LIONEL MESSI has finally ascended to football's heavenly throne, his ascension confirmed in the most thrilling of all World Cup Finals.
The emotional outpouring to crown him as the Greatest Of All Time was unavoidable amid the heart-stopping euphoria of Sunday night in Qatar.
As the sands of that eye-scorching desert storm settle on Doha, it's time to figure out where the little maestro fits into that divine triumvirate. For this genius of his generation, the crystal reality is the third in history.
GREATEST OF ALL TIME:
1) Pele
2) Diego Maradona
3) Lionel Messi
4) Garrincha
5) Alfredo Di Stefans
6) Johan Cruyff
7) John Charles
8) George Best
9) Cristiano Ronaldo
10) Ferenc Puskas