Castrol launches world's first player rankings system

Who is the greatest footballer in Europe?

It's a question that always evokes passionate debate from football fans and pundits around the globe. Now they can find the definitive answer to the much-disputed question after Castrol global ambassador Cristiano Ronaldo was unveiled the inaugural Castrol Rankings, the world's first truly objective football rankings system, based on the actual performance of every football player across Europe's top five leagues.

While other football rankings are based on opinion, Castrol have applied objective analysis and highly advanced technology to measure every pass, every tackle and every single move of over 2000 players and games every year. It will, they say, at last draw a line under the age-old debate about who are the best performing players.

The Castrol Rankings are updated on a rolling monthly basis so football fans can regularly check whether Kaká is really out-performing Gerrard, or whether Messi is proving more effective than Thierry Henry, by visiting. Fans can also customise the Castrol Rankings by player nationality, position or club, allowing them to compare the players or teams they support.

Ronaldo signalled his intent to top the rankings. He currently sits third behind Barcelona pairing Thierry Henry and Lionel Messi but the Real Madrid man only has eyes for one spot. He said: "The Castrol Rankings is the ranking that every player wants to top. If you can be number one on the Castrol Rankings there can be no arguments, as it is based on fact, not opinion. That's why I'm aiming for the number one spot  to prove I'm the best!"

The Castrol Rankings will be available on ESPN Soccernet from Friday, October 30.