This column is not a player ranking, but a nice highlight that I would like to share with the readers. In the history of football, there are several levels of players who have carved their names. On the highest shelf are some that, by their unique characteristics, have been rated the best of all time. According to ancient world authorities, these players are the ones on the shelf said by those same authorities as the pinnacle of what a footballer can achieve — the best ever. Here are the names in chronological order since the rules were applied and the Association was played:


Jimmy Crabtree
Ernest Needham
Héctor Scarone
György Orth
Alex James
José Manuel Moreno
Alfredo Di Stéfano
Pelé
Diego Maradona


The list will stop at Maradona. Not because others could not be in this list, but because it would reach more recent decades. There are, of course, others that could be mentioned — such as Steve Bloomer, Hughie Gallacher, Adolfo Pedernera, Ferenc Puskás, Johan Cruijff, for example — but those above are the most mentioned among them all.