Messi and Ronaldo battle for top as 25 greatest players of 21st century ranked

As the millennium turned, legends like Diego Maradona, Pele and Johan Cruff moved aside to usher in a new wave of icons.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are the top two highest goalscorers of all time and have written their names alongside the superstars of yesteryear, surpassing them in the eyes of many.

Individually, those two famous rivals have separated themselves from the rest, sharing 13 of the 21st century's Ballon d'Ors between them.

But who else makes our list of the top 25 greatest players of this millennium as we race towards the New Year?

25. Karim Benzema - France

Position: Striker

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Club(s): Lyon, Real Madrid, Al Ittihad

Honours: 1x Ballon d'Or, 5x Champions League titles, 4x Ligue 1, 1x Coupe de France, 2x Trophee des Champions, 4x LaLiga, 3x Copa del Rey, 4x Supercopa de Espana, 4x UEFA Super Cup, 5x FIFA Club World Cup

Benzema joined Real Madrid in the same year as Ronaldo in 2009 and played second fiddle for nine years.

It was only when the Portugal superstar left that everybody truly realised Benzema's place among the legends of football.

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He finished a 14-year spell at the Bernabeu as the club's second-highest scorer in history, only behind Ronaldo.

The 36-year-old was finally given his flowers in 2022 with his one and only Ballon d'Or award.

24. John Terry - England

Position: Defender

Club(s): Chelsea, Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa

Honours: 5x Premier League, 5x FA Cup, 3x Football League Cup, 2x FA Community Shield, 1x UEFA Champions League, 1x UEFA Europa League.

Captain. Leader. Legend - Terry was so much more than a gifted defender.

He captained Chelsea for 13 years, overseeing the most successful spell in the club's history, across a Stamford Bridge career spanning more than two decades.

Besides his reputation as one of football's toughest centre-backs, the former England captain was graceful on the ball, capable of spraying 70-yard passes with both feet.

Terry was also a threat in the opposition's box and remains the highest-scoring defender in Premier League history with 41 goals.

23. Kylian Mbappe - France

Position: Forward

Club(s): Monaco, Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid

Honours: 6x Ligue 1, 3x Coupe de France, 2x Coupe de la Ligue, 3x Trophee des Champions, 1x World Cup.

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The France superstar has claimed six league titles and starred in a World Cup winning team.

With electrifying pace and an astonishing goal record, Mbappe appears certain to climb up this list throughout his career.

Champions League and Ballon d'Or glory have so far eluded him, although his transfer to Real Madrid could put an end to that in the near future.

22. Neymar - Brazil

Position: Forward

Club(s): Santos, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Al Hilal

Honours: 1x Copa do Brasil, 3x Campeonato Paulista, 1x Copa Libertadores, 1x Recopa Sudamericana, 3x LaLiga, 3x Copa del Rey, 1x Supercopa de Espana, 1x UEFA Champions League, 1x FIFA Club World Cup, 5x Ligue 1, 3x Coupe de France, 2x Coupe de la Ligue, 3x Trophee des Champions, 1x Confederations Cup.

Neymar should be higher up this list given the expectation and potential of his early days.

After emerging as football's brightest young talent, he starred alongside Messi and Luis Suarez in one of the game's greatest-ever attacks at Barcelona.

That was enough to earn legendary status on his own, but many had hoped Neymar's record-breaking move to PSG would end their long wait for a Champions League title.

Despite being joined by Messi and Mbappe, it did not work out for Neymar, and he now plies his trade in Saudi Arabia.

21. Luis Figo - Portugal

Position: Winger

Club(s): Sporting Lisbon, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan

Honours: 1x Ballon d'Or, 1x Taca de Portugal, 4x La Liga, 2x Copa del Rey, 3x Supercopa de Espana, 1x UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, 12 UEFA Super Cup, 1x UEFA Champions League, 1x Intercontinental Cup, 4x Serie A, 1x Coppa Italia, 2x Supercoppa Italiana.

You do not get to play for Barcelona and Real Madrid unless you are one of the best players in the world.

Figo was one of the original 'Galacticos', starring alongside Brazilian Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane and Roberto Carlos in one of the most iconic Madrid teams in history.

Besides a Ballon d'Or and numerous titles, the Portugal star finished his career with the second-most assists in LaLiga history, only behind Messi.

20. Wayne Rooney - England

Position: Striker

Club(s): Everton, Manchester United, DC United, Derby County

Honours: 5x Premier League, 1x FA Cup, 3x League Cup, 4x Community Shield, 1x UEFA Champions League, 1x Europa League, 1x FIFA Club World Cup.

Manchester United legend Gary Neville recently said Rooney is strangely ignored in these debates - and he is right.

Rooney is the all-time leading goalscorer for one of football's biggest clubs, winning everything in sight during his time at Old Trafford - and scoring some of the most memorable goals in Premier League history.

Arriving on the international stage in between England's two 'Golden Generations', Rooney was often let down by his teammates on Three Lions duty.

Nevertheless, he was the nation's all-time leading goalscorer until Harry Kane recently overtook him.

19. Mohamed Salah - Egypt

Position: Winger

Clubs(s): Al Mokawloon Al Arab, Basel, Chelsea, Fiorentina, Roma, Liverpool

Honours: 2x Swiss Super League, 1x Premier League, 1x FA Cup, 1x EFL Cup, 1x Community Shield, 1x Champions League, 1x UEFA Super Cup, 1x FIFA Club World Cup.

Steven Gerrard was an astonishing player, we know. But objectively, Salah has achieved more at Liverpool in the 21st century.

The Egyptian King has overtaken the former captain in Liverpool's all-time goalscorer ranks, reaching fifth, and inspired the Reds to that elusive Premier League title.

With every other domestic trophy under his belt and three Golden Boots to his name, Salah has established himself as Liverpool's greatest player of the modern era.

18. Zlatan Ibrahimovic - Sweden

Position: Striker

Club(s): Malmo, Ajax, Juventus, Inter Milan, Barcelona, AC Milan, Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester United, LA Galaxy

Honours: 2x Eredivisie, 1x KNVB Cup, 1x Johan Cruyff Shield, 5x Serie A, 3x Supercopa Italiana, 1x LaLiga, 2x Supercope de Espana, 1x UEFA Super Cup, 1x FIFA Club World Cup, 4x Ligue 1, 2x Coupe de France, 3x Coupe de la Ligue, 3x Trophee des Champions, 1x League Cup, 1x Community Shield, 1x Europa League

By the end of his career, Ibrahimovic became more well-known for outlandish expressions about his own perceived greatness.

It became easy to forget how good the Sweden legend actually was during his prime.

Playing for a staggering amount of Europe's biggest clubs, Ibrahimovic enjoyed success wherever he went, winning league titles in four different countries.

His unique playing style and incredible technique saw him bag some truly spectacular goals, he sits among the leading goalscorers in football history - and almost all of them were scored at the elite level (i.e not in Saudi Arabia).

17. Ronaldo - Brazil

Position: Striker

Club(s): Cruzeiro, PSV, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Real Madrid, AC Milan, Corinthians

Honours: 2x Ballon d'Or, 2x World Cup, 2x Copa America, 1x Confederations Cup, 1x KNVB Cup, 1x Copa del Rey, 1x Supercopa de Espana, 1x UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, 1x UEFA Cup, 1x LaLiga, 1x Supercopa de Espana, 1x Intercontinental Cup, 1x Copa do Brasil.

The original Ronaldo - and still the most loved in the eyes of many.

While much of his success was before the turn of the century, winning two Ballon d'Ors before the year 2000, Ronaldo's performance at the 2002 World Cup alone earns him a place on this list.

He was a symbol for the 'Joga Bonito' style of football which Brazil made famous during the early noughties, capable of skill that often defied logic.

And Ronaldo's illustrious club career, which extended well into the 2000s, helped cement him as one of the greatest strikers of all-time.

16. Gianluigi Buffon - Italy

Position: Goalkeeper

Club(s): Parma, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain

Honours: 6x Coppa Italia, 7x Supercoppa Italiana, 1x UEFA Cup, 10x Serie A, 1x Ligue 1, 1x Trophee des Champions, 1x World Cup

If longevity is the key to becoming a legend, then look no further than Buffon.

The Italy icon is the most capped goalkeeper in the history of football - and that is not the only record he holds.

Nobody has played more Serie A games than Buffon and that is despite him following Juventus down to Serie B after the Calciopoli scandal.

Anybody who watched Buffon will be able to tell you why he stuck around for so long: he was simply incredible.

15. Fabio Cannavaro - Italy

Position: Defender

Club(s): Napoli, Parma, Inter Milan, Juventus, Real Madrid, Juventus, Al-Ahli

Honours: 1x Ballon d'Or, 2x Coppa Italia, 1x Supercoppa Italiana, 1x UEFA Cup, 2x Serie A, 2x LaLiga, 1x Supercopa de Espana, 1x World Cup

To this date, only one defender in the 21st century has won the Ballon d'Or - and that is Cannavaro.

He was dubbed 'The Berlin Wall' during Italy's 2006 World Cup triumph which saw them keep five clean sheets and concede only two goals, neither of which came from open play.