Forget the GOAT, who’s your MEOAT?

The perennial GOAT (Greatest of All Time) debate between the usual two Argentines, the Madeiran and the star of Escape to Victory (no, not John Wark…) is one of those discussions that rages on and on. Endless stats for goals scored, titles won, assists made go back and forth. The problem is it misses the point of what I feel really makes a player great - their entertainment value. Alan Shearer scored ludicrous amounts of goals, but there was nothing thrilling about how he played the game. Entertainment value is something only a special few possess. For me, Ronaldinho is the ultimate entertainer. He played 11-a-side the same way he played beach football. He was astonishing to watch. A combination of devastating pace, acceleration, strength, passing vision, tricks, flicks, shimmies and nutmegs made him virtually impossible to defend against.

Ronaldinho’s magic propelled his club to league titles, a Champions League and his country to World Cup glory. Although he didn’t have the most Ballon d’Ors, titles or goals, his contribution to the game transcends these dull, quantifiable measures. The greatest gift Ronaldinho gave to the world was that he was simply the most entertaining football spectacle on earth. Ever. He was the MEOAT (Most Entertaining of All Time)!

“Are you not entertained…?”

Being an ‘entertainer’ is a broad term capable of embracing all sorts of players. Whilst they can be lethal strikers like Zlatan Ibrahimovic or Thierry Henry or balletic no 10’s like Dejan Savicevic or Alessandro Del Piero, they might be more functional players, beloved for their blood, sweat and tears. Sam Morsy entertains me every game with his warrior like displays, surging runs and endlessly perfect passes. Andrea Pirlo thrilled me. So did Clarence Seedorf.

But the difference is true entertainers make you believe in miracles, whereas some great players, however fantastic, just impress you with what you have come to expect; another wonderous pass from Pirlo, another full-blooded tackle from Morsy. To be an entertainer is to be the guy that gets me out of my seat the instant the ball lands at his feet. You are the one we picture as we drift off to sleep the night before a game, excited to our core at the prospect of seeing you take to the field tomorrow.

Who, then, is the ITFC MEOAT?

The Chosen Few…

In no particular order, I present the following long list, followed by my short list summarising what made some of them so entertaining and, finally, my choice of MEOAT. You can offer your view on your MEOAT in the comments and help those of us that didn’t have the chance to see the greats in Ipswich’s glory days with some insight into how entertaining they were to watch.

The MEOAT longlist list:

Sixto Peralta, Kieron Dyer, Darren Ambrose, Omari Hutchinson, Eric Gates, Bobby Petta, Paul Mariner, Giovanni Dos Santos, Jason Dozzell, Mauricio Tarico, Wes Burns, Martijn Reuser, Frans Thyssen, Arnold Muhren, Alan Brazil, Trevor Whymark, David Johnson (the 1st!), Ted Phillips, Marcus Stewart, Ray Crawford.

My MEOAT Shortlist

My MEAOT shortlist reflects my time watching Ipswich from the early 90’s. They were tough times to join the Blue Army and pickings were thin. My first game was a 5-1 hammering at home to Arsenal. Therefore I don’t feel qualified to comment on players I never saw beyond some clipped highlights and goals. The ‘entertainment’ factor is intrinsically bound up with the wider lived experience we have of being at these games, seeing these players and the broader emotions connecting them to our lives at the time.

I just hope that those who watched the great Ipswich Town sides can give us insight into these entertainers. After all, some of these guys were top level internationals!

With no further ado, here’s my shortlist.

Bobby Petta

Pre-season in Summer 1996 saw Town play at home in a friendly against Arsenal. Dennis Bergkamp played but he wasn’t the best player on the day. In fact, he wasn’t even the best Dutchman on the pitch that day. Bobby Petta was. No-one knew who or what to expect from him at first, but being Dutch always buys you favour with the Portman Road faithful. By mid-way through the first half a packed out North Stand was chanting for the ball to simply be given to the mercurial left winger as he danced around the Arsenal defence and carved them open time and again in a thrilling 1-1 draw.

Petta’s arrival marked the start of an exciting and upward trajectory for the club. His silky skills lifted the crowd in the way only a player with a power to truly entertain can. He was our outlet on the left in a classic 442 formation that let him glide down the pitch in a way we’d not seen a player do for a very long time. He didn’t score bundles of goals but he made the opposition defend deep and panic when he was in possession. More than that though, he lifted a club that had suffered for a long time, helping to set it on a path to success and, fittingly, he finished his career with us in the epic (but pyrrhic) 4-3 win over Bolton in the 1999 play-off semi-final. Bobby, we are forever grateful.

Omari Hutchinson

At ten minutes past four on Saturday 16 March 2024 Omari Hutchinson’s lithe body flips through the air, flying above the Portman Road pitch. He’s in the middle of a trademark somersault goal celebration capping a near perfect display of devastating attacking prowess that has swept Sheffield Wednesday aside in a 6-0 victory.

When he gets the ball, the whole ground rises in expectation. He’s the most entertaining individual at Portman Road this season. And for many a season, for that matter. His ability to connect his pace, skill, and vision with the wider movement of the teammates around him shows a level of ability few learn to develop at all. He’s managed it within his first season in pro football.

Every time he gets the ball, magic happens. Players are left for dead, crosses are pinged with precision, dribbles are made inside followed by curling left footed shots forcing opponents to defend deeper. And goals come, initially most from his electrifying substitute appearances, now from his starts also. He’s a live wire, a player that conjures magic with the ball at his feet and, like our manager, we’ve got to just enjoy him while we can.

Giovanni Dos Santos

For a player with only 8 appearances and 4 goals, anyone outside of ITFC would wonder why on earth he’s getting a mention. But context is everything and during a difficult period for the club where finances and ambition limited the quality on the pitch, ‘Gio’ was a shining light of hope and joy.

Despite his modest game time, when he played, he really played. His first goals were equalisers and, of course, his assist and penalty in the win over Norwich made him an instant hero. He was easily our best player and made pulses rise every time he was on the ball. He had strength, power, pace and a deftness of touch from a higher level. He gave us the elixir of the unexpected - would it be a surging run, a neat lay off we didn’t even see was on or a thunderous hammer of a shot from range.

Gio epitomised the joy and thrill of watching a player born with the gift to entertain and be a match winner. The time we had together was brief, but better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all.

Jason Dozzell

With Town slipping away as a dominant force in English and European football, the mid to late 80’s were a tough time. But one player emerged back then that rekindled hope and brought joy back through displays that evoked ‘the good times’. Dozzell did himself no harm by scoring on his debut and becoming the youngest ever player to score in the top flight of English football. He was a game changer for us in a decent side that was prepping for a promotion charge in 91/92.

His surging runs from midfield into forward positions and ability to produce a variety of goals, from bullet headers to belters from range to the scrappy goals (notably in the 3-1 victory over Nodge in April 1993) made him a player that lifted the spirits of supporters every time the team attacked. So often, the outcome was another goal from a player that is, arguably, the first ‘modern no 10’ we had the joy to watch.

Wes Burns

Plucked from the obscurity of Fleetwood Town, not much was expected of Wes. Perhaps my sentiment about him is affected by a player I saw had devastating pace and an eye for goal and felt would thrive on the stage we could provide for him. My pre 21/22 season prediction he’d be our Player Of The Year was widely derided on the forum I posted to and I sat thinking, ‘right Wes, over to you mate…’!

In his first season Wes was not only POTY but our top goal scorer and his presence on the pitch was a source of inspiration. Perhaps not since Finidi George (or Gus Uhlenbeek before him) had we seen such raw pace and power on the right wing. Seeing Wes size his opponents up before opting to surge past them or cut inside on a mazy run remains a joy to behold.

His goal this season vs Coventry is simply one of the best professional level goals ever scored and footage of it went viral around the world. His rise from the lower leagues is a journey we’ve taken together and a deep bond has been forged between player and fans. Whilst he’s doesn’t have the tricks and ‘no look’ passes that some in his position display, whenever he plays fans lick their lips in anticipation of a driving run, a burst into the box or a drilled shot low to the keepers right. His way of playing makes him a joy to watch and provides magnificent all round entertainment value.

My MEOAT

Deciding on our MEOAT is a deeply personal choice based on the raw emotion they make us feel and separate from the stats around goals and assists. It’s connected to the heart and soul we invest into the game and the team we support. It doesn’t have to be based on pure logic. Not much about football fandom does. If logic prevailed we’d all support Man City or Real Madrid so we could see our team win every week. But it just doesn’t work like that.

So my MEOAT is Bobby Petta.  As a teenage supporter in the mid-90’s, he was the shining light of hope for me in a dark time. All I’d known was pain and suffering as a Town fan; relegation from the PL and thrashing after thrashing. With the reorganisation that Sheepshanks and Burley brought came Bobby Petta to sprinkle some much needed star dust onto Portman Road.

Petta embodied the new dawn and the future hope around the club as young players like Taricco and Holland, Dyer and Bramble created an irrepressible force that finally drove the club to get over the line on that epic day at Wembley in 2000. Petta wasn’t part of the final promotion winning team or subsequent PL chapter in our story but he certainly wrote the first pages and made the whole experience in the mid to late nineties so much fun. He was just so… entertaining.

Bobby Petta

Ipswich Town Career (1996-1999)

Appearances 71

Goals 7

Debut v Manchester City (Maine Road, 16th August 1996)

First Goal v Swindon Town (County Ground, 28th December 1997)

Final Game v Bolton Wanderers (Portman Road, 19th May 1999)

Got any good suggestions for your Most Entertaining of All Time? Leave them in the comments…