What!? Torres has managed to score over 20 league goals once in his entire career! He was great for Liverpool that one season, but they won nothing. So no, he is pretty far from being one of the greatest - even at his peak. What happened at Chelsea was pretty spectacular though, so wild that everyone felt really bad for the boy - which says everything.
Greatest Dribbler of All Time
- Thread starter Moby
- Start date
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Ronaldinho was the best dribbler, he was absolutely fantastic and without a doubt the greatest entertainer to ever play this sport. Messi is the best ever player, but he ended up making football mechanical. Ronaldinho was pure entertainment. All subjective of course... Ronaldinho even had the coolest run-up to free-kicks and penalties, he invented so many strange details that just can’t be copied by other players. Legend.
All of the usual suspects have already been said.... and rightly so. Personally, I'd say Maradona and Best.... different generations but both geniuses who managed to do what they did while coming through some XXX-rated tackles.
Interesting(ish) story but I went to see a testimonial for Gareth Davies (Wrexham v Wolves) many many years ago and a last-minute addition was ...... (drum roll), George Best!! I kid you not.... he mainly stood in the centre circle with his Wrexham shirt out and every now and again, got the ball and went for a dribble. I was in awe and got his signature after the match.
Anyway, back to the thread. I'm not saying these next two are up there with the above two but two beautifully fluid players.... I would have liked either at United.
Funny when he puts Giggs on his arse...
To be honest, it's hard not to watch and get mesmerized by the quality of his goals (and how easy he made them look), but the dribbling ability is clear too. (Great pitch in the first clip).
Interesting(ish) story but I went to see a testimonial for Gareth Davies (Wrexham v Wolves) many many years ago and a last-minute addition was ...... (drum roll), George Best!! I kid you not.... he mainly stood in the centre circle with his Wrexham shirt out and every now and again, got the ball and went for a dribble. I was in awe and got his signature after the match.
Anyway, back to the thread. I'm not saying these next two are up there with the above two but two beautifully fluid players.... I would have liked either at United.
Funny when he puts Giggs on his arse...
To be honest, it's hard not to watch and get mesmerized by the quality of his goals (and how easy he made them look), but the dribbling ability is clear too. (Great pitch in the first clip).
Maradona for me, without a shadow of a doubt.
Wow, I would love to know what you were taking to come to such a conclusion!
He would not be in the top two hundred all time best strikers, or maybe even three hundred!
No way was he ever good enough to be talked about in such a way.
Torres of 2007-09 was awesome. World class definitely. 3rd in Balond d'Or after Cristiano and Messi. His overall career may be underwhelming, but his peak was spectacular. Score, create, head, he was a complete package.
Can't see anyone beyond Messi and Dinho. The former is just so consistent and effective, the latter is probably the most entertaining footballer the world has ever seen.
Except that's exactly how he won 5 Ballon D'or.
Messi.
Maradona or George Best. Not only did they have amazing close control skills and explosive acceleration, they played at a time they had to avoid bone crunching tackles that'd be rewarded with red cards nowadays as well as often being double/triple teamed and still came out better. Garrincha would be up there with them but there's not much footage of him around, what little there is show him to be outstanding. Paul Gascoigne is probably the best I've seen in the flesh, pre Spurs injury he was majestic and made it look way too easy and I can't help wonder how good he'd have been without the injuries, a better diet and fitness regime, and of course minus the demons he had and still has to this day.
For those reasons I wouldn't have Messi anywhere near a top ten as the players he dances past couldn't tackle a Sunday dinner after 10 pints most of the time. If he'd have played in Italy at the time Maradona was in his pomp and almost all teams had at least one beastly defender, I don't think he'd be half the story he is now and he'd almost certainly have a long list of injuries bigger than himself.
For those reasons I wouldn't have Messi anywhere near a top ten as the players he dances past couldn't tackle a Sunday dinner after 10 pints most of the time. If he'd have played in Italy at the time Maradona was in his pomp and almost all teams had at least one beastly defender, I don't think he'd be half the story he is now and he'd almost certainly have a long list of injuries bigger than himself.
John O’Shea.
Has to be either Maradona, Messi or Garrincha. George Best also worth a special mention.
The most entertaining/eye-catching one is easily Ronaldinho though.
The most entertaining/eye-catching one is easily Ronaldinho though.
Chris Waddle, Maldini still looking for him after Munich Final.
Probably Messi because the sheer speed he can do it at.
Messi and Maradona are the best I've seen.
93 final ? Waddle wasn't playing for Marseille anymore.
Speaking of United players, Billy Meredith of course
was said to be an unstoppable dribler, toothpick in mouth always, ghosting past players up the wing and then back past the same players just because he could.
George Best was obviously beyond his era, one of the players who could just move past opponents at will. Judging by the old clips, he was not all round, rational and consistent like a Messi, in which case United would have won alot more than they did. But his best dribbling must have been out of his world more so than any.
United had a penchant for speedy wingers like David Pegg, Gordon Hill, Steve Coppell, Sharpe and Kantchelskis, players who could use their speed to get past backs and cross, but Ryan Giggs truly was a magnificent dribler. His ball controll at high speeds was special and it wasn’t coincidence that Figo and Giggs where considered the worlds best driblers and wide players by many in the nineties. As dribbling goes, he was far better than Christiano Ronaldo.
Nani at his best was a great trickster and feinter, but when not at his best, infuriatingly frustrating.
Still, United’s best ever dribbler has to be Chris Smalling. He has the ball controll of a concrete slab and still, noone can get the ball off him when he moves forward. Magic.
was said to be an unstoppable dribler, toothpick in mouth always, ghosting past players up the wing and then back past the same players just because he could.
George Best was obviously beyond his era, one of the players who could just move past opponents at will. Judging by the old clips, he was not all round, rational and consistent like a Messi, in which case United would have won alot more than they did. But his best dribbling must have been out of his world more so than any.
United had a penchant for speedy wingers like David Pegg, Gordon Hill, Steve Coppell, Sharpe and Kantchelskis, players who could use their speed to get past backs and cross, but Ryan Giggs truly was a magnificent dribler. His ball controll at high speeds was special and it wasn’t coincidence that Figo and Giggs where considered the worlds best driblers and wide players by many in the nineties. As dribbling goes, he was far better than Christiano Ronaldo.
Nani at his best was a great trickster and feinter, but when not at his best, infuriatingly frustrating.
Still, United’s best ever dribbler has to be Chris Smalling. He has the ball controll of a concrete slab and still, noone can get the ball off him when he moves forward. Magic.
Okay...... someone has been enjoying the funny sauce, Torres' peak was nothing more than good, not great, just good, and even then it was only for a very brief period of time.
There have been plenty of strikers who have had far better careers then him, and who were far better than him, he isn't worth talking about when it comes to talking about the very best, so I have no clue why his name was ever brought up.
He pales into insignificance really.
by bad, 2 years before in the quarter finals
Paddy McCourt. Irish pele
Hard to decide between Messi and Maradona but Maradona for me:-
He played in an era when defenders were proper defenders and used to try and break your legs, look at the attempted tackle on 3:58 of that video for example, would have been a red card today, players on the pitch surrounding the referee, player rolling around on the floor, Maradona got straight back up and still put a cross in.
Imagine how his dribbles would look on the flat well looked after pitches of today, with the same protection players get from referees today.
He played in an era when defenders were proper defenders and used to try and break your legs, look at the attempted tackle on 3:58 of that video for example, would have been a red card today, players on the pitch surrounding the referee, player rolling around on the floor, Maradona got straight back up and still put a cross in.
Imagine how his dribbles would look on the flat well looked after pitches of today, with the same protection players get from referees today.
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Well, Brian played for Dennmark too, and was very important in the 1992 euro and played well in the 1998 world cup, it's not like he couldn't do it on the biggest stage. He just didn't have a strong mind to play for the top europeans clubs, maybe that sort of pressure was too much for him, but if he was not better than Michael then I believe he was at least as good as him.
The players Maradona and Best played against generally had a Sunday dinner and 10 pints before each game...
Meanwhile Messi is playing in the age of supreme sports fitness whilst himself being 5 foot 6 yet still gliding past these top athletes
I can understand people arguing that Maradona/Best/Garrincha are equal or even slightly better than Messi
But to say that Messi is a "Tier 2 dribbler" means that you probably need to watch Messi (esp in his prime) to see how good he is.
Theres a reason why after 800 games at the highest levels of football Messi is still one of the best dribblers in the world, despite not being blessed physically like say a Ronaldo
His natural dribbling ability is as good as Roger Federer's backhand ability, Muhammad Ali's punching ability or Usain Bolt's sprinting ability.
I am from Denmark, and I have pretty much seen all the internationals, that both played. Brian L was a great individual for Denmark.
He probably had the same talent as Michael L, but like you said, he didn't have the mentality to handle the pressure at the big clubs. He tried and failed in Milan, Bayern and Chelsea, where Michael excelled in the biggest clubs.
In Scotland Brian L showed how good he could be, but imo, he should have been in a more competitive league.
When it comes to dribling, I truly believe, that Brian L. doesn't come close to the skills of Michael L.
Michael L had the ability to glide past opponents making it look so easy. He was so elegant with the ball at his feet. A matter of opinion, I guess. Cheers.
Well, then you know more than me. I read that Brian was unhappy at Chelsea from the moment he signed, never wanted to be there. Italian football wasn't really suited for him aswell, he got relegated with Fiorentina.
Best, Ronaldinho, Maradona.
Did you guys follow him during his peak days at Liverpool? He could do anything to score a goal. Dribble, strength, hold-up play and incredible finishing. Career aside I would put his peak years over RVP and Schevenko.
I agree. That season he was probably the best number 9 in the world.
Are people really suggesting Ronaldinho was a better dribbler than Messi? I understand if you think he was a more entertaining dribbler to watch, but Messi is clearly much more effective at actually dribbling past players.
Wow, some fairly imaginative people here, Torres was good nothing more than that for a very brief period of time, certainly not anywhere near the top ten or twenty best strikers in Premier League history, nevermind in terms of the world game, where he was even lower than that.
Maradona, Ronaldo 9, Ronaldinho and Messi. I also like watching Robben. His signature cutting in move from the left wing was and still is one of the most predictable and difficult moves to stop.
Angel Gomes
Both of the quotes specifically stated, that we were talking about his peak. At his PEAK around '07-'09 he most certainly is in the top ten strikers in PL.
I agree though, that his overall career doesn't warrant him a place among the best, because his peak was so short.
At his peak he was not all that special, he was good for such a brief moment in time, but he isn't really worth speaking about in such reverential terms.
Some people it seems are very easily pleased.
Best, Maradona or Messi. Probably Messi.
Right then name me PL strikers better than Torres at his peak. I am talking pure strikers so don't name someone like Lampard
Shearer
Henry
Cole
Van Nistelrooy
Bergkamp
Zola
Sheringham
Van Persie
Aguero
Hasselbaink
Anelka
Ian Wright
Drogba
Kane
Yorke
Solskjaer
Cantona
Hughes
Fowler
Rooney
Ferdinand