Football
ESPN staff 9y

Radamel Falcao was behind only Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo - Crespo

Radamel Falcao rated behind only Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo before his anterior cruciate ligament injury, former Chelsea striker Hernan Crespo has said.

Falcao, 29, has joined Chelsea on a season-long loanĀ from Monaco as he looks to get back to his best after scoring just four Premier League goals during his year at Manchester United and then failing to register a goal at the Copa America.

The Colombia striker proved prolific after leaving South America in 2009, scoring 41 goals in 51 games for Porto and then 52 in 68 appearances for Atletico Madrid, but there are doubts as to whether he can recover the form he showed before suffering the injury in January last year.

"There is a big difference between Falcao before and after his bad injury," former Argentina striker Crespo, who joined Chelsea in 2003, told BBC World Football.

"Before the injury, he was the best of the 'human players' -- by that I mean all the players apart from Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, who are on another level.

"After such an injury you need time and it's not easy to recover. He also had a manager in Louis van Gaal who didn't give him the chance to play regularly [at United]. He probably wasn't the kind of player Van Gaal was looking for.

"We will see what happens at Chelsea, which is obviously a big club too, but it won't be easy for him to play regularly there either.

"All Falcao has to do is to believe in himself and be the great player he is. That will be enough to convince Mourinho to give him a chance."

Falcao will be vying for a place in the Chelsea lineup with Spain striker Diego Costa, who scored 20 goals in just 26 Premier League appearances last season, and France international Loic Remy.

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