“In street football when you are 10 years old, you play with 15-year-olds so you have to be shrewd, you have to show that you are good, you have to fight, win impossible balls. When it is all a bit more formulated then it is developing your individual skill, your fighting attitude less. We have lost a little bit of that in football.”
That was Arsene Wenger on why South America is leading the world in the quality – when compared to Europe – of footballers they produce – especially strikers. The Latin American world of football has given us some of the greatest players the world has ever seen.
You’ll not see another Pele, another Diego Maradona, another Lionel Messi or even another Alexis Sanchez for a while. These are special players; players capable of turning games on their own and it’s no wonder they’re highly sought-after in Europe – a continent unable to match them in ruthlessness and craft.
We look at the best South American XI currently – based on their international positions:
Goalkeeper
While South America has been famous for churning out footballers capable of scoring through walls of defenders, they haven’t exactly been famous for producing world-class goalkeepers although there are exceptions.
Currently, however, the highest-valued goalkeeper to come out of the CONMEBOL set of countries is Manchester City’s Claudio Bravo – currently valued at €15 million. The Chilean hasn’t been in the news for all the right reasons recently but when compared to some of the others on the list, Bravo is the best choice.
In the 25 appearances he’s made for Pep Guardiola’s side this season, Bravo has managed to keep 7 clean sheets. And while it may appear that his time at the club is coming to an end – despite only having signed at the beginning of the current season – he’s still one of the most highly rated goalkeepers in the world.
Defence
When compared to their European counterparts, the most valuable South American defence line seems inadequate. While the centre-back pairing seems strong and unshakable, the full-backs coming out of the confederation aren’t close to Europe’s best.
At left back, we have Juventus’ Alex Sandro. Currently valued at €30 million, he’s the best choice the Latin American group of countries have. The Brazilian, however, has the knack of being at the right place at the right time for the Turin club and has proven to be an efficient buy having joined from Portuguese side FC Porto – with whom he won two League titles.
The left-centre-back of this XI is Atletico Madrid’s Diego Godin. The 30-year-old has arguably been one of the world’s best defenders in recent years – and especially under the tutorship of Diego Simeone. Currently valued at €40 million, his inclusion into this side is a no-brainer.
Beside the Uruguayan is Paris Saint-Germain’s highly-rated defender, Marquinhos. The 22-year-old is destined for big things in world football and has regularly been linked with a move to FC Barcelona – a feat only a lucky few players can boast of. He’s valued at €32 million and is the youngest player on this list.
At right-back, we have Real Madrid’s Danilo. I know, we were all surprised when we found out he was the most valuable one given he isn’t exactly a fan’s favourite. But his age, and the fact that he’s won a UEFA Champions League title mean he’s valued highly in the market – currently at €18 million.
Midfield
Given we’re describing the best players to play in a 4-2-3-1 system, we’re going to include the central attacking midfielder in this slide. South America has produced fine midfield talents over the past few decades – especially two kinds: the creative kind and the destroyer kind. And we have the best of both in this midfield.
On the left side of the two-man pivot, we have Manchester City’s Fernandinho holding the fort. The 31-year-old was seen as the kind of Cruyffian midfielder Pep Guardiola would base his team on but with a host of issues in the disciplinary department, things haven’t exactly gone according to plan.
Nonetheless, the Brazilian is valued at €28 million and is still one of the better midfield players the Citizens are able to call upon.
Alongside the Brazilian sits Bayern Munich’s engine, Arturo Vidal. The 29-year-old box-to-box midfielder is perhaps one of the most complete midfielders in the game with his ability to defend and attack equally well. He’s at the right age now and amongst a world-class squad – just the right ingredients for him to hit peak form soon.
The Chilean is valued at €40 million and is one of the reasons – along with Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez – that his national team have won the last two Copa America titles.
Ahead of these two midfielders is the slightly more finesse footballer in Real Madrid’s James Rodriguez. The 25-year-old is one of the most highly rated footballers in the world currently – even though he’s unable to nail down a starting spot under Zinedine Zidane at the club.
At €70 million, he’s the highest rated player in this list barring the forwards. While his future at the Madrid club seems bleak, a move to another European giant could pretty much kick-start his career once again – allowing him to reach the kind of heights he did when he won the Golden Boot award at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Forwards
That Arsene Wenger quote on why South Americans produce the best forwards in the game couldn’t be more relevant when you look at the three best forwards the CONMEBOL countries have produced in the last few years.
All the three of them play for Barcelona and they’re often referred to as the deadliest combination of forwards the game has ever seen – scoring goals, setting them up for one another and just all in all demolishing opponent defences with one pass or one lob.
On the left-wing, we have Brazilian sensation Neymar. Currently regarded as one of the best players in the world thanks to his skill, panache and eagerness to get into scoring positions, the 24-year-old is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of player.
Valued at a staggering €100 million, he’s also the youngest ever player in the world to reach a valuation of eight figures. Neymar has played 21 games this season so far scoring 7 goals and setting up 15 assists for the next two people on this list to put away.
As the lone centre-forward on this list, there really is no one else in the world who comes close to Uruguay’s Luis Suarez. The 29-year-old has easily been the world’s best striker for a long time now – right from when he peaked at Liverpool.
Valued at €90 million, he’s also only one of two Uruguayans to make the list – along with Godin at the back. Suarez is having the usual treat of a season. Having played in 25 games this season, he’s scored 18 goals and set up a further 8 meaning he’s either scored or assisted in every game he’s played.
Moving to the right of the front three, we have one of the two best players in the world in Argentina’s Lionel Messi. There’s not something we can say about him that you already don’t know, so we’ll skip straight to his valuation and his stats for the season.
Messi is valued at a mind-boggling €120 million and is currently – and over the past few years – the most valuable footballer in the world. He’s also the only Argentine to make it to the list and given the country have reached the finals of the last two Copa Americas and the FIFA World Cup in 2014, it’s almost unbelievable just how much of a boon he is to his national side.
Having represented Barcelona 24 times this season, Messi has scored 27 goals and has assisted a further 9 meaning he’s either scored or assisted 1.5 times in every game he’s played for Luis Enrique’s side this season. There’s not a single player in the world who can match those stats – not even Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo.
