Top 10 Shortest football players in the world

There was a time when football was considered a big man’s game, where physical prowess counted for more than mental and technical capabilities. Small, weedy players were considered a risk, and a strong, muscular presence was more preferable, especially at the back,National Daily gathered

But recent events in football have rewritten history and tradition, and small, highly-skilled technical players are now at a premium. The likes of Messi, Mata and Cazorla, with their low centre of gravity, are able to get the better of their bigger counterparts most of the time.

On our journey to compile the most accurate list of shortest football players of all time, we came across plenty of inaccuracies and historical evidence to make this a challenging proposition. The criterion for selection was that the footballer had to have played some sort of professional football during their career. This would be fitting to answer the eternal question:

In our quest to prepare a list that would be the final and definitive word on shortest football players in, we came up with this:

10) Rui Gil Soares de Barros

Height: 1.6m (5 feet 3 inches)

Rui Barros (L) in the 1992 UEFA Cup Winners Cup Final

Standing at 1.6m, Rui Barros comes in at no. 10 on our list. Barros, who has now moved into management, was once a lethal attacking midfielder for Portugal and went on to represent Porto, Juventus and Marseille, among other clubs, in the late 80′s and 90′s.

For Barros, his height was a curse he was born with, but it was not something he had to suffer with. His playing style, ability to keep the ball at close quarters and explosive change of pace ensured that his stature would not hold him back from having a successful career in football. With 43 goals in 191 games with Porto to his name, it is quite clear that the tallest short footballer in the world had absolutely no problems in having a promising career.

9) Levi Porter

Height: 1.6m (5 feet 3 inches)

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Levi Porter for England U-17

Englishman Levi Porter is no.9 on our list and he too comes in at 5 feet 3 inches. Porter, unlike Barros, is still an active player, playing for Histon, a club in the Conference North – one of the lower divisions of English football.

The 26-year-old Porter plays as a winger (well, he can’t be a target man or a central defender, can he?), and is a product of the Leicester City youth academy. He also represented the England U-16 and U-17 teams in the early 2000′s.

8) Maximiliano Nicolás Moralez

Height: 1.6m (5 feet 3 inches)

Whoever thought that compiling a list like this would be easy, was clearly mistaken. At 1.6m – the same height as the 2 players before him – Maximiliano Moralez is at no.8 on our list.

Moralez, an Argentine attacking midfielder, currently plays for Italian Serie A side Atalanta. His nickname, Frasquito, which roughly translates to “little flask”, reveals a lot more about him than it should. Moralez is officially the shortest player in the Serie A.

Don’t let his size fool you though. Moralez was part of Argentina’s 2007 FIFA WC U-20 title-winning team, playing alongside the likes of Sergio Aguero and Mauro Zarate. His exploits in the tournament led to him finishing as the third highest scorer and the second-best player behind Sergio Aguero.

With a total of 49 goals and 52 assists in 257 games, Moralez is one of the most attacking short players in football history.

7) Madson Formagini Caridade

Height: 1.6m (5 feet 3 inches)

Madson (R) vying for the ball

Another footballer who stands at 5 feet 3 inches, Madson is a Brazilian who currently plays for Qatari side Al-Khor. Having had a decent spell at Vasco da Gama, Madson was then found wanting and left for Santos.

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At Santos, Madson was involved in an altercation with fans on a video chat, along with fellow teammates Ze Eduardo and Felipe. Madson later had to apologise for his part in the altercation in which one fan commented that goalkeeper Felipe had “lettuce hands”. One wonders what the fan must have said to anger Madson!

6) Benedict Vilakazi

Height: 1.57m (5 feet 1.81 inches)

Benedict Vilakazi (R) squares upto Lukas Podolski

Benedict Vilakazi, pictured here squaring upto Lukas Podolski, is our next entrant at no.6. At 1.57m, Vilaskazi is a full 10 inches shorter than the German striker who stands at 1.82m. But that doesn’t put him off from having a go at players bigger than him, nor does it come in the way of his leadership skills, for which he has been noted and nicknamed the “Little Napoleon”.

Vilaskazi is a South African by nationality and plays as a midfielder for Notwane FC. His career was blighted by a sex scandal in 2006, for which he had to appear in court on allegations of statutory rape. He was later acquitted of the charges, but disciplinary problems continue to dog the diminutive South African.

5) Samuel Peter Lee

Height: 1.57m (5 feet 1.81 inches)

Sammy Lee (R) playing for Liverpool

If the name sounds familiar, it’s because Samuel “Sammy” Lee was first a player and then assistant manager at Liverpool, working with the likes of Graeme Souness, Gerard Houllier and Rafa Benitez. Lee was also assistant to Sam Allardyce at Bolton from 2005 to 2007, and his stature led to the fans calling him “Little Sam”, as opposed to Allardyce who was referred to as “Big Sam”.

But before his managerial days, Lee was an accomplished footballer, making 197 appearances for Liverpool from 1976 to 1986. His stature did not prevent him from going to win silverware; in fact, during the 1980-81 European cup, Lee man-marked Bayern Munich stat Paul Breitner out of the game despite being outsized by his opponent! Clearly not a man to be taken lightly on account his size
4) Jafal Rashed Al-Kuwari

Height: 1.55m (5 feet 1 inches)

Jafal Rashed Al-Kuwari in his farewell match against AC Milan

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At 5 feet 1 inch, Jafal Rashed Al-Kuwari is at the 4th place in our list. A midfielder for Qatari side Al-Sadd, Al-Kuwari retired in 2009 following a farewell match against AC Milan. He captained the Qatari national team as well, and plays beach football for the national team post-retirement

Although there was a time when Jafal was the shortest footballer in the world, he has been overtaken since by the next three men on our list.

3) Marcin Garuch

Height: 1.55m (5 feet and 1 in)

Marcin Garuch (R) seen not shaking the hand offered by the referee

Marcin Garuch, pictured above, stands at 1.55 m or 5 feet and 1 in. A Polish national, Garuch plays for a club named Miedz Legnica in the Puchar Polski. Aged 24, Garuch has been known to be excellence in deadball situations and uses his size to move the ball quickly up to the forwards
2) Daniel Alberto Villalva Barrios

Height: 1.54m (5 feet and 0.63 in)

Daniel Villalva (R) for Argentina vs Germany in the FIFA U17 WC

Narrowly inching past the 5 feet mark, Daniel Villalva is the runner-up on our list of shortest footballers on the planet. Hailing from Argentina, Villalva is a striker for River Plate. Apart from being the shortest player in the team, Villalva also has another unique distinction to his name – in 2009, he became the youngest player to play for River Plate at 16 years, 7 months and 2 days.

This 21-year-old has also featured for Argentina in the 2009 U-17 World Cup, so much is expected from this youngster in the future.

1) Élton José Xavier Gomes

Height: 1.54m (5 feet and 0.63 in)

Elton being unveiled by Steaua Bucuresti

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And finally, we reach no.1. The shortest footballer on the planet at 1.54m, Elton Gomes is a Brazilian who plays as an attacking midfielder for Saudi club Al-Fateh. Elton was signed by Romanian side Steaua Bucuresti in 2007. His strong performances led to the fans voting him in the best side of the decade.

His unique technique and dribbling has made him a fan favourite, and so has his trademark afro style. Last season, this pint-sized footballer smashed in 11 goals for his side which enabled them to win the league title for the first time