2014 FIFA World Cup: Google compiles a team with most searched players

Portugal skipper Cristiano Ronaldo was one of the most searched players on Google.

Google has come up with an interesting playing XI comprising the most searched players during these World Cup games with the likes of Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Brazil’s Neymar making the cut for the team.

Goalkeeper

Meixco’s Guillermo Ochoa has been one of the tournament’s most consistent performers this year, a key element in making him the goalkeeper with the highest number of Google search requests.

Defence

The defensive line in this XI comprises of Japan’s Atsuto Uchida, Spain’s Gerard Pique, Brazil’s David Luiz and Argentina’s Marcos Rojo.

The inclusion of Japanese right back Atsuto Uchida is somewhat of a shock, however, the news of him voicing a character in the upcoming Pokemon movie could be one of the reasons.

Gerard Pique leads the line of defense for the Elite 11 in spite of having a disastrous campaign with Spain in this tournament. Perhaps, hits do lie if you know what I mean.

Chelsea’s David Luiz pairs up with Pique in this eleven, and made a lot of buzz on social media after he had agreed to join Paris Saint-Germain for a staggering £50m transfer move from Chelsea. He was also one of scorers for Brazil in their Round of 16 win over Chile.

Marcos Rojo of Argentina finds himself on the left-back spot, and has been one of the most sought out players this summer with reports heavily linking him with Liverpool and Juventus.

Midfield

Germany’s Bastian Schweinsteiger is surely one of the most popular midfielders in the world at the moment, however, his inclusion ahead of midfielders such as Andres Iniesta (for reputation) and James Rodriguez (for his performance) is a bit of a shocker. Probably, him having a complex name to spell has something to do with it, with people looking for it every time they have to type his name out.

Andrea Pirlo holds the other side of the midfield, and his inclusion makes sense, given his popularity all around the globe.

Attack

You cannot really complain for the exclusion of Uruguay’s Luis Suarez who has been in the news for a quite a long time now when you have an attacking line of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Arjen Robben and Neymar.

Neymar has enjoyed a stellar campaign with Brazil so far in this tournament having found the net four times already, while Arjen Robben’s dive against Mexico had a big repercussions on social media following the match.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have always been the most talked about players in world football for quite a period. However, an Internet hoax of Ronaldo sporting a new zigzag hairstyle during Portugal’s 2-2 draw with the United States as a tribute to a fan he had paid medical bills for could be one of the major reasons for the Portuguese’s inclusion.

Messi, on the other hand, has been scoring some wonderful goals for Argentina in this World Cup, and finds himself as the joint-second top scorer along with Thomas Muller and Neymar.

Manager

The fever of football has finally caught up with the United States of America, with their German manager Jurgen Klinsmann has receiving the highest number of search requests on Google despite Mexico manager Miguel Herrera stealing most of the spotlight for his victory celebration post their win over Croatia.

This is how the Elite 11 looks like: