What makes a footballer “World Class”??

Throughout my time on social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook, questions have been asked and debates have been formed in regards to World Class footballers: Are they World Class? Are they Over-rated? Are they Under-Rated, I have got into trouble once or twice by answering these questions “wrongly” in the general eye of the public. I thought for my latest blog entry I would share my personal opinion on how I define this concept and how I operationalise it.

        If I were to source the Cambridge Dictionary it would define this concept as the following –

Someone or something world-class is one of the best that there are of that type in the world

One thing in world football today that really grinds my gears is the fact that when we say “World Class”, there is a sense of ownership on our own clubs players. By this I mean a Liverpool supporter may claim that Luis Suarez, Lucas Leiva et al are “World Class” and a Manchester United fan like myself, could argue that… (Actually there aren’t any MUFC players who are not World Class..) -  This in my eyes, leads to a case where we in 2012 could have as many as 10 or 15 world class players. Please tell me how 10 or 15 individuals can be all level or close to the pinnacle of success?

  I shall identify an objective and subjective approach to deeming a player as “World Class”, starting with the objective manner. Objectively, you can identify a world class player or players by their trophy cabinet for club, country and/or personal accomplishments. 

If I were to pick two players at random, I believe (..and hope for the sake of humanity) that we would all agree on the idea that Ryan Giggs and Ronaldo (of the Brazilian persuasion) are/were "World Class". Objectively this can be identified by the achievements that both footballers have earned over their long careers, as well as scintillating performances shown time after time after time. (I would like to add that I would list the respective trophies and accolades both men have earned, but I doubt I would have enough room to finish this entry if I were to do so!). It is all good and easy by identifying a footballer as "World Class" objectively as there is no real room for debate, however subjectively, we all have our opinions on which footballers in this day and age can wear this tag with pride. The likes of the England captain, Steven Gerrard has been a credit to this Liverpool side for so long and yet his trophy cabinet isn't one that would necessarily showcase his beautiful career, does this mean that he cannot be considered "World Class"? Of course not, and this is why I shall identify my views on the subjective etymology of the term. 

I am quite stubborn in my beliefs in who is World Class and who isn't and I believe there is a glass ceiling, in which a player cannot reach these heights unless they perform admirably on the pitch and off of it. Of course we cannot completely understand the full life of the every day footballer off of the pitch as we must respect their privacy (unless we are journalists..). Yet, I believe that good nature off of the pitch will boost your reputation just as much as on, lest we forget, these men should be role models to the future generation. Many fans of the football world on Twitter believe that I lash into one Luis Suarez because of the badge that he wears, oh contraire, I have always said that Steven Gerrard is a model professional and that all children should look up to him.. (do I sound like a typical Manc now..?). The reason I argue Mister Suarez's potential World Class description is due to his antics on the pitch (and I am not hinting to the Evra situation). A history of biting, "cheating", pulling of hair, whining and complaining does not bode well in the eyes of the media, spectators or potential role modelling. An argument I once got myself into was that once a Liverpool fan commented on Roy Keane's infamous "behaviour" on and off of the pitch. Keano may have had some psychological *problems*, and some clashes with fellow professionals and fans alike have tainted his standings, yet I would say that this man wore the armband of an illustrious club, gave everything for his team and on one rainy night in Turin gave one of the world's best performances. Once Luis bucks his ideas up and starts to lead Liverpool by an example, I may re-think my beliefs on his potential tag. 

Both players I shall mention now are indeed World Class .. Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are so good that if we are dubbing so many players as this concept, we may as well label CR7 and Messi as Inter-galactic super stars.. yet the debate stiill roars on, who is better?! One of the reasons in my eyes, as to why Leo Messi may be seen as "better" than Ronaldo is not only his dominance for Barcelona, but the fact that off the pitch, all we hear about is work for Unicef and his God Like status back in Argentina. No doubt Cristiano has his fangirls (most of these being men..) .. but a career filled with shopping, designers clothes and women does look a bit iffy. Of course Ronaldo has done so many caring things, and I may be sounding like a journalist at this point, unfairly pointing out only Ronaldo's flaws,  but the reason I am Team Messi, is that as of yet, there has been very little controversy during his career. 

Will we ever get a footballer who scores 50 goals a season, that donates his time and money to charity, is loved by everyone and can be a role model to so many children? Perhaps the closest we can wish for is Mister Messi .. perhaps somebody else will come along .. or perhaps I am being just so damn unrealistic that there is no point in even wondering. However, we must remember, the art of football is much more than just kicking a ball around, so to become world class, you must succeed in every walk of life within this culture. 

PS. Sorry for the lack of posts, I have been rather lazy so far this summer, but I shall be updating more in the not too distant future. ..