It is fair to say that few things unite Chelsea and West Ham fans, let alone fans from across the globe, but one man does. The “clever little so-in-so” as Sir Alex Ferguson called him, Italian legend Gianfranco Zola.

Zola began life in Sardinia Italy, playing for two local teams,Nuorese and Torres before being snapped up by Napoli in 1989. At the time, the Neapolitan side could boast a footballing God in their ranks, Diego Maradona. Zola’s remit was simple at Napoli. He just had to take over where Diego had left off at the club. So no pressure on him then…

Zola admitted his time as Maradona’s back up at Napoli was key in moulding himself as a player. Like Maradona, Zola was small but would spend hours with the Argentinian honing his skills following training. It would be practice time well spent as the Sardinian would go on to fill the boots of the departed Maradona admirably for four years at Napoli, before the emerging Parma snapped him up. Three successful years at Parma ended when a certain Senor Carlo Ancelotti became manager and Zola found it hard to claim a regular place in Ancelotti’s vision of a more rigidly structured Parma side. Played out of position at the start of the 1996-97 season, Zola wasn’t happy at Parma and in November Ruud Gullit called and asked if he’d like to join up with him at Chelsea.

The £4.5m spent to acquire the Italian now seems a drop in the ocean and is arguably the best transfer Chelsea have ever made. Zola would prove to be the bright spark in a season tained by tragedy for Chelsea by the Matthew Harding helicopter crash as his mesmerising performances for the team saw him elected Football Writers Player of the Year in his first season at the club. An astonishing achievement.

His performances inspired Chelsea to the FA Cup in his first season and in his first full season at the club, the blues would lift the League Cup, Super Cup and most memorably for Zola, the Cup Winners Cup when injury forced him to start the game from the bench, however he came on and made an impact within 21 seconds, scoring the winning goal with a sublime first time shot from just inside the penalty box.

In seven wonderful years with Chelsea, Zola made 229 league appearances for the club, scoring 59 goals but his contribution to the team was far greater than the mere stats suggest as a quick glance through this video collection of his best moments will show.

And special mention should be made of this goal that he scored against Norwich City… special indeed.

Such was Zola’s influence at Chelsea that he was voted recently as the clubs greatest player ever. He received an OBE for his services to the game in England whilst at the club and in seven years he played a large part in laying the foundations for the Chelsea team that we see today.

He left Chelsea in 2003 to finish his playing career back in Italy with Cagliari in Serie B. He led the team to promotion in his first season and capped his career in style by returning to Serie A and scoring 10 goals in 23 games, including a double in his final ever professional appearance against old foes Juventus. It is worth remembering that for all his time in England, Zola was equally impressive in Serie A.

Currently Zola is manager of West Ham United, where despite financial constraints, he has the team playing an exciting brand of attacking football that is in keeping with his own personal belief about how football should be played. He has brought on several youngsters at West Ham such as James Tomkins, Junior Stanislas and Zavon Hines and it seems to be no coincidence that Carlton Cole’s emergence as an England striker coincided with the little Italian becoming his manager.

Gianfranco Zola the man, the footballer, the legend.

Welcome to our series which looks at a star of yesterday compared to a star of today and makes the all-important judgement as to who is the greatest. Up this week is Manchester United legend George Best taking on the Red Devils’ Welsh wonder, Ryan Giggs.

Each week we will judge the players against the same five criteria and the contest will be scored as in a boxing contest, with 10 for the winner in each section and 9 for the other, unless there is an obviously large discrepancy when 8 will be scored.

This week see’s the legend that is George Best…

Take on current Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs…

Skills : While Giggs has wonderful ability on the ball, Best was one of the greatest of all time with the ball at his feet. The word genius is bandied about today far too liberally at times, but as brilliant as Giggs is on the ball and it does him huge credit to be mentioned even in the same breath as Best, he just wasn’t a genius. George Best was. So as great as Giggs is, Best wins takes the opening round.   BEST  10, GIGGS 9

Loyalty : While George Best’s name is synonymous with Manchester United, it is worth remembering that he left the club aged 27 after 470 appearances and 179 goals, going on to play for a succession of lesser lights across in America as well as in England and Scotland. Giggs is, for many, the embodiment of the golden era of Manchester United, there from the start and a vital part of that success ever since. 815 appearances, 150 goals and counting. Giggs is the winner here, hands down.  BEST 9, GIGGS 10

Achievement : Best’s achievements as a player are in stark contrast to his ability. Two league titles and a European Cup winners medal are stark reward for a player of his ability although he did achieve a notable double of Football Writers and European Footballer of the Year in 1968. Giggs however trumps Best once again with an incredible list of achievements; 11 Premier League titles, 4 FA Cups, 3 League Cups, 7 Charity Shields, 2 Champions League victories, PFA Young player of the year twice and current PFA player of the year. It’s another hands down victory for Giggs.  BEST 9, GIGGS 10

Adoration: To say Manchester United fans are fortunate to have had two players of this quality to watch over the years is an understatement. Giggs is revered by the Old Trafford faithful, the embodiment of a successful one club man blessed with ability and skills befitting the worlds biggest club. However even that isn’t enough to get him ahead in this round. George Best, along with Denis Law and Bobby Charlton, formed the holy trinity for United. His tragic death in 2005 only made him more revered. There is a saying in Northern Ireland that sums up how many feel about their Belfast Boy. “Maradona Good, Pele Better, George Best”. That says it all really. BEST 10, GIGGS 9

Summary in a clip : There is so much to choose from for both players and to pick one moment of brilliance from each of them is difficult. However Ryan Giggs wonderful  effort in the FA Cup Semi Final against Arsenal leaps to mind, a goal that Best himself would have been proud of

For Best, while there are many moments in a United shirt that I could have picked it is this truly amazing goal for San Jose Earthquakes against Fort Lauderdale Strikers in the old NASL that perhaps shows what Best was truly capable of

A difficult, difficult choice and how can you separate them?  BEST 10, GIGGS 10

Who is the Greatest?

A quick add up reveals  Ryan Giggs 48, George Best 48 : A tie! These two legends cannot be separated in my view. The passage of time has given Best the aura of legend that perhaps overrides his weaknesses. In 30 years time, it may well be the case that Giggs achievements may be viewed as the greater, but for the time being at least I cannot separate them. Two wonderful players and truly deserving of the accolade of The Greatest.

But what do you think? Make your case for Best or Giggs below… we’d love to hear from you!

If you stop to think about who was the greatest striker of the modern era, some of you would no doubt leap up and state Didier Drogba, or Fernando Torres, maybe even Wayne Rooney. Others may suggest Ronaldo or Romario of Brazil? Ian Rush? Gary Lineker? Jurgen Klinsmann? The list of possible superstars to claim the crown is almost endless and I’ll save you the bother.

The best striker of the modern era was and is Marco Van Basten and by quite some considerable distance.

Born in Utrecht on hallowe’en in 1964, the only thing scary about Van Basten was his ability with a football. His hometown club Utrecht signed him up but he never played a professional game for them, instead Ajax snapped him up in 1981 as a sixteen year old and he made his debut in 1982, scoring in a 5-0 victory over NEC Nijmengen. For the next eleven years, Marco Van Basten would catapult himself to international superstar status. His statistics while at Ajax are worth reading because they are truly incredible. He scored 128 league goals in just 133 league games. That is an incredible strike rate. Still it would not be until 1987 that Marco Van Basten really began to attract some attention, when football fans across the world first saw this goal, arguably the finest overhead kick that has ever been scored. I can remember Bob Wilson introducing the goal at the end of football focus by simply stating in the preamble to the goal ”The goal came in a match between Ajax and Den Bosch and all you need to know first time around…Is that it is a bit special.”

What makes Van Basten truly special is that goals like that were not a one off. In 1988 he finally began to get the acclaim he deserved when he played a pivotal role in leading Holland to the 1988 European Championship final, including scoring an incredible hattrick against England in the group stages.

However that would not be Van Basten’s sole contribution. In the final, Holland faced USSR and a Ruud Gullit header had put the Dutch in front against a team who had previously beaten them in the tournament. In the second half Russia pressed for an equaliser but a poor pass out of defence saw the Dutch break quickly. Van Tiggelen fed Arnold Muhren who hoisted a ball hopefully to the far post for Van Basten. What he did then simply defied belief, as you can see by the reactions of his manager and his teammates, including No 7 Gerald Vanenberg who seems so stunned by what he has witnessed, he seems unable to comprehend it.

To further enhance his position as the greatest striker of the modern era, Van Basten moved to Milan and was an integral part of Arrigo Sacchi’s fantastic Milan side of the late 1980’s and early 1990’s. Even in Serie A, where the top strikers would be lucky to average a goal every three or four games, Van Basten scored 90 goals in just 147 appearances. A stunning return. He led Milan to several Scudetto successes, two European Cup wins and was named European footballer of the year on three occasions, joining Johan Cruyff and Michel Platini as the only other players ever to achieve this incredible feat.

What makes this career all the more remarkable, is that for a large part of it, Van Basten was jinxed by injury. In many games he was not fully fit and would often play through the pain barrier for his team. The chronic problems in his ankle eventually proved too much and in 1993 his ankle injury recurred in a game with Ancona. At this point Van Basten was at the peak of his powers, expected to shine for Holland in the 1994 World Cup and lead Milan onto Serie A dominance again. However after two years toil to try and regain fitness, Van Basten was forced to retire in 1995.  Aged just 31 and having missed almost two full years of football before being forced to retire.

It was one of the saddest days in football for a player still revered in Milan, Holland and indeed across the world. A consummate striker with impeccable technique, wonderful physical skills and that special ability to do something utterly special and make it look effortless. Truly a legend and truly the greatest striker of the modern era bar none.

David Beckham has shown the world something it didn’t know before – slow wingers can succeed at the very top level. Well, as long as they have something more to offer. Beckham’s name is now one of the, if not THE, most famous names in football and he’s even known outside of football for successful advertising careers and his personal life – though that’s not quite why he deserves a place in the Hall of Fame. Beckham has played for massive clubs like Manchester United, Real Madrid and AC Milan and introduced himself to the world with one of the best goals a youngster has ever scored in world football. And then followed a career full of success which made a name for the Leytonstone boy lad. Take a bow son…

Early Life:

Beckham was born in Leytonstone, London, on the 2nd of May 1975. He played football in the park as a child and always dreamed of becoming a professional footballer, having a real passion for the sport and for Manchester United which he had picked up from his parents who were fanatical about the club. He attended one of Bobby Charlton’s football schools in Manchester and was even a mascot at Old Trafford. After playing for a youth team his father coached Beckham moved to Brimsdown Rovers youth team and, after trials with several clubs, he moved to Tottenham’s school of excellence. Manchester United saw his potential though and moved quickly to sign Beckham on schoolboy terms as a fourteen year old in 1989. He officially joined their youth team in 1991 though.

Manchester United:

Beckham is still remembered fondly as one of “Fergie’s Fledglings” – a bunch of young players who came through the ranks at Man United at the same time which also included Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and the Neville Brothers. “You’ll never win anything with kids” declared Alan Hansen but Alex Ferguson’s youngsters would go on to prove him wrong. Beckham was part of United’s FA Youth Cup winning side of 1992 and made his first team debut later that year in a League Cup clash with Brighton. Beckham helped United’s reserves win their league in 1994 before moving to Preston on loan to get some first team experience where he impressed (even scoring directly from a corner) before returning to United to finally take his place in the Man U first team. Beckham scored in the first game of the 1995/6 season against Aston Villa and quickly established himself as first choice right midfielder – playing deeper due to his lack of pace but still having a tremendous eye for a cross, set piece or finish – his accuracy was amazing. He was also a hell of a free kick taker. Fergie’s Fledglings flew to a double of the FA Cup and league title to make names of themselves. The following season Beckham, now wearing the number 10 shirt formerly worn by Mark Hughes, scored from near the halfway line against Wimbledon on the opening day, making sure everyone would know him. It was the beginning of the best of Beckham.

Beckham was voted PFA Young Player of the Year following another successful season where United won the league once more. In the summer of 1997 Eric Cantona retired and Beckham quickly took on his Number 7 shirt which he went on to make even more famous. Beckham continued as a first choice regular at Old Trafford, contributing goals and assists aplenty. A few more years of great success at the club followed and Beckham was a massive fan favourite at the club. Things deteriorated though as Beckham fell out with Alex Ferguson over his wife Victoria (formerly a member of the Spice Girls) and their relationship would get worse over the following years. Beckham then did well to get over a bad metatarsal injury and managed his best goals tally for the club in 2001/02 when he notched 16 goals in 42 games. The next season things got worse though as Ferguson regularly dropped him in favour of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and even famously kicked a boot at Beckham in the aftermath of an FA Cup defeat against Arsenal. No player is bigger than the club and Beckham’s departure was imminent. He left the club in 2003 having won six Premiership titles, two FA Cups, a Champion’s League and an Intercontinental Cup and having scored 61 goals in 265 appearances in the league for United over 8 years. The fans were horrified to see him go.

Real Madrid:

Beckham snubbed interest from Barcelona to join the Catalans arch-rivals Real Madrid for £25 million in the summer of 2003. Real Madrid had a poor season in 2003/04 but Beckham impressed and quickly became a fans favourite for the club. The club again failed to win anything the next season but Beckham continued to impress. However, under next manager Fabio Capello Beckham lost favour and found himself having to earn a place in the squad – this he did remarkably well, proving Capello wrong to have dropped him and eventually proving an important asset for Real as they won the league for the first time in a few years. Beckham had already agreed a move to America to play for LA Galaxy back in January but Real were keen to keep him and tried to change the player’s mind. Beckham couldn’t be swayed though and moved to the MLS, eager to make football a bigger sport in the U.S.

LA Galaxy:

Unsurprisingly the massive name signing of Beckham drew a lot of attention at Galaxy and he was immediately taken into the hearts of the club’s fans while opposition fans also flocked to see him in action. Despite injury problems Beckham did well for the club. However, the timings of the seasons in America led to Beckham worrying that he would lose his spot in the England squad as he was desperate to reach 100 international appearances and also to remain a part of the England team as long as he physically could. He trained with Arsenal before agreeing a loan spell with AC Milan to help keep him fit. This didn’t go down well with Galaxy fans though who started to doubt Beckham’s commitment to the team as he missed part of their season to play for Milan and his return saw him vilified and even get into altercations with fans. Recently another loan spell at Milan was agreed as Beckham clearly is not happy at Galaxy any more.

AC Milan:

Beckham joined Milan on loan in January 2009 and quickly established himself as an important player in Carlo Ancelotti’s ageing team, scoring and assisting on a number of occasions and generally impressing to the point where Milan wanted to sign him permanently. A deal couldn’t be agreed with Galaxy though and Beckham returned to America as mentioned. He feels more at home in Italy though and was eager to secure a return to Milan which has now been arranged for January.

International Career:

Beckham made his international debut in 1996 and a long, successful international career has followed with major ups and downs. The ups would undoubtedly be his crucial goals for England – his dramatic last minute free kick goal in a 2001 World Cup play-off put England into the upcoming World Cup and made him a national hero whilst he’s also managed to score several other important goals including being involved in England’s winning goal in the World Cup 2006 clash with Paraguay. His international career has had its bad moments though; he was controversially sent off against Argentina during the 1998 World Cup and was vilified as a villain in England afterwards as the decision contributed to England being eliminated from the tournament. He was also a casualty when Steve McLaren became England boss and decided to show his authority by removing the veteran Beckham from his side – McLaren later had to back down and call up Beckham once more though as England struggled under McLaren’s leadership. He’s also missed important penalties against France and Portugal in big competitions. Beckham reached a century of international caps in March 2008. He has made 115 appearances for his country, scoring 17 times.

Beckham is, in one word, a superstar – his name is synonymous with football; he’s known worldwide as not just a footballer but a style icon and one of the most famous men on the planet. His career has been extremely successful and he’s been highly impressive at three of the world’s biggest clubs and even now, in his later years, he continues to impress and could yet make the World cup in South Africa this summer – he’ll want to – Beckham’s a driven individual who has the lifelong abilities of accuracy and being a world class free kick taker. A lack of pace has never hindered Beckham’s progression and he will always be considered one of the best footballers of all times. A legend of both international and club scenes – children everywhere would love to be the next Beckham – the man’s a star in every sense of the word.

This week we see the legend that is Ian Rush:

Take on a current Liverpool star Fernando Torres.

Skills: Although he his Liverpool’s all time leading goalscorer, you would be hard pressed to find many Liverpool supporters who would think Ian Rush was more skilful than Fernando Torres. Rush had fantastic anticipation, quick feet and lethal finishing but he was a predator, not a creative genius like his strike partner Kenny Dalglish. Torres on the other hand is known for his spectacular goals such as the fantastic volley against Blackburn Rovers at the end of the 2008/09 season, and the way he scored his first goal for the club by beautifully taking a goal against Chelsea. On that occasion he dropped his shoulder and eased past a defender before placing his shot perfectly into the far-corner. Opening round goes to ‘El Nino.’ RUSH 8, TORRES 10

Loyalty: Rush spent almost his entire career at the club, spending almost 15 years at Anfield. He did however have a single season spell at Juventus in 1987 before returning to Merseyside. The lure of European football was too much for Rush at the time but he quickly returned to Liverpool, homesick as he couldn’t fit into the Italian lifestyle. Torres on the other hand signed a contract extension in August 2009 keeping him at the club for a further 4 years. He may move away from Anfield if the club doesn’t win trophies or if Rafa Benitez is sacked, but that is only speculation. Time will tell how loyal he is to the club. RUSH 9, TORRES 9

Achievement: Rush achieved a staggering amount of honours while he was at the club. He won five league titles, three FA Cups, five League Cups and one European Cup. His individual honours included a PFA player of the year and a Football Writer’s Footballer of the Year award in 1984, a PFA young player of the year award in 1983 and the European Golden Boot in 1984 for scoring 32 league goals. Fernando Torres however has yet to win an honour at Anfield but he has won a European Championship at international level. Rush is the hands down winner in this category. RUSH 10, TORRES 7

Adoration: Both players are absolutely adored by the Kop. Rush scored a record of 25 goals in Merseyside derbies (including four goals in a 5-0 win in 1982) in a career that led him to break Roger Hunt’s all time goalscoring record for Liverpool, eventually finishing with 346 goals for the club. A lethal finisher in front of goal, he will remembered by the Kop as the greatest striker in the club’s history. Torres is also an idol on the Kop, nicknamed ‘El Nino,’ he has scored many crucial and spectacular goals for the club, including 24 league goals in his first season at the club overtaking Ruud van Nistelrooy to become the most prolific foreigner ever in a debut season in England. His second half strike against Sunderland on the 2nd of February 2008 started a run of 8 home League matches in which he scored 12 times, including a winner in his first Merseyside derby. It was a scoring run not seen at Anfield since Roger Hunt. Both adored to an equal degree: a draw. RUSH 10, TORRES 10

Summary in a clip: There is so many to choose for both Rush and Torres, but I decided on Rush’s four goals against Everton, and Torres’s goal against Blackburn in 2008:

A difficult choice but just because of the manner of the occasion, I’ll go for Rush. RUSH 10, TORRES 9.

Who is the Greatest?:

RUSH 47, TORRES 45: In my view Rush wins both because of the amount of goals he scored and titles he gained while he achieved his individual feats. Torres may in time surpass Rush in goals scored and perhaps even in terms of trophies if he remains fit and loyal to Liverpool, and perhaps in a decades time we will know for sure who is the greatest. Disagree? Put your case forward in the comments section below. Let’s hear your opinions!

Chelsea’s Premier League experience has been one full of highs and lows, triumphs and disasters, and wealth and bankruptcy. Football Fancast columnist Oliver Major lists his top then heroes at Stamford Bridge in the last 15 years.

10. Dan Petrescu (1995-2000)

The Romanian export, snapped up after an impressive first season in England at Sheffield Wednesday, spent five seasons at Stamford Bridge as an explosive wing back. Petrescu boasted an impressive …

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