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When we look back over the course of the 23 years that the Premier League has been in existence, it's noticeable just what a rich tapestry foreign players have woven into the English national game.The sheer amount of imports mean that it is almost impossible to choose an all-time XI that both receives unanimous approval, and can function as a successful team. To that end, there are likely to be some glaring omissions from this particular side, but there just isn't enough room to accommodate everyone.Jurgen Klinsmann and David Ginola are two Tottenham Hotspur players that deserve more than cursory mention but they don't feature here. Ditto Juninho of Middlesbrough. The bar has been set high...let's see if you agree with the choices –
#1 Peter Schmeichel
Was there really ever going to be anyone else in the number one jersey? Petr Cech is perhaps worthy of a shout, but in truth no one comes anywhere close to the master. Peter Schmeichel was everything that you wanted in a goalkeeper. Big, brave, committed and a huge presence both physically and in the dressing room.
Knowing that they had the big Dane behind them was surely part of the reason Manchester United’s back four functioned so well. And he certainly wasn’t afraid to berate his defenders if they weren’t up to the mark in a particular game.
Taking free kicks and penalties against him must’ve seemed like an almost impossible task. “Making yourself big” is a phrase often associated with goalkeepers, but Schmeichel already filled the goal without any further need to extend his enormous frame.
When he did so, we were witness to some of the very best saves ever seen at Premier League level. He played a total of 350 games in the Premier League, 292 for Manchester United, and 29 each for Aston Villa and Manchester City. Apart from winning 5 Premier League titles with United, he also won 3 FA Cups and 1 Champions League.
#2 Branislav Ivanovic
Right-backs are often noted as nippy and quick, and not necessarily for their physical attributes. It says something that a central defender by trade can revert to a right-back position and play as well, if not better, in that role.
Branislav Ivanovic is just that sort of player.At over six feet, the Serb remains extremely mobile for a big manand presents a fearsome presence to any winger who happens to stray into his territory.
Ivanovic is a warrior, plain and simple. He might give out the rough stuff but he can take his fair share too. Unless you happen to bite him of course! Its a mans game after all.
Rarely is he beaten in an aerial battle with his numbers in that regard among the best in the Premier League. It is an attribute that he also uses to remarkable effect at the opposite end of the pitch. Out of the 343 matches hes played for Chelsea, 215 have been in the Premier League, and he has scored 20 goals in those games. The Serbian has two Premier League titles to his name, in addition to 3 FA Cups, 1 Champions League and 1 Europa League.
#3 Marcel Desailly
What you want from your central defenders are pure physical specimens who are prepared to sweat blood for the cause, who go in where it hurts without giving athought for their own safety and command their box like their lives depended on it. If youre able to ensure a ball-playing centre-half too, then youve struck gold.
And Chelsea certainly hit the jackpot when they signed Marcel Desailly. Hemay have been 30 years of age when he signed for them, but he epitomised everything that was required from a player in his position.
Utterly formidable and a real leader of men, he managed to combine a natural aggressive streak with bis supreme ability to read the game.His confidence in possession of the football was also notable for a big man and meant a dual role in midfield was available to his employers if needed.
Always physically and mentally prepared for whatever came his way, the Frenchman was one of the finest defenders to have graced the English top flight. The Frenchman made 158 league appearances for the London cluband won the FA Cup and UEFA Cup in his time there.
#4 Nemanja Vidic
Nemanja Vidic is more than a perfect accompaniment to Desailly.Manchester United signed the centre-back in 2006 for a bargain 7 millionand it took a few months for the player to get up to speed with the demands and rigours of top level combat in England.
Once hed got the hang of it,however, there was to be no turning back.What marked him out was his wonderful reading of the game, his incredible bravery and the ability to almost always time his tackles to perfection. He didnt have the pace of some, but he more than made up for the same with a positional telepathy.
Rarely outmuscled on the floor, or outjumped in the air, you knew you had been in a game when you came up against this rock of a man.Arguably, since his retirement at the end of the 2013/14 season, United have struggled to find an adequate replacement.
The Serbian played 211 games for the Old Trafford outfit in the Premier Leagueand was an integral member of possibly the best defensive partnership in the Premier League in the last 10 years along with Rio Ferdinand. His knack of coming up with crucial goals always helped United, and he won 5 Premier League titles, to go with 1 League Cup and 1 Champions League.
#5 Patrice Evra
Another position where there cant really be too much debate about who deserves the shirt.Patrice Evra displaced Manchester Uniteds left-back of choice Gabriel Heinze soon after walkingthrough the doors at Uniteds Carrington training ground.
Ask yourself if you can honestly remember any time during his tenure where his form dipped to such an extent that he shouldve spent a little time on the sidelines. You cant.A deserving captain of the team when the honour was eventually bestowed upon him, Evra played his role with tenacity and aplomb.
Many were the times he would overlap his colleagues on the outside, providing pace and width to the attack. Towards the end of his United career, he started adding a few goals to his game too, but they werent really his forte.
Shoring up the left side of defencewith a mixture of positional nous and first-class short and long passing ability is what marked Evra out in a side full of superstars. The Frenchman made 273 Premier League appearances for the RedDevilsand added 7 goals while going forward. The honours he won include 5 EPL titles, 1 League Cup title and 1 Champions League.
#6 Xabi Alonso
Its no coincidence that one of the most successful recent periods inLiverpools history came when theysigned Spanish midfielder Xabi Alonso in 2004.For anyone that cares to argue the point, you only have to look at the Merseysiders decline post-Alonso to understand how important he was to the Reds.
Playing a deep-lying midfield role, Alonso quickly got to grips with the physical side of the English game. Not only was he happy to mix it in the heat of battle, he positively thrived on the aggressive side of the game.
Adding his vision and peerless passing range to the more robust elements of his game, gave us the complete midfielder.Winning the Champions League in his first season, followed by the FA Cup in 2006, were just reward for the efforts that the Spaniard, who made 143 appearances for them in the Premier League, would put in on a weekly basis.
Liverpool could definitely do with him in the teamnow.
#7 Patrick Vieira
Patrick Vieira remains a huge miss from Arsenal's midfield. The consummate modern day, high-energy footballer, the Frenchman was a midfield general in every sense.
Never frightened to go where others feared to tread, Vieira's "exuberance" and enthusiasm to get involved often saw him booked as a minimum. Red cards were never far away and his battles with Roy Keane are the stuff of legends.
What was most noticeable about Arsenal sans Vieira was how frail the spine of their team had become. The Frenchman gave them, steel, heart and desire. The long rangy stride, powerful upper body strength and venomous shot were other facets of his game that combined to make him the ultimate midfielder. He played 307 games in the Premier League, winning 3 titles and 4 FA Cup trophies.
His last kick of the ball as an Arsenal player was to win the FA Cup in a penalty shoot-out vs. Manchester United. How typically Vieira.
#8 Cristiano Ronaldo
A best foreign XI couldnt possibly be complete without the addition ofCristiano Ronaldo.Signed by Sir Alex Ferguson in 2003, it was on the say so of Ryan Giggs and others who had been destroyed by the youngster in a pre-season friendly with Sporting Lisbon.
He was signed as a wide player who had all of the tools at his disposal but who needed a little refinement to his end product.Looking back at his goals record in Manchester, almost one goal every two games is a fabulous return from a wide position and for a player so young.
Full of confidence, one of Ronaldos chief assets, aside for the penchant for the spectacular and the stepover, was his extraordinary pace. If the youngster got the ball past the full-back, they were left for dead.
And boy what a right peg. A free-kick against Portsmouth which left David James rooted to the spot and a 40-yard piledriver against Porto in the Champions League are two fantastic strikes that spring to mind.
His upper body strength and power were other facets of his game which made him one of the standout exponents of his generation. He scored 84 goals in 196 appearances for the Red Devils in the Premier Leagueand won the league thrice, along with 1 FA Cup victory, 2 League Cup titles and 1 Champions League crown.
#9 Thierry Henry
Arsenals Thierry Henry doesnt just go down as the Gunners greatest ever player. He surely deserves the ultimate accolade of the best foreign import ever to have graced the Premier League.
Manager Arsene Wenger converted him from his natural wide berth to a menacing and mobilecentre-forwardand he was repaid in goals.
During the eight seasons that the Frenchman spent in the red half ofnorth London, he scored 174 league goals in just 254 games. He would add a couple more in a later loan spell, but such prowess made him the highest-scoring foreign player in the EPL.
He could score all types of goals and that is precisely what made him so hard to play against. If you showed him outside, he would beat you for pace and cut inside before unleashing a ferocious shot.
Tap ins, headers,worldies remember the shot on the turn against Fabian Barthez Henry had them all in his locker.And give him a yard of space and he would destroy you with dribbling ability that was as good as it gets.
#10 Dennis Bergkamp
Dennis Bergkamps goal for Arsenal against Newcastle is still one of the favourite goalsof the Premier League era.It encompassed in one movement what the Dutchman was all about.
Signed for 7.5 million by Arsene Wengers predecessor Bruce Rioch, breaking a club transfer record in the process, Bergkamp went on to become instrumental in both of Arsenals double-winning seasons and the Invincibles season of 2003-04.
The Premier League hadnt really seen technique like it before his arrival and even opposition fans would rise in unison to applaud him off of the pitch. His temperament would let him down on occasions but thats a minor issue. His match-winningperformances for the Gunners far outweigh any occasional misdemeanours. He played 315 games for Arsenal, scoring 87 goals, and won the Premier League thrice and the FA Cup four times.
Having the vision to see a pass was one thing. Having the accuracy to execute it is what set him apart from his contemporaries.No wonder Arsenal erected a statue of him outside the Emirates.
#11 Eric Cantona
King Eric.Even Sir Alex Ferguson acknowledged the presence that Eric Cantona brought to the Manchester United dressing room. Although he didnt sign for the Red Devils until midway through the first-ever Premier League season, he was instrumental in bringing the trophy to Old Trafford. Uniteds first top-flight title in 25 years.
They would never look back with Cantona, collar turned up and chest puffed out, master of all that he surveyed.What ended up defining him in many ways thekung fukick on a Crystal Palace fan has actually endeared him to most football supporters, whether United or otherwise.
Everyone recognised they were in the presence of greatness when the Frenchman was in his pomp, even if there were certain nuances that needed to be taken into account. The seagulls follow the trawler comment still fascinates even now.
Voted Manchester Uniteds best ever player, what a shame that he decided to cut his career off when it remained obvious there was still so much to give. Just like another United number seven George Best. He made 156 appearances in the Premier League, scoring 70 goals, and won 4 league titles and 2 FA Cups.
#12 Substitutes bench
Picking substitutes for this team is almost as difficult as the main team, but the skill on show here ensures the bench is kept competitive.Cech is a shoo-in for the reserve keeper slot. Although he has had his fair share of howlers, there are far worthier moments to remember him for.
Outfield substitutions are full of creativity, entertainment and goals.
Gianfranco Zola, Georgi Kinkladze, Paolo Di Canio and Eyal Berkovic all deserve a place in the Premier Leagues Hall of fame. All were crowd pleasers of the highest order and there is at least one goal from each that still resonates with EPL connoisseurs some two decades letter.
Zolas backheel volley, Kinkladzes Messi-esque run and goal against Southampton, Berkovics stunning volley for the Saints in the 6-3 demolition of Manchester United and Di Canios airborne volley against Wimbledon, voted the best ever goal scored in EPL history.
Oh the memories...
#13 Manager - Arsene Wenger
An honourable mention toJose Mourinho for the managers spot.He has left an indelible imprint on the Premier League that will be acknowledged for years to come and his management and media skills are a delight.
One foreign import in the managerial stakes stands above them all, however. The Special One wont like it, but Arsene Wengers longevity keeps him firmly at the top.The entire modus operandi of Arsenal changed when the urbane Frenchman walked through the door.
From the food,players ate in the staff canteen, to ridding the Gunners of the long-distance pre-season runs so loved by predecessors Rioch and Graham.His greatest achievement in management must surely be to have taken the likes of Henry, Pires, Ljungberg and Bergkamp through an entire season unbeaten.
Whilst silverware has been hard to come by in recent years, theres little doubting that he is still the man for the job.
Heres how the team will line-up
