Friends – lords of the Argives. O my captains!
Now that the gods have let me kill this man
who caused us agonies, loss on crushing loss –
more than the rest of all their men combined –
…raise a song of triumph!
Down to the ships we march and bear this corpse on high –
we have won ourselves great glory. We have brought
magnificent Hector down, that man the Trojans
glorified in their city like a god!
– Homer
The Iliad, Book 22, lines 446-449, 461-465. Achilles says this of Hector after slaying him. He does acknowledge Hector as the strongest of the Trojan fighters who has killed many Achaeans. Achilles also gives the gods credit for helping him win the glory of killing magnificent Hector.