meaning of 'carry'. Ronaldo with us in 08? We had the best keeper & defence out of anyone, with a prime Scholes, Rooney, Tevez and Giggs to name a few. Ronaldo won us countless games with a goal or two, but he would have had to score a few more if we hadn't had the best back-line in the world. Without Ronaldo, we would have still finished 1st or 2nd that season. That is not being carried. He was our best player, but nostalgia, & the way he plays for Madrid, is clearly affecting people's memories of him in a United shirt.
Suarez in his last season at Liverpool is a good example. Shearer, possibly? On an international level, definitely Zlatan and Cristiano (for all the criticism he gets in the finals).
We had the best keeper & defence out of anyone, with a prime Scholes, Rooney, Tevez and Giggs to name a few. Ronaldo won us countless games with a goal or two, but he would have had to score a few more if we hadn't had the best back-line in the world. Without Ronaldo, we would have still finished 1st or 2nd that season. That is not being carried. He was our best player, but nostalgia, & the way he plays for Madrid, is clearly affecting people's memories of him in a United shirt.Suarez in his last season at Liverpool is a good example. Shearer, possibly? On an international level, definitely Zlatan and Cristiano (for all the criticism he gets in the finals).
Ibra / Sweden
Bale / Spurs/ Wales
Tevez / West Ham
Riquelme / Villareal / Boca Juniors
Messi / Barcelona 2012-13
Aguero / Atletico Madrid
Batistuta / Fiorentina
Bale / Spurs/ Wales
Tevez / West Ham
Riquelme / Villareal / Boca Juniors
Messi / Barcelona 2012-13
Aguero / Atletico Madrid
Batistuta / Fiorentina
Messi (2012-2014) for Barca
I don't think I've ever seen it happen, which makes me doubt how possible it is. It is a team sport after all.
Nope. They have many other very good players.
Definitely a myth, one which Portugese posters here themselves have repeatedly busted.
Like I said, not in the tournament finals, but in the qualification etc. He was the only reason they went to the WC in 2014. He also took them quite far in the last Euros. He could do better perhaps, but there is no one else on the team that performs even remotely close to his level.
Good shout.
I loved watching Fiorentina back in the day, and not only because Nintendo were their shirt sponsors
Rui Costa and Batigoal were amazing together.
Speaking of Serie A...Baggio carried Italy almost all the way to the promised land.
"He" took them quite far, or the team went quite far and he got a few goals? It's not necessary that the guy who gets you a goal or two is the sole reason for you progressing or qualifying, or even the best player. He had a big game in that play-off but but as the Portugese posters often state, this whole carrying Portugal is just one big myth created in his favour. And I definitely believe them over United fans.
Higuain will drag Napoli to their third serie a title this season. given how hard that league is to win because of Juventus, that will make him the greatest player of all time.
It's not about him just scoring a few goals as the team went far. He was the difference maker on a couple of occasions, especially against the Netherlands. I'm not saying he carries Portugal all the time, i'm saying there have been times in which he has carried them (and times where he has not), like the way Van Persie carried us for Ferguson's final season (though that is a more extreme example maybe).
We can agree to disagree, though.
No mention of Akinfenwa yet
Messi in the 2012/13 season.
Rooney - single-handedly carrying the whole team ... down the PL (with a bit of help from LVG)
Yup.
Wasn't Tevez pretty the only thing which stopped West Ham getting relegated the season before we signed him?
Garrincha- Brazil 1962.
Which Laudrup are you referring to here?
Brian was a very good player and one of Denmark's best in 1992, but I think Schmeichel had the greater influence on that tournament. Michael is obviously the standout player in Denmark's history (in all of Scandinavian history imo), but he never actually led the team to any glory. He also played with some phenomenal players in the 80's, as mentioned by Gio above. The likes of Elkjær, Arnesen etc are also considered legends in Denmark.
It's a difficult list to put together though, granted.
Need to echo the Laudrup carrying Denmark sentiment. There were two Laudrups, the original Schmeichel in goal an a handful of other players that all did their bit and then some to win that Euro title.
First person I thought about was Le Tissier at Southampton but that's mostly based on him being a lot better than the team at the time. Not sure if he carried them at all.
I'm sure there are quite a few Chinese and MLS sides that have been carried by a single player.
First person I thought about was Le Tissier at Southampton but that's mostly based on him being a lot better than the team at the time. Not sure if he carried them at all.
I'm sure there are quite a few Chinese and MLS sides that have been carried by a single player.
Funnily enough, whenever I watch City Aguero is either injured/doesnt score or plays bad. Likewise I rarely see Silva dominate a game although I know they are both world class. (I watch about 6-7 City games per season).
Yaya, however...
Shearer at Newcastle, without a doubt. He kept us in top four contention for several years, and above average for years after that. Amazing player, and a massive loss when he hung up his boots
Currently, Giovinco for Toronto FC. Even if they have some decent players like Cheyrou, Warner, Bradley, or Osorio, TFC's attack is almost nothing without Giovinco. He is the sole reason TFC made it to the playoffs recently. I'm sure @limerickcitykid can allude to that.
In the past, I do remember Rivaldo somewhat carrying van Gaal's Barcelona when they were together. Rivaldo was an absolute monster back in the day as well.
In the past, I do remember Rivaldo somewhat carrying van Gaal's Barcelona when they were together. Rivaldo was an absolute monster back in the day as well.
Maradona/ Argentina 1986.
Those saying Tevez at West Ham should remember Macherano was there as well, and was just as important in a different way. For Shearer at Blackburn you had Sutton, Flowers, Hendry, Sherwood and later, Batty who were key members of that side. Bale for Wales is strong, but he still has Ramsey and Williams playing well alongside him.
It's very, very rare. Zlatan for Sweden or Ronaldo for Portugal (since Carvalho retired) are probably the closest thing to it. Even Baggio in 94, although he was the star performer, was part of a squad that included Pagliuca, Baresi, Maldini, Costacurta, Conte and Donadoni.
It's very, very rare. Zlatan for Sweden or Ronaldo for Portugal (since Carvalho retired) are probably the closest thing to it. Even Baggio in 94, although he was the star performer, was part of a squad that included Pagliuca, Baresi, Maldini, Costacurta, Conte and Donadoni.
Bernd Schuster at Barcelona, after Maradona left the team. I reckon Sammer in 1996 deserves a shout but that might be a tad bit too harsh on that team. Francescoli leading Uruguay to several Copa Americas, against some excellent Argentinian and Brazilian teams, probably takes the cake though.
I'll tell you what. This thread is ridiculous since all the teams had goalies too. They must have been important too.
(No, you're not getting it. Mascherano was good but Tevez is the main reason the team stayed up)
Nothing won? Oh we definitely won some stuff with the great man.
Januzaj Man Utd 2013/14
lol
lol
But that's not the title of the thread. The title is "Players who carried the whole team". To me, that suggests that anyone could've been in there and Tevez would have kept them up. I disagree - if Macherano hadn't, they would have gone down.
Matt Le Tissier.
Alex Meier- Eintracht Frankfurt.