A Tribute To Ferenc Puskas

R.I.P

RIP

RIP

RIP

Hes one of my top 5 all time players. Hers what wiki have to say on someone who I truly feel could have been the most effective player the world has ever witnessed:

Ferenc Puskás Biró (April 2, 1927–November 17, 2006), also referred to as Puskás Ferenc or Purczeld Ferenc, was a Hungarian footballer and coach born in Budapest Hungary. He played for Honvéd and Hungary before joining Real Madrid and going onto play for Spain. During the 1950s, in a Hungarian team that also included Zoltán Czibor, Sándor Kocsis, József Bozsik and Nándor Hidegkuti, he was captain of the legendary Mighty Magyars. After the 1956 Hungarian Revolution he moved to Spain where he became part of the legendary Real Madrid team that also included Alfredo Di Stéfano, Francisco Gento, Raymond Kopa and José Santamaria.
Puskás, with a powerful left-foot shot, was a prolific goalscorer throughout his career. He was top scorer in the Hungarian League on four occasions and in 1948 he was the top goal scorer in any European league. While playing with Real Madrid he won four Pichichis and scored seven goals in two European Cup finals. After retiring as a player he became a coach and in 1971 led Panathinaikos to the European Cup final. In 2002 the Népstadion in Budapest was renamed the Stadion Puskas Ferenc in his honour. He was also declared the best Hungarian player of the last 50 years by the Hungarian Football Federation in the UEFA Jubilee Awards in November 2003 [1]. Puskás was admitted to intensive care in a Budapest hospital on September 13, 2006 [2] and died on November 17, 2006 [3].



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[edit] The Galloping Major


Puskás began his career as a junior with Kispest AC where his father was a coach. Legend has it that he played under the pseudonym Miklós Kovács before officially signing as a twelve year old. Among his early team-mates were his childhood friend József Bozsik. In 1949 the club was taken over by the Hungarian Ministry of Defence and it became the Hungarian Army team and the club was became known as Honvéd. As a result football players were given military ranks and Puskás eventually became a major which led to the nickname The Galloping Major. As the army club Honvéd were also allowed to conscript the best Hungarian players which led to the them recruiting Zoltán Czibor and Sándor Kocsis. During his career at Honvéd, he helped the club win five Hungarian League titles. He also finished as top goal scorer in the league in 1947/48, 1949/50, 1950 and 1953, scoring 50, 31, 25 and 27 goals respectively. In 1948 he was also the top goal scorer in any European league.
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[edit] The Mighty Magyars


Puskás made his debut for Hungary on August 20 1945 and scored in a 5-2 win over Austria. He went onto play 84 games and scored 83 times for Hungary. His international goal record included two hat tricks against Austria, one against Luxembourg and 4 goals in a 12-0 win over Albania Together with Zoltán Czibor, Sándor Kocsis, József Bozsik and Nándor Hidegkuti, he formed the nucleus of the legendary team that went unbeaten for an incredible 32 consecutive games. This record still stands today.
During this run they became Olympic Champions in 1952, beating Yugoslavia 2-0 in the Helsinki final. Puskás scored four times at the Olympic tournament including the opening goal in the final. They also twice gave England a footballing lesson. In 1953 they stunned England with a 6-3 win at Wembley Stadium and then in 1954 they gave them a 7-1 hammering in Budapest. Puskás scored two goals in each game against England. In 1953 they also won the Dr. Gerõ Cup, a nations cup for Central European teams. The tournament began in 1948 and took five years to complete. Hungary eventually emerged top of the table with 11 points. Puskás finished the tournament as top scorer with 10 goals and scored twice as Hungary claimed the trophy with a 3-0 win over Italy in Rome in 1953.
The unbeaten run came to an end in the 1954 World Cup Final when Hungary lost 3-2 to West Germany. The game saw Puskás playing even though he was not fully fit. Despite this he put his team ahead after only 6 minutes, and with Czibor adding another two minutes later it seemed destined that the pre-tournament favourites would take the title. However the Germans pulled back two goals before half time and the tide began to turn. The second half saw telling misses from the Hungarian team and then with six minutes left the Germans scored the winner. Puskás then had a goal disallowed with two minutes left before the game and Hungary’s unbeaten run was ended.
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[edit] Honvéd World Tour


In 1956 Honvéd entered the European Cup and in the first round they were drawn against Atlético Bilbao. Honvéd lost the away leg 2-3, but before the home leg could be played, the Hungarian Revolution had erupted back in Budapest. The players decided against going back to Hungary and arranged for the return with Atlético to be played at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels. Puskás scored in the subsequent 3-3 draw but Honvéd went out 6-5 on aggregate. Elimination left the players in limbo. The players summoned their families from Budapest and, despite opposition from FIFA and the Hungarian football authorities, they organised a fundraising tour of Italy, Portugal, Spain and Brazil. After returning to Europe, the players parted ways. Some, including Bozsik, returned to Hungary while others, including Czibor, Kocsis and Puskás, found new clubs in Western Europe.
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[edit] Real Madrid


After refusing to return to Hungary, Puskás initially played a few unofficial games for RCD Español but then received a two year ban from UEFA which prevented him from playing in Europe. He moved to Austria and then Italy, where both AC Milan and Juventus attempted to sign him. However in 1958 he joined Real Madrid and at the age of 31 he embarked on the second phase of his remarkable career. During his first La Liga season, 1958/59, he scored four hat-tricks including one in his second game against Sporting de Gijón on September 21 1958. In January 1959 Puskás and Alfredo Di Stéfano ran riot against UD Las Palmas, both of them scoring hat-tricks in a 10-1 win. During the 1960/61 season he scored 4 in a game against Elche CF and the following season he scored 5 against the same opponents. In 1963 he scored two hat-tricks against CF Barcelona, one at the Bernabéu and one at the Camp Nou. During eight seasons with Real, Puskás played 180 La Liga games, scoring 156 goals. He also won the Pichichi four times in 1960, 1961, 1963 and 1964 scoring 26, 27, 26 and 20 goals respectively. He also helped Real win La Liga five times in a row between 1961 and 1965 and the Copa del Generalísimo in 1962. He scored both goals in the 2-1 victory over Sevilla CF in the Copa final.
Puskás also played a further 39 games for Real in the European Cup, scoring 35 goals. He helped Real reach the final of the 1959 European Cup, scoring in each of the two legs of the semi-final against Atlético Madrid, but missed the final due to injury. However, the following season he would make up for it. He began Real’s 1960 European Cup campaign with a hat-trick against Jeunesse Esch and in semi-final against CF Barcelona, he once again guided Real into the final with three goals over two legs. In the final itself, regarded by some as one the greatest finals ever, Puskás and Di Stéfano once again ran riot. Real beat Eintracht Frankfurt 7-3 with Puskás scoring four goals and Di Stéfano scoring three. In subsequent European campaigns he would score a further three hat-tricks including one in the 1962 final against SL Benfica which Real lost 5-3.
While also playing for Real, Puskás made played four times for Spain and represented them at the 1962 World Cup. For once his goalscoring form deserted him and he failed to score any goals for Spain.

"Hungary legend Puskas dies at 79"

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/6155766.stm

Devastated

The king is dead.

Esz volt a kiraly.

this bit from the BBC shows how incredible the guy was:

'In all, he scored 512 goals for Real in 528 matches' - that puts Ronaldo and Batistuta's acoring records to shame, in fact it puts pretty much everyone to shame, except pele

Legend. RIP.

And he never had a right foot either. Makes it all the more amazing

Well in my hoenst opinion the guy is probably the second best European player there ever was and fourth in world football

He was certainly the best EVER left footed player there has ever been in my opinion. Him and Di Stefano possibly the greatest ever striking partnership too.

Damn straight, Puskas>Stefano though

Legend, Absolute Legend.

One of the top 5 European Player of All Time.

RIP

rai Godenzonen wrote:Legend, Absolute Legend.

One of the top 5 WORLD Player of All Time.

RIP

Tweedledum wrote:

rai Godenzonen wrote:Legend, Absolute Legend.

One of the top 5 WORLD Player of All Time.

RIP

That to.

Tweedledum wrote:Damn straight, Puskas>Stefano though

Sentimental but hard to say - Di Stefano was a better allround player from what I've heard. However Puskas was an instrumental part of the arguably the greatest national side of the time- the magic magyars- who reinvented European football through their "galloping" attacking style. Like Holland's 70's side, the greatest team to have never won the WC, they reached 2 finals, only to be beaten by, yup, you guessed it- those pesky Germans!

In the 1952 final, when Hungary were 2-0 up, playing a side they had demolished 8-3 in the group stage, Puskas scored a legitimate goal which would have made the game 3-3, but it was wrongly ruled offside. Hungary ended up losing the match 3-2. Thus when you hear current German fans moaning about the England goal that never was in 1966, the phrase "swings and roundabouts" comes to mind...

Stefano was undoubtedly a great player but wasn't in the same league as Puskas, its not a sentimental matter but it is a matter of personal opinion...

Tweedledum wrote:Stefano was undoubtedly a great player but wasn't in the same league as Puskas, its not a sentimental matter but it is a matter of personal opinion...

Wont hear me arguing with that. Imagine if he had had a right foot aswell, then no one would be talking about Pele today

Puskas was very well looked after by the Hungarian State system, but seems he was shoddily by Real Madrid, who recently played a friendly game in Hungary for hjis charity, then claimed back their expenses:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml?xml=/sport/2005/10/18/sfnpus18.xml&sSheet=/sport/2005/10/18/ixfooty.html

The richest club in the World and one of its greatest ever players who died at odds with one another. Sad really

Typical Madrid

Sums them up really

From BBC sport

How good was Puskus?

Hungary and Real Madrid legend Ferenc Puskas died on Friday at the age of 79. But just how good was the man they called 'Galloping Major'?
REAL MADRID TEAM-MATE ALFREDO DI STEFANO


The man was a supertalent.



REAL MADRID PRESIDENT RAMON CALDERON


This is one of the saddest days for Madrid fans, I can assure you it is the most painful day since I took the presidency.
He had many friends and was a man liked by everyone, admired as a professional and a person.
The Madrid fans in general, and those of my age in particular, will feel a great emptiness for the loss of one our childhood heroes.
I want to send a big hug to his all of his family and friends in these very painful moments.



ENGLAND LEGEND TOM FINNEY


We'd never seen the likes of that Hungarian side of 1956 before and Ferenc truly was just a wonderful player.
He had a roly-poly physique but a wonderful left-foot and he was a brilliant finisher.
After losing 6-3 at Wembley we went to Budapest and lost 7-1. They were a wonderful side that day, not just Puskas, although he had a fine game as per usual.
I would put Puskas in any list of all-time greats. A wonderful player and a wonderful person and he really enjoyed playing the game.



HUNGARY TEAM-MATE NANDOR HIDEGKUTI


Of all of us, he was the best.
He had a seventh sense for soccer. If there were 1,000 solutions, he would pick the 1,001st.



HUNGARIAN JOURNALIST ART SZOCZI


He was always looked up to as a role model for anyone who wanted to do anything in sport.
He left this amazing legacy - this was a guy who at 31 defected from Hungary, had to sit out a Fifa ban and came back to be a great star at Real Madrid, becoming one of the best players in the history of the game.
I spoke recently to two members of the West Germany team that played Hungary in the 1954 World Cup final, and they don't think there will ever be anyone like him ever again.



JIMMY HILL, WHO LOOKED ON AS HUNGARY BEAT ENGLAND 6-3


It took my breath away to see someone who could manipulate a football and play passing movements against an England team and beat them 6-3.
It was just quite staggering. I paid my own money to go and I was only a supporter but it took my breath away that a country could produce 11 players like that and one stood out above the rest .
He had such control of the ball and so much skill. He could make long, accurate passes and could score goals.

If i'm honest i thought he was already dead, still though...

RIP

RIP!

The perfect goal:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCaEDoB2oxc&NR

The Real White Pele wrote:The perfect goal:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCaEDoB2oxc&NR

a Beauty

That left foot of his was a wand.

Great player. 1 of the best. Pity he didn't won his deserved World Cup with Hungary in 1954.

The FIFA made a horrible decison to appoint English ref William Ling for the final. He singlehandedly took revenge for England's 2 defeat's by Hungary (in friendlies) by giving every call in favour of Germany.

357 goals in 354 games for Honved

83 goals in 84 international games

512 goals in 528 for Madrid



Career record:

Played: 966
Scored: 952

And thats competitive goals, not like the pansy games that Pele played in!

Impressive record. We have to take into account though, that in those days the average number of goals scored in a football match was much higher.

RIP

Sad to hear is gone, a true football legend that should have won the WC in 1954. I heard he had to sell his some of his prices to pay they hospital bills? Is that how Madrid and Hungary honor their legends?