Messi - the best football player of the 21st century
Striker of the Spanish Barcelona Lionel Messi was the first in the list of the best football players of the 21st century according to the ELO rating system. When determining the best, this system takes into account the number of goals scored by a football player and his assists, as well as the level of opponents and tournaments. Goalkeepers were not taken into account when drawing up the rating.
Lionel Messi scored 100 out of 100 points, which made him the leader in the rating. He is followed by striker of the Italian Juventus Cristiano Ronaldo who also has 100 points, but Messi surpassed him in statistics. Arsenal’s former striker Thierry Henry, who ended his career in 2014, closes the top three in the list. His result is 98 points.
The top 10 best football players of the 21st century included Luis Suarez who plays for Barcelona (97 points), Milan’s striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic (97 points), Tottenham’s striker Harry Kane (97 points), Mohammed Salah who plays for Liverpool (97 points), Paris Saint-Germain’s striker Neymar (96 points), Bayern Robert Lewandowski who plays for Bavaria (96 points) and Colombian Radamel Falcao of Galatasaray (95 points).
Initially, the ELO system was used in chess. It was used to determine the relative strength of the players, as well as to compile the official rating of the International Chess Federation (FIDE).
