Greatest footballers from each of the last 5 decades
Football fans all around the world will be ready to debate about who the greatest player of all time is till the end of the world. Even people from the same generation won't agree on who the greatest player of their era is.
The beautiful game has seen so many remarkably talented players that naming one as the best to have ever taken to the field would be borderline blasphemous. But these conversations need to be had. It's important to recognize the true champions of the game.
While it might be almost impossible to pick the greatest footballer of all time, we could look at who the greatest players of each era have been. Without further ado, let's take a look at the greatest footballers from each of the last five decades.
#5 1970s - Johan Cruyff
Johan Cruyff is a revolutionary in the world of football. The 1970s was the 'rocknroll' era of football. It seemed like everyone had a voice. There were all types of world-class footballers and Cruyff still managed to stand out from the crowd.
Franz Beckenbauer, Paulo Roberto Falcão, Roberto Rivellino, Teofilo Cubillas, Ruud Krol, Hugo Sanchez were all exceptional talents. But Cruyff was on a different level altogether. Cruyff's genius was fashioned in Ajax.
The Dutchman had won six Eredivisie titles and three back-to-back European Cups with Ajax before he left for Barcelona. He won the Ballon d'Or in 1971, 1973 and 1974. Cruyff was a vital cog in the Netherlands side's total football era.
He was a standout performer in the side that embarked on an exhilarating journey to the finals of the 1974 World Cup as well. Cruyff was a visionary both on and off the pitch. He could also do almost anything on a football pitch. Cruyff was one of those players with immense tactical intelligence and vision and the technical ability to match it.
Johan Cruyff, the flying Dutchman, in images https://t.co/DiAkxEIIUk
#4 1980s - Diego Maradona
One of the players with the strongest claim for GOAT status, Diego Maradona is quite easily the greatest player of the 1980s. It would have taken a genius to eclipse the rest of the world-class talents that embellished the 80s and the diminutive Argentine fit the bill.
He was already being hailed as one of the greatest footballers around during his time with Argentinos Juniors in the late 70s. He later earned moves to Boca Juniors and Barcelona as well. But it was at Napoli that Maradona found his home.
He won a UEFA Cup and two Italian league championships with the Partenopei. But Maradona's crowning achievement is almost single-handedly guiding Argentina to the 1986 World Cup title. He scored the 'Goal of the Century' in the semi-final of the World Cup against England.
Mind you this is an era that featured players like Lothar Matthaus, Michel Platini, Karl-Heinze Rummenigge, Zbigniew Boniek, Socrates, Kenny Dalglish, Zico and Franco Baresi to name a few. But Maradona was just a different beast and was at a level quite distinct from the rest.
Diego Maradona at the 1986 #WorldCup: invincible 🇦🇷🙌 https://t.co/b767xKRG85