Messi and Ronaldo

[ClementeFanOh]

Peter- Interesting question. Naturally there is a premium on goals scored,
just as there is a premium on TDs scored in football (it's worth
remembering as a side note that a 21-14 football game is actually a 3-2
game). As is the case with football, however, a LOT has to happen in soccer
before the glory guy scores the goal. The players I prefer are the ones who
do a bunch of things well on the field: for example, weaving the ball down
the field past defenders, placing perfectly weighted passes to teammates to
their advantage, and actually playing defense/caring about the win rather
than individual stats. The comment I made about Ronaldo openly pouting
when a teammate scores was not exaggeration, he's been caught on camera
doing it. He has been a chronically selfish player for 15+ years.

I like to use an example of a team I don't care for as a fan, Real Madrid. In
the late 1990s/early 2000s the team bought "Galacticos", a nickname for
extremely expensive internationals- players like David Beckham, Luis Figo,
Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo, Michael Owen. These were huge stars who
grabbed the public's attention. Even these players would acknowledge,
however, that defensive midfielder Makelele (most people don't even know
him) was the team's most valuable player.

I guess I prefer a more well rounded player, both to watch and (certainly)
for "Mount Rushmore" status. Dennis Bergkamp was often called "the
perfect forward". Currently, although I loathe Madrid, Karim Benzema is a
flat assassin inside the 18 box. Don't get me wrong, Ronaldo has scored a
ton of goals- he just simply displayed little to no interest in major parts of
the game and actually struggled at World Cup in his prime years.

I may be an outlier here, but I'd say no to top 10. Then again, maybe I'm
not. I can tell you I've seen a LOT of players who I'd rather have on my
team.

Thanks for asking, Trent King