Bobby Moore - football's number 1 number 6

Starting this weekend, and only 15 years after he died, West Ham are honouring their most celebrated son, Bobby Moore, by retiring the number 6 shirt he wore with such elan for the club. I think it's a sound idea, and it got me thinking about Moore's standing in the pantheon of football legends.

So what I've done is this: I've come up with a set of arbitrary and one-eyed criteria for legendariness and applied them to the most revered footballers I can think of.

Criterion 1: You have to have played in England.
Otherwise all sorts of fancy dans qualify, like Maradona and Pele, along with people I don't know anything about. Also, the English league is the best in the world so there.

Criterion 2: You have to be British.
Actually, let's just exclude all foreigners. It's neater, it's comfortingly xenophobic in the true British tradition and it excludes flashy parvenus like Eric Cantona and Dennis Bergkamp. While we're at it, let's exclude the word "parvenu".

Criterion 3: You have to have played for a club that is generally well-liked.
Yes, West Ham counts! No, Leeds doesn't. Mr Bremner and Mr Hunter, thank you for coming.

Criterion 4: You have to look good.
This is just a flimsy excuse to weed out the centre-parted stalwarts in balloon shorts from the black and white days. Farewell Matthews, Mortensen, Dean and Milburn. I know, I know, it's hard to look good in monochrome. Commiserations, too, to Bobby Charlton, Tony Adams and Gordon Banks.

Criterion 5: You had to have had a life.
No "chicken and beans", no "quick half with the lads", no "model professional". What we need is character. What we need is joie de vivre bordering on self abuse. Hop off, Shearer. On your bike, Lineker. Get out of my sight, Hoddle.

Criterion 6: You have to be dead.
Anyone still alive runs the risk of blotting their copybook and doing something that takes the gloss of their career. Sorry, Mr Lofthouse, but if there's even the remotest chance of seeing you in a leotard on Celebrity Big Brother, I can't consider you.

So who are we left with? Moore R and Best G. So difficult to choose between them. Both larger than life characters, playing the game with grace and style, living life to the full off the pitch, and leaving football fans the world over with nothing but good memories.

How are we to separate these two heroes?

Criterion 7: You have to have won the World Cup.
Oh, bad luck Mr Best. So close, and yet so far. The winner of the official, unbiased search for football's top legend is Bobby Moore (West Ham and England). (And Fulham).

From now on, the number 6 shirt at West Ham will be worn by nobody, because nobody is fit to wear it. Next season, the number 7 shirt at Old Trafford will be worn by Cristiano Ronaldo. And doesn't that just say it all?

Comments

[Brian Ness]

Looks like one man fits the criteria perfectly......James Baxter of Sunderland who literally destroyed and embarrassed England at Wembley in 1967....amongst his other feats.....

[Colin]

Despite being an avid Arsenal supporter I think Duncan Edwards in his short lifetime was better than George Best, but agree Bobby Moore as number one.

[Marc]

That criterion leaves just George Best and Bobby Moore?
Didn't realise Man United were generally well liked

[Richard]

Bobby Moore - football's number 1. (full stop)