The 50 biggest TM icons: Loyal footballers, ten times Bayern and 16 active players

On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of Transfermarkt, TM employees have compiled their 50 biggest football icons in a ranking. An internal vote revealed, which professionals have impressed us the most over the past two decades. Remarkable: A total of 14 goalkeepers and defenders made it into the ranking.

The squad of keepers is led by Juventus icon Gianluigi Buffon. The 42-year-old is one of several players in the top 50, who have spent most of their career with just one club and achieved legendary status through consistently strong performances and loyalty. Milan’s Paolo Maldini ended his career at the age of 40 after 125 international caps for Italy and around 1,000 competitive matches in the Rossoneri shirt – reason enough to even rank the defensive legend into the top 10. Neymar, the most expensive player in football history, did not make it into the top 20.

In total, the Transfermarkt team has selected 34 players who have already hung up their football boots – 16 are still active or have not officially ended their careers yet. In addition to gifted midfield maestros such as Zinédine Zidane and goalscorers like Andriy Shevchenko, there are as many as ten (former) players in the ranking, who, like Arjen Robben, played for Bayern Munich for years or still do in the person of Robert Lewandowski.

What do you think of our top list? Are there any players missing who should not have been missing? What exactly does your top 50 look like? We are looking forward to your suggestions in the comments!

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