London XI vs Manchester XI vs Merseyside XI – Who will win?

Will the Premier League follow the footsteps of NBA?Every year the National Basketball Association (NBA) hosts the NBA All-Star Game, where the league’s best players from the Eastern Conference take on the league’s best players from the Western Conference.Imagine a similar concept applied in the English Premier League. How great would it be to see the best players from teams like Spurs and Arsenal play against a team with the best players from Manchester United and Manchester City? Certainly a mouthwatering prospect!

#1 London XI

Formation: 4-2-3-1

Petr Cech: Arsenal’s only summer addition turned out to be a brilliant one. The veteran keeper has the most clean sheets in the league with 12 to his name.

Hector Bellerin: Hector Bellerin has been scintillating while going forward and has been equally adept in his defensive duties. He is arguably the best right-back in the league this season.

Toby Alderweireld: Alderweireld has brought immense stability to the Spurs backline and has scored some important goals for them as well. He was worth the effort it took Spurs to sign him.

Scott Dann: Dann has been of the most underrated defenders this season and has a huge hand in Palace’s current league position. Funnily he is also Palace’s joint highest goal scorer this season with five goals to his name.

Nacho Monreal: Monreal has been one of the best left-backs this season both going forward and in defending. It is no surprise that he made that spot his and kept Gibbs on the bench.

Cheikhou Kouyate: Kouyate has done well to bring a balance between attack and defense from his central midfield role. He has been so good that players like Alex Song and Pedro Obiang are finding it hard to nail down a starting role.

Dele Alli: Alli has made the step up from League One to Premier League with so much ease and has left the spectators in awe with his performance. He is now a crucial player for Spurs and has scored 9 goals and provided 7 assists this season.

Willian: Chelsea are experiencing their worst season in many years, but the one positive for them this season has been the performance of Willian. The Brazilian has become an indispensable member of the Blues’ side and has 8 goals and 3 assists for them this season.

Dimitri Payet: Payet is arguably the signing of the season and a look at West Ham’s results with and without him will give a clear indication why. He has 6 goals and 4 assists for the Hammers this season and has already earned a new and improved contract.

Mesut Ozil: Ozil is currently the leading assist provider in Europe with 16 to his name and he is very close to breaking the record for most assists in a Premier League season. In addition to his assists, Ozil also has six goals to his name.

Harry Kane: Harry Kane’s initial form this season indicated that he might be a one season wonder, but he has cast all doubts aside by scoring 18 goals already. He scored 17 of these goals in the last 22 games. He just needs 3 more goals to catch up to Vardy in the race for the Premier League golden boot.

#2 Manchester XI

Formation: 4-2-3-1

David De Gea: Keeping De Gea in the summer has proved to be a great move for Man Utd. The Spaniard is matching his performance from last season and is the major reason behind their current league position.

Bacary Sagna: Sagna’s is looking more like the player City signed from Arsenal. He has been one of the consistent performers in the Citizens’ backline and has managed to keep Zabaleta out of the team.

Chris Smalling: Smalling’s incredible revival under Louis van Gaal has continued this season and this season he has been one of the best in the league in his role despite being partnered with a makeshift centre-back.

Daley Blind: The only Manchester City centre-back who had any chance of making this spot was Kompany, but he has been out injured for too long. Blind has done exceptionally well in his new role, despite his small stature.

Alexander Kolarov: Kolarov has always been a huge threat going forward, but this season his defensive fragilities have come down and the support he gets from Raheem Sterling has helped his case. He has done well to keep Clichy out.

Yaya Toure: Yaya Toure hasn’t been at his influential best this season, but nevertheless he has still scored seven goals and assisted six for City in what might be his final season at the club.

Morgan Schneiderlin: Manchester United seem to have found a long term replacement for Michael Carrick in Schneiderlin. The former Saints man has been an influential figure for United this season and their win percentage with and without him gives a clear indication why.

Kevin De Bruyne: Although Kevin De Bruyne is currently nursing an injury, the Belgian has already done enough to be in the contention for signing of the season. He has 12 goals and 12 assists to his name for City this season.

Anthony Martial: At first it seemed like United paid over the odds for Martial, but his performance so far suggests that it has been a good investment. Martial has been the biggest threat for United while going forward and has scored 9 goals and provided 8 assists so far.

David Silva: The former Valencia man started the season brightly before an injury kept him out for a while. His return has had its positive influence on the team already. He has 3 goals and 8 assists to his name this season.

Sergio Aguero: The Argentine has continued to be at his very best this season and has already scored 18 goals. He will be looking to win the golden boot again come the end of the season.

#3 Merseyside XI

Formation: 4-1-2-1-2

Simon Mignolet: Mignolet and Howard have looked susceptible in goal this season. The Belgian has had some match winning performances at least and also has age on his side unlike Howard.

Seamus Coleman: The Everton right back is arguably the most consistent right back in the league in the recent seasons and continues to put in a solid shift every time he plays.

John Stones: Stones has shown the whole world why Chelsea were desperate to sign him in the summer. The Englishman has been in excellent form for Everton and is fighting for a starting role at the Euros.

Martin Skrtel: Skrtel makes his fair share of mistakes, but the Liverpool defence has looked disastrous following the Slovakian’s injury. Conceding four goals against Norwich is a perfect example.

Alberto Moreno: Moreno is a player that divides opinion among the Liverpool fans due to his occasional defensive mistake, but he has been a huge threat going forward this season. He is among the most creative defenders in the league at the moment.

Gareth Barry: Not a lot of competition for Barry for this spot. His partners at Everton and Liverpool’s central midfielders have been in and out of their respective sides or have not shown enough to warrant a place here.

Gerard Deulofeu: The former Barcelona player has taken his chance with Everton brilliantly and has helped Lukaku thrive with his incredible crosses from the right wing. He has 4 goals and 11 assists for Everton in his second spell.

Philippe Coutinho: Liverpool’s struggle to create goal scoring chances without their little magician has become evident this season. The Brazilian has been a big game player for the Reds and has six goals and three assists as of now.

Ross Barkley: Ross Barkley had a subdued season last time around after his breakthrough season in 2013-14, but now he is back to his brilliant best with 11 goals and 8 assists.

Roberto Firmino: Jurgen Klopp will be a happy that Firmino is capable of playing as a striker. The Brazilian endured a slow start to the season due to lack of match fitness and an injury, but has come alive in recent months. He now has six goals and six assists for the Reds.

Romelu Lukaku: While the whole world has been talking about Jamie Vardy, Romelu Lukaku has slowly put himself in contention for the player of the season award. He has already scored 20 goals this season and has also provided five assists.

#4 Outcome

The London team have a huge pool of players to pick from

If there was a competition featuring these three teams, who do you think would win?

There are several factors to look at and the most important one is team selection. London clubs have a huge advantage in this aspect. There are five London clubs in the Premier League at the moment and because of that, they have a vast pool of players to pick from.

In form players like Giroud, Costa, Sanchez, Dembele, Cazorla, Cabaye and Koscielny have to miss out from the London XI because of this. To be honest any of these players would have made the Manchester or Merseyside XI on current form.

For the team from Manchester, the selection has to be made from Manchester United and Manchester City. Both teams are not at their very best this season. For United their attack has been drab while City are struggling defensively.

And finally for the team from Merseyside, their keeper is the first major problem. Mignolet is there in the side only because Howard is most probably the only other keeper in the league who has been worse than the Belgian. The team’s attack is certainly mouthwatering, but the central midfield is an issue for the team.

The London XI have great balance to their side with the work-rate of the players at their disposal and the form that they are in. They are the clear cut winners without a hint of doubt.