Soccer, or football, is considered as the most demanding of all sports, with training and conditioning as its essential ingredients. To qualify for this sport, players are required to undergo endurance and strength training to help them correct muscle imbalances for maximal strength needed during a match. Many
soccer players built from this kind of training have made it to the list of world legends primarily because of their individual performances in both local and international competitions. A short list of these
great soccer players includes Diego Maradona, Edson Arantes de Nascimento, Michel Platini, Alfredo di Stefano and Roberto Baggio.
Diego Maradona. He is regarded as the greatest player in the
history of soccer. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina on October 30, 1960, he was the youngest player at 16 who played in a world game against Hungary. He was voted as the South American Player of the Year in 1979 and 1980. In 1982, he joined the Spanish giants Barcelona for a world record transfer fee of £5 million before team Napoli took him for another world record fee of £6.9 million. He captained Argentina to a second World Cup victory in 1986 before he steered Napoli to another league title in 1989. In 1990, the loss of Argentina to the Germans in a world game in Italy marked the beginning of Maradona’s end. Within that decade, he retired from international football after he was caught for drug abuse.
Edson Arantes de Nascimento. He is known as Pele in football, and dubbed as the best player of all time. Born on October 23, 1940, he made his debut for team Santos and played for Brazil against Argentina. At 17, he was the youngest member of a team that won in the World Cup. With Pele, Brazil was the
best soccer team by winning record three titles. Scoring goals was his trademark in his playing years, having made 77 goals in 92 appearances for Brazil. He played his final game for Santos in 1974 before joining the New York Cosmos for US$4 million. By the time he played his last game for Cosmos, Pele was holder of the record as the only player who had won three World Cups.
Michel Platini. Born in 1955 of Italian descent, he made his international debut in 1976 by playing with team Nancy against Czechoslovakia. He had scored 98 goals in seven years before he helped the Italians win three titles in four years up to 1982. Platini proved unstoppable as he skippered France to the European championship in 1984 to win his third European Footballer of the Year award in 1981. In 1987, he retired with 72 caps and 41 goals before he took over as team manager for France.
Alfredo di Stefano. Born on July 4, 1926, he is considered as the complete footballer of all time. Although capped by three countries, he failed to take part in any world competition for football. His great record is his role in turning Real Madrid team into the biggest club in the world and in leading the team to five European championship wins. He retired at 40 after he transferred to Español from team Barcelona.
Roberto Baggio. Born in 1967, he was one of the best soccer players in the world in 1990. Starting his career in 1983, he went on to win as the World and European Player of the Year in 1993 for having won the Serie A, Italian Cup and UBAF (Union de Banques Arabes et Francaises) Cup.
