The best soccer players to have sported the number 10 jersey

All soccer fans are well aware of the famous number 10jersey. Playersconsider it a huge pride to don the number, and most often we have seen the teams best player or the most creative player wearing it.Here, we take a look at the best players whoworethe most prestigious number in the sport.

#8 Wayne Rooney (England)

Although there has been so much criticism surrounding him over his new bumper contract at Old Trafford, you simply can’t deny his class. His bicycle kick goal against bitter rivals City won him the best goal of 20 seasons award. He has won the Premier League five times with United and has won the Champions League once.

In 442 matches for the club, the man has slotted 216 goals and is hence one of the legendary number 10’s in English soccer.

#7 Francesco Totti (Italy)

Fans of Italian soccer can never forget this legend. He is one of those rare one club men and is Roma’s all time leading goal scorer and also their most capped player.

He is currently ten short of scoring 300 goals for the club. Totti won the World Cup with Italy in 2006 and has also won the Serie A once.

Roma’s president recently stated that the club will retire the number 10 jersey in honor of Totti after his retirement.

#6 Michel Platini (France)

For those of you who know him only as the UEFA president, Platini was one of the finest players to have graced the sport. He won the Ballon d’Or three consecutive times and won the European Championship with France in 1984, winning the Player of the Tournament award in the process.

He is also a two time Serie A champion with Juventus having scored 103 goals in 222 appearances for them.

#5 Zinedine Zidane (France)

There is literally nothing left for Zidane to achieve. He scored twice in the 1998 World Cup final against Brazil helping France win the title, and then won the Player of the Tournament award during France’s triumphant Euro 2000. He also won the Champions League with Real Madrid.

He scored 31 times in 108 appearances for Les Bleus and was their perfect number 10 with the kind of vision and dribbling abilities that he possessed.

#4 Ronaldinho (Brazil)

A player who was loved by all and hated by none. Ronaldinho had everything that a number 10 is said to possess.

He won the FIFA player of the year award in 2004 and again in 2005 alongside the Champions League crown while playing for Barcelona. He scored 33 goals in 97 matches for Brazil and played a huge role in the 2002 World Cup triumph and was a part of the side that won the 1999 Copa America.

#3 Lionel Messi (Argentina)

The youngest player on this list is the Argentina captain Lionel Messi. It will take a lot of pages to write down his records, but for now he has scored 354 goals in 425 appearances for Barcelona and is already their all time leading goal scorer.

He has won the La liga six times and the Champions League three times with his club.

#2 Diego Maradona (Argentina)

Controversial, yet stunning, Maradona till date is looked upon as the greatest player to have played the sport alongside Pele.

Maradona’s biggest moment came in 1986 when he won the FIFA World Cup with Argentina that also included the famous ‘hand of god’ goal scored by him.

He also enjoys a legendary status at Napoli where he scored 115 goals in 259 matches.

#1 Pele (Brazil)

Has there ever been a better number 10 in soccer’s history than Pele?

He won the World Cup a record three times with his native Brazil and has scored an astonishing 643 goals in 656 official matches for his club Santos FC.

And he scored 77 times for Brazil in 92 appearances. These numbers tell you why many former players refer to him as the king of soccer.