With David Luiz of all people making the FIFA FifPro World XI shortlist, voted by fellow players, Darragh Harkins wonders whether footballers actually understand the game they play.
By Darragh Harkin
This week the FIFA FifPro World XI shortlist was announced and the only conclusion I can gleam from it is that football players lack basic knowledge of their own sport.
FIFA invited 50’000 professional footballers from across the world to select a world XI in a 4-3-3 formation and fill it with the best players for each position. So how in the name of Colin Hendry did the likes of David Luiz make the grade?
Below is the list of all the lads who made the shortlist from the English Premier League. They are all fine football players in their own right but are these the best the league has to offer in that particular position for 2011?
Goalkeeper: Edwin van der Sar
Defence: Ashley Cole, Patrice Evra, Rio Ferdinand, Vincent Kompany, David Luiz, John Terry and Nemanja Vidic
Midfield: Gareth Bale, Frank Lampard, Nani, David Silva and Yaya Toure
Forwards: Sergio Aguero, Didier Drogba, Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney
Clearly there are some glaring problems and definite omissions from this list so I am going to use this article to replace some of the dead weight:
Edwin van der Sar out: Pepe Reina or Joe Hart in
As a United fan I am a big admirer of the lizard-lipped Dutch goalie but how can a player that retired in May be on a list of the best players for 2011? He only played for five months of the year and for this I am dismissing him.
My choice as a replacement goes to either Liverpool’s Reina or City’s Hart. Reina has been the best performer in his position for many years and Hart continues to improve with each passing week. Either would fit comfortably onto this shortlist and at the very least, both have played for longer than five months this year.
Patrice Evra out: Leighton Baines in
Evra is the scourge of many United fans thoughts these days, as his defensive displays over the past 18 months have been nothing short of criminal. So how he made a list of the best players in the world is beyond me and I can only hope getting on said list might make him revert to the player he was pre-World Cup 2010.
Leighton Baines plays in a mediocre team and somehow plays well every single week. Some weeks he shines and some weeks he is just ‘good’ but always he can step off the field knowing that he tried. The same cannot be said for Evra. Luis Enrique of Liverpool and Stephen Warnock of Villa could also fit this position over the Frenchman.
David Luiz out: Anyone else in. Anyone!
Gary Neville thinks David Luiz plays football as though he was controlled by a ten-year-old with a Playstation controller and that’s putting it mildly. Neville’s remarks were one of the most apt descriptions of a football player I’ve heard in years, as Luiz runs around football fields with more talent than most but the mind of a headless chicken.
To replace him I ask you to watch any Premier League match and pick one of the four people playing centre half that day. It doesn’t matter which one, as they will certainly know more about defending than Luiz.
Rio Ferdinand out: Phil Jagielka, Richard Dunne or Ryan Shawcross in
If it was Rio Ferdinand circa-2008 then he would fit onto this list very well. But that Rio is gone and what we have now is a man who is just about coming to terms with his lack of pace and what is needed to do to change his game defensively. 2011 was not a year to remember for Ferdinand as injuries and poor performances littered his season. So how is he on the list?
Big Phil Jagielka plays for a team who do more than their fair share of defending and he stands out as an exceptional player almost every time. He is the kind of centre half John Terry wishes he still was and could be the lion England need at the heart of defence for Euro 2012.
Another possibility is Richard Dunne as it’s a well know fact that he played the Russians on his own and came out on top. This alone means he should be on the list.
Then there is always Shawcross who to be fair is a consistent centre half that deserves a bit of credit and who people seem to have forgotten about since the hullabaloo made over Gary Cahill in the summer.
John Terry out: Coloccini, Skrtel or Hangeland in
Similar to Rio, the year of 2011 has forced Chelsea’s captain to come to terms with his new lack of abilities. Terry has had a couple of cracking games this year but they are few and far between, leaving me wondering just who voted for him?
Skrtel and Hangeland are consistent performers who play well against big teams and small ones equally. They may not always be international level but they certainly had had a better year than JT.
Fabricio Coloccini used to look a bit like David Luiz in how he played football but in the past year he’s bucked up his ideas and become a good centre half. I’m not saying he is a better player than John Terry but like Skrtel and Hangeland he has been more consistent over the past 12 months.
As for the rest of them, Ashley Cole, Vincent Kompany and Nemanja Vidic are all defenders of the highest order and have performed very well in 2011.
Gareth Bale, Nani, David Silva and Yaya Toure have all lit up the Premier League in their own way throughout this year. Frank Lampard deserves a place in my opinion, as his stats of goals and assists per game still stand up against most. If I was pushed to replace him I would go for Scott Parker.
Sergio Aguero, Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney are outstanding football players and would get into almost any team in the world. Didier Drogba may have only scored one time in the Premier League since AVB took over but he is still the biggest handful for any defender in the league and deserves his place if you ask me.
So who else deserves a place on this list? You can let me know in the comments below or on Facebook or Twitter.
Darragh can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/darragh.harkinradioshows or on Twitter as @DarraghHarkin.
LISTEN: You Must Be Jokin’ podcast – listen to the latest episode now!
