He also won the Scudetto with Napoli, with a weaker squad compared to giants like AC and Inter Milan, etc.

You are entitled to your opinion dude but I think the thread title is pretty clear.

Once again I'd go for Maradona given he won the World Cup back in 86 with 10 other blokes on the field. No disrespect to Burruchaga of course At Italia 90, near the twilight of his career, he once again brought an over-achieving side to the finals, faltering at the last hurdle, losing out only to an Andreas Brehme penalty that Goicochea got his finger tips to.

I came across a quote some time back and it's stuck in my head since. Can't remember who it was from but it went along the lines of, "a good player plays well every game while a great player ensures his team plays well every game".

Which is exactly what makes this an interesting topic to discuss isn't it? If it were so clear cut, this thread wouldn't have lasted more than a page.

When people talk about Maradona, they often refer to the 1986 World Cup and Kempes had retired by then. Few would dispute that he single handedly brought the Jules Rimet back to Argentina that year. It was also that year he scored an amazing goal against England which was overshadowed only by the "Hand of God". I mentioned earlier also that he along with Careca was the reason Napoli won the Scudetto.

That all being said I must admit the only times I've seen Pele play is on youtube.

Well Pele played up until the 70's and most of the players mentioned were not even born yet and this would no doubt have influenced their decision to name Maradona who retired over a decade later.

True but you can find more footage of Maradona even on youtube as world football got better and better coverage over the years.

I totally agree. I mean I myself have tried searching for footage of Pele but find them impossible to come by. I doubt many posters here are older than I and I've never seen him play in the flesh as he retired a year after I was born. Actually it's the same for pretty much every other poll. It's the reason you get posters naming names with no justification because it's based on heresay. E.g. "Who is the best defender in the world?" answer. "Maldini!". Erm why? How many watch the Serie A consistently? If you do, you'd be able to justify the claim.