Fantasy Stuff: XI EPL players that can match Barcelona

Well, at the moment no EPL team is good enough to match the Spanish Giant. So why not fantasize about a team which can possible throw the Catalans of their perch? Lets take a look at the possible XI, the formation and the manager.

• Formation?: 4-2-3-1

Sir Alex Ferguson

• Manager: Any doubts? Has to be Sir Alex Ferguson. If anyone can do it, it will be this man. Who would have thought that it could take just two decades to catch up Liverpool and throw them off their prestigious perch!

• Here comes the FANTASY XI:

Joe Hart.

1. The Man with the gloves: There were serious contenders for the post, namely Cech,Reina,Hart, and lastly Van Der Sar. Due to his retirement Van Der Sar is to be omitted. Cech is mostly untested due to its superb back four. This makes it easier, leaving us with two options: Reina or Hart. Reina unlike Cech has the most unconvincing of defenders. The Anfield custodian has won four of the last five ‘Golden Glove’ awards – given to the goalkeeper that kept the most clean sheets in the season. Hart altogether has a different story of his own which might just give him the edge. He has tremendous goal keeping skills which has even forced the veteran goalkeeper Shay Given to the bench. He is currently England’s numero uno and a younger choice, therefore somehow more agile than Reina. So he makes the cut to the XI.
   

   Ashley Cole,Terry,Vidic,Ivanovic

2. The show stoppers(The Wall): It took the entire Internazionale XI to stop the Catalans from scoring in the 2010 UCL. So to replicate something similar, a defense with an equivalent capability is to be played. Let us look at the possible CB’s who can make it to the starting lineup. Terry, Vidic, Rio, Gary Cahill, Robert Huth are probably the best bunch I could pick from the entire line of defenders in the EPL. A few eyes might start raising on the exclusion of Martin Skertel, but due to his lack of consistency I decided to leave him out. Vidic has been Manchester United‘s stalwart and with his experience he will prove to be a valuable addition to the team. To partner him I decided to choose Terry over the rest of them. The others are not yet exposed to European Football so they just might become nervous when the big Game comes.Now comes the side backs. For the Left back position there are only two options, Evra and Cole. Due to Evra’s inability to stop the Argentinian Terminator from scoring gives the edge to Cole. The right back contenders are unsurprisingly Ivanovic, Sagna, Richards. Well for the entire last season Richards played as a centre half so it would be difficult for him to adjust to the side back position once again. That leaves us with Ivanovic and Sagna. Ivanovic wins the battle due to Chelsea‘s better record of keeping clean sheets. Can’t help if it sounds a bit Chelsea-ish but if you want to win, you need the best.
   

   De Jong, Essien, Gareth Bale, Wilshere, Nani(L-R)

3. The Master of puppets: The defenders will have an uphill task of preventing the forward line and when a midfield like that of Barcelona is added, the job somewhat becomes impossible. So to help the defenders the team definitely needs two Defensive Midfielders who can give the defenders an added confidence. De Jong and the Chelsea star Essien are the two man who can become a perfect addition to the solving puzzle. The midfield needs someone who can create passes at will and has excellent technical abilities. The outstanding youngster who perfectly fits the role is none other than Jack Wilshere. His position is not unchallenged though. Another contender could have been Modric but the brilliant performance shown by the young Englishman during Barca and Arsenal‘s clash in the UCL gives him an added advantage. The Left midfield position is to be filled in by the pacy, skilled, Welshman Gareth Bale. He almost single-handedly carried Tottenham past Inter Milan. Nani amassing 14 assists and 9 goals in the season gone by will be the key player for the team when the play shifts towards the right side of the field. Unfortunately my team does not have a Fabregas or Van Der Vaart but it does have the key to success.
   

   Wayne Rooney

4. The Finisher: It will be the most interesting selection of all. Robin Van Persie, Wayne Rooney, Drogba, Tevez ,Berbatov, and even Hernandez are quite capable of being the last piece to the puzzle. Wayne Rooney’s extra ability to help out the midfielders and playing the link up role gives him the victory over his rivals. His wonderful display of awareness and passing skill saw the Man Utd star score the only goal for the English side. His finishing skill will be essential for the team to see them through the 90 mins.

• The team needs a name isn’t it?? This is where you can come into action….post a team name in the comment box, and the best name will be added here.