The Top 50 Most Influential Footballers Of All Time Have Been Named
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Viv Anderson has been named as one of the most influential footballers of all time alongside the likes of David Beckham, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Ronaldinho.
The 65-year-old ex-defender enjoyed a prolific club career and lifted two European Cups under legendary former Nottingham Forest manager Brian Clough.
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Anderson, who ended his decade-long spell at Nottingham Forest in 1984, went on to play for the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Sheffield Wednesday at club level.
However, the Nottingham Forest legend forever etched his name in the history books by becoming the first black player to represent England.
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FourFourTwo compiled the star-studded list of football legends, which included the likes of Zinedine Zidane, Antonin Panenka, Diego Maradona and Johan Cruyff.
According to the football magazine, Anderson was “not a token pick” for the Three Lions and he was widely tipped to “become an England legend.”
They added that the former defender’s England shirt from his first appearance against Czechoslovakia in 1978 is displayed at the People's History Museum in Manchester.
Beckham made the top 50 alongside fellow Manchester United legends Eric Cantona and George Best.
FourFourTwo pointed to the 46-year-old Inter Miami president’s success both on the pitch and off it, saying he was “arguably the biggest-ever English celebrity footballer.”
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Posted below are the 50 most influential footballers in the long-running history of the sport, according to FourFourTwo.
50. Zinedine Zidane
49. Lev Yashin
48. Ian Wright
47. George Weah
46. Carlos Volante
45. Jamie Vardy
44. Francesco Totti
43. Kelly Smith
42. Matthias Sindelar
41. Nilton Santos
40. Ronaldo
39. Cristiano Ronaldo
38. Ronaldinho
37. Andrea Pirlo
36. Pele
35. Antonin Panenka
34. Neymar
33. Manuel Neuer
32. Hidetoshi Nakata
31. Thomas Muller
30. Lionel Messi
29. Bill McCracken
28. Stanley Matthews
27. Marta
26. Diego Maradona
25. Claude Makelele
24. Philipp Lahm
23. Andres Iniesta
22. Nandor Hidegkuti
21. Thierry Henry
20. Mia Hamm
19. Gyula Grosics
18. Garrincha
17. Trevor Francis
16. Rio Ferdinand
15. Giacinto Facchetti
14. Eusebio
13. Alfredo Di Stefano
12. Johan Cruyff
11. John Charles
10. Amadeo Carrizo
9. Eric Cantona
8. Jean-Marc Bosman
7. George Best
6. David Beckham
5. Franz Beckenbauer
4. Franco Baresi
3. Ossie Ardiles
2. Jose Andrade
1. Viv Anderson
Featured Image Credit: PA
Topics: David Beckham, Franz Beckenbauer, Eric Cantona, Johan Cruyff, Rio Ferdinand, Thierry Henry, Andres Iniesta, Football, Diego Maradona
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