10 greatest Spanish players of all time

#7 Carles Puyol

Probably Barcelona’s greatest leader, Carles Puyol definitely deserves a place on this list. A firm fan favourite for his fighting displays, Puyol always gave more than a 100% every time he played for Barcelona and Spain.

Regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation, Puyol was known for his commanding presence in the air, his composure on the ball and his intense commitment and ruggedness.

A true leader and a motivator, Puyol was one of those players who worked unbelievably hard to make the most of his talents. Puyol himself modestly said:

"I don't have Romario’s technique, [Marc] Overmars' pace or [Patrick] Kluivert's strength. But I work harder than the others. I'm like the student who is not as clever, but revises for his exams and does OK in the end."

A Euro and a World Cup winner, Puyol definitely did more than OK in the end.

About the author

A Bengaluru lad through and through, Ashwin Hanagudu is a huge fan of Liverpool and unsurprisingly pledges his sworn allegiance to RCB in the IPL. With over 8+ years of experience in this field, Ashwin manages multiple verticals at Sportskeeda and as of July 2024 is the most-read author in the football section.

Apart from his duties at Sportskeeda, Ashwin Hanagudu is also an active table tennis player and has played multiple state ranking and national tournaments representing Karnataka.

A huge sports fan, some of the athletes and sportspersons he admires in no particular order are Virat Kohli, Steven Gerrard, Mohamed Salah, Cristiano Ronaldo, Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Neeraj Chopra and PV Sindhu

Know More

Edited by Staff Editor