The FIFPro World XI of the year is, as usual, littered with Barcelona and Real Madrid players. But a few other teams managed to sneak players in this season -- Bayern Munich, PSG and Juventus all got one each.
FIFPro World XI dominated by Barcelona and Real Madrid
As per usual, Spain’s top two get eight spots in the World XI.
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Goalkeeper: Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich)
Defender: Marcelo (Real Madrid)
Defender: Thiago Silva (Paris Saint-Germain)
Defender: Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid)
Defender: Dani Alves (Barcelona)
Midfielder: Paul Pogba (Juventus)
Midfielder: Luka Modric (Real Madrid)
Midfielder: Andres Iniesta (Barcelona)
Forward: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
Forward: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Forward: Neymar (Barcelona)
We applaud FIFPro voters for putting together a World XI that could actually beat most above-average club teams. Usually, this team is made up of whatever 11 random players the voters liked, with very little consideration given to positions. That was probably the case this year too, but it just happened to work out that they voted for a left back, a right back, two center backs and a couple of midfielders that occasionally play some defense.
If there’s one massive snub here, it’s probably Sergio Busquets, whose defensive and positional work makes Barcelona’s free-flowing style possible. Dani Alves getting the nod over Philipp Lahm is a tad bit ridiculous, but Alves makes this team every year, regardless of form.
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