Interesting Best XI

Interesting that he talks about the "work-rate" of Scifo. It is not something that is emphasized about him usualy.
Also the term "relaxed" about coach Tigana. He was often described as the authoritarian type with the players. That being said, Collins talks about his principles about the game, when he describes him as relaxed : "he just said play, pass and move".
But that's it, he did not communicate much with the players it seems and could be tough. But it's more about his spell as a coach of Bordeaux that we hear stories about that so it's interesting to compare : maybe he was less offensive in his speach with quality players like he had at Monaco, that counted on many international players like Collins says, had less to explain to them. But he was quite a close person (well, as a coach) in general it seems. He was very strict with himself as a player and very strict/ demanding with the players as a coach, so it could be problematic with average players (on his personal scale). That's what is said and indeed, generally, he did not smile very often on the pitch or on the touchline.

Franck Dumas was regularly highly rated in the league indeed. Possibly he was selected in the France B or A' team.

 

The post I was actually referring to, with the link to article.

 

Yeah, sure.


I don't remember if it's already on the thread, but here is Tigana's own selection anyway:
France great Jean Tigana selects his best ever XI | Football News | Sky Sports

Goalkeeper - Joel Bats


He was the goalkeeper for the national team. He was very quick. He was not very good in the air but very quick and very clever. He was one of the first goalkeepers who liked to play with his feet. He was a very technical goalkeeper.



Right-back - Patrick Battiston

He was very strong and very quick. He had a good shot and was very clever.



Centre-back - Carlos Mozer

A very tall Brazilian who was like a basketball player. He was very good in the air and very technical. For me he was the best central defender I played with in my life.



Centre-back - Maxime Bossis

He could play with both his feet and he could play everywhere. He was always good. I only saw him play one bad game. He was incredible. I played many bad games but he always played to 100 per cent.



Left-back - Manuel Amoros

He was very attacking. He was clever, quick, had a good cross and always wanted to push forward and press high. Now many players do that but in the past not many pressed high.



Defensive midfield - Luis Fernandez

He was very good at getting back the ball.

Right midfield - Alain Giresse

He never lost one ball. He got the ball in different positions and he was small but very technical. He also scored many goals. I played for six years with him at Bordeaux. Off the pitch he never talked, only on the pitch.



Attacking miidfield - Michel Platini

Platini was a genious. He was not a very hard worker but I you had one chance he would score. Sometimes he would score from half chances. He was very clever. In the box he was very quick. He was always moving and never lost the ball. Many players are very nervous when they arrive in the box, but Michel was relaxed. That is the difference between the very good players and the normal players. He was the boss as well on and off the pitch.



Left midfield - Chris Waddle

When he came to Marseilles we were wonder, ‘who is this player?’ He was unbelievable with his dribbling. He was a very good man to have in the side as well. He was the leader of the side and always positive. And he worked hard. At Marseilles we had Eric Cantona as a substitute so you had to work hard if you wanted to play.



Striker - Jean-Pierre Papin

He was a very good score. He was quick and strong. He was always a hard worker and positive. When I played with him he was a little bit... not crazy but young. But after he changed he was a very good man and a hard worker. He was a good example to the young players.



Striker - Dieter Muller

When I arrived at Bordeaux, he was very good in the air and he could control the ball and score goals. He played two good seasons and his last season was not very good because he started to enjoy the good life in Bordeaux – the good wine – but he was a fantastic player.

 

... and he was accustomed to have great teammates, thus to complete things about his demanding nature.

 

This is the same Keegan in October 2006 (instead of 1977) to the Sunday Times (through the wayback function):


My dream team
Kevin Keegan picks his World XI

Pat was the hardest to beat. Just when you thought you had the ball past him, he would stick a leg out or get something on it to keep it out.

Right-back:
Carlos Alberto (Brazil)
He changed everybody’s idea of how a full-back could play. He could defend, but he wanted to say to the winger he was meant to be marking: “Okay, let’s see how good you are at defending.” He took the game to his opponent.

Centre-back:
Bobby Moore (England)
I was in Sir Alf Ramsey’s England squad as a 21-year-old, and Bobby was the captain. Everybody thought he didn’t have any pace, but you never saw anybody run him. He knew how to defend around it. Great players always have time and space.

Centre-back:
Franz Beckenbauer (West Germany, capt)
He brought a new art to defending. When England played West Germany, I had to mark him, because that’s where the trouble was going to start. He could hit a 40-yard pass or step into midfield and outnumber you there.

Left-back:
Berti Vogts (West Germany)
Berti marked me in my last game for Liverpool before I joined Hamburg, against Borussia Mönchengladbach in the 1977 European Cup final. He would follow you to the dressing room at half-time. I’d ask him if he was coming in, and he’d say: “No thank you, but I’ll be here waiting for you when you get out.”

Right midfield:
Ian Callaghan (England)
Every team needs a Mr Reliable, and Ian is mine. Everybody said I was signed to replace him at Anfield, but we ended up playing together for years.

Central midfield:
Billy Bremner (Scotland)
We were sent off for fighting in the 1974 Charity Shield, but that wasn’t about us, it was about Liverpool v Leeds, which was a niggly match. Anybody remembering Billy as the original sitting midfielder isn’t doing him justice. He had the skill as well as the steel.

Central midfield:
Diego Maradona (Argentina)
England played Argentina at Wembley when he was 19 and I saw him do things I hadn’t seen anybody do before. He looked dumpy, but he had that low centre of gravity and was lightning quick. When he accelerated, the ball stuck to his feet, and that was the key to his talent.

Left midfield:
David Ginola (France)
David was the most gifted player I coached. He had this dummy he could use to go left or right. We had a group of academy kids in at Newcastle one day and I asked him to show it to them, but he couldn’t. He said he didn’t know how he did it, it just came naturally during a game.

Striker:
Alan Shearer (England)
I signed him for £15m and got a great player and a fantastic finisher. He changed his game as he got older. Realising what you can’t do is as important as knowing what you can.

Striker:
Johan Cruyff (Holland)
He had incredible talent and self-control. One conversation sticks in my mind. He told me: “When I am playing well, I run the team, but when I am not, I turn to [Johan] Neeskens and say: ‘Today you are the general and I am your soldier’.” That attitude doesn’t always come with talent, and it made him a great team player.



Some others I found:

My dream team
Liam Brady [april 2007] picks his XI from those he has played with and against

Goalkeeper: Pat Jennings (Northern Ireland) There were several reasons why Arsenal reached consecutive FA Cup finals in 1978, 1979 and 1980. The presence of one of the greatest goalkeepers ever to play the game was one. The man with the big hands exuded calm and dominance in his area.

Right-back: Billy Bonds (England) It's a travesty he was never capped for England. His 40th birthday was long gone when I arrived back in London after seven years in Italy, but he still possessed unequalled energy, drive and dedication to duty. I played alongside him in nine league games, and having him on your side was far more comfortable than lining up against him.

Central defence: Ruud Krol (Holland) One of the hallmarks of great defenders is their sense of anticipation. This versatile Dutchman was the perfect example. He could play anywhere across a back four or sweep behind. Three European Cup winners' medals in three years for Ajax prove his class.

Central defence: Gaetano Scirea (Italy) If Beckenbauer set new standards when it came to playing sweeper, the bar was raised again by this graceful player. Cynics who brand Italian defending physical and uncompromising might note that he was never sent off or suspended despite playing more than 600 games at club level and winning 78 caps.

Left-back: Antonio Cabrini (Italy) Like Scirea, he became an institution at Juventus after I had moved on from the Stadio delle Alpi, winning everything in the game. He made the position of left-back an art form, excelling in defensive duties, scoring crucial goals, and was a big reason for Juve winning six Scudettos.

Right midfield: Alan Ball (England) Any youngster coming into top-flight football needs an experienced campaigner to show them the ropes and set standards. The little man with red hair did it for me. Bally was at his peak during his Arsenal years. He possessed boundless energy but played with such intelligence and had a degree of passion that was infectious.

Central midfield: Michel Platini (France) Three consecutive European Footballer of the Year awards illustrate how good he was. The Frenchman was elegance personified in the centre of midfield. The range of his passing was almost unnatural, he was lethal with free kicks from outside the box and his ability to make the crucial break to score goals from deep positions was awesome.

Central midfield: Graeme Souness (Scotland) People talk about warriors and great leaders. Nobody got the better of him in a physical duel, but he also possessed skill and vision.

Left midfield: Johan Cruyff (Holland) Cruyff could play in any attacking position, but his ability to cause havoc from wide areas makes me put him on the left flank. He was devastating with both feet and mesmerised many a defender.

Striker: Diego Maradona (Argentina) Who cannot be filled with awe at that stunning goal against England in the 1986 World Cup, when his 60-yard run took him past six opponents? He had a compact physique with a low centre of gravity and strong legs and created as many goals as he scored.

Striker: Zico (Brazil) When it comes to invention on the pitch, Zico stands high on my list. I played against him in Italy and remember all too well his ability with both feet and expertise with free kicks.


Mydreamteam
Former Liverpool star Mark Lawrenson picks his XI from those he played with and against

Sunday March 18 2007, 12.00am GMT, The Sunday Times

Goalkeeper: Ray Clemence (England)
Sometimes Clem would turn up for shooting practice and didn't fancy it, so he wouldn't do it. But come the game, he was always ready and had a fantastic level of concentration. In really good teams a keeper can have nothing to do for 20 minutes, then pull off a top-drawer save. Petr Cech does it for Chelsea, and that was Clem.

Right-back: Denis Irwin (Republic of Ireland)
He had two great feet, could score you penalties, could score goals from set-pieces, he was a great crosser of the ball and I never saw anyone take him apart defensively. You could swap him with Steve Nicol because they both would be so comfortable.

Centre-back: Alan Hansen (Scotland)
The best central defender I played with, so cool under pressure. He played the game at his own pace and never got his shorts dirty. Lots of people tried to rough him up, but they never bothered him. He was a very good captain and a very intelligent footballer.

Centre-back: Paul McGrath (Republic of Ireland)
Oozed talent, had formidable athleticism and, like Hansen, was comfortable on the ball. Paul had a great leap and great pace, which enabled him to recover if he did make a mistake. Strong as an ox and, despite the troubles that became clearer later in his career, he always prepared in his mind, which is half the battle when you've got the ability.

Left-back: Steve Nicol (Scotland)
Nico could play anywhere. Like Denis Irwin, he could use both feet and could dribble past opponents. Defensively, he was very good, strong and never gave the ball away.

Right midfield: Johan Cruyff (Holland)
I was privileged to play against Cruyff when he was 36 in a friendly at Feyenoord. He walked through the game and nobody could get near to him to kick him. He decided what he was doing long before the ball came to him because he knew where all his teammates were. Occasionally he would break into a sprint and you thought, "Oh my God, where did this fellow come from?" He could do anything with his right foot and he glided past people. He had fantastic vision and was unselfish as well. [#shortpeak #demographic-handicap]
Central midfield: Graeme Souness (Scotland, captain)
Souey was a far better player than a lot of people gave him credit for because they just saw this hard man, which he was. It was like joining secondary school and you had a big brother in sixth form who was the toughest in the school - Souness was like that on the pitch. He had a fantastic understanding with Kenny Dalglish. He also did a brilliant job in front of Hansen and me. A natural captain.
Central midfield: Liam Brady (Republic of Ireland)
Those people who witnessed Liam's international debut against the Soviet Union will tell you it was the finest they saw. He ran the game. What he achieved in Italy with Juventus, Sampdoria, Inter Milan and Ascoli was fantastic. He was superb at engineering half a yard and had a left foot like a magic wand. He also had a fantastic appreciation of where you wanted the ball and picked players out for fun.
Left midfield: Bobby Charlton (England)
Bobby was player-manager of Preston when I signed. He had unbelievable balance, even at full pelt. He had this God-given talent to run at you and you wouldn't know which side he was going, right or left. He had big, strong legs and a brilliant shot. I remember him overseeing a shooting drill at Preston on a wet and windy day. The training ground was exposed and hardly anyone could hit the target, but he started firing balls in from 35 yards.

Centre-forward: Kenny Dalglish (Scotland)
Occasionally you come across a footballer who's brushed with genius. Kenny was the best I played with. You could stick the ball up near his head or chest and his touch was brilliant. He never wore shin pads, and if you think about the period he played in, when defenders got their retaliation in first, he was far tougher than people gave him credit for. He said the day he needed to wear shin pads was the day he would pack it in, because if his brain wasn't working, that was the end. He would come off with bruises on his legs, but as far as he was concerned, they were the scars of battle.
Centre-forward: Ian Rush (Wales)
A lightning-fast player and all his goals went in the corner of the net. They were just not saveable. Everyone who played with him will also tell you he was our best defender. When Liverpool played in Europe, we used to play with the inside-forward dropping deep and Rushie would be left up front. He had a knack of knowing which full-back the keeper was about to give the ball to. I remember a game against Benfica when he terrorised all four defenders so much that after 20 minutes they didn't want the ball and the keeper had to boot it downfield.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/mydreamteam-fg9sgqvdsxr

Former Scotland striker Alan Brazil picks his XI from those he played with and against
Goalkeeper: Peter Shilton
Shilton had better reactions than any goalkeeper about, and he really came into his own in one-on-one situations. Some goalkeepers would react to a dummy immediately, but not Shilton - he would stay on his feet and wait for the striker to panic.
Central defender: Alan Hansen
A magnificent reader of the play who possessed great timing in the tackle. In addition, his use of the ball coming out of defence was superb and he was the instigator of so many attacks for that great Liverpool side with his distribution.
Central defender: Mark Lawrenson
In combination with his Anfield teammate Hansen, Lawrenson was supreme in defence. His strength was his pace; over 15 yards he was as quick as anybody. A true footballer, Lawrenson could function effectively in midfield and loved to play the ball.
Central defender: Kevin Beattie
As a defender the Ipswich man had everything. He was quick, tackled supremely, was the best header of the ball I have seen, and when he went forward his shooting power was awesome. The fact that he won only nine England caps was a tragedy.
Right wing-back: George Burley
Another of my old Ipswich teammates. The mark of his defensive powers was that he made his debut against George Best and acquitted himself well. A tireless athlete who was a tremendous overlapping full-back, and so precise with his passing.
Right midfield: Glenn Hoddle
The Tottenham man was a sublimely skilled player who possessed magnificent vision and the sort of first touch on the ball that others could only envy. But of course Hoddle's greatest quality was his stunning ability to pass the ball, either short or long range, and he had that rare gift of being able to do it with either foot.
Central midfield: Graeme Souness, captain
The ultimate leader who orchestrated any team in which he played, be it Middlesbrough, Liverpool, Sampdoria or Rangers, regardless of being captain or not. When it came down to sheer physical hardness, he could intimidate opponents, but he could also shoot and pass with great ability. Quite simply, he was a winner.
Left midfield: Bryan Robson
In terms of tireless, energetic midfielders who could work with the utmost effect box to box, Robson had no equal. He was brave in both his defending and attacking, making those great runs to score crucial goals. John Wark was not far behind in that respect, but Robbo was the absolute master.
Left wing-back: Danny McGrain
Legend. There is no other word to describe the Celtic man. No matter how hard the tackle, he never flinched and won the respect of every man he marked. He could also get forward and add telling width to the attack on the left.
Striker: Kenny Dalglish
The best player in the penalty box. His awareness to goalscoring possibilities was superhuman and but he could hold the ball up with utter brilliance. As a fellow striker I could only witness his Anfield partnership with Ian Rush in amazement.
Striker: Ian Rush
The fifth and final player from that great Liverpool side of the 1980s to make my team. Pace is so often the quality that makes great strikers stand out and he possessed it in abundance. People always refer to him defending from the front, which was true, but you mustn't overlook that his speed and reaction to scoring chances was superb.

 

I don't know if this thread is the most suitable for this clipping, nor do I remember if it is in another thread, but I thought it was interesting to share it. It is from the Chilean magazine Estadio; It was published in 1954 and refers to a survey of 16 journalists for the Italian publication Tempo, in order to make the ideal XI of all time.

No sé si este hilo es el más adecuado para este recorte, ni tampoco recuerdo si se encuentra en otro hilo, pero he creído interesante compartirlo. Es de la revista chilena Estadio; se publicó en 1954 y hace referencia a una encuesta que se hizo a 16 periodistas para la publicación italiana Tempo, a fin de confeccionar el XI ideal de todos los tiempos.

 

Very interesting with players like Puskas, Di Stefano, Ocwirk, and Cajkowski already in by 1954.

 

This is very useful. Publications from 17 different countries voted. 15 were European with none from Eastern Europe. Only Brazil and Chile (Estadio) represent South America.

The narrative from the Chilean journalist here does not always match the voting. It is also clear where Estadio is coming from. Theirs was the only XI with no Europeans in it. Their angle (or that of Juan Del Potrero) is that Europeans do not know enough about South American football to make a proper judgement. Brazilian journalists apparently feel the same way. So the only South Americans picked by the panel for the overall team are those with a profile in Europe. The four are Nasazzi, JL Andrade, Di Stefano and Orsi.

The author believes that Di Stefano's big money move to Spain has inflated his reputation, and that he would be nowhere near a side voted for just by South Americans. He would be behind at least a dozen others including Pedernera, Friedenreich, Leonidas, Piendibene, Petrone and Walter Gomez. Orsi considered Lostau to have been a better left-winger than himself and the author agrees. Potrero goes on to say that when Cajkowski played recently for Partizan Belgade in Chile, he was not as good as the best home players. Ocwirk is considered to be inferior to several South Americans including Lorenzo Fernandez and Monti. The overall team should apparently have included at least one more Uruguayan in Scarone, and probably two with Fernandez. Interestingly there is no mention of Moreno or Schiaffino and they did not receive any votes.

Most votes by far (16) were received by Matthews. Only Estadio did not pick him. Next in line is Zamora with nine. On this evidence it would appear that Matthews was widely regarded as the GOAT in 1954. Eight votes were received by Puskas, Andrade, Ocwirk and Hapgood, seven by Orsi, and six by Meazza and Cajkowski. The others selected for the overall team are Nasazzi and Di Stefano. They only received two and four votes respectively. Some of the names are difficult to read and Nasazzi might have bagged one or two more, but no more than that. Di Stefano has the same number of votes as Sindelar, Kubala and Alex James. He could therefore have been replaced by Sindelar as the team's centre-forward.

Arsenal appears to have maintained a hold from the 1930s. As well as Hapgood and James, David Jack got three votes, and Male and Bastin one apiece. The only mainly pre-1914 footballer to feature is Billy Meredith, placed out of position on the left wing by the Norwegian correspondent.

It is intriguing to read such a different contemporary perspective from South America. A few players from this part of the world may warrant re-assessment.

 

An interesting option when creating an ideal XI of all time would be one with the following starting conditions:

- Only one player can be selected per nationality
- Only one player can be selected per decade. Well, at this point I will make a small exception since my knowledge of the pre-1920 is not very deep so I will start selecting players from the 1920s to the 2010s (it is 10 decades so in one of them I will may repeat player).

It is not easy to make a team because, for example, if I select Di Stéfano I can no longer choose Messi or Maradona because they are all Argentines or if I select Pelé I will no longer be able to choose either Best, Charlton or Eusebio because having featured all of them mainly in the 1960s.

I have selected two teams as an example:

TEAM 1:

1920: Ricardo Zamora, Spain
1930: Matthias Sindelar, Austria
1940: José Manuel Moreno, Argentina
1950: Ferenc Puskas, Hungary
1960: Edson Arantes "Pele", Brazil - Bobby Moore, England
1970: Elías Figueroa, Chile
1980: Marco Van Basten, Netherlands
1990: Paolo Maldini, Italy
2000: Philipp Lahm, Germany
2010: Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal

---------------------------Zamora

---------Lahm---Figueroa---Moore---Maldini

---------------------------Moreno

----------------Pele-----------------Cristiano

---------------------------Puskas

----------------Sindelar---------Van Basten


And the other team:

TEAM 2:

1920: José Leandro Andrade, Uruguay
1930: Arsenio Erico, Paraguay
1940: Josef Bican, Austria
1950: Alfredo di Stéfano, Argentina
1960: George Best, Northern Ireland
1970: Sepp Maier, Germany
1980: Frank Rijkaard, Netherlands - Franco Baresi, Italy
1990: Zinedine Zidane, France
2000: Roberto Carlos, Brazil
2010: Sergio Ramos, Spain

-------------------------------Maier

-------Andrade---Baresi---Ramos---Roberto Carlos

-----------------------------Rijkaard

-----------------Zidane-----------------Best

--------------------------Di Stéfano

------------------Erico---------------Bican

 

I'll have a go at incorporating that earlier decade with my attempt (although agree that it's both tempting to use a later decade twice, and difficult to pick players out from that decade!).


1910s: Kalman Konrad (Hungary)
1920s: Jose Nasazzi (Uruguay)
1930s: Matthias Sindelar (Austria)
1940s: Nils Liedholm or Gunnar Gren (Sweden)
1950s: Lev Yashin (Soviet Union)
1960s: Pele (Brazil)
1970s: Johan Cruyff (Netherlands)
1980s: Paolo Maldini (Italy)
1990s: Matthias Sammer (Germany)
2000s: Lilian Thuram (France)
2010s: Sergio Busquets (Spain)

WM system or free-playing 4-3-3:
Yashin; Thuram, Nasazzi, Maldini; Busquets, Sammer; Pele, Cruyff; Konrad, Sindelar, Liedholm (because I use his 1940s version otherwise I'd swap him with Cruyff)
Yashin; Thuram, Nasazzi, Sammer, Maldini; Gren, Busquets, Cruyff; Konrad, Pele, Sindelar


Alternative attempt

1910s: Arthur Friedenreich (Brazil)
1920s: Raimundo Orsi (Argentina)
1930s: Gyorgy Sarosi (Hungary)
1940s: Stanley Matthews or Tom Finney (England)
1950s: Ernst Ocwirk (Austria)
1960s: Eusebio (Portugal)
1970s: Franz Beckenbauer (Germany)
1980s: Maxime Bossis (France)
1990s: Peter Schmeichel (Denmark)
2000s: Gianluca Zambrotta (Italy)
2010s: Luca Modric (Croatia)

Schmeichel; Zambrotta, Beckenbauer, Bossis; Modric, Ocwirk; Sarosi, Eusebio; Matthews, Friedenreich, Orsi
Schmeichel; Zambrotta, Sarosi, Beckenbauer, Bossis; Modric, Ocwirk, Finney; Eusebio, Friedenreich, Orsi

 

I put other two teams with the criteria of one player per nationality and one player per decade.

TEAM 3:

1920: Dixie Dean, England
1930: Jacinto Quincoces, Spain
1940: Obdulio Varela, Uruguay
1950: Nilton Santos, Brazil
1960: Eusebio da Silva, Portugal - Dragan Dzajic, Yugoslavia
1970: Franz Beckenbauer, Germany
1980: Diego Maradona, Argentina
1990: Peter Schmeichel, Denmark
2000: Liliam Thuram, France
2010: Arjen Robben, Netherlands

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

------- Thuram---Beckenbauer---Quincoces---Nilton Santos

---------------------------------Varela

-----------------Robben-------- ------------- Dzajic

-------------------------------- Maradona

-----------------------Eusebio---------------Dean



TEAM 4:

1920: José Nasazzi, Uruguay
1930: Fratiseck Planicka, Czechoslovakia
1940: Valentino Mazzola, Italy
1950: Djalma Santos, Brazil
1960: Francisco Gento, Spain
1970: Johan Cruyff, Netherlands
1980: Bryan Robson, England - Andreas Brehme, Germany
1990: Michael Laudrup, Denmark
2000: Nemanja Vidic, Serbia
2010: Leo Messi, Argentina

–---------------------------------Planicka

---------------Djalma----Vidic---Nasazzi---Brehme

------------------------------- Robson

--------------------V. Mazzola------------Gento

------------------------------- Laudrup

-----------------------Cruyff---------------Messi

 

The newspaper "Diario As" of Spain has published today the Best XI in the history of football. The composition of this team has been carried out thanks to the vote of 16 journalists or collaborators of this newspaper.

As it is a Spanish publication, there are many players who have passed through the Spanish league (9 of the 11 have played in Spain).

The ideal XI is as follows:

--------------------------------Casillas

–-------------Ramos---Beckenbauer---Roberto Carlos

----------------------------------Xavi

------------------Cruyff----Maradona----Pele

-----------------------Messi---------Cristiano

------------------------------Di Stéfano

https://as.com/futbol/2021/02/08/videos/1612804540_638332.html?m1=cG9ydGFkYV9wb3J0YWRh&m2=QUNUVUFMSURBRA==&m3=OQ==&m4=dmlkZW8=&m5=MjE=

And all the votes: https://as.com/futbol/2021/02/09/album/1612825500_479262.html

Keep in mind that some people who have voted have only done so with players that they have seen play live.

The final votes were as follows:

GOALKEEPERS
- Iker Casillas: 9
- Gianluigi Buffon: 4
- José Ángel Iríbar: 1
- Lev Yashin: 1
- Sepp Maier: 1

DEFENDER
- Franz Beckenbauer: 11
- Sergio Ramos: 11
- Roberto Carlos: 9
- Paolo Maldini:8
- Carlos Alberto: 4
- Dani Alves: 3
- Giancinto Facchetti: 1
- Paul Breitner: 1
- Fernando Hierro: 1
- Carles Puyol: 1
- Elias Figueroa: 1
- Daniel Passarella: 1
- Cafu: 1
- Franco Baresi: 1
- Javier Zanetti: 1
- Luiz Pereira: 1

MIDFIELDERS AND FORWARDS
- Leo Messi: 16 (only player nominated by all voters)
- Diego Maradona: 14
- Pele: 13
- Cristiano Ronaldo: 10
- Xavi Hernández: 9
- Alfredo di Stéfano: 8
- Johan Cruyff: 8
- Andrés Iniesta: 5
- Ronaldo Nazario: 5
- Lothar Matthaus: 4
- Zinedine Zidane:3
- Luis SuárezMiramontes: 2
- Francisco Gento: 2
- Ferenc Puskas: 1
- Sergio Busquets: 1
- Ronaldinho: 1
- Michel Platini: 1
- Garrincha: 1

 

I've spotted this one now from Benito Carbone (a One2Eleven best XI from team-mates played with like the other ones):

Here is the video on the Sky website
#One2Eleven - Benito Carbone | Video | Watch TV Show | Sky Sports

And to confirm the XI chosen on the thread
(4-2-3-1)
Luca Marchegiani (Torino)
Giusspe Bergomi (Inter Milan)
Fabio Cannavaro (Napoli)
Gareth Southgate (Aston Villa, Middlesbrough)
Roberto Carlos (Inter Milan)
Paul Ince (Inter Milan)
Javier Zanetti (Inter Milan)
Paulo Di Canio (Sheffield Wednesday)
Paul Merson (Aston Villa)
Enzo Francescoli (Torino)
Adriano (Parma)

 

If a few weeks ago a group of experts from the Diario As chose the ideal XI in the history of football, now the Internet users of said newspaper have made them:

Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Franz Beckenbauer, Paolo Maldini, Roberto Carlos, Diego Armando Maradona, Alfredo Di Stéfano, Pelé, Leo Messi, Ronaldo Nazario y Cristiano Ronaldo.

https://pbalcala.es/los-lectores-de-as-eligen-el-mejor-equipo-de-la-historia/

The difference with respect to the 11 chosen by the experts is that Cruyff and Xavi Hernández leave and Maldini and Ronaldo Nazario enter.

 

Imagine the following: UEFA decides to let the Euro 2020 players who got zero playing time during the tournament play in different tournament. All the players from each group will form a team. What would it look like? Who would win the tournament?

Group A - XI

Ünal (TUR)
Aktürkoglu (TUR) - E.Fernandes (SUI)
Ömür (TUR) - Antalyali (TUR) - J.Williams (WAL)
R.Yilmaz (TUR) - Kabak (TUR) - Cabango (WAL) - Lotomba (SUI)
Meret (ITA) (c)​

Bench: Kobel (SUI), Mvogo (SUI), Bayindir (TUR), Hennessey (WAL), Günök (TUR), A. Davies (WAL), Norrington-Davies (WAL), Cömert (SUI), Lockyer (WAL), Omeragić (SUI), Colwill (WAL) & M.Smith (WAL)

An ok team, with quality players like Kabak, Meret, and Fernandes. It is very Turkey-dominated, not least because because Mancini utilized all of his outfield players.

Group B - XI

Zabolotny (RUS)
Ionov (RUS) - R.Skov (DEN)
Fomin (RUS) - Christiansen (DEN) - Makarov (RUS)
Hämäläinen (FIN) - Zanka (DEN) (c) - Yevgenyev (RUS) - Lam (FIN)
Mignolet (BEL)​

Bench: Lössl (DEN), Sels (BEL), Rønnow (DEN), Joronen (FIN), Kaminski (BEL), Dyupin (RUS), Jaakkola (FIN), Ivanov (RUS), R.Taylor (FIN) & Valakari (FIN)

This was a tough one to make. Had to make-shift Lam into a right-back. Either that or get Robert Taylor in. Not many options, the team would definitely struggle across the board (minus GK, which is pretty stacked).

Group C - XI

Velkoski (MKD) - Radeski (MKD)
Klaassen (NED) - Koopmeiners (NED) - Sudakov (UKR)
Friedl (AUT) - Popov (UKR) - Posch (AUT) - Zajkov (MKD) - Tymchyk (UKR)
Krul (NED) (c)​

Bench: Bizot (NED), Bachmann (AUT), Pyatov (UKR), Pervan (AUT), Trubin (UKR), Jankov (MKD) & Shishkovski (MKD)

Well, the starting eleven practically writes itself. Everyone on the bench are goalies, meaning that Group C had a lot of players getting a chance. The team is mediocre, but how would it perform vs. B?

Group D - XI

Pešek (CZE)
G.Taylor (SCO) - Fleck (SCO) - Badelj (CRO) - Turnbull (SCO)
Chilwell (ENG) - Coady (ENG) (c) - White (ENG) - Zima (CZE) - Bradarić (CRO)
D.Henderson (ENG)​

Bench: Johnstone (ENG), Ramsdale (ENG), L.Kalinić (CRO), Koubek (CZE), Mandous (CZE), Sluga (CRO), McLaughlin (SCO), C.Gordon (SCO), Škorić (CRO)

I worry about this team's goal-scoring ability. The midfield is very Scottish, while the defense has enough quality. Since Bradarić is a left-back, I could opt for Matějů instead.

Group E - XI

Kownacki (POL) - Boženík (SVK) - Schranz (SVK)
Sema (SWE) - D.Llorente (ESP) (c) - Svanberg (SWE)
Kędziora (POL) - Jansson (SWE) - Valjent (SVK) - Helik (POL)
de Gea (ESP)​

Bench: Fabiański (POL), R.Sánchez (ESP), Skorupski (POL), Nordfeldt (SWE), Johnsson (SWE), Kuciak (SVK), Rodák (SVK), Granqvist (SWE) & Vavro (SVK)

A mostly weak team, although a few bright spots here and there. Had to move Llorente to CM because of lack of options. Also had problem with the R/LB positions. Why Granqvist isn't in the lineup? Well, because he is finished as a player and really should not have been part of the Euro squad.

Group F - XI

Ben Yedder (FRA)
Pote (POR)
Guedes (POR) - Hofmann (GER)
Neuhaus (GER) - Koch (GER)
N.Mendes (POR) - Zouma (FRA) - Fonte (POR) (c) - Dubois (FRA)
Maignan (FRA)​

Bench: Leno (GER), Trapp (GER), Mandanda (FRA), A. Lopes (POR), Rui Silva (POR), Bogdan (HUN), Dibusz (HUN), Günter (GER), Lang (HUN), Kecskés (HUN), Klostermann (GER), Bolla (HUN), Holender (HUN) & Hahn (HUN)

To the surprise of absolutely no one, it is F who has the strongest team. Excellent players in all positions, no one being "forced" into an unfamiliar role, at least two decent outfield sub options.

Man, this was trickier than I thought. Group C gave me a scare: One less non-goalie and I wouldn't have been able to do this.

 

@PDG1978

Few weeks ago this was linked on social media as well. I ignored it but because I discovered colleagues abroad typically don't do this, it is maybe still interesting. It's recorded May 2014. And I have found the magazine edition too! He was supposed to officiate the 1999 CL final, but injury took him out (world famous Collina replaced him). His friend and colleague from the same city (The Hague) did the one in 2001.



Native XI of the ones he whistled: Van der Sar; Winter, R. Koeman, Rijkaard, E. Koeman; Gullit, Wouters, Cocu, Bergkamp; Van Basten, Cruijff

Foreign XI of the ones he whistled: Buffon; Cafu, Maldini, Baresi, R. Carlos; Cantona, Zidane, Maradona, Savicevic; Romario, Ronaldo


THE ELEVEN OF... MARIO VAN DER ENDE
The ELF of... Mario van der Ende. In the new section of ELF Voetbal TV, a well-known person from the football world puts together an ELF of the best ELF players with whom he played, trained or in this case whistled.

08-05-2014 00:00 by Editors ELF Football
The former top arbitrator can cite many big names. He made an ELF for ELF Voetbal TV with exclusively Dutch players. As well as an ELF consisting of foreign stars, who all played football under the leadership of Van der Ende.

In the Dutch national team he remarkably chooses the 'undervalued' Aron Winter as right back. But there is a good team according to Van der Ende. "We won't be relegated with this team and will play for the European places every year."

In the foreign team, the most difficult choice was between Ronaldinho and Dejan Savicevic. He chose the latter. "He has something elusive. I whistled a duel at Old Trafford between Manchester United and Red Star Belgrade. United won, but Savicevic has been the only player ever to mislead me a few times."

"I saw what was happening on the field before. Important for a referee. But he put me on the wrong foot two or three times with an action. Just because I thought 'now he goes left or right' and he did something else."
https://www.elfvoetbal.nl/Binnenland/61319/De-ELF-van-Mario-van-der-Ende


More specifically he zooms in on Winter. He says he is "underappreciated" in his country, while he saw himself Winter was rated as among the best Serie A players for a few seasons and very appreciated at Lazio and Inter. Technically good, achieved a lot with his teams, and - certainly not unimportant - a fair player. "The cement in a team, doesn't let it down."

On Savicevic he says he goes above Ronaldinho. "Ronaldinho had also something elusive, but I once managed the European Supercup game between Red Star Belgrade and Manchester United, on Old Trafford. Manchester United won the one-legged tie with 1-0 and this Savicevic was in actuality the only player of this lot who wrong-footed me. I had often the idea I knew how the game develops, how players pass to other players, the openings they saw... yes, I often saw that too a little bit... A little bit... Very good I saw. But this Savicevic had two or three times a move that I thought "now he plays to the left" but opened to the right, or he glided past players. That is why I think - and of course later at AC Milan I saw him again and showed a thumbs up to me - just a fantastic player and therefore absolutely a place in the XI, yet."

"Inviting them all to my birthday party is perhaps not a smart idea."

---- "You was elected Oranje match official of the century [the other one placed 4th/5th all-time by France Football finished third in this one - PvH], Cruijff player of the century. You was quite young when you encountered the player. How was he in the field. Many only remember him as coach, but how was he to deal with?"

"Wonderful, because also on his veteran age it was still joyous, against men as Rijkaard, Lawrenson or Falcao. He was someone who wanted to take charge and influence the thing, and wanted to stamp his sense of fairness on the match. An offside goal or penalty going against him he would say as well, and there are prominent and consequential examples of this. Very interesting character but I don't know whether the 36 years old edition of him was the best player in my career."

---------------

I was a bit ???? here, because his top level career started in 1985 (amateurs and 2nd division from 1977 onward). Thus after Cruijff his retirement.

He is correct though:

As a young amateur referee I was asked by the then Ajax coach and fellow townsman Aad de Mos to lead practice matches between the first and second team on Thursday afternoons in De Meer, the then Ajax stadium. I would make up for the lessons in pedagogy and dramatic expression in the teacher training course that I followed later. Cruijff played with the second team as an experienced old fox. He made quite a few small, clever fouls that I invariably punished with a whistle. The little pushes in the side or back of his opponent may not have been really shocking but enough to keep his opponent off balance. He came to me in silence. Whispered in my ear that I saw it all well but that as an old star he needed these kind of transgressions to stay afloat in all that young violence. And if only I didn't want to whistle for that anymore.
Too bad, I didn't come to Amsterdam to be Jan Doedel, it's not how we work here. In 2004, in the context of 50 years of professional football in the Netherlands, the best trainer, player, club and referee of the century were chosen. There I was suddenly on the podium next to Rinus Michels and Johan Cruijff in the Olympic Stadium.
With a silver plated dish as a souvenir in our hands. Michels thought the size of the dish was scant. “Will there be five chocolates left on it? Cruijff immediately saw that it was not real silver and said to me: "You will also be happy with this present". "What do you mean Johan? “Look at the text. It says: Refree of the Century." What eyes for detail? Two weeks later I still received a bowl with the correctly spelled engraving.
https://www.sprekershuys.nl/nieuws/mario-van-der-ende-over-johan-cruijff

(instead of 'Scheidsrechter' it was the incorrect 'Schiedsrechter' as engraving...)

I hope this is a good addition! (I've searched a bit further like I said, but it seems this is typically not done by Collina, Merk, Vautrot and the likes)

 

Yes, I agree that is a very interesting piece, and somehow it doesn't detract from the interest in it (for me) that I don't know him that well (like I've said somehow I don't pay a lot of attention to who referees the match - I agree that Collina was famous and hard not to notice though I suppose, because of appearance/demeanour etc). I do recognise the name though for sure.

It would be an entertaining game between those two teams! The Netherlands team would surely score a few goals I think, so it would be a matter of whether they'd stop the foreign XI scoring even more (I don't know exactly what version of Maradona he refereed, but I guess re: Cruyff he means he saw him playing vs Lawrenson, Falcao, Rijkaard on TV or something, and then was the ref in that game he mentions - for sure that's an interesting anecdote about the verbal interaction and the praise of Cruyff for him spotting things etc, encouragement I suppose). His 4-4-2 formations can become almost like magic squares I guess, at least the Dutch one - for the foreign one the central midfield pairing would not be so suited to a sitting/supporting role, which is why it would be an open game I think in theory!

It makes me wonder whether I even under-rate Savicevic myself now lol - only joking but yeah it's an interesting call on the comparison with Ronaldinho, but I can understand what he means in terms of being fooled by what he unexpectedly does (as a consequence of the defenders being fooled) and it's funny to think of that, but also good insight for a referee to have from his experience following the game and anticipating what happens as play develops. That Super Cup match was quite a significant one for a guy 6 years into his career I guess wasn't it?

I also understand the comments about Winter, and I don't see it as shore horning him in to place him as a right back because he did do well there, certainly in a Netherlands shirt, and his ease on the ball and attacking contributions made him a good attacking right back (while still having good energy and decent defensive awareness, and IIRC a good while clean tackling game). Maybe it's one of those where he could have been more highly rated as a right back in general had he played there all the time, but for teams with less top options in midfield then he was actually a very good contributor in that area I think, and it's true that he was a valuable player for Lazio for example I remember.

 

I think his name most often pops up when the 'broken goalposts at the 1998 Champions League semi final' story is retold. How he handled this unusual and sudden episode - with Real Madrid pressurizing him - won respect and *I think* it contributes to the domestic plaudits going his way. It's a nice and verified story.

Thanks that you appreciate and yes, I revisited it once I discovered it is typically not done.

Yes, that's surely right. Same for Cruijff indicating penalties going for/against his team, which he might have heard from colleagues as well obviously. There are indeed knock-out games where Cruijff shouted for a penalty against his team, absolutely (but also: at his retirement only Gento had played more so makes it more likely to happen maybe?). The reputation of him taking control and "stamp his sense of fairness" on a game was notorious.

love those murderous 70s challenges. Game's gone

— Ben McLannahan (@bmclannahan) September 4, 2020

He featured in a high number of international finals (five) as starting player and was among the dozen players to win the UEFA Cup with two different teams (when it was a more meaningful competition, I mean). Yet wasn't among the top 50 of VI for instance, so it is a somewhat defensible statement to make.

See also:
http://www.dbscalcio.it/sn-schedaCa...omePlayer=Winter&dataNascitaPlayer=01-03-1967

 

Here is the XI of John Barnes. The video is 20 minutes long, so so far I just skipped through to find the names included, so a few curiosities remain that listening to the full video would answer, like:
- Which other names did he consider or mention (I only noticed so far Glenn Hoddle mentioned as the most skillful English player, while he was saying Robson was the best modern midfield player overall as he could do everything)....
- Whether the back 4 is shown the correct way round on the diagram, with Amoros at right back and Nicol at left back (possibly it is though, as he talks about Amoros doing well against himself in 1984, and he's a left winger, and Nicol too did sometimes play at LB and Barnes talks about his versatility also I noticed)....
- Whether it's a 4-2-3-1, or Beardsley is intended more in the midfield which the diagram might suggest....
- What allows him to pick Messi (is it including players he's only seen, as well as those played with or against, or is there some charity game he played in with Messi present on the pitch too or something)....?

Bruce Grobelaar; Manuel Amoros, Alan Hansen, Franco Baresi, Steve Nicol; Graeme Souness, Bryan Robson; Lionel Messi, Peter Beardsley, Diego Maradona; Marco van Basten
Ultimate XI:John Barnes - YouTube

 

I've had the audio playing in the background, and I guess it's an exercise various ex-Liverpool players do on a radio show, and they each get to pick 1 player who they neither played with or against (in this case he chooses Messi, partly because he fits in best in the XI he picked, as he said Pele was similarly good for example). He said he would have put Steven Gerrard in midfield rather than Souness (I guess if he had the possibility to put more players he didn't play with or against rather than just 1; I have a feeling Barnes might have still been playing when Gerrard made his debut, but I haven't checked and I guess they didn't play against each other indeed anyway - Barnes had certainly left Liverpool I think by then).

He mentions Ronnie Whelan and Mark Lawrenson too, but without suggesting they were close to being picked. Similarly he mentioned John Aldridge, Ian Rush and Gary Lineker as great goalscorers but said Van Basten was more complete as a striker, implying they weren't really considered instead of him I think.

 

@PDG1978 and me talked about this a while ago (when we noticed Neeskens played a few games for them), but I'll try now an FC Groningen all-time XI. This is not so much based on what they did for Groningen but their best form over five years or longer.

Lodewijks; Reiziger, Van Dijk, Granqvist, Van Tiggelen; R. Koeman, Neeskens, Tadic; Robben, Suarez, Kostic

Other options who might well be in: Fandi Ahmad, Marcus Berg, Marco Bizot, Daley Blind, Milko Durovski (one of their foremost icons), Ernest Faber, Hans Hateboer, Peter Houtman, Hugo Hovenkamp, Erwin Koeman, Jurrie Koolhof, Tonny van Leeuwen, Jelle ten Rouwelaar, Frans Thijssen, Piet Wildschut, John de Wolf.


I didn't look at all-time XIs, so it didn't influence me. Risk is that I overlook someone. Johan de Kock, Klaas Nuninga... De Kock is actually one of only three Johans to ever play for Oranje. Suarez can also move to the left wing, where he played for them, which gives entrance to a pure striker.

Since I don't like listdumping, a few other remarks:

- The goalkeeper is possibly the most problematic position here. The other sensible option is Ten Rouwelaar. I think both were actually better as what Oranje had now between the posts at euro 2020 (because of injuries, and not calling up Bijlow, who did very well for a depleted under-21), and for Belgium I think they would be the 3rd choice goalkeeper, maybe even 2nd if you look at how little Courtois their understudies played but that's stretching it.

There is also Tonny van Leeuwen, who played for the national team twice and was thirteen times on the bench. On 14 june 1971 he received a special recognition from the KNVB after letting in only 9 goals within 30 games, and keeping 23 clean sheets (for Groningen!). On the way home he died in a car crash. Around this time traffic accidents were at a peak (the decline is even more pronounced if you consider the vast increase in motor vehicles since, 5 million more citizens, and a change in the age pyramid).

- Peculiarly, there are a number of good options on the full-back positions. This is usually not the case for other clubs or for the national team. Daley Blind of a few years ago was a pretty good full-back (and still is a skilled line-breaker, 2nd most in the euros).

- I've included Kostic because he is among the most undervalued players of this moment. He is really good as an actual footballer. His top speed and field coverage is strong as well right now. Bit like VvD for Celtic and Southampton indeed... with a few obvious statistics going for him, even if not as strong in a GoalImpact with/without sense or so.

- The alternative options show three goalkeepers (Bizot, Van Leeuwen, Rouwelaar), seven what one might call defensive players (Blind, Faber, Hateboer, Hovenkamp, E. Koeman, Wildschut, De Wolf), and six for the remaining categories (Ahmad, Berg, Durovski, Houtman, Koolhof, Thijssen).

- For such a small club, with a limited service area (600000 people is a generous estimate), this is genuinely good I'd say.

- When going by contribution to the club, Neeskens is clearly the first to be dropped. All others had pretty much a meaningful contribution to the club. Frans Thijssen is also one to drop out maybe, since he moved to Vitesse and the 2nd Division in the next years, but had a really strong Indian Summer (as defender) when he returned with Vitesse to the Eredivisie and reached the 3rd round of the UEFA Cup in his very last season. Virgil van Dijk contributed enough I'd say. Famous for two goals and an assist in his very first professional start, in the play-offs for European football (as right-back). Overcoming a 5-1 deficit on aggregate. Then later on also various goals against Feyenoord - I'm inclined to say his significance and contribution in two-and-a-half seasons is okay enough for an argument regardless of what followed later in his career.

 

The closest I could otherwise find was something like this:

"Zinedine Zidane was already my favourite player heading into that match. Refereeing him was a pleasure; to watch him up close, to try to understand how everything could look so easy. He was a genius. You got the feeling that he didn’t even need to try – it was natural."
https://www.fourfourtwo.com/feature...were-all-in-english-death-threats-and-insults

Otherwise this is about the furthest they tend to go:
http://law5-theref.blogspot.com/2021/01/pierluigi-collina-honored-to-be.html
https://m.facebook.com/refereeabroad/photos/a.749586648409508/4022731687761638/?type=3

N.B. this thing in the first link is also classic.

Show Spoiler Hide Spoiler

"President Sepp Blatter wanted to reassert credibility, and personally decided to give me the semi. I should never have been in contention, nowhere near that game, because I come from the German-speaking part of Switzerland and had already refereed Korea in an earlier round [the only game Korea didn't win - PvH]."

What is possibly wrong here? Swayed by the orchestrated media outrage in Spain and Italy about the Korea games, Blatter personally intervening - neglecting rules - and giving the Korea vs Germany semi final to a countrymen of the ethnic German part of Switzerland, very close to the border, with business interests and media activity in Germany. Don't tell me this is not relevant because for years BEL and NED avoid each others games.

 

@PDG1978

This is from 1996, by 'Nieuwsblad van het Noorden' at the 25 years existence of the 'modern' club:



Lodewijks; Mason, Zygmantovich, De Wolf, Van Tiggelen; R. Koeman, J. van Dijk, E. Koeman; Bombarda, Houtman, Eijkelkamp

Bench: Griever (goalkeeper), M. Koeman (defender), Piet Fransen (midfielder), Djurovski (attacker)



This year was the 50 years jubilee. The supporters association had this as top 10 "favorite players", the ones they liked the most. Most of the voters were below 50 years old.

1️⃣ | Onlangs konden jullie een top-10 inzenden van favoriete spelers uit 50 jaar FC Groningen. Tot 16 juni, de dag waarop FC Groningen 50 jaar bestaat, maken we elke dag één speler uit de top-10 bekend

𝐎𝐩 𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝟏: 𝐄𝐫𝐢𝐤 𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝

Hij kreeg 143 stemmen pic.twitter.com/CuofhA5cfi

— Supportersvereniging FC Groningen (@SVFCG) June 16, 2021

10. Martin Drent (Netherlands) - trivia: his surname refers to another province
9. Sergio Padt (Netherlands)
8. Jan van Dijk (Netherlands)
7. Erwin Koeman (Netherlands) - often simplified to the 'nicer' brother of the two
6. Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands) - see above and this
5. Luis Suarez (Uruguay)
4. Milko Djurovski (Yugoslavia/Macedonia)
3. Andreas Granqvist (Sweden)
2. Arjen Robben (Netherlands) - another debut that charmed the supporters.
1. Erik Nevland (Norway) - made himself universally popular within 3.5 seasons

HM after a 2nd review: Peter Houtman (Netherlands) - the all-time topscorer of the club, within 5.5 seasons

Nevland had a margin of 13% on the the two podium members. Robben feels too high for me but it's already 20-21 years ago... One might think his feel for knock-out type of matches (in CL KO matches he has incredibly high grades by L'Equipe, FF - as schwuppe noticed) was already visible there. Tentatively he feels more like a borderline top 10 player to me (for FC Groningen) but it's also a bit preposterous to think I know this better than the ones with club memberships and season tickets. It's not like he is showing 'blanks' against the later UEFA Cup winner and an arguably more competitive league as now (league destructed by the EPL gamesmanship and sheikh money in particular).

In 2021, at the 50 years existence the same 'Nieuwsblad van het Noorden' had another go:



Van Leeuwen; Hateboer, V. van Dijk, Grangvist, Gall; J. van Dijk, E. Koeman, R. Koeman; Brocken, Nevland, Robben

Other nominees

GK - Sergio Padt, Johan Tukker
RB - Kurt Elshot, Deyovaisio Zeefuik
RCB - Martin Koeman, Adri van Tiggelen
LCB - Walter Waalderbos, John de Wolf
LB - Fredrik Stenman, Magnus Johansson
RDM - Gregoor van Dijk, Rasmus Lindgren, Maikel Kieftenbeld
CAM - Harris Huizingh, Tjaronn Chery, Goran Lovre
LM - Piet Fransen, Hans Visser
RW - Ritsu Doan, Paul Mason
CF - Luis Suarez, Milko Djurovski
LW - Dusan Tadic, Romano Sion


Some of the nominees were put forward by actual professionals (maybe I'll hear all of these) but others belonged to the category, excuses le mot, provincial farmers. Already knew Nordic players are popular up there in the north (very broadly speaking relatively similar countries). Groningen has the most poor and low income municipalities of the country, and the poorest municipality of all - we thank them for their gas reserves. Houtman and cult figure De Wolf are also Feyenoord icons. The one who introduces him literally says: "he always remains a Feyenoord man as well."

 

you can add Larbi BEN BAREK in place of DI STEFANO who don't play but was in the Spanish team at the WC.

 

I've now read his memoirs (from October/November 2005). Very interesting stuff. It has one anecdote of this type as well:
https://www.bigsoccer.com/threads/w...most-always-fail.2115838/page-3#post-39762856



His Netherlands team of the ones he whistled is exactly the same as the one of 2014.

His foreign team is on one place different. Ronaldinho instead of Savicevic. By the comments in his book, it feels as if he is pulled over by Ronaldinho his bigger name, who at the end of 2005 was around the peak of his fame. He repeats however Savicevic was the only one (of the foreigners) to wrong-foot and mislead him a few times, to do the wildly unexpected, which sometimes - sometimes not - resulted in something useful (or better than 'useful').

Maldini/Baresi is primarily because of the Milan unit (with also Galli, Costacurta, Desailly etc.), not *only* because of the individual names. Maldini gets a good amount of praise and is seen as a reasonably fair player (for his time), Baresi not to this amount. Others as Hierro or Mihaijlovic are also seen as very good or even remarkable footballers.

Interesting to note is here he whistled Maldini and Baresi six times and they won zero games under his charge. This includes the Ireland win against Italy at the 1994 World Cup and a 1991 loss to "computer football" Norway, contributing to Italy missing out on euro 1992. He also took charge of the 0-0 Italy vs England game for the 1998 qualifiers. Baresi and Maldini won each individually never a game when he was in charge (and it were some consequential ones).

Above photo has also a team with:
- Best foreigners in the league
- "International difficult boys eleven"
- "National difficult boys eleven"

In the book he mentions a few who according to him know the rules and precedents very well (and therefore also don't endanger and injure opponents): John Metgod, Danny Blind, Hans van Breukelen, Jari Litmanen, Jan Olde Riekerink, Alfred Schreuder, Alfons Groenendijk and Mark van Bommel. Page 89-90.

The book printed a copy of the 'Rapport de l'observateur d'arbitres' for the 1998 'broken goalposts' semi final (the letter of protest by Borussia Dortmund before the game was played is printed too). It is written in French, with an Italian boss signing it off and giving it his fiat. His team (three Dutchmen, one Belgian) received a rare and perfect 10 for the game.

He promptly received Maradona his number ten shirt when he was fourth official at the Greece game in 1994. His compatriot and an "outstanding" South Korean assistant were guiding the American court official through the motions... Van de Ende did receive a very harsh warning from FIFA when he failed to get the bench under control after a goal was scored. VdE his opinion is someone - as interesting and talented he is - can't be the greatest player or football personality of all-time when he fails for five different substances, does it more than once, and all by gigantic margins above the legal threshold as well.