Well in terms of goat debate, where does he rank? He might play for two more years or so but obviously his real fingerprints have already been printed in terms of his legacy. He wont win or do anything significant anymore. But... he is Real Madrid`s all-time top-scorer, Champions League`s all-time top-scorer, generally speaking THE top-scorer in football`s history. He has five champions leagues, several league titles in different leagues, one Euro, several man of the match performances in top-tier matches and of course... five Ballon`dors. He was at the very top for about fifteen years. So how good was he really? Where does he rank?
I think it`s obvious that in terms of technical skills or being (as many a football enthusiasts say) being "naturally gifted", he was never amongst the absolute top tier. Messi, Maradona, George Best, the original Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Neymar and many others where much more better at ball at their respective feet and doing dribbling, playmaking and what have you. What Cristiano did have though was outstanding athleticism and work-rate. He is arguably the best header in football`s history, had exceptional pace, had incredibly freekicks and long-distance shooting (in his prime) and could finish with both of his feet incredibly clinically. His work-rate and ambitition meant that he was never fullfilled. He continued to score and win and remain hungry. His club career is arguably the greatest of all time. His time with Portugal was also magnificent.
Where does he rank? For me, Messi is number one. I would say Maradona is number two. Pele? If we are all honest, no one ever saw Pele play. No one here on this forum, not any one of those pundits who claim he is the best, there is no real footage, just the three World Cups and the crazy goal-tally which he achieved in a piss-poor Brazilian league. Brazilian Ronaldo, as mentioned above, was indeed the more gifted, more of a one-man-army type of a player who could produce much more "magic" than Cristiano could but his prime was very short and his career (club-wise that is) was rather poor.
I think Cristiano is easily a top-10 player, but it gets difficult to separated him from the Messis, Maradonas, Peles, Zidanez, R9s, Cruyffs, Beckenbauers, Bests and co. What do YOU think?
