Could you please post this in the tiers thread in the football forum? I just want to do the contradictory to what Brwned is saying in what concerns portuguese football. The conception there is in portuguese football (except for Benfica fans which is understandable) is that Ronaldo is a better player than Eusébio. Brwned is talking about Eusébio´s scoring record but you have to keep in mind that his record is eclipsed by the fact he only played in the portuguese league (to his favour he had an agreement to join AC Milan but that deal was blocked by portuguese dictator Salazar because Eusébio was a symbol in his quest to show Portugal and the colonies as a whole). In those days it was normal to have 8-0, 10-3 and other types uneven results against teams like União de Tomar, Elvas, CUF and other minnows that current european football and portuguese football doesn´t have. There were only 3 big games which were the games between Benfica, Sporting and Fc Porto (which in those days was kinda a regional club without the power it has today). You keep talking about Eusébio´s record scoring but Peyroteo from Sporting had a much more impressive record and he isn´t more known worldwide because in his days there were no european competitions. Brwned likes to read so much he can research the Sporting team which was known by the "5 violins team" and see how great they were. Ronaldo scoring records are far more impressive than Eusébio, i mean he has been a top scorer in the two biggest leagues in the world and has been scoring and playing consistently in a far more competitive football age. Ronaldo has already surpassed Eusébio´s European Champions Cup/Champions League scoring tally and is closing quite quickly on Eusébio´s overall European record. The fact Ronaldo achieved this in far more difficult age without the competitive gap there was in those old days makes it much more impressive.
Talking about the National team record and his influence, first i would have to say that Eusébio isn´t even in direct competition with Ronaldo. The two greatest players in the national team history in terms of results and influence are Figo and Ronaldo. Ronaldo and Figo have been pivotal figures in what is without any doubt the best era of the portuguese national team. We have enjoyed the longest run in always qualifying to the main events (World cup and European championships) and have had far better results with Ronaldo than we ever had with Eusébio (don´t you call Eusébio´s team weak because the Magriços team with Coluna, Torres, José Augusto, Hilário, Simões, José Carlos was one of the best ever too). Ronaldo along with his scoring records in the qualifying rounds, has scored in every main event he has played from young age till these days. Ronaldo has matched Eusébio´s best result in a World Cup with a Semi final and has completely obliterated Eusébio´s European Championship´s record of never qualifying to one against Ronaldo´s two semi finals and one final. Most of Eusébio´s numbers in the national team came from trashing weak teams in qualifying rounds and the majority of the portuguese pundits agree with that, comparing Eusébio´s record with Pauleta´s ability to score against weaker teams.
Now as a portuguese and being son and grandson to persons that always loved football and went to the stadiums alot of times, they have always said to me that Ronaldo is a better player than Eusébio. They saw both play, live at the stadium plenty of times and they are unanimous in that. The neutral, the Sporting and Porto fans that saw them play consider Ronaldo the better player. Players from the magriço team except Coluna, Simões and José Augusto who were from Benfica, consider him a better player. There is alot of propaganda in relation to Eusébio because of he was in those fascist days a symbol of colonialist Portugal. He was a puppet in the governaments hands and star player of a Benfica team which was favoured by the political regime. Ronaldo will never end his days playing in a lowly Beira Mar like Eusébio did. Eusébio was a pretty good player and benefits from the testimonials of some of the greatest players in the world football history and i´m not downplaying him but Ronaldo´s record and run in world football elite is much more impressive and the joys he has given to the portuguese people surpass Eusébio´s legacy.
. Was wondering why they called it GOD the whole time. *sigh*