Towards the end of 2005 I was one of three writers asked to select Manchester
United’s 50 greatest postwar footballers for a book. The hardest task was
judging current players, especially those whose careers were young.
Cristiano Ronaldo caused the greatest headache. Caution led us to put him at
number 39, one place below Arthur Albiston, two above Andy Cole. Overhyping
is the worst sin of modern pundits but to underplay can be criminal too.
There are Ronaldo-sceptics even now but, quicker than the Dow Jones Index,
their numbers are falling. Meanwhile, Ronaldo’s numbers keep stacking up.
With 23 goals in 26 appearances, and at least 18 United fixtures remaining,
he seems likely to beat the 32 goals scored by George Best in 1967-68, a
record for a United winger or midfielder in a season. It remains premature,
but no longer feels odious, to bracket the pair. At the very least we must
be reaching the point where, if Best were around and his boots needed
lacing, there might be someone fit for the job.
There have been other “new George Bests” but Ronaldo is different. “He’s the
first to come on the scene and make me think, ‘By God, this kid’s got
everything, maybe he does compare to George’,” Paddy Crerand said. Crerand
was Best’s close friend as well as teammate and needs nobody to tell him the
Irishman was unique. But hearing Ronaldo mentioned in the same breath does
not leave him gasping. “They’ve got great similarities: beat people easily,
great with either foot, George was good in the air and so is Cristiano and
you’re talking a pair of good-looking so-and-sos,” Crerand said. “Most of
all, he has the same impudent streak George had. I’ve seen a lot of football
but I get a thrill on my way to the stadium if I know Cristiano’s playing.”
Ronaldo, England’s Footballer of the Year for 2007, league champion, FA Cup
winner, global icon, is all that before his 23rd birthday, which arrives on
Tuesday week. When precocity is the measure he can hardly be bettered, yet
Best was best, European Footballer of the Year, European Cup winner, double
league champion, icon twice over, all as he was turning 22. His strike-rate
was slightly better than Ronaldo’s goal every three games and in 1967-68 it
accelerated as the games increased in importance. He scored in a European
Cup semi-final against Real Madrid and conjured a magical solo effort in
extra time in the final with Benfica to tip glory in United’s direction.
Compared with that, Ronaldo’s little triumphs in Europe, such as his two goals
in last year’s demolition of Roma, are forgettable and while Best was
inspired by a rivalry with Eusebio, Kaka, who beat Ronaldo to European and
World Footballer of the Year in 2007, dwarfed the Portuguese on the two
occasions they went head to head in Champions League knockout ties.
Ronaldo’s record on the most important domestic occasions is also sketchy,
as three goals in 26 appearances against Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal
attests. “George starred in the big games, they inspired him. The bigger the
stage the better he played,” said Crerand. “He hasn’t always shown that, but
Cristiano will get there.”
His two performances against England in major finals show it is in him to make
big gestures on the big stage and in the 2006 World Cup semi-finals, while
the rest of the Portugal team capitulated, he launched what amounted to a
one-man crusade against France. “He demonstrates character every week,” said
Crerand. “In the Premier League he gets booed and abused away from home and
George never got that, away fans loved watching George. Sadly, it’s the way
football’s going.”
Sir Alex Ferguson is always talking about Ronaldo’s mettle, his contention
being that it takes the greatest courage in football to keep demanding the
ball and taking players on because of the high risks of failure and physical
harm. Bravery was the most hallowed value Sir Matt Busby ascribed to Best.
“I don’t think the diving thing’s true of Cristiano any more,” said Crerand,
“he takes a lot of knocks. But George played on rubbish pitches against
people who could boot him all afternoon – in my day you had to shoot someone
to get sent off. We’d come in on Sunday mornings for a bath or a rubdown and
George’s legs would be black and blue, but it never bothered him. What would
he have done to teams today, playing on bowling-green surfaces with
defenders who are hardly allowed to tackle?”
The similarities are there in the back-stories. Best ran home to Belfast when
overwhelmed by Manchester during his first trial with United aged 15.
Ronaldo, when even younger, made his own journey from a small island
community to a mainland, leaving Madeira for Sporting Lisbon’s academy,
where he suffered homesickness. Their families had little money, the
football they learnt was on the street; later they would embrace glamour:
Ronaldo is partners with his sisters in a fashion boutique (CR7) in Funchal,
just as Best dabbled with a menswear emporium in Sale at the height of his
fame. After Busby first set eyes on Best, “the vision of this black-haired
lad kept coming back to me”, he said. Ferguson knew Ronaldo from the
scouting reports, but was bedazzled by his first proper encounter, telling
Peter Kenyon at half-time of a friendly against Sporting in 2003: “We’re not
leaving the stadium until we get the boy.”
On Friday, in his weekly briefing, Ferguson waxed lyrical about his protege
until questions started going in the direction of Best’s record and the
comparisons. “I hope he can do it. But that’s enough on Ronaldo,” Ferguson
growled. For once he is happy to see one of his players ignoring a job
description he set out for them. Did Ferguson imagine Ronaldo had such
scoring powers? “No. We saw his potential as a winger, his ability to drive
at defenders. That was the main reason we took him on. And he still plays as
a winger for us. He gives us width and is a threat from there,” he said.
“He’s an improving player, his decision-making is good and getting better.
He practises all the time. The boy’s a finisher.
“He’s a good header, has two good feet, is quick, brave. He has all those
assets great strikers have always had. He scored a header this season from a
corner kick and he hung in the air, so at corner kicks we’re hoping he’ll be
a threat, and from crosses from the opposite side of the pitch, because he’s
got that great leap, great power. “The rest (of Ronaldo’s goals) is a
combination. His third goal against Newcastle came from fantastic team
passing and movement, the first-time passing, and he has that great ability
to run beyond people on to the through pass anda good shot, a strong shot.
The kind of kid he is, he has always had the hunger to play. He loves the
game.”
Of course you can fall out of love with football. Best did so by his mid20s
but by then had scored more than 20 goals in a season for United in five
consecutive campaigns. His beating of defenders was founded on extraordinary
control and ability to make sudden changes of direction, while Ronaldo’s is
more about using theatre to distract his foes, but the flank is not big
enough for either of their talents which is what draws and drew them
central, in search of goals.
Best appreciated United’s latest No 7. “There have been a few players
described as the ‘new George Best’ but this is the first time it has been a
compliment to me,” he said. He was a better judge of ability than the
authors of a certain list.
Ronaldo is good but Best is best
Cristiano Ronaldo’s exceptional form and soaring goalscoring rate are such
that serious comparisons are now being made between the Portuguese winger
and George Best, the greatest of all his forerunners in the Manchester
United No 7 jersey. With at least 18 games remaining for United, Ronaldo, on
23 goals already, stands a good chance of beating Best’s 1967-68 tally of 32
goals, the most scored in a season by a United winger or midfielder. A
comparison of their achievements at similar ages shows Best remains out on
his own, but Ronaldo may be catching up
Big-game Best Ronaldo has yet to emulate Best’s record in big games.
When Manchester United won the European Cup in 1968, Best scored in the
semifinal against Real Madrid and the final against Benfica. He had already
defined his iconic status with two goals and a virtuoso performance in the
away leg of a European Cup quarterfinal, against Benfica in 1965-66. Ronaldo
has yet to show his best form in big club games
Best in history George Best’s total of 32 goals in a season was
extraordinary for a winger at any club, but especially at Manchester United
where there is a tradition of spreading the goals around. His total is
better than some of the greatest strikers in United’s history ever managed
and stands comparison with all but Denis Law and Ruud van Nistelrooy
Best ever scoring season, selected United players
Denis Law 46 goals (1963-64) Ruud van Nistelrooy 44 (2002-3) Tommy
Taylor 34 (1956-57) Dennis Viollet 32 (1959-60) George Best
32 (1967-68) Brian McClair 31 (1987-88) Jack Rowley 30
(1948-49 & 1951-52) Bobby Charlton 29 (1958-59) Dwight Yorke
29 (1998-99) Eric Cantona 25 (1993-94) Cristiano Ronaldo 23
(2006-7, 2007-8)
HEAD TO HEAD
Professional debut Best 17 years 4 months, Ronaldo 17 years 8 months
First professional goal Best 17 years 7 months, Ronaldo 17 years 8
months
International debut Best 17 years 11 months, Ronaldo 18 years 6 months
First international goal Best 18 years 7 months, Ronaldo 19 years 3
months
First league title Best 18 years 11 months, Ronaldo 22 years 3 months
First European Cup Best 22 years 0 months, Ronaldo is still trying
First FA Cup Ronaldo 19 years 3 months, Best never won the FA Cup
English Player of the Year Best 22 years, Ronaldo 22 years
European Footballer of the Year Best 22 years, Ronaldo still trying
Ronaldo v Big Four
v Chelsea played 9, 0 goals
v Liverpool played 7, 0 goals
v Arsenal played 10, 3 goals
Total played 26, 3 goals
Amidst the onslaught of predictably daft contributions to this "debate" are many well intentioned e-mails from those who just do not know any better. This is fact not hyperbole: George Best was not only the greatest United player but the greatest player in the world, ever. Watch the films.
Andrew Matheson, Toronto, Canada
Best played great in a time when football was for men and tackels were hard. You have all seen both players so you no what i meen sure ronaldo is great but we all no who,s BEST
hughes, Hull, UK
This is a nonsense question which is not open to a sensible answer. How many of the people attempting an answer will have seen all of the teams over the last sixty plus years? Each era has its greats and comparisons are impossible because the game changes in each era.
hvm, Herts,
R.e. the goal scoring record held by best-does anyone know how many teams he played against in a season in the old First Division? Does Ronaldo have more games to score in, or did Best?
ted, london, uk
Georgie was very difficut to shake off the ball and despite numerous challenges, kept his focus and delivered. He never seemed to be on the ground.Christiano is frquently frustrated with good tackles, falls to the ground and cries foul.
James Johnston, Dublin, Ireland
The only People who would make these comparison are people who never had the privelidge to see George Best in the flesh . Ronaldo is outstandingly good but sorry as one who has seen both I can tell you that George Best is on a different plane he is so much better
K Myers, milton keynes,
It has to be Best, he never dived... And the stats speak for themselves.
Brett Ducker, Harrogate, England
"Ronaldo, when even younger, made his own journey from a small island community to a mainland, leaving Madeira for Sporting Lisbon’s academy"
Ronaldo came to Lisbon to join Sporting in 1997, while the Sporting Academy was only inaugurated in the Summer of 2002.
André Figueiredo, Lisbon, Portugal
all i can say is that Ronaldo is going to be rememberd as one of the best of is time. like Best was, like Maradona , Pele, Eusebio and others.
people try to put down Ronaldo...but he keeps getting better and scoring goal has the answer to his haters, wich are too manny. In my opinion people whant to put rooney and any other player in front of him just because they dont like him.
for all of those i just say wake up..and open youre eyes to reallity. its amazing to see Ronaldo Play, like it was amazing to see all those that in theyr time where considered the best.
Kevin Bonixe, London, Uk
Best v Ronaldo? Maradonna v Pele? Puskas? Eusebio? Cruyff? Beckenbauer v Moore? It's what makes sport so compelling to fans of all ages. The endless discussions about the best team, the greatest player, etc. It's why we all watch it. There can be no definitive answer. How can you compare men from different eras or defenders v attackers? Football has changed. It's faster, players are fitter, pitches are better, equipment is different and the world is a different place. Pele was voted the best player of the 20th Century; John Motson (who would have seen most of the names mentioned) though Cantona was the best player he ever saw; Pele thought Best was the best he ever saw; and I thought Cruyff played football with an elegance that I'd never see again. Argue on dear chaps, there'll be other stars coming around the corner tomorrow to make the argument even more difficult still.
Arelldee, Hayes, UK
The flaw in all these comparisons is that a number of variables have changed between the eras; the vast majority of which have led to an improvement in the game. The pitches are better, the footballs are lighter and less likely to retain water, the training regimes are more advanced, diets are honed to improve performance, and alcohol consumption is less celebrated as an acceptable culture amongst footballers.
Ronaldo is not just a product of his own obvious natural abilities but also all of the above which go to enhance his overall impact in football.
Would Best be quicker, fitter, score more spectacular goals, and be more diligent in todays climate under the tutelage of Alex Ferguson - probably.
Personally, I think in terms of natural abilities, (skills only and not mentality), Roanldo has quick feet, but Best's body swerve seemed to bewitchingly and consistently send players in a direction they did not wish to go. This gives him the edge in my view
Brian, Manchester, UK
Best did it against top European opposition both for Manchester United and Northern Ireland, he played one -twos off defenders legs and rode tackles that nowadays would result in straight red cards. Ronaldo may equal or better him one day , but to do that we need to see him really rip apart some top opposition. He has a tendency to go missing against the likes of AC Milan , Chelsea and Arsenal and for a player who's bigger and more powerful than best , he doesn't seem to steal the ball from defenders as often as Best did. George played in an era before every game was televised and the best of Best is reserved for those of us lucky enough to see him week in week out. Pele described him as the best footballer in the world, I've yet to see anyone who can compare. Ronaldo has the potential , but how would he do against Ron Chopper Harris , Tommy Smith and Norman Hunter
Bertie Mcgoo, Stockport, U
Having seen all the great players in the world; Best was indeed the best. The only way to stop Best from beating a opponent was to foul him, and then there were some very dirty players around.
Having seen some many players kick him, it was really surprising he played so many games.
I've noticed players are starting to read Ronaldo's dribbling.
The only player today, who comes near to Best's dribbling is
Messi at Barcelona. The only weakness Best had, was he could
be selfish, and later of course drink.
A Walton, Leicester, England
Best overcame many Englishmen, nowadays Ronaldo is up against the best English AND European players and therefore I believe his achievements should carry more credit than they appear to muster.
paul, sydney, australia
if its the football we're speaking of and not women, it would be crazy to think that Best would have the same impact in the premier league nowadays as ronaldo would have had back then with his pace, power, fitness levels, skills and touch.
People ask the same question of tennis players, e.g borg vs federer, who was better? The obvious answer is federer would probably beat him 6-0 6-0 6-0 due to, again, his pace, power, etc (not taking into account what technology has done to the sport)...
The only way to answer this would be to look at a sport that has a real benchmark in place to see how skill levels have increased and humans have evolved to continue to excel on those who were previous winners - athletics.
7th July 1928 - Frank Wykoff equaled the world record of 10.4 seconds 4 times in one afternoon.
today - the world record is 9.74 seconds, ran by Asafa Powell
An improvement in performace of 7% in 60 years.
In summary, Ronaldo would win, hands down.
Pete, london, london
Tony Macara, you are clearly an old-timer who has never seen Ronaldo play football. Best was sheer class, that's a given, but that was the era of mediocrity! Today, it takes more than a bit of mettle and porridge to be an outstanding footballer- Ronaldo has everything in his game, and that is why he will be remembered. Read any article about him in today's papers- i bet there are more comparisons to George than with (who?!) Duncan McKenzie or Liam Brady. Wake up and realise the world is a changing place, with Cristiano at the forefront of the footballing revolution.
Will Teasdale, Manchester, England
I was an OT regular from 1964-70 and an occasional since
( including Ronaldo's debut in 2003 ) so am one of not too very many to have seen both players in live action. I can assure all that Ronaldo is nowhere near the standard that Best set in his finest season 1967-68 when his play over a whole season was at a level I doubt has been equalled in the history of the game. The toughest defenders of the time, who were given far more license then, had difficulty getting close enough to him even to foul him let alone tackle him fairly. And this in an aging team many of whose stars were some way past their peak. Ronaldo may get somewhere near this level and I hope he has a longer career than Best ( whose best days were already behind him by the age of 23 ) but he has a long way to go yet
Chris Russon, Davao, Philippines
Can't remeber ever seeing Best diving to gain an advantage. Cheating I think it's called.
And no, Ronaldo hasn't erradicated it from his game. He was at it in the first half against Newcastle and every game goes down far too easily when there is a chance of a central free kick in shooting range.
That should be all you need to know to judge who is / was the better player.
Sover, Swansea,
Its very wrong to compare Ronaldo with Best. Ronaldo is very good and he will be great one day. He will win everything there is to win, I am pretty confident about that. In terms of ability, we will never know simply because we will never know how good Best was. I know that many swear Bestie was better than even Pele. So as long as the debate continues about Bestie's greatness how can we even say if Ronaldo comes close. Plus Best is a United legend and icon. He was the one who made us forget Munich. The only way Ronaldo can even come close is if he leads us to the most european titles ever won by a club and scores and puts in matchwinning performances in every final. Even then it won't come close. Some things are more valuable than titles (heaven forbid that the likes of Gill understand that). On an aside I believe that once Ronaldo wins his first CL title at United, he will never leave.
Rezwan, Manchester,
How dare you compare Best with Ronaldo, Best played when football was football with a real leather football, not a plastic weighted beach ball for show offs !!!!
Best was and will remain the Best .
Gerry, Cambridge, u/k
As a brilliant football player I would go with Best, Ronaldo Is
a talanted player but lets himself down by to many fancy moves
that he cocks up and is almost predictable habit of hitting
the dirt at any oppertunity.
keith, Alsager, stoke on trent, staffs
I think bringing up Ronaldo's scoring record against "the big four" is unfair, for a start back in Best's days there was no such thing as a "big four", teams was much more equal then they are now (where as the big four dominate and the rest are just playing for 5th and UEFA cup places) so it was easier to score against the big teams in the league in them days. And It's not just Ronaldo's record in big games, most players don't have good records in big games, they are for the most part tight affairs where one bit of magic or mistake can change the game. Also Rooney for example's record against the big four for United is played 25 scored 4 - and hes a striker not a winger, yet i don't see a article about that... Gigg's record is even worse, playing 104 games against "the big four" and only scoring 10 goals...Scholes has played 70 games against "the big four" and scored 11 goals. I can keep going like this but the point is most don't shine in big games, doesn't mean there bad players.
Maji, UK,
I must say though I have not seen alot of Best due to my age, but I have seen the Ronaldo, Zidane, Maldini and Ronaldinho and Christiano Ronaldo is some way off there ability as was Henry. The difference between these levels of player are fairly large, they poerformed at the top level in the big games!
Russell Harman, Fleet,
Ronaldo no more skillful than Liam Brady????? erm interesting opinion....
OC, London,
For an age-by-age comparison George Best beats anybody except Pele. By the age of 22 his achievements comfortably outshadow Ronaldos.
Even so, in my opinion, by the time Ronaldo is finished he will be globally considered as one of the greatest ever players, easily in the same bracket as Best. He will surely go on to win the european player of the year award, world player of the year award (both of these in 2008 in all probability), and the Champions league (if not for man utd then surely with barca or real madrid who he will inevitably end his career with).
Cristiano will go down on the list with modern greats zidane, kaka, ronaldinho, ronaldo (brazilian version), raul. The perennial question is how these modern greats stack up against the all-time legends of Pele, maradonna and george best. Impossible to answer, but always enjoyable to debate
Robinho, London, UK
Ronaldo is better than George Best was.Also better,although very different,is Wayne Rooney.
Pete, Leamington, UK
I can't believe you are even having this debate! As someone who saw George Best play live I can assure you that Ronaldo does not even come close. George Best is on a par with the likes of Johann Cryuff and Maradonna, Ronaldo is not at that level. Ronaldo is a good player but he shines in an era of mediocrity. Ronaldo would have been nothing special had he lived in the George Best era. Ronaldo would have been no more skillful than the likes of Stan Bowles, Duncan McKenzie, Liam Brady etc. All who were great players but non reached the level of George Best who was absolutely exceptional.
Tony Makara, Manchester,