Zinedine Zidane (16 Viewers)

[Fred]

But wasn't Maradona great from the start of the 80's up until the start of the 90's. I would say Maradona had a decade of brilliance too, and his brilliance was something nobody could replicate. Zidane was a fantastic footballer, but he couldn't take the ball beat 4-5 defenders and score a goal not once but twice in a single WC. Also, i think Maradona was a more complete player than Zidane, his free kick taking ability was second to none, his shots from distance were great, and i lost count of the number of goals he scored by brilliantly lobbing the keeper. The way he destroyed teams like Juventus, Milan and co was amazing too.

I don't think Zidane was as talented as Maradona was, the things the latter could do with the ball was simply extraordinary.

 

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[Martin]

Though I tend to disagree there, I get what you are saying but depends on what you prefer. Individual brilliance or brilliance to make the whole team shine? I think Zizou had both, but the latter in spades.

That time when Ronaldinho was in his heyday, I had friends who genuinely thought Maradona or Pele, even Zizou, had nothing on him. It may seem funny now, but at the time...it was a thing to think about, at least. Anyway, that's the best example for me to show why Zidane is actually the greatest footballer ever; consistency. I said, we'll see how long Dinho will be able to keep it up.

That's where Zidane stands out. The guy played at a top level for practically a decade. He had 5 amazing years in Juventus, winning 2 Scudettos(which at that time were practically more difficult to win than a CL), two lost CL finals..then he took his country to win the WC in 98, then the Euro in 2000. Then he spent 5 fantastic years in Real Madrid, where he won La Liga and CL. Then at the end of his career, he almost single-handedly took France to another WC final. I can honestly say, Zidane was the best player in the world for practically 10 full years.

Not Maradona, not Pele, had something like that. One can argue Pele did, but that was a different time and the fact he never left Brasil is something I don't appreciate. Maradona, I love him to death, he is what he is and no one can argue his genius, but he as well had his time and only went downhill.

I have a very simple argument for this. Zizou was the best player of my generation, that is to say when I was really into the sport. So what do I care if some other guy was amazing at another time when I don't relate to those past conditions.

 

[Fred]

Also i remember the time some people used to compare Ronaldinho to Zidane, i laughed then, like i laugh now when people compare Messi to Zidane.

I think its fair to say Zizou was greater and is greater than any of the current players by a distance.

 

[Buck Fuddy]

Excluding Matteo Paro, obviously.

 

[Fred]

That goes without saying.

 

[V]

I have a very simple argument for this. Zizou was the best player of my generation, that is to say when I was really into the sport. So what do I care if some other guy was amazing at another time when I don't relate to those past conditions.

That is an argument I always appreciate.

But wasn't Maradona great from the start of the 80's up until the start of the 90's. I would say Maradona had a decade of brilliance too, and his brilliance was something nobody could replicate. Zidane was a fantastic footballer, but he couldn't take the ball beat 4-5 defenders and score a goal not once but twice in a single WC. Also, i think Maradona was a more complete player than Zidane, his free kick taking ability was second to none, his shots from distance were great, and i lost count of the number of goals he scored by brilliantly lobbing the keeper. The way he destroyed teams like Juventus, Milan and co was amazing too.

I don't think Zidane was as talented as Maradona was, the things the latter could do with the ball was simply extraordinary.

The best Maradona the world has seen was at the mid-80, his Napoli years. His early years with Boca were also very good, then two difficult years with Barca which led him to be transfered to Napoli...then look at the clubs Zizou has orchestrated, Juventus and Real Madrid, arguably two most prestigious clubs in the world. One can argue playing for a club like Napoli brought out the best out of Diego as he could never handle responsibility very well. It's a fact to keep in mind. Diego's whole career was full of turmoil, not only personal ones but professional ones as well, he had quite a lot of ups and downs throughout it.

But I don't like where this is going, I don't wanna have to talk bad about Maradona(who I really adore). I just wanted to let you know where I make my distinction.


As for the things Diego could do with the ball...come on, Fred. There are things Cristiano Ronaldo can do with a ball that Diego couldn't do. (this is just a phrase, not to be taken seriously) They are different styles and there's nothing to argue there. Personally, Zidane's football to me is the norm to which people should look up to. Beautiful and intelligent.

 

[Salvatore]

I find it difficult to really rate Messi close to Zidane when he doesn't produce something extraordinary when his team is in trouble. Out of the current Barça team, I can only see Xavi capable of doing that on occasion.

It's fair enough for him to be scoring 2 goals a week against the likes of Racing or Tenerife, but when a Espanyol gave them a challenge in the second leg of their league matches, Messi produced nothing to threaten. Same again against Inter in either leg.

And Zidane dominated a couple of World Cups. Just my thoughts.

 

[Fred]

That is an argument I always appreciate.


The best Maradona the world has seen was at the mid-80, his Napoli years. His early years with Boca were also very good, then two difficult years with Barca which led him to be transfered to Napoli...then look at the clubs Zizou has orchestrated, Juventus and Real Madrid, arguably two most prestigious clubs in the world. One can argue playing for a club like Napoli brought out the best out of Diego as he could never handle responsibility very well. It's a fact to keep in mind. Diego's whole career was full of turmoil, not only personal ones but professional ones as well, he had quite a lot of ups and downs throughout it.

But I don't like where this is going, I don't wanna have to talk bad about Maradona(who I really adore). I just wanted to let you know where I make my distinction.


As for the things Diego could do with the ball...come on, Fred. There are things Cristiano Ronaldo can do with a ball that Diego couldn't do. They are different styles and there's nothing to argue there. Personally, Zidane's football to me is the norm to which people should look up to. Beautiful and intelligent.

When i say that Diego could do things with the ball that nobody could do, i don't mean petty tricks like the ones Ronaldo can do. I mean the things he can do, how well he controls it, how accurate he can shoot the ball, how amazing his close ball control is while running at top speed, the way he can lob the keeper no matter where he is or how far he is from the goal. I never watched Maradona live, but it would be very hard for someone to convince me that Zidane or anybody else was as talented as Maradona.

I think he is heads and shoulders above all players, including Zidane.

 

[Martin]

I find it difficult to really rate Messi close to Zidane when he doesn't produce something extraordinary when his team is in trouble. Out of the current Barça team, I can only see Xavi capable of doing that on occasion.

It's fair enough for him to be scoring 2 goals a week against the likes of Racing or Tenerife, but when a Espanyol gave them a challenge in the second leg of their league matches, Messi produced nothing to threaten. Same again against Inter in either leg.

And Zidane dominated a couple of World Cups. Just my thoughts.

The saddest evidence is in seeing how incredibly horrible the French team is after he's gone, and even how bad it became as he got older.

 

[V]

When i say that Diego could do things with the ball that nobody could do, i don't mean petty tricks like the ones Ronaldo can do. I mean the things he can do, how well he controls it, how accurate he can shoot the ball, how amazing his close ball control is while running at top speed, the way he can lob the keeper no matter where he is or how far he is from the goal. I never watched Maradona live, but it would be very hard for someone to convince me that Zidane or anybody else was as talented as Maradona.

I think he is heads and shoulders above all players, including Zidane.

That's cause you were never a true Juve fan.

I get that, respect that and partially even agree, but Zizou is something else to me.

 

[Fred]

That's cause you were never a true Juve fan.

I get that, respect that and partially even agree, but Zizou is something else to me.

Your right, but Zidane has arguably done more for France than he has for Juve, so technically i should be the bigger fan

I think the bolded part is key

 

[Buck Fuddy]

When i say that Diego could do things with the ball that nobody could do, i don't mean petty tricks like the ones Ronaldo can do. I mean the things he can do, how well he controls it, how accurate he can shoot the ball, how amazing his close ball control is while running at top speed, the way he can lob the keeper no matter where he is or how far he is from the goal. I never watched Maradona live, but it would be very hard for someone to convince me that Zidane or anybody else was as talented as Maradona.

I think he is heads and shoulders above all players, including Zidane.

I may not be the best guy here to judge Maradona either since he was already on the way back when I started watching him, but being the "best" player is not the same thing as being the most talented player.

 

[Fred]

It isn't, but his achievments speak for themselves, he single handedly dragged the Argentina team to a WC in 1986, he won a couple of league titles for Napoli and a UEFA cup too, he won several titles with Boca Juniors etc.

 

[Buck Fuddy]

I know his achievements speak for themselves, I just felt it was necessary to highlight the fact that talent doesn't necessarily mean a lot.


In the end, there is absolutely no objective way of knowing who exactly is or was the best player (ever).
They all played in a different era, we all look at it from a different perspective, our own perspectives & ideas of how the game should be played probably change over time, ...

 

[Martin]

I know his achievements speak for themselves, I just felt it was necessary to highlight the fact that talent doesn't necessarily mean a lot.

best player of all time

 

[Buck Fuddy]

His achievements also speak for themselves.

 

[Salvatore]

Future Ballon D'Or winner.

 

[pibull1986]

I'm a huge Baggio fan, but I'll never forget zizou's performance when we trashed ajax in '97.he was a monster the whole match.He himself has said that it was his best game and performed without a single fault throughout the match.Imagine with the strength of van gaaal's ajax of mid 90's (who reached three conscutive UCL final) and owning them like 4-0 or 4-1(not sure).I guess only zidane can help you do that.

 

[Salvatore]

Imagine with the strength of van gaaal's ajax of mid 90's (who reached three conscutive UCL final)

Huh? Fuck that, JUVENTUS reached three consecutive CL finals in the 90's. We were THE team to beat.

 

[GordoDeCentral]

Though I tend to disagree there, I get what you are saying but depends on what you prefer. Individual brilliance or brilliance to make the whole team shine? I think Zizou had both, but the latter in spades.

That time when Ronaldinho was in his heyday, I had friends who genuinely thought Maradona or Pele, even Zizou, had nothing on him. It may seem funny now, but at the time...it was a thing to think about, at least. Anyway, that's the best example for me to show why Zidane is actually the greatest footballer ever; consistency. I said, we'll see how long Dinho will be able to keep it up.

That's where Zidane stands out. The guy played at a top level for practically a decade. He had 5 amazing years in Juventus, winning 2 Scudettos(which at that time were practically more difficult to win than a CL), two lost CL finals..then he took his country to win the WC in 98, then the Euro in 2000. Then he spent 5 fantastic years in Real Madrid, where he won La Liga and CL. Then at the end of his career, he almost single-handedly took France to another WC final. I can honestly say, Zidane was the best player in the world for practically 10 full years.

Not Maradona, not Pele, had something like that. One can argue Pele did, but that was a different time and the fact he never left Brasil is something I don't appreciate. Maradona, I love him to death, he is what he is and no one can argue his genius, but he as well had his time and only went downhill.

Right on the money, V.

what money? do you know what team diego took to the WC? do you also diego helped napoli, yes napoli win scudetti and euro titles; i m afraid your whole argument here is moot zidane s got nothing on el diez, it's a shame to even argue this, ask the man himself