George Best vs Edgar Davids: Stats Compared
Winger / Forward, Northern Ireland (born 1946, retired 1984) · Defensive Midfielder, Netherlands (born 1973, retired 2011)
Line up George Best next to Edgar Davids and the contrasts come quickly. Honours are what separate great players from trophy-laden legends, and both qualify. George Best finishes with 214 career goals from 616 games — a 0.35 strike rate — against Edgar Davids's 45 from 600 at 0.08 per match. Assists were not reliably tracked for much of their careers, which makes the playmaking comparison an imperfect one; where records exist, George Best is credited with 0 and Edgar Davids with 40. Trophy counts give George Best 5 and Edgar Davids 4, with 1× European Cup (1968) and 1× UEFA Champions League (1995) the standout honours respectively. One lifted trophies through flair-driven reliability, the other through dictatorial moments that decided finals. Club journeys add another layer, with George Best reaching his representative peak around 1968 across Manchester United, Fulham, others and Edgar Davids doing so around 2000 with Ajax, AC Milan, Juventus, Barcelona, Internazionale, Tottenham Hotspur, Ajax, Crystal Palace. Picking between them says as much about the picker as the players.
172 words · comparison angle: trophies
Player profiles
Northern Irish winger and Manchester United icon; Ballon d'Or winner in 1968 after helping Manchester United win their first European Cup.
“A balance-perfect winger who combined dribbling flair with an eye for goal and a rock-star aura.”
Nicknamed 'The Pitbull' for his relentless tackling, Davids wore his trademark wraparound goggles and was one of the most feared ball-winners in Europe during Juventus's late-1990s dominance.
“An aggressive, tireless ball-winner whose combativeness and surprising technical quality made him a complete midfield destroyer.”
Head-to-head stats
Career goals by season
Representative career seasons — goals per season for each player across their documented clubs.
Attribute radar
Attribute ratings are peak-era, 0–100. Different positions naturally skew the profile.
Attribute comparison
Trophy breakdown
- 1× European Cup (1968)
- 2× English First Division (1965, 1967)
- 2× FA Charity Shield (1965, 1967)
- 1× UEFA Champions League (1995)
- 3× Serie A (1998, 2002, 2003)
Trophy distribution
Career milestones
- 1963 Manchester United debut aged 17
- 1965 First English First Division title
- 1968 European Cup winner and Ballon d'Or winner
- 1968 Joint top scorer in the First Division
- 1972 Brief retirement then return to Manchester United
- 1974 Left Manchester United
- 1984 Made final professional appearances in the United States
- 1991 Professional debut for Ajax
- 1995 Won UEFA Champions League with Ajax
- 1998 Won Serie A with Juventus
- 2000 Reached the peak of his powers at Juventus
- 2011 Retired after a final spell at Crystal Palace
- Finished his career with 45 goals in 600 appearances and 4 major honours. Finished his career with 45 goals in 600 appearances and 4 major honours.
The verdict
If forced to pick, George Best is the choice: a narrow margin, with a sharper goalscoring record the deciding factor.
George Best edges it (a narrow margin)
