Players like Ronaldo, Messi and Neymar aren’t for sure, because defending should also be in the conversation. The Camavinga memes had me thinking, is there a player who was/is actually really good at everything, or at least most things inside the pitch?
Gullit, Yaya Toure, Matthaus and in general box2box players could do anything from defending to scoring. Pogba when he was world class is a good example. Defenders who scored regurarly like Ramos, Hierro or Koeman, even fullbacks like Marcelo or Dani Alves are exceptional on many things.
Another fun pick would be Jorge Campos, the goalkeeper who also played as an attacker sometimes.
Arturo Vidal
He has been capable of playing anywhere in midfield, and in several different formations. He initially played in several different defensive and midfield roles in his early years, before eventually coming into his own in the centre, with Juventus, as either a “mezzala” or box-to-box midfielder.
Throughout his career, he has also been deployed as a central defender, as a defensive midfielder, as an attacking midfielder, or even on the wing, due to his crossing ability. He is also capable of playing as a full-back or wing-back on either side of the pitch, while with the Chile national team, he has even played in a more advanced role on occasion, positioned as a centre-forward or striker, but effectively functioning as a false-9. He has also been used as a second striker, and as a false attacking midfielder on occasion.
good defensive performance, incredible resistance, technically outstanding and very good at assisting and scoring goals. A pure all-rounder. It’s a shame how his level has dropped so much in recent years.