HERRERA |
"Alfredo Di Stéfano was the greatest
footballer of all time - far better even than Pelé.
He was, simultaneously, the anchor in defence, the playmaker in midfield,
and the most dangerous marksman in attack."
Helenio Herrera, former coach of the Internazionale team and one of the greatest coaches of all time. |
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RADNEDGE |
"No other player so effectively combined individual
expertise with an all-embracing ability to organize a team to play to his
command. He was "total soccer" personified before the term had been
invented. Di Stéfano remains to many of us the Greatest Footballer
of All Time."
Keir Radnedge, editor of the World Soccer magazine, and perhaps the world's most respected soccer journalist. |
| "In Madrid, the field at the Santiago
Bernabeu Stadium leans to the left because Alfredo Di Stéfano had
played so much on this side."
The Spanish Press tried describing the extraordinary impact he made at Real Madrid. |
BERNABEU STADIUM |
LANGLEY |
"He revolutionised forward play by his box-to-box
mobility, his willingness to tackle back and his mastery of the attacking
arts - shooting, close control, heading power and an eye for the most telling
pass. A perfect footballer."
Mike Langley, famous European soccer journalist. |
| "He is arguably the
best post-war player and possibly the greatest of all time. His phenomenal
stamina enabled him to play flat-out for 90 minutes - a quality that was
beyond even the genius of Pele. He had the body and the brain to
allow the game to flow through him."
Graham Hart, editor of the Guiness Football Encyclopedia. |
| "To his strength, stamina and electric change
of pace, Di Stéfano allied superb ball control on which he put a
premium. He score goals in superabundance yet made so many for others.
If there was a King in the European Cup, it was surely Alfredo Di Stéfano."
Brian Glanville, one of the world's most famous soccer writer. |
GLANVILLE |
| "The greatest all-round player of them all, he was a
revelation in his inexhaustible ability to be everywhere on the field,
scoring a goal one minute, making a crucial defensive play the next, always
at the heart of the game."
Paul Gardner, top soccer writer and TV commentator in USA. |
| "No one man can make a team, yet Alfredo
Di Stefano came as close to being a whole team as any soccer player in
the history of the game."
The Lincoln Library of Sports Champions, the Frontier Press Company, 1989. |
| "Di Stéfano's ability to perform all tasks on the field elevated
him above the stature of other great players."
Richard Henshaw, editor of the Encyclopedia of World Soccer. |
| "In the opinion of many good judges, the greatest all-round player
of all. A center-forward who could not only score goals, but would
glide all over the field, doing any job that has to be done with total
assurance."
Steve Tongue, author of World Football. |
| "Di Stéfano
was a great player and saw things others didn't see. He knew the
game back to front and was always physically and mentally well-prepared.
Di Stéfano ranks among the greatest players for me."
Ferenc Puskas, himself one of the greatest players of all time. |
PUSKAS |
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GENTO |
"He made a lot more money than us but he
contributed even more. It is difficult to imagine what Real Madrid
would be like without him."
Franscico Gento, former teammate of Di Stéfano. Real have not won a single Spanish Championship before the Argentine's arrival. Now they have 27. And they have won the Champion's Cup only twice since he retired. |
| "When Madrid fans
said I was the heir to Di Stefano's role in the Real team, I was more apprehensive
than pleased. For Di Stefano was the greatest player I have ever
seen. The things he did in a match will never be equalled."
Luis Del Sol, Di
Stéfano's former teammate and later a star of Juventus in the 60's.
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DEL SOL |
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SANZ |
"Part of this success must be attributed
to Di Stéfano. We will never be able to thank him enough for all
he has done for Real Madrid. Di Stéfano will always be in our hearts."
Sanz, Real Madrid
president, commented on FIFA's naming them as the greatest club team of
the century.
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| "Ronaldo is playing
extremely well at the moment, but it will be years before he reaches the
level of a Pelé or Di Stéfano."
Johan Cruyff, former
player and world-famous soccer star, after Ronaldo scored, in 1996, the
most hyped European league goal of the decade.
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CRUYFF |
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WHAT HE SAID
ALFREDO HIMSELF
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The Importance of Goals...
"A soccer game without goals is like an afternoon without sunshine." Di Stéfano. He scored over 800 goals in his career. His playing style...
What footballer he admires...
What soccer meant to him...
Why he had one of the most powerful left-footed
shots
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