FourFourTwo followers react to our list of the 100 best football players of all time

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We're glad to see that you're all in agreement with us… sort of

Brazilian football great Edson Arantes do Nascimento, known as Pele, arrives at Guarulhos International Airport, in Guarulhos some 25km from Sao Paulo, Brazil, on April 9, 2019.
(Image credit: NELSON ALMEIDA/AFP via Getty Images)

It's an impossible job trying to rank the 100 greatest footballers of all time. How do you compare eras, positions, achievements and legacy? 

Still, that didn't stop us – and with our definitive century of GOATs this week, we attempted to settle the discussion once and for all. Oh, how naive we were, opening a can of worms. "How could you have left off my favourite?" some cried. "Where's this guy?" others shouted. And that was just from those at FFT HQ over the final list. 

Inevitably, no one will ever unanimously agree with your picks. We've been sifting through the replies and quote-tweets of the article since, however, looking through at your opinions. We're not saying we're right and you're wrong, but…

Some of the reaction to FFT's 100 best football players of all time list

Renzo Marna's data analysis of our list is not only very welcome but fascinating. A lot of the comments we received were regarding placing Pele fourth on our rundown – which is admittedly curious, considering you'd expect him to top a list that features more 60s stars and Brazilians than anyone else. 

This isn't an opinion held only by Dave. How can you be the greatest football player of all time if you've never won the biggest prize in football? It's a fair argument. 

Plenty believe that Diego Maradona is the greatest footballer of all time…

…including Daniel, who made the good point that modern-day players always sneak onto this lists due to recency bias. 

Well, the standard of football is always improving, after all. 

The omission of Pele from the top three seemed to divide the most opinion…

…but imagine if we hadn't included Lionel Messi in our top three. Sacrilege!

England won it, Marco! That year that Pele got kicked off the pitch, but still. 

Maradona claimed he was inspired by him and Pele called him a player "without comparison" – but not all agreed George Best was worthy of our top 10. 

Comparing Zinedine Zidane and Johan Cruyff is precisely why this list is so hard to judge. How do you compare a 90s/2000s Juventus and Real Madrid legend with a 70s Ajax and Barcelona legend? It all comes down to personal opinion. 

A few wondered if the only player of the last 15 years to win the Ballon d'Or not named Messi or Ronaldo was placed a little modestly in our list…

…perhaps we'll reassess his legacy once he retires. It's always hard to judge players who are playing – and Modric is arguably still in his prime. Who knows – maybe he'll add a World Cup title to his cabinet this winter. Stranger things have happened. 

Jimmy Greaves is perhaps underrated in the conversation of all-time greats anyway – but The Spurs Web felt we were still underplaying the legendary poacher. 

Not a single American in our list. Eddie Pope perhaps had the best show, though Brad Friedel picked the defender for his Perfect XI. 

Barnes had a shout, let's face it. And if this was a list of the greatest rap verses of all time, he'd have sewn it up. 

At least a few of you are enjoying the furore that such a debate starts. 

There's no pleasing everyone.

Well, we thought so…

Mark White
Mark White
Content Editor

Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at FourFourTwo. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer.