5 players who deserve more respect

The world of football keeps producing legends who leave their marks on the game by producing several memorable moments. In every generation, a bunch of players manage to cement themselves as an integral part of the hall of fame of the world's most popular sport.

In the past few years, several footballers have earned the privilege of being labelled as the best in the world at their respective positions, for a certain period.

However, as days pass by, fans tend to forget these moments of magic, and perhaps make the mistake of concentrating on the downfall of these legends, instead of appreciating them for what they have offered during their peak days.

Here are five players who we believe, deserve more respect when their name is being mentioned.

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#5 Rivaldo

Rivaldo was at some stage, the best player in the world

Following his recent statements a few days ago about the Ballon d'Or being more difficult to win during his era, some fans were quick to downplay Rivaldo's credentials on social media, while labelling him as merely arrogant.

It is a bit surprising how some people talk about Rivaldo as if he was an ordinary player, or as if he could not have been a serious contender for the player of the year award, these days. In fact, the 45-year old has won nine league titles in his career, in addition to the UEFA Champions League he won with AC Milan, back in 2003.

The Brazilian's best moment at club-level, was without a doubt, at FC Barcelona where he was crowned as the best player in the world back in 1999, after guiding the Catalans to the league title in spectacular fashion - beating the likes of Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo and Gabriel Batistuta to the award.

In addition to that, Rivaldo was the best midfielder in World Cup 2002, leading his country to the most important title in the world of football, after playing an essential role in helping Brazil overcome Germany in the final. It is worth noting that the Brazilian was the top scorer and best player of Copa América 1999, as his national team crushed Uruguay 3-0 in the final.

#4 Fernando Torres

Fernando Torres has had a lot of ups and downs in his career

When you look back at it, Fernando Torres has had one hell of a career, where he won the most important trophies in world football, from the FIFA World Cup to the Euro Cup, and the UEFA Champions League.

For some reason, not many give the Spaniard a shout, when discussing the best striker in the past ten years. He may or may not have been the very best, but he certainly deserves a mention.

Torres was exceptional and instrumental in guiding Spain to the European championship in 2008, scoring the winner against Germany in the final. He was seen as one of the top three players in the English Premier League, during his time at Liverpool.

But it all went wrong after an injury spell at Anfield, followed by a mega-money move to rivals Chelsea. Torres failed to live up to the expectations and barely scored 20 goals in 120 league appearances for the Blues.

Most fans pictured him as someone who always misses in front of goal, and it is, unfortunately, a reputation that still follows him to date, despite two spells at AC Milan and Atlético Madrid.

Fernando Torres might not have ended his career in the best way possible, but his goal against Barcelona at the Camp Nou, his winner in the Euro Cup final in 2008 alongside other spectacular moments in his career, will certainly never be forgotten.

#3 Mesut Ozil

Ozil's best time was under José Mourinho's guidance at Real Madrid

Mesut Ozil is one of the most divisive names in world football. Some refer to him as a genius who still is among the best players in the world, while others believe that his best days are far behind him.

Ozil was the best attacking midfielder in the world during his time at Real Madrid, in between 2010 and 2013.

He was the top assist-provider in the world during that period, and the best example of him working at the peak of his powers was perhaps his delivery to Cristiano Ronaldo at the Camp Nou back in 2012, when the Portuguese international dribbled past Victor Valdés to score the goal, which would eventually secure the La Liga title for the Madrid-based club.

Ozil is a world champion with Germany's national team. Who can forget his contribution to helping them secure the fourth star? He is still considered a fundamental part of Joachim Low's plans for Russia, in 2018.

The downfall of the German maestro probably began in his last year in Spain, in a season where the whole team under-performed, which resulted in the departure of José Mourinho from the club.

His move to Arsenal is seen as successful on an individual level, but many still criticize him for allegedly not being at his best in the most decisive games and not guiding the Gunners to major trophies.

Despite all that, it should never be forgotten that Ozil once was the best player in the world in his position and probably still is among the best, despite not proving it on a consistent basis at Arsenal. Russia 2018 will probably be an indicator if he could still thrive in a more organized system.

#2 Wayne Rooney

Wayne Rooney is one of the best English players in recent years

Many believe that Wayne Rooney is overrated and never lived up to expectations, whereas others prefer to use his individual records to back-up their arguments about how influential he has been throughout his career.

While he is admittedly no longer the player he once was, Rooney continues to show signs of brilliance every now and then. His legacy is adorned with glorious moments, having won the English Premier League five times under the guidance of Sir Alex Ferguson, as well as the UEFA Champions League back in 2008 when he formed a deadly duo with Cristiano Ronaldo.

Rooney was voted the PFA Fans' Player of the Year twice, in 2006 and 2010, when he had his best season ever, scoring 34 goals across all competitions. In addition to that, the Englishman is the highest goal-scorer in the history of Manchester United with 253 goals, and the second in EPL history with 208 hits, just behind Alan Shearer at 283.

Despite not winning any major trophy with England since his debut in 2003, Rooney still managed to become the leading goal-scorer in the history of the national team, finding the net on 53 separate times, in 119 appearances for The Three Lions.

Rooney may not be valued as highly as he deserves to be, essentially due to his drop in form in recent years, but he remains one of the best players in the history of English football.

#1 Iker Casillas

Iker Casillas has won it all in football

Many players were lucky to be a part of a winning team, but this certainly does not apply to Iker Casillas. With five La Liga titles, three Champions League triumphs, two Euro Cups and the FIFA World Cup - the 36-year old was one of the essential reasons as to why Real Madrid and Spain's national team have dominated world football.

Who can ever forget Casillas' two spectacular saves against Arjen Robben in the 2010 World Cup final? Or for that matter, who can even forget his penalty save against Paraguay in the quarter-final? For all of Spain's individual talent and passing combinations, the team would not have been crowned champions, if it was not for Casillas in goal.

The same can be said about Real Madrid. Without Iker's valuable contributions throughout the years, many triumphs would not have been possible. The Spaniard was named the best goalkeeper in the world by FIFA, on five different occasions, which proves how long his peak lasted.

But every beautiful story has an end, and the good days for Casillas did not last forever. After becoming error-prone and after an alleged feud with then Real Madrid boss José Mourinho, the goalkeeper was dropped to the bench back in 2012/2013. Since then, it seemed that he never ever reached to the high standards he once had set for himself.

Despite no longer being the best in the past few seasons, Casillas is still an all-time great and has a legit claim for being the best goalkeeper in the history of the Spanish league.