Published July 24, 2021 · 3 min read

I don't follow football nowadays closely. My enthusiasm is limited to big competitions. Part of the reason is the decline in football. There aren't as many good players as used to be. I like some nostalgia and think about a team that would be a powerhouse. Thus, I decided to write a post about my all-time team for football. Note that, I will probably skip players that I haven't seen playing and I don't really think they would be good in modern football anyway. It's not so easy to pick up the best team. On one hand, I want it to be offensive. On the other hand, I want it to be able to defend itself. It's a tricky one but here's my best eleven.

Goalkeeper

Oliver Kahn has been instrumental and he was a very flexible goalkeeper. Kahn has amazing reflexes and command. Notable mentions: Gianluigi Buffon.

Left Back

Roberto Carlos is indisputably the best left-back ever existed. He has always been more than a left-back. Notable mentions: Paolo Maldini

Right Back

The right-back is a tricky one. There are many players who can make it equally good. Nevertheless, I have to make a choice and I think Dani Alves is the man. Notable mentions: Maicon, Cafu, Lilian Thuram

Centre Backs

I think one of the center-backs should be towering and the other one should be fighting. It's also important to have one of the center-backs read the game pretty well. For towering center back, I would go with Rio Ferdinand who is strong and smart. For fighting center back, I would go with Fabio Cannavaro who can tackle anyone. Notable mentions: Alessandro Nesta, Giorgio Chiellini, Carles Puyol

Midfielders

Midfield is the hardest of all. There have been so many amazing midfielders. There are so many offensive midfielders but the team has to defend. Therefore, I would pick midfielders who can fight but provide balls to the attackers. My favorite defensive midfielder is Patrick Viera. He has always been a key part of both defense and attack. The team needs someone who can relentless run and tackle in the midfield. Claude Makélélé has done so many times. He just has crazy stamina. Lastly, the team needs someone to orchestrate, deliver and create. That's Zinedine Zidane. Notable mentions: Xavi, Iniesta, Steven Gerard, Andrea Pirlo, Luka Modric, Clerance Seedorf, Paul Pogba

Left Winger

The world has seen so many talented left-wingers but I think Ronaldinho is the most talented one. He has amazing skills and so much to offer to players he's playing with. Notable mentions: Pavel Nedved, Neymar, Christino Ronaldo, Ryan Giggs

Right Winger

Lionel Messi would be the best right-winger with no questions. There's not much to discuss. Notable mentions: Luis Figo, Arjen Roben, Mohamed Salah

Striker

Most talented of all, el fenomeno. Notable mentions: Thierry Henry, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Didier Drogba, Andriy Shevchenko, Raúl González Blanco, Samuel Eto'o, Hernán Crespo

greatest eleven

winning eleven

Here we are. The winning eleven plays 4-3-3 formation. Although I try to be balanced, I fail. It's a very attacking squad. Nevertheless, I don't think they would lose the ball often. Even then, it wouldn't be so hard to recover with Cannavaro, Makélélé, and Viera. Attacking would be just a disaster for any other team playing against. Who would you mark? Any player has the most amazing dribbling skills. And, the team has el fenomeno.