I forgot about Ricky Villa and Ossie Ardiles...I remember Villa's goal which won the FA Cup replay for Spurs against Man City in 1981, he slalomed past 3 defenders.
Today's defenders are much more athletic and thus are a lot more physical than their counterparts in the past. Latin forwards will have a difficult time to adjust, just ask Pablo Angel at Villa. Last season, he was on fire, banging goals so naturally.