NEW BIN:
height has nothing to do with soccer, you can ask messi, maradona, jay-jay,aguero, park etc etc

Fulaman198: What about people like Nwankwo Kanu who was one of the best strikers in his time when he was not sick. He was easily as good as Ronaldo when in his prime. Also Henry who is over 6 feet. Being a tall footballer has its advantages. Not really many disadvantages when you know how to play.

Also African footballers are very underrated. It is hard to really say what makes and breaks a strong team. When Nigeria was good in the 90s it was due to their speed, precise ball handling and passing. Don't forget how we bested Brazil, Argentina, and Spain in the 90s.

It is due to the corruption of our country that we can no longer field a team like that.

Don't forget how we bested Brazil, Argentina, and Spain in the 90s.

omar22:


Kanu was never prolific as a striker, he was never good as Ronaldo and he a subsitute for Patrick Kluivert





Thats an Under 23 tournament which goes nowhere FIFA's ranking despite using overage players

Sybellah: I believe physical characteristics do have a role to play in performance and well according to your position in the field. Is Messy able to outperform a defensive position with his stature? I don't think so. Plus I don't think the like of Pele, Messy, Maradonna height outweight the number of good players in similar positions. I ll be posting all African players height and weight according to their position and see if there is a correlation between their physical characteristics and their performance at their respective position.

Fulaman198:

Messi only plays well in his club.

Most great players have been 6 ft more (Zidane, Figo, Kanu, Drogba, Hate to say it but even Cristiano Ronaldo). Henry of France, etc. Etc.

Tall players can play any position, short players can't

omar22:


Kanu was never prolific as a striker, he was never good as Ronaldo and he a subsitute for Patrick Kluivert

Sybellah:

A substitute of Kluivert who is himself at least 6,2? lol
Kluivert was a very powerful forward, with pace and precision in his shooting. And if he has been smaller, i bet this would have been a totally different story.

Fulaman198:

That was only in Milan though my dear Sybellah, but I do agree with you Kanu was prolific before he got sick, and at one point after his heart surgery he was the African player of the year in Arsenal and leading scorer. But you are correct a lot of the best players (if not most have been over 6 feet)

Bergkamp is another example (fellow strike to Kluivert), I'm surprised I forgot to mention him, but when I was growing up (I'm 28 now), there used to be so much talent in the mid 90s to early 2000s. I don't think Football is as exciting now as it was then. A short man can never be a goalkeeper or defender. Yet a tall man can play EVERY position and excel at it.

I would like to say the best defender of all time or one of the best is Lilian Thuram (who was a defender but also was very offensive minded). He is a big man too. Kanu is 6'5 or 6'6" and could play striker well when he was in peak form, very few rivaled him. Most greats have been taller/bigger players. Size matters just about in every sport.

Sybellah:

U didn't like Kluivert bro? I liked him in Milan and Barcelona. The thing is toward his end in Barcelona, he went down cuz he was taking football less seriously and always partied like a rock star

Fulaman198: What about people like Nwankwo Kanu who was one of the best strikers in his time when he was not sick. He was easily as good as Ronaldo when in his prime. Also Henry who is over 6 feet. Being a tall footballer has its advantages. Not really many disadvantages when you know how to play.

Also African footballers are very underrated. It is hard to really say what makes and breaks a strong team. When Nigeria was good in the 90s it was due to their speed, precise ball handling and passing. Don't forget how we bested Brazil, Argentina, and Spain in the 90s.

It is due to the corruption of our country that we can no longer field a team like that.

Fulaman198:

I think you forget when Kanu won African player of the year and was the leading scorer in the premier league.

Also Nigeria beat Spain in the 1998 world cup not Olympics

Sybellah:

A substitute of Kluivert who is himself at least 6,2? lol
Kluivert was a very powerful forward, with pace and precision in his shooting. And if he has been smaller, i bet this would have been a totally different story.

baby-boy:


When did Kanu ever led the goal scoring chart in in the premier league, he won his award in 1999 and the was the year Dwight Yorke and Andy Cole led United to the treble

Black Kenichi: The AFCON 2013

Group A
South Africa - Average height (all 23 players) - 176.61cms/5’9.5”
Angola - Average height (20 out of 23 players) - 180.7cms/5’11.1”
Morocco - Average height (21 out of 23 players) – 181.26cms/5’11.4”
Cape Verde - Average height (22 out of 23 players) - 181.89cms/5’11.6”

Group B
Ghana - Average height (all 23 players) - 180.61cms/5’11.1’’
Mali - Average height (21 out of 23 players) – 184.285cms/6’0.5”
Niger - Average height (16 out of 23 players) – 181.19cms/5’11.3”
DR Congo - Average height (18 out of 23 players) – 178.53cms/5’10.3”

Group C
Zambia - Average height (21 out of 23 players) - 177.67cms/5’9.9”
Nigeria - Average height (22 out of 23 players) - 181.32cms/5’11.4”
Burkina Faso - Average height (21 out of 23 players) - 180.36cms/5’11.01”
Ethiopia - Average height (20 out of 23 players) – 178.375cms/5’10.2”

Group D
Ivory Coast - Average height (all 23 players) – 182.02cms/5’11.7”
Tunisia - Average height (all 23 players) – 183.46cms/6’0.2”
Algeria - Average height (all 23 players) – 182.24cms/5’11.7”
Togo - Average height (21 out of 23 players) – 180.83cms/5’11.2”

This was from all the available sources on the net! Most heights of football players are exaggerated so I had to modify them (e.g. Asamoah Gyan is not 6'1".
I might do an average facial composite of each team when I have the time!