Cafu or Lahm?

Admittedly I did not benefit from seeing Cafu in his prime when he played in Europe when he was already a player in the twilight of his career. Moreover, I know even Alves refers to Cafu as the GOAT but this has been the sort of reverence Brazilians have for one another too - and Dani has typically let his play on the pitch do the talking. Meanwhile, Cafu has himself pointed to Alves being the better RB

I point to three factors that sets Alves apart from the rest. One, he had more than double Cafu’s performances in Europe (around 600 to 300). Two, his trophy haul has been a record that Cafu has never come close to. Three, I think people mostly remember Dani with Barca and forget his monster years at Sevilla. To this day, I have never seen a defensive player impose so much fear at both ends of the pitch - to be a difference maker from the RB position, than Alves.

I mean, can you ever recall a team whose best player was their fullback, and they relied on the defender to score & defend? You had to factor Dani into your tactical game plan when facing him, a RB - still boggles the mind. I think it is remarkable that many didn’t get to appreciate how devastatingly effective he was at Sevilla

Agree though that even peak Pep’s Barca, one of the greatest variables to that success was the chemistry between Alves & Leo - it was innate and it was my favorite interaction to watch on the pitch, just over Xavi-Iniesta

But I get the Cafu or Lahm shouts, immensely influential players too - I just have never seen a fullback like Alves

 

Have you watched the huns?

 

Maybe need to “defend” my opinion.
During his peak he was class for that period.

Historically, not for me in the greatest though.
As time goes on he will become further away from the top, although some of the ones I would put above him were before him & remain above him imho.

 

Who would you put above him?

 

Once there’s controversial Italian CB opinions being discussed if Zidane never headered Mattarazzi, he’d have won Balon d’Or instead of Cannavaro, and nobody would rate him as highly as he is now.

Great defender, world class, wasn’t anywhere near as good as Maldini, Stam or Nesta. Closer to a Chiellini rather than guys like that, who are the peak of what I’ve seen in my time watching football.

Absolutely have him around other world class brilliant CB’s who were at the top of the game, like Blanc, Thuram, Puyol, Ramos, Lucio etc. but not above that like he’s made out to be - and it’s due to Balon d’Or win, that would have 100% been Zidane except you can’t give it to him after finishing his career with a headbutt to a big pain in the * of a defenders chest, losing the plot. Zidane the rest of the WC, which basically was the decider for who’d win the Balon d’Or he was so far ahead of anycunt else it was unreal.

Best finish to a legendary career ever, bossed and outclassed everyone in a World Cup, said * this I’m retiring anyway and destroyed Matarazzi

Lost the world cup cos of it tbf, but it’s more memorable an exit from the game than anything anycunt else has done.

 

At the level the two were at it’s opinions that you could absolutely make the case either way. Alves going forward was that devastating I always thought people underrated how good defensively he was due to it, because it was less noticeable. He’s the only player that could come into the debate infront of Cafu, and the point about his longevity and sheer number of games he maintained how good he was at that level is probably the point that’d swing me to putting him ahead.

Because it felt the age I was, was when Cafu was about would be a lot longer, because he was an ever steady presence growing up watching football. Cafu though, he was a monster defensively, as a leader and going forward.

Often credited as the first ‘modern’ attacking fullback, he was far from it but he was that much a game changer of a player that label stuck. Alves was better offensively, Cafu better defensively. Both were also exceptional going forward and back, but the gap between how better defensively Cafu was than how better Alves was offensively than him would make me stick with Cafu. But either of them is an answer I couldn’t quibble about as being wrong if you opt for one over the other.

Lahm was amazing and was that at RB, LB and as a deep lying playmaker, but judging just as RB? He wouldn’t come into it when compared to the two. Probably Maicon alone, for only two seasons, matched the levels they both did for over a decade.

 

Thuram was right up there above those other defenders you mention. Probably the best defensive right back ever.

 

Honestly reckon any of them can be picked out by someone and disputed tbh

 

both were quality lahm maybe more versatile playing left back for bayern and right back for Germany also played def mid and right mid. cafu though 142 caps for Brazil wow.. fun fact lahm was signed on loan by stuttgart to be back up to andreas hinkel at rb but felix magath switched him to lb. Ashley Cole should also get a shout he was absolute quality for over a decade in epl

 

You might not agree with these but it’s my opinion mate.
Baresi, Beckenbaur, Moore, Nesta, Cafu, Brehme, Lahm, Thuram.
I nearly put Des Walker in there as a wild card. I thought he was fantastic for years & only let down by the teams he played in.
Danny Mcgrain is in there as well. If he had taken Maldini’s place in his games there would have been no weakening, in fact, I believe he would have made it better.
VVD is there as well. He looked like the proverbial “man against boys” in Scotland, nobody expected that in the epl but that’s exactly what they got for a few years & that was against many of the greatest current footballers around.

 

Baresi and Beckenbauer I can get on board with. The others I'd have Maldini ahead of, but at that level of player it's very close. I do think longevity coming into the argument is valid though.