Football rankings are popular these days, with frequent debates over players like Gerrard, Lampard, and Scholes, as well as John Terry and Virgil van Dijk.
The BBC has released its own ranking of the best centre-forwards of the 21st century, which has raised some eyebrows.
Ronaldo Nazario takes the top spot, even though his peak performance came before the year 2000. His World Cup win and Golden Boot enhance his legacy, but he wasn’t quite the same player after his knee injuries.
Meanwhile, Erling Haaland has quickly moved ahead of legends like Thierry Henry, Robert Lewandowski, Karim Benzema, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and Luis Suarez.
Interestingly, Luis Suarez ranks ninth, despite having broken the hold of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi on the European Golden Shoe and winning multiple league titles.
Harry Kane is listed second, even though he only secured his first trophy last season at the age of 32.
Several notable players, including Samuel Eto’o, 2004 Ballon d’Or winner Andriy Shevchenko, and Ruud van Nistelrooy, didn’t make the list.
The BBC’s best centre-forwards of the 21st century – ranked
- Ronaldo Nazario
- Harry Kane
- Erling Haaland
- Thierry Henry
- Robert Lewandowski
- Didier Drogba
- Karim Benzema
- Zlatan Ibrahimovic
- Luis Suarez
- Miroslav Klose
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