K minus 13 days - Legends - Kocsis, Fontaine, Charlton, Muller, Cruyff

Along with Puskas, Kocsis is one of the best players to have emerged from Hungary. Both of them were part of the golden team "Mighty Magyars", which also include Zoltan Czibor, Jozsef Bozsik and Nandor Hidegkuti. The legend of Kocsis was established when he scored a record 11 goals in the 1954 World Cup. He also scored two hat tricks in the tourney

Kocsis is famed for his goal scoring rate. His eleven goals at 1954 tournament were recorded at the rate of 2.2 goals per game, still unbeaten achievement. His 75 goals for Hungary arrived at 1.1 goals/game in 68 appearances. He also scored seven hat tricks for his nation

Fontaine is the only other player to score more goals than Kocsis in a single World Cup edition. He bettered Kocsis record with thirteen goals of his own for France in the immediately next World Cup in 1958. His only World Cup appearance also puts him on the fourth place in the overall top scorers list, behind Ronaldo (15), Muller and Klose (both on 14)

Fontaine scored an astonishing 227 goals in just 248 senior appearances. His national career is much more appealing with 30 goals in 21 games. He scored his 13 World Cup goals in just six games with 2.17 goals/game just missing Kocsis' another record

Sir Robert Charlton played in four World Cups for England and is instrumental in the 1966 winning squad. He's considered as the best midfielder in England. A Manchester United player for most part of his career, he won the Ballon d'Or in the same year he won the World Cup. He's one of the survivors of the tragic Munich air disaster

He played 106 matches for England and scored 49 goals and was part of World Cup squads in 1958, 1962, 1966 and 1970. he also scored a record 249 goals for Manchester United in 758 appearances. He was knighted OBE, for his services to football in 1969

Gerhard Muller is the first player to beat Fontaine's record thirteen goals in all World Cups by scoring his fourteenth at the 1974 World Cup, which was eventually beaten by Ronaldo at 2006 tourney. He blasted ten of those goals in 1970 World Cup. He was named "The Bomber" for his explosive goal scoring ability

Muller is a very prolific scorer in international football with 68 goals in just 62 appearances for Germany in just six years and 487 goals in 555 club appearances

Another German Miroslav Klose is level with Muller's record of 14 goals in World Cups

Johan Cruyff is the personification of "Total Football" phenomenon which put Netherlands in the top bracket of World Football. He is the central part of Rinus Michels scheme of Total Football in which every player will be part of all the elements of football in the pitch and no one is restricted to a single position. The Netherlands team used to play around Cruyff, which paid rich benefits to the team. Only Beckenbauer's outstanding defending could stop the Dutch from winning the 1974 World Cup

Along with Messi, Platini and van Basten, Cruyff is the only other player to have won the Ballon d'Or three times, Messi overtaking the others with his fourth win in 2012. He is considered to be the best player to have played in Europe and voted so in 1999 poll by IFFHS. Even as a manager, he's one of the most influential figure. He scored 33 times in 48 games for his nation

Legends Part IV - Maradona, Romario, Klinsmann, Zidane, Cannavaro
Legends Part V - Platini, Matthaus, Lineker, Baggio, Ronaldo