Someone mention Gascoigne in the same breath as Maradona when talking about football talent?
It was hard because there’s been some tosh mentioned but I think this is the winner
Klopp wouldn’t/couldn’t have found a place for Maradona in this Liverpool team.
No, no, wait this is the winner,
Maradona vs Suárez as to which is the best player would be some debate.
As an aside. Supposedly, if you believe in heaven you believe in hell. The good go to heaven and the bad go to hell. Yet nobody says, no matter how flawed, bad, etc the person was “well he’s in the devil’s hands now. Be tormented for ever.”
Diego Maradona in my opinion (doesn’t mean much) the best football player ever without a doubt. And I absolutely loved King Kenny.
Diego Maradona in my opinion (doesn’t mean much) the best football player ever without a doubt. And I absolutely loved King Kenny.
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Maradona was the greatest player ever on a football pitch to grace the great game.
It must also be remembered, the world cup of 86 was only 4yrs after the conflict in the Falklands had ended, which I am sure still had some raw emotion within Argentina. The five seconds it took him to score that second goal in Mexico, was all the time it took to humiliate England as a nation.
Whilst no correlation can ever be drawn between the two topics of sport and politics, It could be assured that a Godlike status would always await Maradona for the genius he was… RIP Diego
That was me. I specifically placed Maradona above him but Gascoigne was so natural with the ball, much like Maradona was. Gascoigne was an exceptional talent.
The thing about Maradona that stands out, when you go back and look at the highlight reels, including those of Pele, is his unbelievable coordination with the football: balancing it on his head, flipping it back and forth shoulder to shoulder, the crazy looping shots from difficult angles. There’s that story Phil Neville tells about him standing on the pitch blasting the ball into the air thirteen times and never having to move more than three paces to smash it again. His mastery of his body in relation to the football sets him apart IMO.
Not anywhere close in my book. Most certainly one of the better players England has ever produced but nowhere near the same level as Maradona, Pele, Best, Ronaldo (fat and skinny) and Messi. I would also rank Platini, Zidane and few others a bit higher than him.
Maybe those fitness and lifestyle issues reduced what he could have been?
I dont think you can ever come to that conclusion. trying to compare players across different era’s is just impossible. The game changes over time. What I would say though is if these players all played today they would all still stand out by a country mile.
Agree with all this, my point was only about the natural ability with the ball. Maradona, Ronaldinho, Gascoigne had this innate comfort with it. More so than the others you list. I’m not, however, saying Gascoigne was a better footballer than them (although he was very good).
I think I might get my eyes tested. I’m not so sure it does look that natural to be honest. It’s damn good no doubt but there’s this kind of subtlety, and smoothness to the way the ball moves with a player like Maradona, Ronaldinho and co. Zidane was another one, it looks all natural to them. I just don’t see it in Gascoigne. I’d quote that Scotland goal that gets shown all the time. The flick over the top wasn’t subtle and I’d argue not fully controlled either.
I’d almost make this useless comparison to watching Ice Hockey in the UK. I used to go regularly and the top leagues had a few smatterings of NHL level players. They stood out like a sore thumb. They way they skated and moved the puck was on an entirely different level. There was only one UK player that was similar, and he was probably the best Ice hockey player the UK has ever produced. I see the likes of Maradona like that.
Thanks for mentioning Zidane. Yes, an ability to impose himself on a match all over the pitch. Not as flashy as other players, but still one of the best I have ever seen play.
Moore, Banks, but the bias arse in me, thinks, neither of these will win it anyway.
For instance somewhere in the back of my head I thought of putting in you, Gerrard. But he isnt quite there either. Same with Cannavaro, easily the best defender Ive ever seen, but not quite there?
