<b>George Best</b> <i>(22 May 1946 – 25 November 2005)</i>
1963-74, 470 starts, 179 goals
Maradona good. Pele better. George Best.
The Northern Irishman is viewed, and quite rightly so, as one of, if not the, greatest players the world has ever seen. He was a winger whose game combined pace, acceleration, balance, two-footedness, goalscoring and the ability to beat defenders. In 1968, his annus mirabilis, he won the European Cup with Manchester United, and was named the European Footballer of the Year. When fit, he was an automatic choice for Northern Ireland, but he was unable to lead them to World Cup qualification, despite being capped 37 times and scoring nine goals.