Ranking the top 10 players who revolutionised football

#1 Johan Cruyff

Johan Cruyff revolutionized football like no other

Johan Cruyff's inclusion in this list is not rocket science to understand, but his position on this list might be perplexing for many.

As a player, we need no special introduction to the great Dutchman's endless list of achievements. However, for the way he reimagined the beautiful game both as a player and as a manager, even the first position on this list seems kind of inadequate to commemorate his contributions.

Total football, as the majority of us are aware, is a style of play that was popularised by Johan Cruyff and co in the 70s at Ajax. The tactic allowed any player, regardless of his position, to change his position and pop up anywhere on the pitch; it gave them complete freedom.

While the definition of Total football is easily comprehensible, realising it isn't as much. It is a system that requires the finest of footballers, and above all, a set of players that boast a positional sense and flexibility of the highest class. Although Cruyff had a number of greats like Johan Neeskens, Arie Hann, Piet Keizer and Rudd Krol, he was the crowned king of Ajax who flourished the most amongst them.

Further, as a manager, he shaped the values and philosophy of the Barcelona that we see today. For all his priceless involvement in football, the beautiful game will always consider itself lucky to have given birth to such a great polymath. Make no mistake, his philosophy has also gifted us one of the greatest footballing minds of the sport in Pep Guardiola.

What Johan Cruyff delivered wasn't just football. It was artistry.