I like how half of the attacking midfielders played for mourinho

Talent is a beautiful thing in its own right - it makes a lot of football fans smile and is worth its own weight in gold but it shouldn’t be conflated with cold nosed effectiveness at the highest level. Was Mandzukic more talented than Aguero? Hell no... and if I want to dominate a league and enjoy my team playing football I’m picking the Argentine but if I want to win a UCL or World Cup - I would rather have the Croatian up top.

Good point - not sure how I even missed that! Still not sure if that overall does enough to tip the scales but it certainly means other players inclusion in that category needs to be re-looked at.

He also has an extremely good record vs the top 6. Definitely not a flat track bully

Whilst that is an interesting way of looking at it, I would have to disagree. Firstly, it is too much of an hypothetical situation and secondly, players like James Milner or a Park Ji Sung - are just as likely to have massive big match performances in a major final because they have the sort of mentality to exceed their general level of performance and nullify a big star etc. Hence for me a big performance on the big stage is certainly a major factor, but alone it cannot be enough as the sole factor to determine world class status.

Didnt make him a top 3 st at any point in the world

SOON.JPEG

What was your own interpretation!

Legendary Striker!! King Henry,,

Top 5 in the world at one point cmon now

Thanks mate! Planning to release once a week now I’ve got more time.

@@PythagorasinBoots on halaand? And fitting at city?

@@vrishabhadrim3598 good shout - need to do a Haaland one - I’ll probably cover which team is the best fit for him just to cover all bases.

I didn’t put him in as he is an all time great and I think his best work was in the two decades prior but of course he would get in if we push the boundaries to include him by virtue of the 2010 season.

I am a Corporate Lawyer and Law Lecturer (for now I'm afraid)

I think back to back CL finals and domestic league win, does enough to push them into world class level. Yes they can do more national team wise - granted - but I expect their recent dip to be a case of lack of hunger rather than lack of quality.

@@PythagorasinBoots they barley squeak in then

@@HIM-lk6of for now yes. Tbh Alisson was borderline and based on recent performance - would not be on the list. Needs to produce another great season to merit inclusion.

At international level players don’t pick themselves so you can’t say that because so and so doesn’t start for his country means he’s bad or overrated. For example Robertson plays for Scotland nobody expects them to do anything at big tournaments, and in case of Trent and Fabinho, the managers of their national teams don’t either like them stylistic or tactically. So when Tite picks Fred over Fabinho , or Southgate picks Walker or James over Trent it doesn’t mean those player are better then them or they’re not world class. Because if that’s the case then, Mount is better than grealish, foden and saka is better then Sancho, Greenwood because Southgate doesn’t pick them over Mount and saka. See how ridiculous it sounds to say things like that

Also great video mate, I would argue that there should be a nomination for every plausible position on the pitch as opposed to a World XI to allow for differentiation between systems and roles i.e full backs & wing backs, etc etc but even that would have many problems

@@mashfnch30 Well my plan is when I get round to completing our hall of fame on the website to have a different GOAT XI for every conceivable tactical system as I believe that is the only way to truly guage a players excellence and not have them punished by playing in an unorthodox role.

How old are you brother and what position you play?

Great idea - will put that in the pipeline.

Yeah di maria definitely should've been in the list

He would definitely be in the list now. These lists don’t stay still but are ever changing depending on player achievements

@@PythagorasinBoots ofcourse it is easy to miss out on some players i get it. I am guessing the psg era made some people forget about his abilities because he is not on the limelight all the time

Well for me he was world class based on his season for Real Madrid as a left sided CAM. But now he’s cemented himself as more than World class but one of the finer players of his generation especially in a support role.

@@PythagorasinBoots you think you’ll ever do an update on this video? Or make a page for it on the website?

Kaka in his prime was definitely a world class player. No question.

balon d'or winners from every era were definitely world-class player

Winning UCL and World Cup etc is not a must agreed but you must be operating at the business end of those levels and have made an impact. Otherwise there is no way of you being tested against the best. You’ll otherwise be a flat track bully who has only dominated the domestic stage.

Only "one of" 😢, jokes. Happy to hear that, Roshan.

Same for me

Di Maria potentially could be included although he's quite inconsistent - for me his 'world-class' level consists of that spell under Ancelotti where he was one of the key drivers in that side. Other than that, he's always been a support act but he does have a excellent CV - so this is a decent shout. Kane for me is more of a flat track bully, with not enough stand out performances against elite teams. He could potentially fall into that world class bracket but needs another UCL run or International run ala World Cup/Euros and he would cement his status. ATM I see him similar to that of an Aguero albeit with a slightly better cv in terms of big tournament performance. Yaya - not enough credentials on the biggest stages IMO. He performed well at Barca, but he was already being displaced by Busquets. His career at City, no UCL's or finals and for the national team he has won ACON but that isn't enough to cement world class status as the quality of teams doesn't match up to Euro's/World Cups and I do not recall any memorable World Cup campaigns by Ivory with Yaya at the heart of it. Kompany, unlucky with injury. Probably should have been defined as world class if he had not suffered as much. As it is, apart from WC 2018 - not enough of a CV in latter stages of big tournaments to earn world class status for me.

Good video but with all due I disagree with that Yaya point. Yaya won a CL playing as a CB. Won a league title with Gareth Barry as a CM. Won a PL as a CAM with 20 goals while Aguero was out injured for most of 13-14. Gerrard & Lampard missed the Euros so using international football against Yaya wasn’t fair imo

Think he’s elevated himself into more GOAT territory now.

Its because based on the other criteria listed, he doesn't quite hit the mark. Underrated player though, gets far too much stick off opposition fans.

Scholes preceding era so not included but undoubtedly world class based on his United career alone. England career wasn’t amazing but he put in solid international performances in Euro 2000, World Cup 2002 and even Euro 2004 (out of position).

Might be inclined to agree with you on Cambiasso. Torres injuries withstanding was World-Class, performed well at WC 2006 and Euro 2008 and a thorn in the side against top sides. He had a short peak due to injury but in his prime, one of the most feared strikers in the world. Mandzukic may not score 20+ a season but not every striker is rated based on goals. He is an effective performer at the highest level, performed in the UCL and World Cup - someone who can be relied upon in the utmost pressure against elite quality. Tevez I would rate as world class. Aguero more of a flat track bully IMO - very minimal contributions outside of domestic league.

It’s because by 2010 he wasn’t relevant

And Van Persie?

I didn't put Carrick in as he was not world class during the 2010's. He would have gone into the previous decade.

Only Thiago Silva is world class among them currently

Have to disagree completely about talent/ability being more important than performance level at the highest level. Aesthetics should not determine how 'great' a footballer is. Otherwise players like Ben Arfa and Taraabt would be labelled world class players. Secondly, De Gea deserves some credit for being a standout performer in a weak side but he also had more shots hit at him to stand out more. The mark of the great keepers like Neuer is that he did that with Schalke but when he went on to play for a giant club and then also for his national team where he theoretically had less work to do but more to do in terms of concentration and dealing with big moments under the greatest of pressure, he dealt with. De Gea in that situation collapsed, because he lacks the character of the truly elite keepers. He has a big fish in small pond mentality and that is not the sign of a world class player. Furthermore it is barely one mistake, since that moment it has been howler after howler so he has not been able to recover from that moment to the point he's a shadow of himself even on the domestic stage let alone a keeper who can be trusted in UCL finals and World Cup Finals. As for Silva, he's always been on that borderline of world-class but he needed to back it up with a big campaign in the club scene especially considering the strength of the club he played for. It is not a case of Shearer playing for a provincial club in Newcastle, he was playing for a big hitter in PSG and a big hitter national team wise in Brazil, so he needed to back it up with actual results on the big stage. Good World Cup in 14 but also featured in the 7-1 loss in the semi against the first real tough side they played of a really elite calibre (columbia and chile don't really count). So he needed this UCL campaign to cement his status. As for Aguero, another big fish in small pond type player. Domestic giant with no concrete credentials on the big stage. CL record is pitiful and international record is poor outside of the consolation goal v France in 2018 World Cup. Not a consistent enough record in the backend of the toughest competitions in football especially when you compare it to a Rooney.

@@PythagorasinBoots Silva didn’t feature in 7-1 loss, he was ruled out because of a yellow card. Before that he was great and I’m sure that with him and Neymar, they wouldn’t have collapsed that much. I think that in order to be a world-class player, you have to have two criteria - talent/ability and performance at the different big stages. Taarabt and Ben Arfa absolutely don’t the latter, so they are out of discussion. Aguero and Mandzukic score in both criteria (even though Aguero never shined in CL or WC, he’s a PL legend and that is already proving yourself at the big stage, unlike in case of Taarabt and Ben Arfa). Aguero wins in terms of talent/ability, Mandzukic wins in terms of performance at different big stages. But because to me talent/ability is more important, Aguero wins in my opinion.

@@kolokolo9889 good point it was Dante who played - my bad. For me you can’t just base it on talent and ability because what about Le Tissier - there are a whole host of forwards we could name as more talented than Mandzukic. But who is more likely to score and be effective on the big stage? Who is a elite defender more likely to find a handful on the European and international stage? For me it would be a ‘pity’ inclusion to call Aguero world class as his record is below par compared to the other world class strikers we listed who match Aguero in terms of talent/ability, dominated domestically plus made several impacts on European or international stage whereas Aguero is a flat track bully.

@@PythagorasinBoots I get your point. Aside from Le Tissier, there also many really talented players like Jay-Jay Okocha, Mario Jardel or Antonio Cassano who didn’t really do enough to gain the “world class” status. But my main point is that using solely performance on different big stages as a criterium is not always completely fair because football is a team sport. So a lot is dependant on the strength of your team, being in a right club at a right time, being born in a right country at a right time, avoiding injuries at crucial moments, instead of how good of a player you are. So I still think Aguero, Silva (before 19/20) are world class. Aguero is a lethal finisher, legend of one of the strongest leagues in the world and still scored over 40 goals in CL (more that Suarez for example), that’s a decent record even though most of them were in group stages against lesser opposition. In his prime he was of the best strikers in the world. Did he choke against strong opposition in CL? You can say so but most importantly, it was City who choked, not only Aguero. Aguero still has a great record against top6 in PL to prove that he can play against strong teams. Thiago Silva’s prime was around 2011-2015 (that’s when he was getting into TOTY’s and World XI’s). At that time he was Serie A’s top defender and was selected in 2014 World Cup Dream Team. Later on, he was very consistent and chosen in Copa America 2019 TOTT. At 19/20 CL campaign he played really well but I don’t think he was that much of a stand-out player, compared to Kimpembe or Marquinhos. And PSG had an easy route to the final and were favourites in every game - Borussia (Silva didn’t play in 2:0 comeback at home), Atalanta, Leipzig - quality sides but not from the biggest top. Even though CL final is another great achievement in his career, I don’t consider it to be the most crucial factor for his rating as he proved himself as a great player before. Now when I thought about it, de Gea is actually more difficult to rate because in his prime he was in top 3 (some would argue that even top 1) GK’s. But since 2018 WC he’s been in not a great form and we should judge his entire career. But he was chosen 5 times into PFA TOTY - more than any other goalkeeper in PL history. That’s quite an amazing achievement done at one of the highest stages of world football. I always considered his prime to be world class but depending on how the rest of his career goes, I can be convinced that on the course of his career, he’s not a world class player. So to conclude, performance at highest and different stages are definitely very important to measure if someone is world class. But ones talent, individual ability as a player are also very important and cannot be dismissed.

@@kolokolo9889 You mention the relevant strength of their respective teams but Aguero played for money bags City, a super power team compared to the rest of the EPL in a weak premier league era compared to 2004-2008 and had the team to dominate Europe, i.e. he should have been the player who brought it altogether and scored the goals or made the chances to turn them into winners on the big stage. If you look at most of those City games, they weren't hammered, it was generally quite tight - so his side weren't no hopers or minnows on the european stage. Likewise he played for Argentina, with the world's best player in the squad, and yet he could barely confirm a spot ahead of Higuain. Now you can argue that perhaps politics played its part in him not being no 1 striker for national side, but he was generally bang average for the national team when given the opporunity to make his mark - contrast that to Suarez, who played for an underdog nation relatively speaking in Uruguay but took that country to new heights and was effective at the highest level. As for De Gea, once again you are referring to domestic dominance. Where is the evidence when the pressure is elevated above mere domestic football? Domestic football is a good level, but it is not the toughest standard both in terms of quality or pressure levels. Compare the stages that a Neuer has had to perform in or Oblak and compare that to De Gea. World's apart.

They are not world-class players,,, fabinho closest enough

18:14 watch the video Trent is right there

18:51 Robertson aka Baines 2.0

19:33 VVD lol you did not even give him a shout

In terms of talent yes, but what has he done on the big stage consistently? Doesn't come close to the likes of Casemiro...

@@PythagorasinBoots I get ur point

@@momoreadekoya5694 I loved him as a player though, same position as me and learnt a lot from him.

Tell me where you disagree - keen to hear your thoughts

@@PythagorasinBoots On the professional level most of the players are good then they is special players like Saint Maximin, Zaha, Bruno and Joe Felix. Basically players that have potential to be great players. To be a great player you have to be consistent and deliver in big games. WORLD CLASS players are beyond that, I consider WORLD CLASS players are players than can change game or win the match on their on not domestically but at the highest level which is the champions league or world cup. With that being said if Messi and Ronaldo played for Trinidad or Australia when they rich the World Cup they still need to lift their nation at least ones regardless on them being on a weak national side. That’s why players like Lewandowski and Mane are not World Class. Messi and Ronaldo are on their or class ALL TIME GREATS!!!

Potentially world-class but in the wrong team - he can play for a bigger team. He's not done enough on the world stage for now, but he has proven he can play and excel on there. Just needs to do it more often and consistently.

This made me LOL!

Not for me. Not enough evidence on the UCL stage for me. Good record internationally for Uruguay, but has a reputation of choking the finish on the big stage in european club scene. For me falls below world class but still a very good footballer.

Just because you’re world class doesn’t mean you’re not a clown either lol. Moving to United an awful career move.

Keen to hear your thoughts as to why?

agreed,, Firmino indeed one of Liverpool's key player on their succession for past three years,, but he is not indispensable, unlike mane, salah, allison, van dijk,,,, which are world-class player on liverpool squad in my opinion

Salah isn’t world class😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😂😂😂😂😂😂