| LurkerJ said: Ugh, Ronaldinho had some good years then he faded into irrelevance.
Messi has been consistent since the world was introduced to Messi. Almost 10 years ago and he still keeps on giving.
In my scale, C. Ronaldo also has outdone Ronaldinho.
Consistency is just one more thing people ignore. Zidane played well in some big matches but he was way below his full potential most of the time. Apparently that doesn't matter cuz he won the WC so he is better than Messi. No way. Both Iniesta and Xavi were much better players at one point and he won the WC too. Why aren't they on your scale? |
Ronaldinho really lost steam quickly. He wasted his tallent because he lacks discipline. I think he remembers me of Adriano's fall from grace. The only reason he didn't did it as fast as Adriano it's because his brother is his agent and kept him a bit more focused. You got a point here that favors Messi hugely. Also, 2002 was more a win for Ronaldo and Rivaldo than Ronaldinho.
About consistency again, Zidane only shined in a big matches, he tended to mediocrity most of the year. I would agree to put Messi above Ronaldinho, but C. Ronaldo behind both and still ahead of Zidane.
Xavi an Iniesta were great and won the WC, but it was more a team effort than their individual stars. They are more like a damn great combination that any team would want, but individually I think they are outshined by some guys.
I think that we can have players that didn't won the cup in a all-time great rank. Puskas and Di Stéfano are two of them. But all these guys cannot be considered as good as the top 3 or 5 guys without a WC, specially when we have guys like Pelé who won it 3 times (ok, 1 of them was Garrincha's).
Looking at prospects, I believe that Neymar will be the top player as Messi and C. Ronaldo get older. But if he doesn't win a cup, it will never be a top guy and he has a smaller chance to achieve that than Messi or C. Ronaldo for sure.
