8 less gifted footballers who still made it big

Carles PuyolThe immensely talented stratosphere of footballing talents has thrown up some wonderful names that have enthralled us purely on the strength of their abilities with the ball. But among these names are some equally illustrious ones that shine all the brighter for their mental fortitude and desire.Not as uniquely gifted as their team-mates, these names have made it to the top of the game by virtue of the intangibles that go hand-in-hand with success in virtually every field of achievement. In fact, these qualities – work-rate, desire, determination and willpower, to name a few – are to be as cherished as those that are far more easily apparent on a football field.These players are a manager’s dream – the men who will inspire the troops when the going gets tough. Fighters who have succeeded in the face of stiff odds. They are thus more likely to appreciate the select universe they inhabit at the top of the game.Here are 10 players who still made it despite their lack of pure skill.

#8 Filippo Inzaghi

The current Milan boss was the typical fox-in-the-box, a term bandied about by purists, who sneer at the phrase as if those who espouse it are unworthy of their attention. It becomes a little hard to ignore a man who has won just about everything there is to win in world football.

A man whose pesky ability to notch up the goals count had an irate Sir Alex Ferguson blurt out Filippo Inzaghi was born in an offside position. His near unrivalled ability in front of goal was only matched by his longevity in the game all remarkable for a man who had no real pace, skill or strength to boast of. In the twilight of his career he managed to be a part of a World Cup winning team, and then scored twice in the Champions League final a year later.

The art of the striker is one that may be losing its sheen in todays world of multi-talented footballers,but they are worth their weight in gold when one good enough does show up. Sir Alex himself placed his trust in a more mobile version of what Inzaghi represented as a poacher:Ruud Van Nistelrooy. And, much later, in the slight form of Mexican Javier Hernandez. A sign of grudging respect from the Scot, who for all his faults certainly knew a winner when he saw one.

#7 Carles Puyol

For a man who is about as removed from the pass masters we have come to associate Barcelona with as is humanly possible, it is strange how Carles Puyol has been hailed as Barcelona itself. The fiercely proud Catalan has been instrumental in all the good things we have seen from Barcelona and Spain over the past few years.

The far more easy-on-the-eye Gerard Pique, hailed by many as the epitome of the modern defender, is today incapable of holding down even a starting place in the absence of his erstwhile defensive partner. It is no coincidence that Barcelona no longer employ the high defensive line that allowed them to press opposition teams with such success in the past. Quite simply, there is no one who inspires confidence in the heart of that defence anymore.

The frizzy-haired warrior was the ‘never say die’ presence that would bail out his team umpteen times over the course of a long and distinguished career. So much so that even the huge toll that his responsibilities took on his body was not able to hold back Puyol. He bounced back every single time with an aplomb that was characteristic of his performances on the pitch.

We may never see his like again.

#6 Gary Neville

If ever there was a man who encapsulated what Manchester United was all about, it was Gary Neville. He spent the better part of his twenty years at the club being widely lambasted by opposition fans and critics alike – their one claim being that this little runt of a man was not good enough to play. So much so that Neville himself has said that he’d end up with “6/10” on his tombstone; that being the player rating he received every week from the newspapers.

And yet, he must have done something right. Because you don’t start for Sir Alex Ferguson year in, year out for as long as he did, without knowing what you’re doing. Neville realised early on in his career that he was not as good a footballer as the others who came up with him. He made a conscious decision to take out everything but football from his life in those early days.

He was captain of the youth team that made up the famed Class of ‘92, forever the leader who knew what it meant to play for United. A fan who became a United legend, Neville’s success can be attributed to those intangibles that aren’t visible to the outsider looking in. Articulate and possessing an excellent footballing brain, his role as a TV pundit has been well received in all quarters – a surprise for many. Now isn’t that just Gary Neville for you.

#5 Gennaro Gattuso

The fierce-looking Gattuso is one of those rare characters in world football – he is exactly the same, both on and off the field. In the early part of the last decade at Milan, his ultra-combative presence allowed Andrea Pirlo to flourish from a deep playmaker’s role – a role the duo reprised with great success for Italy at the World Cup in 2006.

Snapping at the heels of the opposition was the hallmark of Gattuso’s game, and he made no bones about it. Appropriately nicknamed Ringhio (Growl) for his playing style, the short-tempered Gattuso was a constant target for his team-mates’ practical jokes off the field. Chief among them was his midfield partner Pirlo, who talks with a degree of fondness about how easy it was to wind up Gattuso.

Simple, spontaneous and fiercely protective – the Italian displayed these qualities in abundance when essaying his role as his team’s chief destroyer. And he has a career rivalled by few others to show for his efforts – all for the ability of just being himself. Although we all do wish we saw a lot less when Gattuso was running around the pitch in his underpants on the night Italy won the World Cup.

#4 Ray Parlour

The Arsenal legend is a prime example of what the Gunners lack today – a genuinely dogged presence in central midfield. Ironically dubbed “The Romford Pele” by the Arsenal faithful, the Englishman was your typical no-nonsense character on the field; his high-energy performances driving on his much more gifted teammates to great heights.

Kolo Toure, looking back on his time at Arsenal, bemoaned the exodus of leaders in the dressing room – and took it upon himself to mention Ray Parlour’s name in that company. Essentially considered a squad player by most, it was not for nothing that Arsene Wenger often turned to Ray Parlour in a number of high-profile fixtures. It was Parlour’s 30-yard strike that sent Arsenal on their way to a 2-0 win against rivals Chelsea in the 2002 FA Cup final.

He wore the captain’s armband when Arsenal thumped Inter Milan 5-1 at the San Siro in 2003. Quite why Arsene Wenger has turned away from Ray Parlour and his ilk, we may never know, especially when it was under the Frenchman that the midfielder truly found his feet. They could certainly use another Ray Parlour right about now.

#3 Jamie Carragher

In today’s age of suave, smooth defenders for whom defending seems to be a secondary concern, Jamie Carragher would stand out like a sore thumb. One only needs to look as far as John Terry – captain of rivals Chelsea (and a Mourinho team, no less) – to see just what a rare breed they are.

Shuttled around the defensive line in his early years, the arrival of Rafael Benitez restored Carragher to his favoured position in the center of defence. A position he proceeded to make his own for the rest of his career – one that spanned a remarkable 17 years in the red of Liverpool.

It is perhaps a curse of the more defensively inclined players that they do not command the kind of attention reserved for those that make things happen at the other end of the pitch. Then again, players like Carragher aren’t ones to take such frivolities to heart – for his place in Liverpool’s history is as secure as talisman Steven Gerrard’s.

#2 Dirk Kuyt

The Dutchman has spent a career defying stereotypes in a manner that should have far more “gifted” wingers (former team-mate Ryan Babel, the on-again-off-again Nani – to name two) hang their head in shame. A striker by trade, the former Feyenoord man has been shunted to a number of unfamiliar positions – predominantly functioning as a winger under Rafael Benitez at Liverpool.

With no real pace or skill to boast of, he has shown himself capable of adapting to the needs of the team with remarkable consistency. So much so that in his prime, Kuyt was a regular for the Dutch national team – who have never really been in short supply of talented wingers. In his time at Liverpool, he consistently topped the charts for the fittest player at the club.

And it is his superhuman reserves of stamina and heart that have taken his limited talents to heights he truly had no business reaching.

#1 Nicky Butt

One of the original number in the famed Class of ‘92 – and perhaps the one who has received the least attention among that group of six – Nicky Butt was an absolute warrior. Phil Neville has described the man as the “best player in the team at youth level”; praising his former teammate’s temperament and ability to remain unfazed when playing at any stage and any level.

It was a quality that would come to serve Manchester United in their greatest moment – on that unforgettable night at the Camp Nou in 1999. With both Roy Keane and Paul Scholes suspended for the final, it was Nicky Butt’s composure that marshalled their central midfield that night. United were clearly the second-best team on the night, with Bayern Munich hitting the bar and the post in addition to the goal they’d scored early on.

It was the tough, streetwise Butt, the kind his mates would look to in a fight, who egged the team onto those final minutes that would ensure that United kept their date with destiny. A street-fighter who stood up to be reckoned with the very best the game had to offer, Butt is in charge of United’s reserve team today.