The 50 greatest players in World Cup history | OneFootball

It is the ultimate list of footballing greats, based solely on their displays in the most prestigious tournament on the planet. Star players the world over can perform for their club – but who are those who have shone brightest for their nation in the history of the men’s Fifa World Cup?

Just two weeks out from the 23rd World Cup starting in North America on 11 June, we’re counting down our best of all time. From Pele and Messi to Maradona and Beckenbauer, with a sprinkling of Zidane, Mbappe and Ronaldo in the mix, these are the players who have lit up the “greatest show on earth” over the past 96 years.

Using a specific formula and points system, The Independent’s team of sports reporters have ranked the top-50 players in World Cup history, from the first tournament in Uruguay in 1930 all the way to the first-ever winter event in Qatar in 2022. And to stress: this is all about performances in World Cups, not simply the best-ever players who have featured in a World Cup.

As such, one player who does not make the top-50 is Cristiano Ronaldo: the Portugal captain is set to take part in his sixth World Cup this summer, but Senior Football Correspondent Richard Jolly explains here why one of football’s greatest-ever players is not amongst the pantheon of World Cup greats.

So, who has made the list? Here are the World Cup’s greatest players, ranked from 11-50. Join us on Thursday as we reveal the top-10.

50. Fritz Walter (West Germany)

Football saved Fritz Walter from the Soviet gulag in World War II, with the aid of a Hungarian prison guard who recognised a top player. Walter certainly found a way of repaying Hungarian football.

The greatest shock in World Cup final history came in 1954; the all-conquering Hungary were beaten by West Germany, who had been banned from the 1950 tournament and had lost 8-3 to Hungary in the 1954 group stages.

Walter was the architect and inspiration of “The Miracle of Bern’. He was involved in two goals in the final and he, and brother Ottmar, are one of only two pairs of brothers to win the World Cup – along with the Charltons.

Richard Jolly

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Fritz Walter (centre) was the inspiration behind West Germany’s “Miracle of Bern” (ullstein bild/Getty)

49. Vava (Brazil)

One of just four players who have played in only two World Cups and won them both.

You might associate the Brazilians with flair but sometimes you need something less flashy, and Vava’s close-range finishes were as clinical as they were crucial in the 1958 final; Brazil were 1-0 down to Sweden early, before Vava turned things around with a brace – his second of the tournament.

He also scored twice in the 1962 semi-final win over Chile, before netting again in the final. And he’d previously scored in the 1958 semi-finals. A big-moment player.

Alex Pattle

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Vava (left) had an impeccable World Cup record for Brazil (Getty)

48. Leonidas (Brazil)

He may not share the famous reputation of other great Brazilians on this list, but Leonidas was an icon of the 1930s.

The forward known as “Black Diamond” won the Golden Boot and the Golden Ball in 1938, despite Brazil losing to eventual champions Italy in the semi-finals.

Lawrence Ostlere

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Leonidas (centre) won both the prize for best player and top goalscorer in 1938 (AFP/Getty)

47. Didier Deschamps (France)

That moment above sums it up: Deschamps was clinical as a World Cup player – one tournament, one trophy

The stats bolster this claim, too: the defensive midfielder helped his side to five clean sheets in the six games he played (including a 3-0 shutdown of a great Brazil side in the final), and France conceded in the sole match he missed. Furthermore, Deschamps did all of this as captain.

Of course, he would lead Les Bleus again as a coach (winning the World Cup in 2018 and losing the 2022 final), but we haven’t even factored that into his inclusion here.

Alex Pattle

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Didier Deschamps led France to World Cup glory on home soil in 1998 (AFP/Getty)

46. Daniel Passarella (Argentina)

Passarella captained Argentina to their first-ever World Cup win in 1978, with the tough-tackling, fierce defender (who had a remarkable eye for goal) proving a steely counterpart to the mercurial talents of teammate Mario Kempes.

He went to further tournaments in 1982 and 1986, and remains the only Argentine to win two World Cups (despite losing his place in the first team due to enterocolitis as Diego Maradona and co. triumphed in Mexico).

Chris Wilson

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Daniel Passarella won two World Cups with Argentina (Getty)

45. Rudi Voller (Germany)

Voller has a varied history at the World Cup. He scored a fair few goals, even scored in a final but lost it, won it another time, was sent off on one occasion and was hooked early on another.

While Voller’s late equaliser wasn’t enough for West Germany to overcome Argentina in the 1986 final, it was a triumphant personal moment, as was his statement brace in the afore-mentioned 1994 clash with Belgium.

Between those competitions, he blotted his 1990 tournament copybook with a red card – but returned in time to start in Germany’s victorious final.

Alex Pattle

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Rudi Voller won the 1990 World Cup and was a finalist in 1986 (Hulton Archive)

44. Antoine Griezmann (France)

Griezmann won recognition on the pitch for his persona as much as his quality with the ball, and it shone brightly in the 2018 quarter-finals when his goal came through a Fernando Muslera mistake. With a Uruguayan mentor growing up, in addition to his compassion for Muslera after a dreadful lowlight to the goalkeeper’s career, Griezmann was subdued with his celebration.

One of the great French players in their second golden era, Griezmann was vital for this team throughout. He has won one World Cup, been a finalist in another and has a fourth World Cup appearance to come, before a swansong in the MLS.

Griezmann has been allowed to flourish a little more under Didier Deschamps than he does for his club, with Diego Simeone and Atletico Madrid. A selfless player, able to knit the attack together, take a set-piece and hold his nerve in the final third, he was unlucky to only finish third behind Luka Modric and Eden Hazard in the voting for 2018’s Golden Ball.

Jack Rathborn

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Antoine Griezmann was one of France’s star players in their 2018 triumph (Getty)

43. Martin Peters (England)

A player ahead of his time, the injection of Peters into England’s 1966 starting side proved the catalyst that took the “wingless wonders” to World Cup glory.

Marrying a tireless work ethic with an intuitive attacking brain, it was Peters who set up the winner for clubmate Geoff Hurst against Argentina, and he might have gone down in folklore as the final match-winner if not for West Germany’s equaliser in the last moments of normal time. It mattered not, of course.

Could there have been more success in 1970? The substitution of Peters and Bobby Charlton by Alf Ramsey, with England 2-1 up in the last eight against those same West Germans, was a major misstep.

Harry Latham-Coyle

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Martin Peters (centre) holds the trophy aloft after England's 1966 victory (Getty)

42. Ronaldinho (Brazil)

He may have been the least heralded of the “Three Rs” in 2002, but his performance when knocking England out in the last eight was astonishing.

Trailing to Michael Owen’s poached opener, Ronaldinho embarked on a run from halfway to tee up Rivaldo for the leveller, sending Ashley Cole to the floor following a stepover.

Then came his moment of ingenuity and the moment David Seaman will never forget. Re-watching the footage of that exquisite lob, what stands out most is how perfectly the ball nestled in the left corner.

That he was shown a red card seven minutes later for planting his studs on Danny Mills’ ankle is almost forgotten and, either way, he returned for the final that offered the Selecao redemption for 1998, before his club career soon became stratospheric.

Alan Smith

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Ronaldinho was central to Brazil knocking out England in 2002 (Getty)

41. Didi (Brazil)

Often forgotten behind some dazzling teammates, and maybe underappreciated in his time, today’s game would recognise Didi as the orchestrator in one of the best teams of all time.

Able to dictate the tempo of the game, the grace of Didi allowed Pele, Garrincha and others to prove decisive in the final third. Also an innovator with his technique and the folha seca (dry leaf) shot, which saw the ball dip viciously.

His goal and two assists in the 1958 semi-final against France might rank among the all-time greatest single-game performances.

Jack Rathborn

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Brazil midfielder Didi was a showman and an orchestrator (Getty)

40. Roberto Carlos (Brazil)

Like most football fans, I have several England shirts collected over more than two decades, and, in that time, I have only ever bought one different national team jersey. That was the shirt of the 2002 World Cup champions Brazil.

Ignore Ronaldo; I loved Roberto Carlos.

There is an argument as to whether the great defender redefined what it was to play full-back (yes), but what isn’t up for debate is that he perfected his role at left wing-back. Blistering pace, overlapping runs, indefatigable energy, curling crosses and a set-piece specialist. Like Beckham, but Brazilian and better.

Michael Jones

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Roberto Carlos scored a rasping free-kick against China in 2002 (Getty)

39. Roger Milla (Cameroon)

The poster boy of all veteran players and, for many, Africa’s first global star. Having featured in 1982, when Cameroon fell at the first hurdle, Milla had to be coaxed out of retirement for Italia ‘90.

His impact as a substitute, aged 38, was transformative. Sprung off the bench in the second group game against Romania, he scored twice in a 2-1 win to ultimately seal their progress. In the round of 16, versus Colombia, he was brought on with the match scoreless and nabbed another brace in extra-time to lead the Indomitable Lions towards a stage no African nation had been before – the quarter-finals. And he celebrated with his iconic corner-flag jig.

Milla contributed two assists against England as Cameroon led 2-1, only for it to end in extra-time heartbreak.

Four years later, he became the oldest outfield player to feature in a World Cup, aged 42, coming on as a substitute in defeats to Brazil and Russia, scoring in the latter despite a 6-1 loss.

Alan Smith

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Cameroon’s Roger Milla was a star of Italia ‘90 (Getty Images)

38. Jurgen Klinsmann (West Germany/Germany)

Klinsmann’s World Cup legacy is as interesting as it is impressive. See the moment above for a summary of his tournament debut, and although his sophomore effort brought a slightly premature exit, Klinsmann racked up a further five goals.

Then, his last tournament in 1998 brought another quarter-final defeat but three more goals – and with Klinsmann as captain.

Of 1990, he told me in 2021: “[As a young player], you really have difficulty comprehending what’s happened. You just join the group, party, and think: ‘This is the coolest. I scored a couple of goals, how cool.’”

Alex Pattle

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Jurgen Klinsmann scored an impressive 11 World Cup goals (Getty Images)

37. Gordon Banks (England)

It says a lot that Banks’s greatest moment is not from 1966, when he kept four clean sheets in England’s winning run. He went untroubled until Eusebio’s late penalty in the semi-finals, the first goal he conceded in 721 minutes of international football. Beaten twice in the final, ultimately, it did not matter.

Fast-forward four years and Banks enjoyed and endured a dramatic tournament in Mexico. A day after being informed he’d been awarded an OBE, he made that astonishing save from Pele, clawing the Brazil legend’s powerful header away from goal as he stretched desperately behind him. It’s said that Pele remarked: “I thought that was a goal.” Banks replied: “You and me both.”

More drama was to come, though. England made it to the quarter-finals, but Banks missed the defeat to West Germany after suffering an upset stomach. While he blamed a dodgy bottle of beer, there are conspiracy theories to this day that the CIA poisoned him, in order to obstruct joint-favourites England’s progress and make Brazil’s path to glory easier for geo-political reasons.

Kieran Jackson

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Gordon Banks (far-left) kept four clean sheets in England's run to World Cup glory in 1966 (Getty Images)

36. Philipp Lahm (Germany)

Lahm was undoubtedly one of Germany’s greatest ever players, captaining them at two World Cups.

In a modern era of inverting full-backs and position-less football, Lahm was one of the first players to ever be trusted to play in midfield despite being a traditional full-back by trade.

He was technically excellent, as well as someone who would cover every blade of grass in each game. With the crowning moment of his international career leading Germany to a World Cup triumph in 2014, Lahm cemented his place amongst the nation’s greats.

Archie Corbett

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Philipp Lahm captained Germany to the 2014 World Cup (Getty)

35. Ferenc Puskas (Hungary/Spain)

Only one question follows the “Magical Magyars” now. Led by Puskas, the left-footed wonder, Hungary were the world’s best team and went unbeaten between 1950 and 1954.

Then, in their second game of the 1954 World Cup, Puskas suffered an ankle injury as a result of a crunching tackle during Hungary’s 8-3 victory over West Germany.

Clearly unfit, Puskas only returned in time for the final, where West Germany beat Hungary 3-2 in the “Miracle of Bern”. So, what if Puskas didn’t get injured earlier in the tournament, and what if his late equaliser was not disallowed for a disputed offside?

Jamie Braidwood

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Ferenc Puskas was the star player of the famous 1954 Hungary team (Getty Images)

34. Sandor Kocsis (Hungary)

Combined with Puskas to revolutionise European football, but Kocsis was actually the superior player on the biggest stage of them all.

He proved prolific and his deadly run in 1954 saw him score four goals in one World Cup game against Germany, helping him to the Golden Boot that year and becoming the first player to score two hat-tricks in one tournament.

Jack Rathborn

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Sandor Kocsis became the first player to score two hat-tricks at a World Cup (Getty)

33. Rivaldo (Brazil)

Rivaldo was a key part of the Brazil team that lost the final to France in 1998, and by 2002 he had picked up a Ballon d’Or as he emerged as a leader in a side that also contained Ronaldo and Ronaldinho.

He scored five goals across seven matches in Japan and South Korea – including in every game up to the semi-finals – and his sublime dummy set up Ronaldo’s second in the final to wrap up his side’s fifth World Cup trophy. The less said about the pathetic play-acting when the ball gently hit him near the corner flag against Turkey in 2002, the better.

Chris Wilson

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Rivaldo starred in Brazil's 2002 triumph (Getty)

32. Lev Yashin (USSR)

The greatest goalkeeper in the history of the sport – Lev Yashin’s athleticism, acrobatic saves and imposing presence made ‘the Black Spider’ an icon and he remains the only goalkeeper to win the Ballon d’Or (in 1963).

He allegedly saved over 150 penalties in his career and revolutionised the position by coming out to claim crosses, closing down attackers and yelling instructions at his defenders. Making four World Cup squads, Yashin was named as the goalkeeper in the all-time Fifa World Cup Dream Team in 2002 and helped the USSR to the semi-finals in 1966.

He took a very 1960s approach to fitness, saying that his secret was “having a smoke to calm your nerves, then tossing back a strong drink to tone your muscles.”

Luke Baker

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Lev Yashin was one of football's great goalkeepers (Getty)

31. Thomas Muller (Germany)

Golden Boot winner in 2010 and Silver Boot winner four years later, Muller was a player who thrived on the world stage.

From scoring his first international goal in his first World Cup appearance against Australia in 2010 and his brace against England in the last 16, to his hat-trick to open up proceedings in 2014 and his volley which set Germany on their way to their iconic 7-1 triumph versus Brazil, Muller’s early World Cup record was simply outstanding.

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Thomas Muller won the 2014 World Cup with Germany (Getty Images)

Perhaps his only personal blot was his needless yellow card against Argentina in 2010, which meant he missed the semi-final defeat to Spain. A tireless worker, brilliant finisher and competitive animal, Muller’s absence this summer will feel somewhat peculiar.

Kieran Jackson

30. Luka Modric (Croatia)

In a world where the Ballon d'Or so often leans on team accolades in deciding its winner, rarely does a runner-up medal cut the mustard. After inspiring Croatia to a shock World Cup final in 2018, Modric became an exception to this.

Pulling the strings from midfield, the Real Madrid maestro produced one of the all-time great tournament campaigns and while it ended in defeat to champions France, he still beat off their star performers - the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Paul Pogba - to the Golden Ball.

Four years later, he led his country to a third-place finish, dumping out Brazil in the process. Once destined for the group-stage exit, Croatia are now serious players. Modric has been their torchbearer - and at 40, he's still got life.

Will Castle

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Luka Modric won the Golden Ball award for best player at the 2018 World Cup (Getty)

29. Paolo Maldini (Italy)

In four World Cups, one of the game’s greatest left-backs played 23 matches and was only ever beaten on penalties or a golden goal in the knockout stages. Third at Italia 90, they were defeated by Brazil in a final shootout at USA 94, before spot kicks were their undoing against eventual winners France in ‘98.

The extra-time loss to South Korea in 2002 was the sorest of all for Il Capitano because of a series of controversial decisions made by Ecuadorian referee Byron Moreno.

He was still motoring along at AC Milan, though, when Marcelo Lippi tried to beckon him out of international retirement for 2006. Maldini turned the offer down, pointing to a persistent knee injury, and the Azzurri went on to win the tournament. “It was destiny, I guess,” he said.

Alan Smith

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Paolo Maldini took part in four World Cups but did not win the competition (Getty Images)

28. Michel Platini (France)

One of the great number 10’s of his era, Michel Platini was more than just a creative marvel.

He has an eye-watering goal record for Les Bleus, scoring 41 in his 72 overall caps, and bagging five across his three World Cup campaigns.

His iconic free-kicks and intelligent play saw him named “French Player Of The Century” in 1999. He is also one of very few players to play for two national teams at senior level, after he came out of retirement to play an exhibition game for Kuwait at the request of the Kuwaiti Emir in 1988.

Archie Corbett

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Michel Platini was part of a France side who made consecutive semi-finals (Getty)

27. Mario Kempes (Argentina)

Only three men have won the Golden Boot, the Golden Ball and lifted the trophy at the same World Cup, so Mario Kempes is part of an incredibly exclusive club.

The 1978 tournament on home soil where he achieved the feat was his masterpiece, although the 23-year-old didn’t get going until the second group stage when he scored twice against Poland, twice in the controversial 6-0 win over Peru and twice in the 3-1 extra-time win over Netherlands in the final.

Remarkably, for such an accomplished No 9, he didn’t score a single goal in his other 15 World Cup matches, but his inspirational 11-day spell in 1978 is enough.

Luke Baker

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Mario Kempes scored twice in the 1978 World Cup final (Getty)

26. Xavi (Spain)

Forever to be remembered as a Spanish midfield maestro, Xavi’s partnership with Andres Iniesta will go down as one of the greatest of all time.

Across three major tournaments between 2008-2012, including the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the duo were unstoppable as Spain proved they were the best team in the world. Described as the ‘beating heart’ of the Spanish team in 2010, Xavi provided the highest number of accurate passes and covered more ground per game than any other player.

His partner, Iniesta, took the plaudits in the final, but Xavi’s mastery of tiki-taka was unmatched by his peers.

Michael Jones

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Xavi was Spain’s midfield maestro in 2010 (Getty)

25. Giuseppe Meazza (Italy)

A hard-drinking, brothel-visiting, chain-smoking playboy known as Il Genio (‘the genius’) for his on-pitch brilliance, Giuseppe Meazza is everything you want from a 1930s sporting icon.

The San Siro is officially called Stadio Giuseppe Meazza for a reason... One of the best, and most important, footballers in the first half of the 20th century, he won the 1934 and 1938 World Cups with Italy, claiming the Golden Ball for best player at the former and captaining the Azzurri in the latter.

A prolific goalscorer with an eye for the spectacular, he also delivered two sumptuous assists against Hungary in the 1938 final.

Luke Baker

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Italy captain Giuseppe Meazza receives the Jules Rimet trophy after his team's 4-2 victory over Hungary in 1938 (Getty Images)

24. Roberto Baggio (Italy)

Roberto Baggio's World Cup story is one of cruelty; his crucial penalty miss in the 1994 final will forever be the lasting memory of the Italian on football's grandest stage.

That's an injustice, because Baggio's '94 campaign was one for the ages. He dragged Italy through the knockouts, his five goals all decisive in beating Nigeria, Spain and Bulgaria to get what was by no means a prime Italy squad into that final with Brazil.

The 1993 Ballon d'Or winner is also the only Italian to score at three different World Cups in history. If not for that miss, he would probably crack the top 10. But there is no doubt of his worth in the top half of this list.

Will Castle

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Roberto Baggio scored decisive goals against Nigeria, Spain (pictured) and Bulgaria in 1994 before his final heartbreak (Getty Images)

23. Just Fontaine (France)

The ultimate one-tournament wonder? Just Fontaine went to Sweden ‘58 as a back-up striker who had to borrow a pair of boots and left it as a World Cup legend.

His frankly ludicrous record of 13 goals in a single tournament will never be broken. While dazzlingly talented strike partner Raymond Kopa pulled the strings, Moroccan-born Fontaine averaged more than two goals per game in that World Cup (scoring 13 in six) including a hat-trick against Paraguay and four against West Germany in the third-place play-off.

However, a 5-2 loss to a Pele-inspired Brazil in the semi-finals ended France’s dreams of glory.

Luke Baker

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Just Fontaine (left) scored an astonishing 13 goals in 6 World Cup games (Getty)

22. Bobby Charlton (England)

1966 was Charlton’s third World Cup, and while the Manchester United man had not managed to make his mark in 1958 or 1962, the stage was set as Sir Alf Ramsey’s side hosted the 1966 edition.

By now, Charlton was the key man in the Three Lions team, and he showed his worth with the only goal in the win over Mexico and both goals in the semi-final against Portugal.

His displays helped him win the Ballon d’Or that year, capping off his rise to the top of the game just eight years after the Munich Disaster.

Chris Wilson

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Bobby Charlton scored a match-winning brace against Portugal in the 1966 semi-finals (Getty Images)

21. Romario (Brazil)

It remains a travesty that one of Brazil’s great strikers effectively played only one World Cup, barely appearing in 1990 due to injury and being omitted from the squad in 1998 and 2002.

But Romario was the undoubted star of 1994, helped by sidekick Bebeto, scoring five goals as he led Brazil to glory.

Lawrence Ostlere

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Romario was the star of Brazil’s 1994 triumph (Getty)

20. Carlos Alberto (Brazil)

In a team with astonishing technical ability and talent, Alberto was a dynamic leader who glued the famous Brazil 1970 World Cup squad together.

While he missed out on the 1966 squad, which crashed out in the group stages, and a knee injury ruled him out of the 1974 tournament, the tough-tackling and loud-mouthed Alberto played every minute of the 1970 run in Mexico.

His goal in the final is one of the most iconic moments in World Cup history, sealing a 4-1 triumph. Has a ball ever been struck quite so sweetly?

Kieran Jackson

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Carlos Alberto (top far-left) was the captain of Brazil’s 1970 World Cup-winning team (Getty Images)

19. Andres Iniesta (Spain)

World Cups can be brutal. In three of Andres Iniesta’s tournaments, Spain were truly woeful but in the fourth they were exceptional.

From 2008-2012, Spain were by far the best team in the world, and they earned that epitaph by winning the 2010 World Cup thanks to Iniesta’s extra-time goal against the Netherlands.

That was the peak for Barcelona’s influential midfielder but, alongside Xavi, he orchestrated Spain’s tiki-taka route through the tournament with control, vision, pinpoint passing, and fluid movement all building to a crescendo in Johannesburg and a historic World Cup title.

Michael Jones

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Andres Iniesta celebrates his 2010 World Cup final-winning goal (Getty)

18. Eusebio (Portugal)

A double, including a lashed volley from an acute angle, against a Brazil side carrying an injured Pele dumped the defending champions out of the tournament, but it was the quarter-final against North Korea in which he produced his real star-turn.

Having fallen 3-0 behind, Eusebio struck four times in succession to turn the match and reach the semi-finals, where his tears after defeat to England became a defining image.

Harry Latham-Coyle

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Eusebio leaving Wembley in tears after Portugal’s semi-final loss to England was one of the defining images of the 1966 World Cup (Getty Images)

17. Fabio Cannavaro (Italy)

At 5ft 9in, Fabio Cannavaro was short for a centre-back. But in 2006, the Italy captain’s peerless reading of the game and defensive instincts saw him stand out like a giant.

Italy only conceded twice that summer, despite fielding three different centre-back combinations. Cannavaro was the constant, a leader in every sense who saw the danger before it had even happened.

There is a reason he remains the last defender to have won the Ballon d’Or, an honour he received shortly after lifting the World Cup. He put his success down to three things: “Eating well, getting plenty of sleep and having sex.”

Jamie Braidwood

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Fabio Cannavaro lifts the World Cup for Italy in 2006 (Getty)

16. Jairzinho (Brazil)

One of the greatest wingers of all time, Jairzinho made history by scoring in every match of Brazil’s famous 1970 glory, a feat overshadowed by Pele.

Speed, strength, flair and balance all blended to make him a deadly dribbler who could also run behind defences and finish with power.

Post Pele, Jairzinho was Brazil’s best player in 1974 when they finished fourth in West Germany.

Lawrence Ostlere

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Brazil's Jairzinho scored in every game of the 1970 World Cup (Getty)

15. Cafu (Brazil)

One of just two players to break the Pele-Maradona-Messi top-two dominance during the construction of our list, courtesy of my own No 2 pick, for which I got some stick... but Cafu is the only player ever to reach three straight finals, a remarkable stat.

Yes, he was a bit-part player as a 24-year-old in 1994, but he helped Brazil to survive extra time in that final versus Italy, before going on to captain his nation to glory in 2002.

Ten clean sheets from 19 games is another impressive stat, too.

Alex Pattle

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Cafu was Brazil captain when the Selecao won the World Cup in 2002 (Getty Images)

14. Paolo Rossi (Italy)

If ever a player owned a tournament, it was Rossi in 1982, the torero (bullfighter) proved deadly in and around the box and was a genuine force for Italy en route to a third star on that iconic blue shirt.

The World Player of the Year in the same year, Rossi capitalised on mistakes with clinical finishing, the perfect combination with the majestic Italian defending that year through Claudio Gentile, Gaetano Scirea and more.

He also stood above some of the titans of the game in one of the all-time great games in which Italy beat Brazil 3-2 in the group stage.

Jack Rathborn

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Paolo Rossi (right) was Italy's star player as they won the 1982 World Cup (Getty)

13. Bobby Moore (England)

The perfectly-timed challenge on Jairzinho in 1970 may be the most famous World Cup tackle, but Moore shared two iconic scenes that day: there was also the England captain swapping shirts with Pele, in a gesture of mutual respect.

Four years earlier, there was the moment when some thought it was all over, when many were screaming for Moore to boot the ball out and he strolled forward, looked up, released Geoff Hurst and sent him clear for his hat-trick goal in the 1966 World Cup final. That was Moore in microcosm: a defender, but classy and creative, and with the enviable ability to make it all look easy.

Richard Jolly

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Bobby Moore holding the World Cup in 1966 - the most famous photo in English football history (Central Press/AFP/Getty)

12. Lothar Matthaus (West Germany/Germany)

“He is the best rival I've ever had. I guess that's enough to define him.” So said Diego Maradona of Lothar Matthaus.

That’s some recommendation.

But if you still want more, the German powerhouse – who was the dictionary definition of a combative central midfielder – became the first outfield player to appear at five World Cups when he graced France ‘98 as a 37-year-old, held the record for most World Cup games played with 25 until being eclipsed by Lionel Messi and was the talismanic captain who hoisted the last World Cup trophy before West and East Germany reunited once more.

Luke Baker

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Germany’s Lothar Matthaus competed in five World Cups, winning the 1990 tournament (Getty Images)

11. Johan Cruyff (Netherlands)

Cruyff is one of the few players on this list never to win the game’s biggest prize, but his performance at the 1974 World Cup has since gone down in history.

He was the Dutch side’s leader as they brought ‘Total Football’ to the world stage, and while they fell at the last hurdle in losing the final 2-1 to West Germany, Cruyff and co. had done enough in their seven games to influence the sport for decades to come.

Chris Wilson

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Johan Cruyff is the highest-ranked player in our list who did not win the World Cup (Getty Images)