Plenty of all-timers are trying to stake their claim at immortality during this tournament, but few, if any, will ever catch the legends that came before them.With that in mind, let's take a look at 10 of the greatest World Cup players in soccer history.A note before we move forward: this list takes only their World Cup performances into account.MEET THE 10 YOUNGEST PLAYERS IN THE 2026 WORLD CUPPlayers like Johan Cruyff and Cristiano Ronaldo are legendary players, but lack some of the World Cup accomplishments that these 10 possess, be they missing titles or a dearth of longevity.Now that we've gotten that out of the way, let's begin!Italy's World Cup-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro poses next to his Ballon d'Or trophy after being awarded the 2006 Golden Ball for best football player of the year in Paris on Nov.27, 2006.
(Franck Fife/AFP)Che Cannavaro! Che capitano!We start this list off with a bang, as Italy's Fabio Cannavaro is arguably the greatest center back in World Cup history.His 2006 run to the title is the stuff of legend, anchoring an Italy defense that gave up only two goals during the entire tournament, one of which was an own-goal and the other being a penalty.Cannavaro was the captain of that '06 squad that knocked France out in the finals, and for the cherry on top, he won the Ballon d'Or that year, an extremely rare feat that only two other true defenders have accomplished.ENGLISH FANS TAKE OVER BILLY BOB'S HONKY TONK IN FORT WORTH FOLLOWING WIN OVER CROATIAEngland footballer Bobby Charlton relaxes with a game of cricket at Roehampton on the eve of the World Cup Final on July 29, 1966.(Monte Fresco/Daily Mirror/Mirrorpix)That's SIR Bobby Charlton to you!English fans constantly bring up the 1966 World Cup, mostly because it was their last and only win, but also because of how magical that team was, and the heart and soul of it was Charlton.His leadership and goal-scoring abilities were the driving force behind England's win on their home soil, and ...