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#3 Karim Benzema
Real Madrid captain Karim Benzema has distinguished himself as one of the finest strikers of his generation. The experienced Frenchman made his name as a youngster in the French Ligue 1 with a dominant Olympique Lyonnais team. He earned a big money move to Real Madrid in 2009 for €35 million + add ons.
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Since his move to Real Madrid, Benzema has delivered a great number of goals and assists for the side. The 34-year-old Frenchman was part of the dominant Real Madrid side that won the Champions League four times in five seasons.
Benzema also won his first international title with France, the UEFA Nations League, in 2021. This came after he returned to the national team following a six-year absence due to issues off the field.
Currently enjoying his best form, Benzema was voted by fans as the seventh best player in the world for 2021. Benzema has claimed 480 wins in 727 appearances in the 2000s, giving him a 66% win ratio.
#2 Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi is a player who requires no introduction anywhere. The Argentina captain has written his name into the history books forever with his performances at international and club level.
Messi made his professional bow in 2004 for FC Barcelona before leaving the club 17 years later for PSG in 2021. The diminutive forward is the greatest goalscorer for his country (80), as well as FC Barcelona (672). He has also made the most appearances for both sides in their history.
Messi has won the Ballon d'Or a record seven times this year. He was also part of FC Barcelona's two-time treble-winning squad. The Argentine forward enjoyed a glamorous and successful career at the Nou Camp before his departure for the French capital.
Messi has set a number of records, that may never be broken, in the past 17 years. He is the player with the second-most trophies in history.
Messi has won 545 of his 792 official matches since his debut, giving him a win ratio of 68.8%.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo has been one of the all-time football greats for his feats over the last two decades. Ronaldo’s achievements and records speak for themselves everywhere he goes.
After making his debut for Sporting Lisbon, he moved to Manchester United in 2003. From there, he made his name and earned a world-record transfer of £80 million to Real Madrid in 2009. Ronaldo has scored 801 career goals, making him the highest-scoring active player.
The forward has also won the Ballon d'Or five times and is the record goalscorer in UEFA Champions League history (140). Ronaldo played an important role in all of Real Madrid's four Champions League titles while he was at the club. He also led Portugal to the first two titles in their history in EURO 2016 and UEFA Nations League 2019 as captain, making him an outright national hero.
Now 36 and at Manchester United, Ronaldo has won 596 of his 881 matches so far, recording a win ratio of 67.6%. This makes him the player with the most wins since 2000.
