Top 100 Footballers in PL history

[Cardsfan]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_McGrath_(footballer)

 

[Cardsfan]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Owen

 

[last request]

 

[Oaf]

That doesn't work, but it's superb. I posted that on TFF after finding it when I was about to go to Dubai. The man just oozes charisma. The best part is where the golf ball hits his windshield.

(seriously though, big fan of Owen as a player!)

 

[last request]

That doesn't work, but it's superb. I posted that on TFF after finding it when I was about to go to Dubai. The man just oozes charisma. The best part is where the golf ball hits his windshield.

(seriously though, big fan of Owen as a player!)

Yeah it was you who introduced me to the Michael Owen Helicopter Experience. Golf ball part is hilarious.

 

[Gulliball]

Neil Redfearn looks like Ed Balls.

 

[Son of Cod]

Had five of mine feature. I think? Cardsfan would you please send me my list when you get a chance?

First up was Pearce. Psycho. A ferocious embodiment of what it should mean to play for club and country. Okay, so he's lost a bit of stock since retiring, but as a player his passion was a joy to watch. Wasn't the Premier League, but that penalty reaction against Spain in Euro 96 is one of my favourite ever football moments. Also, has there ever been an English full back who can take a freekick as well?

That was my number two, Son of Cod.

Glad you've voted him highly too. Outstanding footballer.

Can't believe there were only two of us voted for him! Like you say, outstanding player. The Scholes brigade might hang me for saying this, but I'd perhaps go as far as saying the best passer of the ball the Premier League has seen.

I liked Ginola as a player but never quite got how he was quite as highly rated as he seemed to be. And that goal...it was against Barnsley, wasn't it? It's not exactly Ryan Giggs skipping round a load of double-winners and smashing the ball home in a semi-final, is it?

Haha, yeah but Giggs is on another totally different level to Ginola. That's why Ginola is where he is and Giggs will definitely be in the top 10, probably in the top five and maybe in the top three (depending on how many votes Rammy managed to drum up for Alan Stubbs and Robert Earnshaw). Ginola wasn't consistent, but he was an absolute pleasure to watch when he was on song. That goal against Barnsley was class, but the one against Ferencvaros was even better for me. Definitely not just a glorified dribbler like a lot of people seem to remember him as.

Fowler was one of mine, too. Ultimately a disappointing career, but one that promised so much at the start. Great finisher, fantastic awareness and positioning. His partnerships with Rush and Collymore were great. Best ever celebration too, with the Everton cocaine incident.

Kinkladze was another of my choices too. I think? Perhaps not particularly worthy but in there purely for the entertainment factor. Capable of pulling something mesmeric out of the hat at any point.

Di Canio was one that I would have included (probably at the expense of either Waddle, Ginola or Kinkladze) if he wasn't a dick.

Did I include Okocha? Not sure, think I took him out as I had too many trickster midfielders on my list. Another thoroughly enjoyable player, though.

 

[Cardsfan]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yaya_Touré

 

[Cardsfan]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Cole

 

[Rammy]

Kinkladze and McGrath. My final two ex-Derby players.

Kinkladze came to us from Ajax as a fat bastard, but he was still class. McGrath was immense, but never trained as his knees had gone.

 

[Cardsfan]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juninho_Paulista

 

[Rammy]

Juninho made my list. Can't be arsed to check, but think I'm one of the 2 pointers. Possibly the 3.

 

[Stagat]

Finding it interesting to just glance at the appearances the players made for clubs and how it differs from my memory/perception. Makelele playing 50 more times for Chelsea than Real surprised me, and Cole having more Blackburn appearances than Newcastle ones too. Ginola didn't play for the Toon as much as I thought either, imagined his Newcastle and Tottenham appearances would have been closer in numbers.

 

[Libertadores FC]

Giving up on Nobby Solano. You're all RACIST

To be fair though, he wasn't even the best Peruvian player in his time.

 

[IanH]

Just bore off about Nolberto sodding Solano. If James has proven anything, it's that you could have got him, Claudio Blackboard, Diego Penny and Ysrael Zuñiga into the top fifty of the list, IF YOU HAD JUST VOTED.

 

[TomPNE94]

I haven't looked at this thread for ages!

On Gazza, my dad always says he is the best player he has seen play for England and it genuinely upsets him how he turned out!

 

[mistermagic]

Owen is my boyhood hero as I got into football during the French World Cup in 1998. He's had an ok career but I reckon it could have been better (well, that's always the case). He came across rather silly when he left Liverpool for Real Madrid as he wanted to win the Champions' League which Liverpool won the following year. Ok it was a fluke but still. Irony. The rest of his career has been blighted by injuries and I don't think England have had a natural goal poacher since he retired. His finishing skills were superb and he actually didn't do anything silly off the pitch if my memory doesn't fail me.

 

[IanH]

I know everyone is just desperate for another goalscorers graph, so inspired by mistermagic's post about Owen above, this time a Liverpool special.

It's pretty obvious that Liverpool have been blessed with some fantastic strikers in the Premier League (and beyond) but something particularly worth highlighting is the number of these (Fowler, Owen, Torres) whose careers exploded in their late teens before beginning to slow.

Owen is my boyhood hero as I got into football during the French World Cup in 1998. He's had an ok career but I reckon it could have been better .

This quote could easily apply to all three, and perhaps shows (is three too small a sample size) the future risks of overplaying young players, instead of protecting them a bit more from the physical and mental strains of professional sport.

It also shows that while Sturridge is flavour of the month right now, he's a long way off replicating any of these other Anfield heroes.

 

[mistermagic]

Now I like your graphs HendyBoy but it would really be cool to indicate the timeframe of those goals (ie put the seasons at the bottom).

 

[IanH]

It's throughout their careers, so starting at 17 on the left and heading into their 30s on the right Where Sturridge's line ends is how many cumulative goals they had each scored by the time they were 24. It includes all club competitions, regardless of the country.

 

[mistermagic]

Not taking into account Owen's 40 goals for England then. Really enjoyed watching him play.

 

[IanH]

Nope, and they obviously would have also been heavily loaded towards the start of his career. He was an excellent player.

 

[Leewilson]

Owen is my boyhood hero as I got into football during the French World Cup in 1998. He's had an ok career but I reckon it could have been better (well, that's always the case). He came across rather silly when he left Liverpool for Real Madrid as he wanted to win the Champions' League which Liverpool won the following year. Ok it was a fluke but still. Irony. The rest of his career has been blighted by injuries and I don't think England have had a natural goal poacher since he retired. His finishing skills were superb and he actually didn't do anything silly off the pitch if my memory doesn't fail me.

The injuries really were ashame because there were patches where he was still very good after Liverpool. He did have a slow start at Madrid which put him down to 3rd in the pecking order but when he was called upon after that he tended to come up with the goods. When he moved back to Newcastle, him and Shearer formed a very strong partnership initially but then he got injured about half way through the season and it all went to shit after that really. I think the ending of him was when he got injured at the 2006 World Cup.

 

[Cardsfan]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Pirès

Now that we're entering the Top 25 all the players will have full profiles starting tomorrow.

 

[Mustard]

Love that goal in 01-02 vs Villa. He was sensational that year. Hard to say without seeing some more of the players that are around him, but I think he should be a little higher..

 

[IanH]

I initially couldn't stand Bobby Pires, with his seemingly lightweight stature and tendency to mince across the pitch. However, he utterly won me over with his ability, and the link up play he helped orchestrate with the invincibles and French national side.

The '7' goal compilation shows his blend of skill, set piece quality, and long-range ability.

A couple of stand out memories for me away from his goals, are his monumental fuck up of a penalty with Henry, and that his farewell game (or the game that caused him to want to leave) when he was the unlucky man subbed in the 2006 CL final when Lehmann got sent off after twenty minutes. Such a sad end to his time at Arsenal.

 

[Don Tonberry]

Diving bastard. You wouldn't be talking about Arsenal's unbeaten season if he wasn't such a cheat. (Probably)

 

[JJH]

Loved watching Pires play, the bloke was a genius.

 

[Bobbin']

Diving bastard. You wouldn't be talking about Arsenal's unbeaten season if he wasn't such a cheat. (Probably)

I have a feeling there are a few more divers to come, probably in the top 3.

 

[Cardsfan]