While Drogba acknowledged Messi’s impressive achievements and exceptional talent, he hinted that the Argentine hasn’t quite reached the level of…Continue Reading
Brazil’s Pelé and Argentina’s Diego Maradona.
Drogba and Messi faced each other during their time at Chelsea and Barcelona, respectively, particularly in Champions League encounters.
For some football enthusiasts, it might come as a surprise that Drogba rates Pelé and Maradona higher than Messi, even though Drogba never shared the field with the late football legends.
Messi, widely regarded as one of the greatest players ever, boasts an extraordinary record. With numerous Ballon d’Or awards, countless domestic trophies, and jaw-dropping goal-scoring stats, he has captivated fans with his unrivaled dribbling, vision, and playmaking skills.
Pelé and Maradona’s legacies are often measured by their World Cup triumphs. Pelé is the only player to win three World Cups (1958, 1962, and 1970), while Maradona’s unforgettable performance at the 1986 World Cup remains a defining moment in football history.
Amidst the achievements of these football legends, many have offered their opinions on who truly stands above the rest. Drogba has weighed in on this enduring debate, sharing his perspective.
In 2018, the former Chelsea player told AFP (via Sports Illustrated): ‘’Messi could stop now and he would already have done a lot for football. To win a World Cup would make him even more legendary.
“He’s an extraordinary player! He’s still not at the heights of Maradona and Pele, but he’s not far away.”
It’s important to point out that Drogba’s remarks were made before Messi achieved World Cup glory with Argentina in 2022.
Earlier this year, Cesar Luis Menotti, who led Argentina to their 1978 World Cup victory, also shared his opinion, stating that Pelé stands far above Argentina’s football icons, Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi.
Cesar Menotti spoke about the abilities of his fellow nationals but believes Pele is ‘’incomparable’’. He said via beIN Sports: “There’s one that can’t be compared, it’s impossible. There’s one who, if he played today, would win games by himself, and that’s Pelé. Then we have Diego, (Johan) Cruyff, (Alfredo) Di Stefano, and now Messi, but Pelé was something else.
“I say this with certainty because I lived with him for a year playing every day as his substitute. One day Pelé jumped two meters and made a 20-meter pass with his chest that left Toninho alone, and Coutinho – Brazilian teammates of Menotti at Santos – told me: ‘This is not a football player.'”
