The best second strikers of every era

Four eras, voted separately — a second striker is only ever compared with the second strikers of his own time.

1930s–60s

Pelé

#1 · 1379 Elo

1970s–80s

Johan Cruyff

#1 · 1256 Elo

1990–2009

Roberto Baggio

#1 · 1233 Elo

2010–now

Lionel Messi

#1 · 1267 Elo

1930s–60s

Vote now

The best second strikers of the 1930s–60s, ranked by community Elo
	Player	Elo	Won–lost	Duels
1	PeléSantos	1379	37–0	37
2	Alfredo Di StéfanoReal Madrid	1083	26–12	38
3	Ferenc PuskásReal Madrid	1073	25–12	37
4	Nándor HidegkutiMTK Budapest	985	19–20	39
5	Giuseppe MeazzaInter Milan	934	15–19	34

Show all 13

The best second strikers of the 1930s–60s, from number 6
	Player	Elo	Won–lost	Duels
6	Matthias SindelarAustria Wien	930	1–6	7
7	Giampiero BonipertiJuventus	922	3–7	10
8	Fritz WalterKaiserslautern	914	7–14	21
9	György SárosiFerencváros	843	0–8	8
10	Eduard StreltsovTorpedo Moscow	838	10–28	38
11	José Manuel MorenoRiver Plate	811	7–27	34
12	László KubalaBarcelona	795	5–22	27
13	Omar SívoriJuventus	744	4–26	30

1970s–80s

Vote now

The best second strikers of the 1970s–80s, ranked by community Elo
	Player	Elo	Won–lost	Duels
1	Johan CruyffAjax	1256	33–8	41
2	Kevin KeeganHamburg	1083	24–17	41
3	Karl-Heinz RummeniggeBayern Munich	1010	20–23	43
4	Allan SimonsenBorussia Mönchengladbach	983	3–4	7
5	BebetoDeportivo La Coruña	973	18–21	39

Show all 11

The best second strikers of the 1970s–80s, from number 6
	Player	Elo	Won–lost	Duels
6	Oleg BlokhinDynamo Kyiv	959	13–18	31
7	Roberto BettegaJuventus	952	1–4	5
8	Kenny DalglishLiverpool	949	18–26	44
9	Roger MillaSaint-Étienne	935	4–7	11
10	TostãoCruzeiro	806	7–28	35
11	Igor BelanovDynamo Kyiv	804	0–12	12

1990–2009

Vote now

The best second strikers of the 1990–2009, ranked by community Elo
	Player	Elo	Won–lost	Duels
1	Roberto BaggioJuventus	1233	29–9	38
2	RaúlReal Madrid	1203	29–10	39
3	Alessandro Del PieroJuventus	1179	25–13	38
4	Dennis BergkampArsenal	1161	29–17	46
5	Francesco TottiRoma	1132	27–15	42

Show all 14

The best second strikers of the 1990–2009, from number 6
	Player	Elo	Won–lost	Duels
6	RivaldoBarcelona	1118	16–14	30
7	Eric CantonaMan United	1113	27–16	43
8	Hristo StoichkovBarcelona	1062	25–18	43
9	Teddy SheringhamMan United	986	5–6	11
10	Gianfranco ZolaChelsea	958	13–15	28
11	Roberto ManciniSampdoria	949	2–6	8
12	Jari LitmanenAjax	908	2–8	10
13	Youri DjorkaeffInter Milan	854	1–16	17
14	Enzo FrancescoliRiver Plate	796	2–23	25

2010–now

Vote now

The best second strikers of the 2010–now, ranked by community Elo
	Player	Elo	Won–lost	Duels
1	Lionel MessiBarcelona	1267	27–4	31
2	Wayne RooneyMan United	1256	32–6	38
3	Antoine GriezmannAtlético Madrid	1097	6–0	6
4	Roberto FirminoLiverpool	1058	7–3	10
5	Dries MertensNapoli	995	2–3	5

Show all 9

The best second strikers of the 2010–now, from number 6
	Player	Elo	Won–lost	Duels
6	Thomas MüllerBayern Munich	979	15–24	39
7	Paulo DybalaJuventus	959	3–6	9
8	Christopher NkunkuRB Leipzig	915	1–7	8
9	Ademola LookmanAtalanta	863	0–9	9

How is this ranked?

Every duel shows two second strikers from the same era. Fans pick the greater one. The winner gains rating points and the loser drops them, more after an upset.

Who votes?

Anyone visiting Make Your GOAT. No account is needed, and each device is limited to 30 votes a minute.

Does it change?

Yes. The table moves with every vote. This page shows it as it stood at most an hour ago.