When we talk of technical footballers, we talk of those blessed with pure unadulterated footballing ability. Those who are the greatest players ever aren’t necessarily always the most technical. Someone like Cristiano Ronaldo, for instance, relied upon power, pace and other physical attributes – in combination with his technical qualities – to reach his peak.
The most technical players, on the other hand, make the difficult look easy – players who have complete command of the ball and a profound understanding and appreciation of the players and space around them at any given time.
Sometimes these are players who fulfil their vast potential. Sometimes they do not, even if they do still achieve some incredible moments that other players can only dream of. With this in mind, the following rankings reveal the 10 most technically gifted players in football history.
10 Neymar
Brazil
There are those out there who believe Neymar has not fulfilled his potential. The man who played beautifully alongside Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi for Barcelona; the man who crowned that partnership with a goal to seal victory in the 2015 Champions League final over Juventus.
Neymar has sometimes been seen as something of a Prima donna and diver during his career. Yet he was surprisingly humble when describing the five players he believed had more technical prowess than him.
Neymar has also scored more goals for Brazil than both Pele and Ronaldo Nazario. His 79 goals for Brazil put him at the top of a heady list of scorers, making him the country’s all-time top goalscorer.
Divisive traits aside, there’s little doubt peak Neymar could do just about anything he wanted with a football, with tricks, flicks and curled finishes all a customary part of his repotoire.
9 Roberto Baggio
Italy
Roberto Baggio was a supremely gifted individual for club and country. He played during a time when Champions League places weren’t handed out as easily as they are today with a top-four finish in the league. Yet there is a strong argument to suggest Baggio is the finest Italian footballer of all time.
It was Baggio who took Italy, almost single-handedly, to the 1994 World Cup Final. Sadly, it was he who skied a crucial penalty in the shoot-out in the final against Brazil.
But Baggio almost always had a clear picture of what he wanted to do with the ball. He had the skill to carry that out, often with devastating effect.
8 Zinedine Zidane
France
Zinedine Zidane had staggering technique. He was very adept at making passes with the outside of his boot. In sheer lucid style when running with the ball, he was almost as wild and free as Ronaldo Nazario.
It was effortless with Zidane. He would zig-zag and pirouette around opponents like they simply were not there, and often in the most congested part of the pitch as a midfiedler.
Of course, Zidane is perhaps best known for three things. Winning the World Cup with France in 1998, when he scored two headed goals in the final. Getting sent off eight years later in the 2006 World Cup final for headbutting Marco Materazzi. And in between, a sublime volleyed goal for Real Madrid in the 2002 Champions League final.
All three of those things demonstrated some impeccable technique. Although Zidane should only be proud of two of them.
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7 Johan Cruyff
Netherlands
Johan Cruyff was a master of the game as a player and a coach. He had strong opinions on how football should be played. In his autobiography, he revealed his all-time eleven which left out both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Cruyff was the playmaking mastermind of the Ajax and Netherlands side of the 1970s, who introduced the world to the ‘Cruyff turn’ – a simple yet highly effective piece of skill which gave the defender no chance of winnning the ball. Completely comfortable in possession, Cruyff insisted football was a game you played with your brain, probably because technique came so naturally to him.
Later as a coach, he laid down his vision of how he wanted football played with the Barcelona team that won the 1992 European Cup Final.
6 George Best
Northern Ireland
George Best burst onto the scene with Manchester United in the 1960s. He is without a doubt one of Britain’s most creative ever players. By the age of 22, he had already won the European Cup and been named winner of the Ballon d’Or. His individual United goal in that final at Wembley against Benfica remains an iconic moment for the club.
Best was able to cover great distances while dribbling the ball. This was a time when defenders were allowed to be far more physical with attacking players than they are today. Best’s greatest skill was a body feint and a dummy. Alongside Bobby Charlton and Dennis Law, Best made up the holy trinity at Old Trafford and will forever be a legend of British football.
5 Ronaldinho
Brazil
Ronaldino always played the game with a big smile on his face. This is perhaps not a surprise given how wonderfully skilful he was as a player. He could dribble his way through even the tightest defence. He is held in high regard by Lionel Messi, who named Ronaldinho in his best eleven of former teammates.
For a time between around 2003 and 2005, Ronaldinho was sensational and the best player on the planet. It didn’t matter how tight a space he was in; he was able to fashion a way out of it through sheer audacious skill. He even got a standing ovation from Real Madrid fans when he scored an outstanding Barcelona goal against them.
There was very little – if anything – that Ronaldinho couldn’t do with the ball at his feet.
4 Pele
Brazil
Pele is seen by many as the greatest footballer ever. He was the leader of the famous Brazil side who dismantled Italy 4-1 on their way to winning the 1970 World Cup in Mexico. As one of the most charismatic players in football history, Pele brought joy to millions of football fans around the world for his vision, skill and finishing prowess.
Wherever Pele found himself on the field, he always seemed to have a good first touch. This set him up well for whatever outrageous piece of skill he was about to unleash on spectators. He always played with a sense of having a fraction more time to think about what he was doing than the average footballer, and that all came down to a combination of perfect technique and incredible football intelligence.
3 Ronaldo Nazario
Brazil
Ronaldo was a phenomenon. One of the greatest strikers of the twenty-first century, he returned from a career-threatening injury to inspire Brazil to victory in the 2002 World Cup Final. At times, he seemed to have rubber legs due to the way he could out-maneuver the opposition. He came to Europe as a teenager and impressed at PSV Eindhoven. He then moved to Barcelona and did great things at the Nou Camp.
Ronaldo continued to set football alight at Inter Milan, before a serious knee injury asked questions about his career. Real Madrid bought the striker and with some modifications to his game was still able to deliver, looking very comfortable among a team of Galacticos. Yet it is that World Cup Final in 2002 he is best remembered for, scoring two goals to earn Brazil their fifth World Cup triumph.
2 Lionel Messi
Argentina
Lionel Messi is a global icon of the sport. He finally achieved the prize that had so long eluded him, when, in 2022, he led Argentina to victory in the World Cup Final. That was Messi’s first World Cup. In his mid-thirties by then, he was not able to tear around the pitch as he had done so as a younger man. So he had to use even more of his latent technical ability and football intelligence.
In the semi-final, against Croatia, Messi demonstrated a masterclass. Gaining possession of the ball on the right wing, he somehow accelerated in front of Josko Gvardiol, belying his years. In many ways, it was his touch and technique that got him past the big Croat as much as it was speed.
Throughout the years, Messi has been incredible to watch with the ball at his feet. He remains one of the most influential people in football history. His ability to score is equal to his awesome ability to create. He was one of the quickest players to score 50 Champions League goals, and is also in the top three for the all-time Champions League assist record – showing just how technically gifted he is.
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1 Diego Maradona
Argentina
To be blunt, Diego Maradona could do with an orange what most of us are unable to do with a football. He was blessed with wonderful dribbling ability.
Maradona was also marvellous on free kicks. He didn’t need to worry about where the goalkeeper or wall were positioned. He was just able to put the ball where he wanted it to go. In many respects, he was special, and one of football’s most revolutionary players.
He inspired Napoli to their first Serie A title in 1987, at a time when the league was thought of as the strongest league competition in the world. He inspired Argentina to the World Cup in 1986. Carrying an injury, he still somehow got Argentina back to the World Cup final four years later.
There was something unique about Maradona. He clearly didn’t do anything by the book; even warming up was a strange and wonderful spectacle when the Argentine was involved. There wasn’t anything the Argentine couldn’t do with the ball at his feet.
All stats via Transfermarkt – correct as of 31/12/24.