10 best forwards of the decade

Attackers represent a breed in football that pump life into the game. Attackers occupy various roles in a team which includes assuming the position of strikers, wingers and false-nines. Their brilliant strikes, pacy runs, sublime dribbles, and flicks and tricks are pleasing to the eye and can win games for their sides.

The past decade witnessed the rise of some immensely talented attackers. Some of them lived up to their lofty expectations while same faded away as one season wonders.

Consistency is what separates good from the best. They score goals week in week out and carry their teams on their back. These players save their side's blushes even if their teammates underperform.

Last decade we saw how Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi transformed from being the finest talents in the world to becoming the best in the business. What sets them apart till today is that even after a decade, they have shown no signs of slowing down. These two greats of the game have taken the sport to another level altogether.

Throughout the decade many players created names for themselves with their impressive performances and displays. But they could never replicate the consistency and drive Ronaldo and Messi exhibited. Despite this, many players have marked an era with their exceptional achievements and have claimed plenty of awards, recognition, points and trophies for their teams over the decade.

Without further ado, here are the top 10 attackers of the decade (2010-2019).

Honourable mentions: Zlatan Ibrahimovich, Arjen Robben and Harry Kane

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10. Antoine Griezmann

FC Barcelona v Real Madrid CF - La Liga

Antoine Griezmann has been one of the finest forwards in the game fora a few years now. The Frenchman is quite versatile as he can take up the secondary striker role and can also cut in from the wings.

Griezmann started plying his trade in La Liga with Real Sociedad in 2010. He spent 4 seasons at the Anoeta and scored 52 goals for them before making a switch to Atletico Madrid. The 28-year-old rose to fame while playing for the Rojiblancos where he spent 5 seasons. He scored 133 goals for Diego Simeone's side, winning the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Super Cup with them.

Griezmann also guided France to a victorious FIFA World Cup campaign in 2018. His individual honours include Ballon d'Or 3rd place in 2016, FIFA The Best 3rd place in 2016 and FIFA World Cup Silver Boot in 2018.

The Frenchman after declining Barcelona's offer in 2018, eventually moved to the Catalan club in 2019 after a series of hindrances and controversies. The 28-year-old has adapted to life in Barca well after struggling initially as he already has 8 goals for the Blaugrana and would be hoping to replicate his previous performances for his new employers as well.

9. Sergio Aguero

Manchester City v Arsenal FC - Premier League

Sergio Aguero has been one of the best players in the Premier League for a long time now. The Argentine, since joining Manchester City from Atletico Madrid, has helped the club's fortunes heavily.

Aguero moved to Manchester in 2011 and since then has netted 244 times for the Sky Blues. He has made them an unstoppable force in England. Over this decade he has won 4 Premier League titles, 4 League Cups, 1 FA Cup and 3 FA Community Shield titles.

His time at Atletico Madrid was quite fruitful as well. He won the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Super Cup in 2010 with the Spanish giants.

Aguero has a killer instinct in the box and is technically gifted. He positions himself well, and his movement off the ball is world class which helps him create spaces and exploit them.

8. Gareth Bale

Real Madrid v Liverpool - UEFA Champions League Final

Gareth Bale's decade has been quite dramatic, to say the least. The Welshman was bought by Real Madrid for a world-record fee of €94 million for his exemplary performances for Tottenham.

Bale was quite influential in his early days at the Spanish capital. His arrival saw the club lift their 10th UEFA Champions League, La Decima. The Welshman has won 4 UCL's, 3 UEFA Super Cups, 1 Copa Del Rey, 3 FIFA Club World Cups and 1 La Liga with Los Blancos.

He netted 104 goals for Real Madrid including some cracking strikes. His overhead goal against Liverpool in UCL finals 2018 and his goal against Barcelona in the Copa Del Rey final after a pacy run will be remembered for a long time.

Bale possesses fiery pace, good crossing and dribbling ability, and has a knack for goals - all of which makes him a special player.

7. Eden Hazard

Real Madrid v Paris Saint-Germain: Group A - UEFA Champions League

Eden Hazard is one of the best creators in the world of football. The Belgian announced himself to the world when he joined Chelsea in 2012 from Lille. Since then, Hazard has become a household name in the game of football.

The 28-year-old scored 110 goals for the Blues during his stay in London. Hazard won 2 Premier League titles, 2 UEFA Europa Leagues, 1 FA Cup and 2 League Cups with Chelsea. In his last game for the Londoners, he tore Arsenal apart in the Europa League final which Chelsea went on to win 4-1.

The Belgian is one of the best dribblers in the world. His ball control is otherworldly, and his runs are a treat to watch. He also generates tonnes of chances for his teammates to finish. In 2019 itself, he completed 221 dribbles and won 668 duels.

Hazard sealed his dream move to Real Madrid in the summer of 2019. Despite a sluggish start to life in Spanish capital, he is getting back to his best. After conquering England, he would like to conquer the world with Los Blancos.

6. Robert Lewandowski

Ajax v FC Bayern Muenchen - UEFA Champions League Group E

Robert Lewandowski is one of the best strikers currently active in Europe. The Polish international is flying high this season, and has already notched 30 goals for the Bavarians in all competitions this season.

Lewandowski came into the spotlight when Jurgen Klopp's Borussia Dortmund won the Bundesliga twice challenging Bayern Munich for supremacy. The striker since coming to Germany in 2010 has scored 324 goals of which 103 were for Borussia Dortmund and 221 were for his current employers.

He has won 7 Bundesliga titles and 3 DFB-Pokal titles with Bayern. His individual honours include 4th place in FIFA Ballon d'Or 2015, International Federation of Football History & Statistics' World's Top International Goal Scorer of the Year 2015 and Bundesliga Player of the Year 2016-17.

The 31-year-old remains one of the greatest strikers in the game, as he continues to demonstrate it at Bayern Munich. While the Pole's finishing, touch, movement and link-up play are still outstanding, Bayern must hope he gets them back to the top of the table in the league.

5. Karim Benzema

Real Madrid CF v Borussia Dortmund - UEFA Champions League

Karim Benzema is one of the most underrated players in the world. The Frenchman is a complete team player and in the past, he used to drop deep and played the secondary striker role, allowing Ronaldo to thrive in the box for Real madrid.

Benzema even likes to play the role of a false nine helping the team in the build-up, linking up play with his teammates, as seen during the trio of Bale, Ronaldo and Benzema's peak.

Despite being one of the most unselfish strikers of the game, Benzema's numbers are magnificent. The Frenchman has scored 238 goals for Real Madrid since joining in 2009. He has helped the team win 2 La Liga titles, 2 Copa Del Rey titles, 4 UEFA Champions Leagues, 3 UEFA Super Cups and 4 FIFA Club World Cups.

Benzema is a striker who possesses good ball control, vision, heading ability and technical ability. He is a spectacular finisher and for his displays, he has been awarded the French Player of the Year award three times this decade.

4. Luis Suarez

Barcelona v Liverpool - UEFA Champions League Semi-Final: First Leg

Luis Suarez may not be the most loved player in the world, but he remains an extraordinary striker. The Uruguayan international has constantly been surrounded by controversies. Be it play-acting, reckless challenges or having a piece of opposition defenders, he is always the centre of attention.

The 32-year-old has been a part of three leagues this decade; La Liga, Premier League and Eredivisie. Suarez was unstoppable for Liverpool as he scored 82 goals for the Reds in 4 seasons before leaving for Spain. Even in Barcelona, the Uruguayan has been smashing records as he has 190 goals to his name.

Suarez has won 4 La Liga titles, 4 Copa Del Reys, 1 UEFA Champions League, Super Cup and FIFA CWC each with FC Barcelona. He's even won the League Cup with Liverpool and the Eredivisie with Ajax.

The 32-year-old also won the Copa America with his national side in 2011. For his prolific goal-scoring instincts, he has also been awarded the Golden shoe twice and made it to the FIFPro World XI in 2016.

3. Neymar Jr.

Paris Saint-Germain v Liverpool - UEFA Champions League Group C

Neymar Jr has had a roller coaster journey till now. The Brazilian joined FC Barcelona in 2013 after the Catalans decided to break the bank for him.

Santos was the first team that saw Neymar's prowess. He scored 122 goals for the Brazilian side, and went on to score 105 goals in Spain during his 4-year spell with the Catalans. Since moving to Paris Saint-Germain, he has been scoring for fun. He has netted 59 goals for the Parisians in his short stint which has been plagued with injuries.

Major trophies won by Neymar include 2 La Liga titles, 2 Ligue 1 titles, FIFA Confederations Cup, 3 Copa Del Reys, 1 UCL and FIFA CWC each. Individual honours include FIFA Puskas award and inclusion in FIFPro XI twice.

Neymar is a technically gifted player, known for his creativity, dribbling, feints, and pace. He possesses great vision and tremendous finishing abilities. He is brilliant in set-pieces, crossing and can pretty much do everything in the attacking third.

2. Cristiano Ronaldo

Real Madrid v Liverpool - UEFA Champions League Final

Cristiano Ronaldo has been one of the best players in the world and is arguably one of the greatest ever players in the sport's history. The Portuguese has been smashing records for fun, having scored 555 goals for club and country in all competitions this decade.

The 34-year-old smashed 437 goals for Real Madrid in this decade and won numerous titles with them. Ronaldo won 4 UEFA Champions League titles, 2 La Ligas, 2 UEFA Super Cups, 3 FIFA Club World Cups and 2 Copa Del Rey's with Los Blancos. Whereas, he has scored 40 goals for Juventus as well and won a Serie A and a Supercoppa Italiana with the Bianconeri.

Ronaldo can score from anywhere and is also a 'fox in the box'. He possesses good vision to pick out his teammates, pace to burn and supreme dribbling ability.

Ronaldo is exemplary at national level too. The Portuguese netted 77 times for his national side this decade and even led his nation to victorious UEFA Euro 2016 and UEFA Nations League campaigns in 2016 and 2019 respectively.

Despite being 34 years of age, he is going strong and is still one of the best players in the world. With 5 Ballon d'Or's to his name, he would be vying for a sixth.

1. Lionel Messi

Barcelona v Real Madrid - La Liga

Lionel Messi has arguably been the best player of the decade. The little magician has become the face of FC Barcelona. Messi and Ronaldo's rivalry gave the footballing world a new dimension which was never seen before.

The Argentine won 7 La Liga's, 5 Copa Del Reys, 2 UEFA Champions Leagues, UEFA Super Cups and FIFA Club World Cups each with FC Barcelona this decade. On an individual level, the 32-year-old now has 6 Ballon d'Ors to his name and 6 Golden Boots.

Messi has evolved over the decade. From being a skinny false nine to becoming the best player in the world, La Pulga has come a long way. The Argentinian can do pretty much everything from scoring mesmerizing goals, setting up teammates, dazzling dribbles, dropping deep to link play up, free-kicks to defence breaking incisive passes and through balls.

The Barcelona number 10 has scored 619 goals for Barcelona in his career and would be hoping to break more milestones before he hangs his boots. The only thing between him and greatness is international success and Messi would be hoping to end that curse in the coming competitions.