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The 1990s is seen as the period of commercialization of football - the time when the sport turned into a business. It saw the establishment of the Premier League and the Champions League in 1992. The Premier League replaced the English Football League Championship to become the highest division in the English Football League system, taking away the top 22 clubs from the latter.
The league was undoubtedly dominated by Manchester United, the team winning titles in 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997 & 1999. Marseille conquered the first Champions League trophy, the championship that substituted the European Cup.
Players like Del Piero, Maldini, Weah and Zidane made the Italian Serie A one of the most sought after tournaments, with the dominance of Juventus and Milan. Under Cruyff’s guidance, and legends like Romario, Stoichkov and Koeman, Spain’s Barcelona achieved wonders no one else could. With a European Cup and six domestic titles, the team could be entitled as the team of the decade.
Technically, a forward is simply a player who plays in the front line of the team, and hence includes inside forwards, centre-forwards and wing forwards, amongst others. They are the main contributors to the creation of opportunities for scoring.
However, a striker is one whose sole objective is to net the ball, i.e. score goals. These players have the ability to handle the ball within the penalty area and have fabulous finishing skills.
Sometimes, the difference is respected to an extent where the two positions are considered completely exclusive of each other. The terms are, however, often used interchangeably and no accurate distinction can be made. And thus, the following article consists of forwards as a broader definition - including strikers as well.
While many varying opinions exist on the best forwards in the 90s, these extraordinary players are almost never disagreed upon. The players chosen here are shortlisted not just on the basis of the feats achieved (trophies won or goals scored) by them in their respective careers, but more importantly their style of play and the impact that their presence made to their team, country and the sport as a whole.
Marcel "Marco" van Basten
Marcel "Marco" van Basten, one of the greatest European forwards of all time, was born in Utrecht, Netherlands, in 1964. He started young at the age of 6 and was just 16 years old when he signed a professional contract with Ajax Amsterdam.
He emerged as the top scorer in the 1982-83 season, a position which he retained for the next four seasons. He won the European Golden Boot and also scored the winning goal in the UEFA cup in 1987.
During his time at Ajax, Marco had netted 128 goals in 133 league matches. Silvio Berlusconi, the AC Milan chairman, was awed by the young boy’s skills and signed him in the year 1987.
Despite a severe ankle injury which kept him off the field for a while, Basten received the Ballon d’Or in the 1988-89 season, Serie A titles and lifted the European Champion’s Cup in ’89. He was one of the keys forwards in the Dutch national team, scoring 24 goals in 58 games.
Despite his unfortunate early retirement at the age of 28, Basten won the Ballon d’Or 3 times, was named the FIFA World Player of the Year in 1992 and ranked 6th in the FIFA Player of the Century internet poll. After retiring, he went on to manage the Netherlands national team, apart from Ajax, Heerenveen and AZ.
Romário de Souza Faria
Romário de Souza Faria, currently a Brazilian politician, was an exceptional professional forward. He was born in Rio de Janerio in the year 1966. Coming from a modest background, Romário’s skills were observed while playing for Olaria, a small club.
After being taken up by team Vasco da Gama, he received international fame at the 1988 Olympic football tournament. While representing the PSV Eindhoven team from 1988–1993, he scored 165 goals in just 167 matches.
In 1993, he moved to FC Barcelona, where he spearheaded the team to win the La Liga title. After his tremendous performance at the World Cup, he was named the FIFA World Player of the Year, 1994. Due to his controversial attitude and behaviour with managers, his premature departure from Barcelona led him to hop between Flamengo and Valencia for the next five years.
In 2000, he re-joined Vasco da Gama, led it to the final of the 2000 FIFA Club World Championship, and also went on to win the Copa Mercosur and the Brazilian league titles. Finishing as Brazil’s top goalscorer in 2000 and 2001, he received the Brazilian and South American Footballer of the Year awards. After having scored his 1000th goal, he retired to become the manager of Vasco da Gama.
Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima
Famous Brazilian forward, Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima was born in Rio de Janerio in 1976. Scoring 5 goals while playing for Cruzeiro at the age of 17, he instantaneously gained national fame.
Advised by Romário to join the PSV Eindhoven, Ronaldo scored 54 goals in 58 games in his two seasons from 1994-96. During his sole season at Barcelona, he scored 47 goals in 49 games, leading to the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup triumph, followed by Supercopa de España and Copa del Rey wins.
He emerged as the La Liga top scorer in 1997 and was awarded the European Golden Shoe.
In ’97, he was transferred to Inter Milan, where in his four years span, won the FIFA World Player of the Year twice. He won the Golden Ball in ’98 and the Golden Shoe in ’02 World Cups.
After a series of serious injuries, Ronaldo joined Real Madrid during 2002-06, followed by A.C. Milan in 2007-08. After his exceptional career and having a record number of accolades in his name, Ronaldo retired from professional football in 2011 due to further injuries. Now, he is working as the UN Development Programme Goodwill Ambassador.
Alan Shearer
Alan Shearer, born in Gosforth, Newcastle in 1970, grew up playing on the streets of his hometown to become one of the most talented and influential sportsmen of his time. He played his first match for Southampton in 1988.
Very soon, in a match against Arsenal, he became the youngest player to have scored a hat-trick in the top division. In 1991, he was selected for the National Team (under 21), where he scored 7 goals in the 4 matches he played.
The next year, he joined Blackburn Rovers, where he netted 16 goals in just 21 matches. His goal tally had surpassed a record 100 in the year ’95. After the Euro Cup of 1996, he was bought by Newcastle United.
In 1998, Shearer captained the team to the FA finals and played the 1998 World Cup. Falling prey to injuries, he retired after playing 395 matches for Newcastle and went on to become its manager.
Christian "Bobo" Vieri
Inter Milan legend and one of the most feared centre-forwards, Christian "Bobo" Vieri was born in Bologna in 1973. After playing for short intermittent spans for Torino, Pisa, Ravenna, Venezia, Atalanta and Juventus from 1991-97, he moved to Atlético Madrid in 1998 (supposedly for financial reasons).
In 32 appearances in the season, he emerged as the season’s top scorer with 29 goals. After his amazing performance in the 1998 World Cup in France, Vieri transferred to Serie A with Lazio, where he won the Cup Winners’ Cup.
The following season, he moved to his ninth club as a professional footballer – Internazionale, where he stayed for six seasons. After appearing in the Euro 2004, a serious knee injury burst his dreams of playing in the 2006 World Cup.
In 2009, he announced his retirement from professional football.
