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The best footballers across the globe are pitted against each other at the grandest of all stages - The FIFA World Cup. The 2018 edition in Russia was no different and the quality of football was breath-taking. At the end of it all, it was Les Bleus who lifted the 'ultimate prize' for the second time.
Players who had not been regulars for their clubs put up a great show. The passion of representing their country drove these players to perform at a much higher level. The fans’ excitement reached fever pitch as the competitiveness of the tournament went from strength to strength. Allegiances to individual players and clubs metamorphosed into a collective support for the country. Yet, it was not easy to get our eyes off the “Stars”.
FIFA has not yet explored an NBA style ‘All-Star Game’, comprising of the biggest stars in the world of football. The unparalleled amount of excitement for fans and intrigue for pundits cannot be overstated. An ‘All-Star Game’ of the ilk of Europe XI vs Rest of the World XI has a lot of untapped potential and should be given a thought.
Here is my take on how a Europe XI would line up against a Rest of the World XI and a very difficult prediction on who would come out on top. I have only considered players who are plying their trade at the FIFA World Cup 2018. The teams have purely been selected on the basis of the players' exploits in Russia.
EUROPE XI: 4-3-3
GOALKEEPER: Thibaut Courtois
This was the hardest pick for the European XI. There is a plethora of goalkeeping talent, to choose from, in Europe. Even though David De Gea, Manuel Neuer, Hugo Lloris and Thibaut Courtois have been at the top of their game for quite a while, De Gea and Neuer were considered to be a notch above all their goalkeeping contemporaries. However, Neuer and De Gea flattered to deceive in Russia while Courtois and Lloris were stupendous.
Courtois was awarded the 'Golden Glove' for his consistent performances throughout with the highlight being his exemplary display against Brazil. Lloris was also solid but his blooper in the final cost him a place in this European XI.
Apart from Lloris, Pickford and Subasic were also phenomenal for their teams with both emerging as penalty shoot-out heroes. They provided stern competition to Courtois to get into this eleven. However, Courtois gets in on sheer consistency and is less error-prone.
DEFENCE: Kieran Trippier, Vincent Kompany, Raphael Varane, Lucas Hernandez
The selection of the fullbacks was a no-brainer as there was no one better than Kieran Trippier and Lucas Hernandez in their respective positions in Europe.
When fit, Vincent Kompany is one of the best Centre Backs in the world and he easily makes this team. Apart from his dogged defending, Kompany also provides a considerable aerial threat from set-pieces. If one couples that with the ability to come up with important goals, one stumbles upon the ideal Central Defender.
The other Centre Back spot was a tough tussle between Raphael Varane, Harry Maguire and Dejan Lovren. Maguire and Lovren were immense for their respective sides and were rocks at the back. While Maguire and Lovren are good defenders, neither possesses the pace of Varane.
Since Kompany isn't getting any quicker these days, the other Central defender needs to possess pace. This is the reason Varane gets the nod ahead of Maguire and Lovren.
The pairing of Varane and Kompany would work very well as Varane is a very efficient tackler and Kompany can sit back and play the role of a ‘sweeper’. The fullbacks Trippier and Hernandez would have the freedom to foray forward and provide necessary width to the team.
MIDFIELDERS: N’Golo Kante, Luka Modric, and Kevin De Bruyne
Any good team needs a balanced midfield to succeed. It consists of a ‘tough-tackling’ midfielder and a couple of ‘ball-playing’ midfielders.
With respect to tough-tackling midfielders, N’Golo Kante is the best in the world. He has made 416 tackles in just 106 Premier League appearances, with an accuracy of 68%. This speaks volumes of Kante’s pedigree.
In the World Cup as well, he played the role of an anchor to perfection. He broke up play and recycled possession effectively to give the French forwards the freedom to cause trouble.
Kante’s role would be very crucial in this side as he would be tasked with providing cover, when the full backs, Trippier and Hernandez venture forward.
The other two slots in midfield go to Kevin De Bruyne and Luka Modric. At the moment, they are the two best Central Midfielders in the world. This makes this selection as easy as those of the Full Backs. Both boast of an excellent passing range and have the ability to come up with special strikes from outside the box.
FORWARDS: Eden Hazard, Antoine Griezmann, and Kylian Mbappe
The selection of the front three did not require a lot of deliberation as the trio of Mbappe, Griezmann and Hazard were a cut above the rest.
In the team, Eden Hazard should occupy the left wing with Kylian Mbappe on the right wing. Griezmann would function as a false nine. Hazard was scintillating for Chelsea this season and he carried that form into the World Cup as well. He bagged 3 goals while also providing 2 assists. His best performance came against the mighty Brazilians where he ripped Fagner to pieces.
Meanwhile, Griezmann led his club, Atletico Madrid, to the UEFA Europa League title. He scored 29 goals for his club this season with two of his most important goals coming in the Europa League final against Marseille.
He was sensational throughout the World Cup and scored the all-important 2nd goal for France in the final. Over the course of the tournament, he got on the score-sheet four times while he also assisted two goals.
Mbappe frightened the life out of defenders with his pace. At times, he was simply unplayable. At just 19, he became only the 2nd teenager ever, after the great Pele, to score in a World Cup Final. He was one of France's best players and deservedly won the FIFA Best Young Player Award.
A front three of Mbappe, Hazard and Griezmann would be very fluid and the defenders would have trouble keeping them quiet. Mbappe would provide raw pace while Hazard and Griezmann would want to get into the little pockets of space and wreak havoc.
BENCH: Hugo Lloris, Harry Kane, Romelu Lukaku, Harry Maguire, Denis Cheryshev.
REST OF THE WORLD XI: 4-3-3
GOALKEEPER: Alisson Becker
The goalkeeping position was a hotly-debated choice with Alisson and Keylor Navas in prime positions to land the role. The other goalkeepers such as Muslera and Caballero were simply not good enough to warrant a place in this discussion.
In the end, I went for Alisson after looking at his performances for Brazil. Alisson has been a very safe keeper and gets in due to his ability to cut out the errors from his game. Though Navas has shown the ability to turn games around with mind-boggling saves, he also comes up with his fair share of errors which tilt the game in the other direction.
DEFENCE: Hiroki Sakai, Diego Godin, Yerry Mina and Diego Laxalt.
The defense line of this team was very easy to select as Mina and Godin have been ‘rocks at the back’ for their respective sides. Both of them possess strength and excellent tactical awareness.
Godin, especially, is an old-school defender and adopts a ‘no-nonsense’ approach. He averaged 4.7 clearances per game in the season gone by. Godin's Uruguay conceded only three goals at the World Cup and were a hard nut to crack throughout.
Mina also had a good World Cup, coming up with three goals in the process. His most important goal was the equalizer against England in the dying moments of normal time.
Hiroki Sakai was the best option available and he slots into the Right Back position. He was in inspired form for Japan and made a total of 19 ball recoveries throughout the tournament. In addition to this, he was a constant attacking outlet for Japan.
For the Left Back position, Diego Laxalt gets in ahead of Marcelo and Filipe Luis. Laxalt was brought into the side against Russia and never looked back after that. He was a menace on the left and carried out his defensive duties with aplomb as well.
Laxalt would play high up the pitch and try to stretch the game as much as possible. He is an attacking full-back by nature but has enough tactical nous and speed to get back into position when required. Sakai, on the other hand, adopts a more conservative approach and would venture forward when the time is right.
MIDFIELD: Casemiro, Juan Quintero, and Philippe Coutinho
In the Rest of the World XI, Casemiro should function as the holding midfielder and provide the ‘screen’ in front of the back four. His role would be paramount due to Laxalt's attacking instincts. Since Laxalt would be playing high up the pitch, Casemiro would have to drop back to keep the shape of the team intact.
Casemiro was a calming influence for Brazil. In the game against Belgium, Brazil really missed Casemiro in the middle of the park. We could have been in for a very different outcome if Casemiro hadn't picked up his second yellow card against Mexico.
Coutinho should play alongside Quintero in midfield, ahead of Casemiro. He was in exceptional form for Liverpool and he’s carried that form to Barcelona as well. He became the second-most-expensive player in football history when he switched from Liverpool to FC Barcelona. However, if his performances are looked at, one can say that he has been worth every penny. Even at the World Cup, Coutinho came up with the goods for Brazil.
Quintero was irresistible at times for Colombia. He got his World Cup off to a flyer with an intelligent free-kick against Japan. He quickly became the chief creator for Colombia. Colombia missed the services of their ace play-maker, James Rodriguez. Quintero, however, made sure that Colombia did not miss James in any way.
The primary task for Casemiro would be to break up the Europeans’ play and not let them get into a passing rhythm. Once they get the ball back, Quintero and Coutinho are efficient enough to recycle it and create chances for their front three.
FORWARD: Neymar, Edinson Cavani, and Lionel Messi
A front three of Messi, Neymar, and Cavani (MNC) would send shivers down any defense’s spine. While Cavani and Neymar already enjoy a devastating partnership at PSG, adding Messi to the mix would make it as exciting a trio as one can imagine.
The temptation to reunite the Messi, Suarez and Neymar trio was a strong one indeed but Suarez was woeful at the World Cup, to say the least.
Lionel Messi was not at his best at the World Cup. He got off to the worst possible start when he fluffed a penalty against Iceland. However, as the tournament progressed he found the magic that has become synonymous with him. He scored a sensational goal against Nigeria and backed it up with two assists against France.
Though he did not set the world ablaze with his performances, he gets in on the team due to a lack of performances elsewhere from his South American, African and Asian counterparts.
Neymar copped a lot of flak throughout the tournament for his play-acting. His play-acting aside, Neymar actually created a whole host of chances for his teammates. He created 23 chances, averaging an astonishing 5.6 chances per game.
The selection of Cavani was the easiest as he was the best non-European 'Number Nine'. He single-handedly destroyed Portugal in the Round of 16 and was a constant nuisance for defenders. Uruguay felt the absence of Cavani against France and it came as no surprise when they failed to carve out any clear-cut chances.
Neymar would start on the left, with Messi on the right and Cavani playing through the middle. If the midfield is able to feed the ball quickly to this trio, they can combine to devastating effect.
Cavani would make runs into the ‘channels’ and this would free up space for Messi and Neymar around the box. An unmarked Messi or Neymar around the box is the last thing a defending team needs.
It’s now time for the MSN to take a back-seat and let MNC have their time in the sun.
BENCH: Keylor Navas, Carlos Vela, Joao Miranda, Willian, Takashi Inui.
OUTCOME:
The match promises to be a very close affair with goals galore. With the attacking talent on show, one can expect the defenders to endure a torrid time in ‘keeping them out’. The match would be an open game with the full backs playing high up the pitch trying to provide an assist or score a goal.
The midfield would be controlled by the Europeans as they have more accomplished ball-playing midfielders. One can expect De Bruyne and Modric to boss the game and keep the Rest of the World team on the back foot at all times.
The difference, however, would be created in the attacking third. Though the MNC would cause problems for the European defense, they haven't been in the best of form. The Rest of the World XI would be devastating on the break but would find it very hard to create opportunities from open play due to the fact that the midfield would be controlled by the Europeans.
The Europeans also enjoy an advantage in the wider areas of the pitch. On the basis of form and balance of the team, I would predict a win for Europe XI.
However, one thing is for sure: if such a game does come to fruition, it will surely be ‘one for the ages’.
