posted Dec 21, 2007

--------------------buffon----------------------

neville--cannavaro---------maldini------r.carlos

maradona----zidane---------cantona----ronaldinho

----------------pele---------henry--------------

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posted Dec 24, 2007

--------------------Schmeichel----------------------

Thuram-----Cannavaro-----Stam------Maldini

Figo----Zidane-------Platini-----Giggs

------------Pele---------Maradona--------------

There are many others but if you had to pick a team then that would be it....Ryan Giggs is a suprise pick for others but they man has been sublime in the 15yrs+ he's been at Man Utd & his trophy cabinet is right up there with Paulo Maldini

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posted Dec 28, 2007

I've done two teams

From 1992 onwards:
1) Goalkeeper: Schmeichel or Kahn when he was at top form (e.g. 2002) for me.
Alternatives: Buffon and Casillas

2) Right back: Probably Lillian Thuram

3) Left back: Without question Paolo Maldini and would be my captain although Lizarazu would be second choice

4 and 5) Centre backs: Hierro and Costacurta
Alternatives: McGrath (though had injury, alcohol problems and low self-seteem) Desailly, Nesta, Cannavaro, Stam, possibly Adams (though I may be biased) and even Baresi

6) Defensive midfielder: Vieira for his ability to go forward as well as defend.
Back ups: Deschamps, Effenburg, Keane, Makelele, Desailly could play there, Gattuso or even Matthaus, Gullit and Rijkaard (despite their age)

7) Right winger: Can't look past Gheorghe Hagi though Luis Figo would be back up

8) Attacking midfielder: Zinedine Zidane or Michael Laudrup.
Alternatives: Pavel Nedved, Brian Laudrup, Guardiola, Scholes, Ballack (at Bayern)

9) Main striker: Andriy Shevchenko (pre Chelski) or Thierry Henry (for his assists and all round game as well as goals)
Alternatives: Klinsmann, Inzaghi, Shearer, Makaay, Van Nistelrooy

10) Second Striker: Roberto Baggio, what a player.
Back ups: Bergkamp, Cantona, Del Piero, Totti, Zola, Raul (before loss of form)

11) Left winger: Hristo Stoichkov or Ryan Giggs (for longevity and consistency)

Manager: Fabio Capello or Marcello Lippi
Alternatives: Hiddink, Fergie, Wenger, Hitzveld, Mourinho or Javier Irureta for his amazing success with Deportivo in the late 90s/early 2000s

Until 1992:
1) Goalkeeper: Lev Yashin
Alternatives: Zoff, Banks or Sepp Maier

2) Right backs: Manfred Kaltz was a great attacking wing back and was a wonderful crosser of the ball as well as being good defensively

3) Left back: Probably Paolo Maldini or Paul Breitner

4 and 5) Centre backs: Beckenbauer (who would also be captain) and Moore
Back ups: Krol, Rijkaard could play there,

6) Defensive midfielder: Matthaus or Rijkaard
Alternatives:

7 and 11) Wingers: Take your pick from Eusebio, Best, Zoltan Czibor, Jozsef Bozsik and Gheorghe Hagi.

8) Attacking midfielder: Johan Cruyff or Michel Platini
Back ups: Nandor Hidegkuti for his partnership with Puskas/Kocsis, Charlton (though he could play up front), again Michael Laudrup, Bernd Schuster and I think Gullit could play there

9 and 10) Strikers: Ferenc Puskas and Sandor Kocsis, most prolific international partnership ever (159 goals in 153 games between them), just a pity they never won the 54 World Cup.
Alternatives: Gerd Muller and Alfredo Di Stefano. Also Van Basten, Lato, Butragueno, Rossi and Just Fontaine for his 13 goals in 6 games in the 1958 World Cup.

Manager: Vittorio Pozzo for back to back World Cups, Otto Rehhagel for leading Greece to Euro 2004 and success with Werder Bremen, Helmut Schon, maybe even Beckenbauer as player-manager.

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posted Dec 30, 2007

my european all time xi (4-3-3)

GK Peter Schmeichel
DF Franz Beckenbauer
DF Franco Baresi
DF Paolo Maldini
DF Lillian Thuram
MF Zidedine Zidane
MF Gheorghe Hagi
MF Johann Cruyff
CF Roberto Baggio
CF Franck Puskas
CF George Best

Subs : Eric Cantona, Michel Platini, Bobby Charlton, Dino Baggio, Alessandro Costacurta, Claudio Gentile. Eusebio, Ruud Gullit,Marco Van Basten, Gerd Muller, Just Fontaine, Stanley Matthews, Davor Suker, Gianluca Zambrotta, Dino Zoff, Gianluigi Buffon,Gordon Banks, Kenny Dalglish, Kevin Keegan, Gaetano Scirea, Giacinto Facchetti, Giancarlo Antognoni, Gianni Rivera, Sandro Mazzola, Thierry Henry, David Trezeguet, Francesco Totti, Alessandro Del Piero, Bruno Conti, Gigi Riva, Igor Kolyvanov, Paolo Futre, Luis Figo, Cristiano Ronaldo & Dennis Bergkamp (its a very big subs bench)

Manager : Marcello Lippi

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posted Dec 30, 2007

Also forgot 2 mention zvonimir boban as an alternative to zidane in the 1992 to present day team

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posted Jan 7, 2008

who's Zvonimir Groban ...???

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posted Jan 8, 2008

my european team of players from
my lifetime....


GK Andoni ZUBAZARETTA
RB Lilian THURAM
LB Paolo MALDINI
CB Marcel DESAILLY
CB Tony ADAMS
RW Gheorge HAGI
CM Lothar MATTHAUS
CM Patrick VIEIRA
LM Robert PIRES
FW Thierry HENRY
FW Pedro PAULETA

Subs:
Peter SCHMEICHEL
RAUL
Luis FIGO
Alessandro COSTACURTA
Dennis BERGKAMP
Hristo STOICHKOV
Sinisa MAHILJOVIC

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posted Jun 3, 2008

From my lifetime: (I'll do my impression of previously too then attempt a combined effort since I know enough and have seen enough of old greats to include them), anyway my lifetime:
Schmeichel

Amoros Sammer Baresi Maldini

Figo Platini Zidane

M Laudrup

van Basten Dalglish
Subs: Dasayev, Rijkaard, Lizarazu, Matthaus, Pires, Savicevic, Henry.
(As my screen name would suggest Cruyff was still ace into my lifetime ie back at Ajax again but I didnt see any of that first hand - only on youtube recently!)

Pre-my lifetime:
Yashin

Beckenbaur Moore Krol

Best Neeskens Charlton Dzajic

Cruyff
Eusebio Puskas
Subs: Banks, Breitner, Edwards, Deyna, Finney, Hidegkuti, Rensenbrink.
(Not included Di Stefano as classing as not European though he played for Spain in the end)
So combined I think:
Yashin

Amoros Beckenbaur Moore Maldini

Best Platini Zidane Cruyff

Eusebio van Basten

Subs: Schmeichel, Krol, Charlton, Figo, M Laudrup, Dalglish, Puskas.

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posted Jun 5, 2008

Yashin

Bergomi Scirea Moore Breitner

Beckenbauer Deschamps

Best Platini Cruyff

Muller


Subs: Zoff, Thuram, Maldini, Baresi, Hansen, Rijkaard, Mattheus, Charlton (B), Zidane, Puskas, Dalglish, Van Basten

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posted Jun 15, 2008

News - he is going on for AT LEAST another year according to AC Milan website.

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