The 100 best players of the 21st Century: the greatest Ballon d'Or hoggers, serial winners and cult heroes since the turn of the millennium (opens in new tab) Page 4 of 6: The technically gifted winger is often less lauded than some of his illustrious team-mates for club and country, but hes been a consistent source of goals and assists throughout his career. The 100 greatest players of the 21st century, featuring Lionel Messi and Ronaldo By Kobe Tong Published Oct 18, 2019 The likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Xavi made the top ten Want. Hes played with some of the best midfielder of any generation Xavi, Iniesta and Yaya Toure, to name a few and while his contributions may be less eye-catching, theres a reason he has spent more than a decade at the heart of Barcelonas midfield. 10 greatest AFL players of all time. The dual Brownlow medalist has been the star of the Dockers for some time, transforming into the league's best contested possession player of the past decade. Patrick Vieira was the beating heart of every side he led, winning the Euros with France, a double and unbeaten title with Arsenal and covering more grass than just about any other teammate. If youd like to view this content, please adjust your Cookie Settings. When not pulling on the FFT shirt, he can be found at Reuters, The Times and the i. Added to his premiership in 2000, Lloyd was selected as an All-Australian a total of five times, three coming after the turn of the century. Still, were nit-picking. Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappe, Salah: The top 100 players of the 21st century ranked Football Football Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappe, Salah: The top 100 players of the 21st century ranked By. Luis Gonzalez Matt Kemp Jason Kendall Mike Lowell Hideki Matsui Brandon Phillips Gary Sheffield Grady Sizemore Jason Varitek Vernon Wells Pitchers Bronson Arroyo A.J. 11. The club's CEO at the time, John Anderson acted as non-voting chairman of the panel. THE NUMBERS: 26 disposals, 9 marks, 4 tackles, 1 Brownlow vote The Belgian was one of the most imperious centre-backs in Europe at his peak, adored by every manager who worked with him. After drawing in the first game, at 68 points each, St. Kilda and Collingwood met again a week later to determine a winner. After three previous top-five finishes, he finally broke through to claim a maiden Brownlow Medal. If you havent, do yourself a favour. But their passion for their old club has not prevented them from having a very dim view of the season ahead. The 280-game Collingwood star had the archetype like no other. Toni Kroos can do both. A player that worked harder than any other, Adam Goodes rise to stardom is a thing of beauty. During Collingwoods stint at the bottom of the ladder in the late 1990s, Buckley was a rare shining light. THE NUMBERS: 30 disposals, 7 clearances, 1 goal In typical early 2000s fashion, Paul Haselbys first game of footy came in a Dockers loss. View All Partners Buddy 3. After being named as a co-captain in 1997 at 21 years of age, Voss lead the Lions to three successive premierships between 2001 and 2003. But any suggestions the unprecedented long-term deal has been failure are off the mark, as his influence at the Swans has gone beyond footy. It was clear from an early age that there was something special about Hazard. 22. Another Champions League crown and the La Liga title came at Real Madrid, followed by three consecutive Bundesliga triumphs at Bayern Munich. Skip to main content. The greatest player of the last 20 years. Watch Foxtel in an instant. Picture: Annette Dew, There are few better sights in footy than Lance Franklin in full flight. Menzel, who played 80 AFL games across stints with both Geelong and Sydney in a career spanning a decade, ranked the leaders based on who hed want to follow into the field. 1 picks, dating back to 2000, and rank them as players from worst to best. Chelsea didnt take long to pounce and it was at Stamford Bridge that the dynamic winger established a reputation as one of the best in the business, scoring 110 goals over seven seasons with the London club and wining a stack of individual awards to go with two Premier League and two Europa League titles. Oops! Philip Rivers (QB) San Diego Chargers and Indianapolis Colts - First year: 2004 - Drafted:. AFL Naming Rights Partner. At the age of 36, McCulloch scored 17 goals in the 2013-14 season to bring Rangers back into the Scottish Premiership. Anyone can contribute to The Roar and have their work In 2002, he broke both those records again when he moved to Man United for 30m. [1] Players and/or at least one of the player's parents or grandparents had to have been born in Italy. He played at least 21 games in each of those seven seasons. THERE aren't many players that can claim they were the best player on the field in their first AFL game. Bombers midfielder Jye Caldwell sent for scans, club hopeful of Round St Kilda wingman Dan McKenzie to miss start of 2023 season. The fact he actually improved as a player when he moved north his first four years at the Suns, numerically, were the finest of his career to join an expansion club that was always going to start slowly is a testament to his drive, professionalism and talent. Griezmann won the Golden Boot and player of the tournament at Euro 2016 as France reached the final, only to succumb to Portugal, but he made amends two years later by leading Les Bleus to their first World Cup victory in 20 years, winning man of the match in the final victory over Croatia. Black also sits in exclusive company as one of only six players to win a Brownlow, Premiership and Norm Smith, joining the likes of Bartel, Williams, Hird, Judd and Martin. Available now! The Top 20 players of the past 20 years have been revealed. Brian Taylor makes outrageous Nick Daicos call for 2023 AFL season, AFL star heartbroken after losing best friend in freak accident, Indore pitch rated poor with excessive and uneven bounce after Aussies win, Shane Warnes children remember cricket legend on first anniversary of his death, UFC champion Valentina Shevchenko reveals unique training camp, Penrith Panthers teammates involved in heated argument after shock loss, Knights star fuming after being dragged from the field: Im literally fine, practice match against Collingwood in Tasmania on Thursday. Mahendra Singh Dhoni. A combination of icy cold finishing and red-hot drive through the centre of the pitch made him utterly unstoppable at his best. And fair to say there is some big names on this one! 2000-2020 stats: 161 games, 137 goals, 94 Brownlow votes, averaged 22.1 disposals, 2000-2020 CV: Three-time premiership Lion (all as captain), two-time AFLPA MVP, three-time All-Australian (two as captain), three-time best and fairest. In their predictions for the 2023 season, both Hodge and Burgoyne believe Hawthorn will finish rock bottom. Ferdinand was a ball-playing defender of the European school, rather than the bruising centre-halves more associated with the English school of thought. Franais. Lance Franklins famous match-winning goal against Adelaide in 2007 elimination final. When the game was on the line, he won two Norm Smith Medals (in Grand Finals) he was a captain in. Premier League and Champions League victories have been the reward, while at international level the winger captained Egypt to their first World Cup in 28 years in 2018 and runners-up finishes in two Africa Cup of Nations. Commentators also will have fun with pronouncing or making fun of Mosquito, Tsapatolis, Lukosius, Oea, Bosenavulagi and Uosis. They (will) have a lot of youth and enthusiasm, Tuck said. The towering Dutchman, who combines immense strength with impressive acceleration, was the defensive rock behind Champions League and Premier League victories in his first two full seasons at Anfield. Former AFL forward Daniel Menzel has ranked his top seven AFL captains of the 21st century. Whilst most teams boast a clutch of these youngest players, the teams from lower down the ladder who have put their faith in rebuilding over time have the most. The rock within the Lions dynamic and star-studded midfield. THE NUMBERS: 7 disposals, 4 marks, 3 goals Plus tips on how to play better and interviews with the biggest names. Dennis Comettis call of cometh the moment, cometh the man the son of the man was so apt, as it was a goal when his team needed him most in its most important win of the season. Port Adelaide, who lead the competition from go to whoa during the home-and-away season last season have managed to blood three quality millenniums who in 2021 should all bring up their half-century of games: Connor Rozee (38 games), Zac Butters (36) and Xavier Duursma (35) while at Collingwood, rising star Isaac Quaynor played 15 games but only three other millenniums played only a handful between them. Credit: PA Since that year it has been a freefall down the ladder. Itd be a superhuman yet thoroughly well-deserved milestone. Because Judds explosive best during a four-year period at West Coast (2004 to 2007) was better than any players optimum output on this 20-man list. Stream them all for free on 7plus >>. Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Vincent Kompany joined Manchester City the same month as the Abu Dhabi United Group. The criteria was a player had to play more than 50 games from 2000 onwards. 12 - Nat Fyfe (Fremantle) Games: 181+. The shaggy-haired Spaniard captained Barcelona to an incredible 18 major titles, including six La Liga crowns and three Champions Leagues, and his magnetic effect on trophies extended to international level too. FourFourTwo is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Reckon you can pick the best team? Birthplace: Rosario, Argentina. As we are now a fifth of the way through the new millennium and the babies born in the first few years of the 2000s are beginning to make a name for themselves on the players lists at all 18 AFL clubs. When not pulling on the FFT shirt, he can be found at Reuters, The Times and the i. The long-legged Ivorian mastered the role of the box-to-box midfielder, capable of causing damage in the final third and winning the ball while protecting his defence. Menzel played under Cameron Ling and Joel Selwood at the Cats, while the Swans were led by Josh Kennedy, Dane Rampe and Luke Parker in his time at the club. This varies slightly from the Last Word On Baseball All-Decade teams list which took the best individual seasons. The wingers scorching pace, mind-bending trickery and ability to win games single-handedly make him a joy to watch, and a future Ballon dOr seems all-but inevitable already. Debuting as a skinny 17-year-old in 1992, Voss went on to play 289 games for Brisbane, and is arguably their greatest ever player. Please refresh the page and try again. At the time, Bradd Dalziells 32 touches were the most ever recorded in an AFL debut. Round 13 and 14 rising stars Brandon Starcevich (Brisbane Lions) and Giant Jake Riccardi both miss the age barrier by less than six months but all the other rising star winners are in as are North Melbournes Tarryn Thomas, Bailey Scott and Jack Mahony, while Adelaides Chayce Jones and Fischer McAsey join Lachlan Sholl in the squad. Robert Lewandowski netted 344 goals in 375 Bayern Munich games. James Horncastles reflections on Andrea Pirlo remain unmatched: Many thought the regista was a relic consigned to the past. But in all honesty, selecting the superstars at No. Players whose careers began prior to the year 2000 . Pictures: Getty Images Defining the greats of any sporting era is a tough ask - but with the AFL on hiatus for. Unfortunate to miss out on a premiership medallion, Riewoldt will forever go down as one of the game's greatest centre-half forwards. He's still the only player to score in four FA Cup finals and he practically won Chelsea their first Champions League on his todd. A powerhouse of the 21st century that hauled in four premierships in the Alastair Clarkson era (including three in a row from 2013-2015), the Hawks last played finals in 2018. Toure won four consecutive African Player of the Year awards between 2011 and 2014, his first four seasons with Manchester City, and he played a pivotal role in the Citizens first title of the Premier League era in 2011/12.