Interesting that you name FDJ in this post and other posts as a distant option. I think he played reasonably well at euro 2020 indeed, and also in the match against Czech Republic (with the red card and elimination). At WC 2022 also very good. Against Argentina one of of the five best players on the pitch I'd say and was also involved in the goal vs USA (for many foreigners the best goal of the World Cup! with the full build-up etc). I don't think I'd have him in the frame yet. "Frenkie de Jong was heavily involved in the build-up" https://www.sportbible.com/football/netherlands-goal-world-cup-usa-937890-20221203 20 - Memphis Depay's goal ended a sequence of 20 uninterrupted passes, the most on record for a Netherlands goal at the World Cup (1966 onwards). Total. pic.twitter.com/fQU2N0EDxy— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 3, 2022 Right now I'd think this is my all-time XI (with emphasis on five years peak) Van der Sar; Gullit, Rijkaard, Van Dijk, Krol; Van Hanegem, Davids, Cruijff; Bergkamp, Van Basten, Robben But it is not easy. Robben might be swapped for Rensenbrink; Bergkamp might go a line deeper (with shirt number #8 that he often used) and then Wilkes included. Bergkamp between 1986 - 1994 was a very good winger I'm sure and he also played as winger (with #7) in the last few games of his Oranje career (incl. a friendly against Brazil). The Athletic had recently an article about on which position 'legends' would play today; they wrote Bergkamp would be a midfielder today. https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5023426/2023/12/22/football-greats-where-play-today/ My all-time Belgium XI is still the same as before. edit: I'm leaning to VdS for goal but Van Breukelen, Van Beveren (and a couple others) have their supporters too I am sure.
............. Today I watched two full games of Inter Milan from 1963-72 against Club Atlético Independiente in the 1964 inter-club World Cup final, the replay game at the Santiago Bernabeu and another game against Bologna in 1964 . I realize that L'inter de Milão played like this GK - SARTI CD- Armando Picchi, Sweeper CD- Aristide Guarneri CB - Tarcisio Burgnich DM -tAGNI WG- JAIR DA COSTA ( Angelo Domenghini ) CM- SUAREZ CM- CORSO WG- FACCHETTI CF- SANDRO MAZZOLLA ( AS ROLE TRE-QUARTISTA ) CF- Roberto Boninsegna SUAREZ AND MARIO CORSO PLAYING AS MezzalaS BOTH .............. A portmanteau of the Italian words “mezza” (half) and “ala” (winger), the term Mezzala originally described players who moved in the space between central midfield and the flanks, not too dissimilar from Inside Forwards. They were popularised in the 1960s as a key cog in the Catenaccio defensive system. There, the Mezzala was crucial as it was responsible for providing width in attack by moving into the half-space on the wing, allowing teams to stretch the opposition's defence and create space for the forwards to operate in. In its current interpretation in FM23, the Mezzala is a dynamic midfielder who usually moves from the centre to a side of the pitch where the team has the most attacking options, allowing them to create space and provide width in the final third. In this sense, their primary task is to support the attacking players and create scoring opportunities while also providing defensive cover for the team.
Yes, Inter's system was a little bit of a precursor to Zona Mista systems (like Juventus in the 70s and 80s for example, and the Italian NT in 1982) wasn't it, with Corso playing more of a mixed role instead of being a proper LW, Facchetti playing as attacking wing-back in effect, Burgnich as defensive right back etc. Nice work with the Gullit dribbling video you did mate btw (I'll add some comments perhaps on the new Gullit thread, which is where you posted it of course, when I have seen it all but I played a little bit of it before I gave you the rep, so am just letting you know - I was updating IceBlood's thread and watching Euros games mostly over the last 24 hours, but it's an excellent job you've done in adding that one to Youtube I think!). EDIT - Potentially Guarneri rather than Burgnich as 'defensive right back' and 3rd defender/CB (Burgnich did play that role at times though I know, and his name is more famililar to me so that's why I typed it I think)....
The 'scan professor' is fan certainly! Frenkie de Jong is the most perceptually flexible player I know, and his extensive repertoire of scan types superbly support his agile style of play. Here 14 players are looking at the ball, while de Jong already is preparing the disruptive pass that ends up with a Wijnaldum shot pic.twitter.com/qr4lwX25D4— Geir Jordet (@GeirJordet) June 22, 2021 World class vision is much more logical than people think, it follows certain rules. Frenkie de Jong scans at times when looking at the ball is not necessary. So if nothing new happens with the ball for a few seconds, he can take the time to survey and inspect his surroundings. pic.twitter.com/nkPW7Ui9sK— Geir Jordet (@GeirJordet) June 22, 2021 Geir Jordet has watched images of Frenkie de Jong and is enthusiastic about the Oranje midfielder. “Frenkie always scans when the ball is on its way from teammate to teammate. You can set the clock by it.” He also uses different types of scans, says Jordet. “Long scans of more than a second to survey the field, and short scans to quickly collect information. He always has his eyes on the ball when it comes to his foot. His exact scan data has never been collected, but he is clearly in the top group.” https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2022/12/0...niet-op-de-bal-dat-maakt-hem-zo-goed-a4150254
...................... In Brazil . Generally, most people make a lot of confusion with a real regista and the main differences and functions like a Tre-quartista could to play on the field . ....The term ‘regista’ is taken from the Italian word for ‘director’. The regista is quite literally the director of the football match – they retain their deep position and dictate their team’s play with their distribution. A regista likes to move forward up, sometimes even near the opponent box and to organize the buildup play — that’s why he’s called regista, Italian for regisseur, the one who conducts an opera. He needs to be a skilful player, and creative but also needs some cover, as he will move sometimes too high up the pitch and offer some pockets of space to the opponent and himself aswell needs to do the main covers ... like a team player extremelly complete . Regista ..... Michel Platini .... Xavi ...... Overath ... Van Hanegem .... Zidane ... Beckenbauer .... Johan Cruyff ... Netzer .......With this tactic, I have built a system around the ‘number 10’ the creative force in the final third of the pitch. Where you come from in the world determines the name of this role with South America using the term Enganche whilst in Italy, it is known as the Trequartista which literally translates to three quarters. The key differences between the roles are that the Enganche likes to stay in the pocket behind the forwards holding their position whilst the Trequartista is much more fluid as they will roam around looking for space to pick up the ball. When thinking of the classic ‘10’ immediately classic names such as Diego Maradona and Roberto Baggio spring to mind. More modern names would include Francesco Totti, Kaka, Riquelme and Mesut Ozil. Even though Maradona comes from Argentina I would class him as a Trequartista as he would both supply and score goals whereas Riquelme would be more defined as an Enganche as he would prefer to supply goals to his teammates . .....Tre-Quartistas too examples into this role : Ronaldinho Gaucho , Dennis Bergkamp .... Sandro Mazzolla ....Michael Laudrup ..... Rivaldo .... ............. In Brazil . Generally, most people make a lot of confusion with the true position of Ronaldinho Gaucho, saying that he was a midfield player like a regista... big mistake thinking like that.... Ronaldinho Gaucho... scored, intercepted, made a very bad tackle, almost ever . extremely lazy player tactically.. and very weak mentally too. really very very bad tackling and making the covers extremelly necessary for anyteam . .............
Yes, I think it can be argued Platini was more often really more of a regista than a trequartista (but Zico for example more a trequartista than regista, even if the difference is subtle when Zico was for example playing behind 3 forwards for Flamengo, or behind one centre forward and often deeper than both wingers, until he sprang forwards into the box himself). Maybe Bobby Charlton more a regista and Hidegkuti more a trequartista, with subtle differences too (and Charlton wearing number 9 in reflection of Hidegkuti's 'deep-lying centre forward' role perhaps in part).... To be honest these terms became more familar to me when I was playing Football Manager several years ago! I suppose in England, where 4-4-2 (or sometimes verging on 4-4-1-1 if using a clear second striker) was the most common system for many years in my life, they are not so well known in general (trequartista is pretty well known though and has been for many years I'd say).
...................... Yes . Michel Platini was certainly a complete record player, marking, disarming and making many necessary covers for any team on Planet Earth. he always risked great throws(long range-passes ) that were really very long and accurate. always with a lot of skill too and headed very well also heading accuracy extremely good.. yes Zico was a three-four(pure Tre-quartista,) it's certainly easy to understand this he made very few tackles during his entire career... But on the other hand, unlike Ronaldinho Gaucho or Kaka. Zico scored a lot of goals.... in total there were.... 771 matches 517 goals...... 270 assists... vs Ronaldinho Gaucho 816 matches.... 302 goals.... 232 assists.. .... vs .... Ricardo Kaká 746 matches .... 237 goals ..... 172 assists ...
yes... I agree on Bobby Charlton would do it easily as a regista midfielder but i think Bobby Charlton being much more ... one box to box complete player Like a Alfredo Di Stefano ... or Moreno !
.......What do you think about Zico vs Ricardo Kaka vs Ronaldinho Gaucho ... who was better ( a complete player for any team in the World ??????
I guess it depends a bit on the composition of the rest of the XI, but I think Zico was technically the most complete of them, and the most cohesive in his play probably too (and like you say more of a scorer also), even though physically he was smaller and less quick too compared to the other 2, and so he was the least dynamic one for carrying the ball with pace and suchlike. Kaka had a bit less reliable technique in terms of controlling the ball compared to the other 2 I suppose, but probably could be the most 'all action' of them. Ronaldinho was, at his best, the most capable as a virtuoso, and could be a better option as a winger or semi-winger compared to Zico of course. I would rate Zico the highest in a list of 'top players of all-time' and possibly also based on peak version, and as a pure trequartista, or even enganche, he seems the best option (also as a striker or second striker).
After a long day walking, back now at my camp this evening and watched in full another one of the Rio Ferdinand series (it seems people like the one of Gullit the most?). It is remarkable Ferdinand (I know many don't rate him as a pundit) says in three episodes I have seen so far Seedorf was "one of his favourite players ever" or "favorite from my playing days" while he is obviously not a great Euros player. His only tournament as a starter was 2004 and there he is close to the tournament XI I think (Sofascore agrees with me) but that's it. Champions League is another story (Champions Magazine in 2013 had him 6th all-time; L'Equipe had him in their all-time European Cup team - they also counted the 2000 CL for him since he started and played some games in the second group stage). But he appears in some scenes for euro 1996, 2000 and 2004 and that triggers Ferdinand and/or his guests. It does seem like Rio Ferdinand includes him often in his XI teams yeah. Clarence Seedorf [Midfield] "Our game at Old Trafford in the Champions League against AC Milan might be remembered for Kaka’s stunning solo goal, but the man that impressed me most on the pitch was Seedorf, who was absolutely unplayable that day. Equally comfortable on both feet, he understood and read the game so well. I think he’s one of the most underrated players of our generation. Quick, strong and could receive the ball under pressure and still score great goals." https://www.shortlist.com/news/rio-ferdinands-toughest-ever-champions-league-xi Centre midfield | Clarence Seedorf Ferdinand said: "Clarence Seedorf for me is the most underrated player in the Champions League. This guy won four Champions Leagues, three of them with different teams. He was unreal, seriously. Off both feet, he was quick, he was strong, he could turn the pace up of a game when needed, in tight areas would receive it off both feet, balance unreal. He was like a ballerina in there. He just did things that you thought, 'how was that possible?' He was a phenomenal player, seriously. You couldn't get near him." https://www.givemesport.com/8800013...-rio-ferdinands-all-time-champions-league-xi/ In words: https://youtube.com/shorts/SVxMFHxc4q8?si=y5RGaV1XaM6js9PM Rio Ferdinand played five times against him I think. Once with the national team, four times with the club. 153 appearances I'm CL for clarence Seedorf....WOW!!— Rio Ferdinand (@rioferdy5) March 9, 2011 A tale of Champions League triumph and heartache 🏆@rioferdy5 is joined by Carlo Ancelotti as they talk through the Italians staggering career and the players who helped him do it..."Clarence Seedorf, it was impossible for him to miss a top game"#BetweenTheLines: Part One pic.twitter.com/Jko1sKtM1R— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) December 4, 2020 I can understand very well why coaches like Ancelotti and Sven Goran Eriksson loved him (you could play him on the position and role of Pirlo; you could use him instead of an injured Kaka and let him do his damage against Juventus or Inter) but that this has always stuck to Rio Ferdinand is quite remarkable to me. He is just not a great Euros player... (I'd say someone as Cruijff or De Bruyne actually is...). Also really noteworthy is that half year spell at Inter in 1999-00, where Inter got transformed (per Cox his words), or that near title in 2001-02 with the screamers and blasts past Buffon.
I noticed two different Youtube videos purporting to present the Dream Team XI of Gheorghe Hagi (considering the similarities it's feasible he did pick both of them at different times I guess, and the first video does seem to be plausibly presented; the second one is in a series where various Dream XI selections seem to be picked up and presented): Taffarel; Maicon, Ruud Krol, Paolo Maldini, Paul Breitner; Josep Guardiola; Luis Figo, Johan Cruyff/Cristiano Ronaldo; Diego Maradona/Lionel Messi; Pele, Ronaldo Nazario Taffarel; Jorginho, Franco Baresi, Fernando Hierro, Paolo Maldini; Josep Guardiola; Luis Figo, Zinedine Zidane; Diego Maradona; Marco van Basten, Ruud Gullit
Interestingly he also includes Van der Sar (for Champions League XI and such - he has the lowest GPG against and best clean sheets ratio of the listed keepers there) but more noteworthy is Rio Ferdinand his feeling he was better for Fulham than for his own team (which Ferdinand still sees as very, very good! but obviously 'surprising' he says he was better before)... Ferdinand also says in a podcast... maybe numerically you can make a case for that (he had in one season the most clean sheets of the league etc.). And his 0-0 game vs Arsenal in 2003 is the 2nd highest number of saves for a clean sheet, 12 saves. Number one is Tim Krul in Spurs vs Newcastle from November 2013, with 14 saves for a clean sheet. As discussed in the other thread ('the greatest modern players'), at Sofascore he still looks really strong in 2010-11. “@alfieffc: @vdsar1970 what was your favourite game playing for fulham? #askedwin”Arsenal away at Highbury 0-0 with some nice saves!!— Edwin van der Sar (@vdsar1970) March 23, 2013 (fantastic Bergkamp pass directly at the beginning, 0:25) Maybe some will say it weren't always the most difficult saves but as said here by a goalkeeping coach, that is also because of positioning (in an actually good The Athletic article and series - not the ordering and ranking, that's crap). "Van der Sar’s positioning was particularly superb and served as the foundation for the rest of his skill set. His positional awareness and technical efficiency — mainly in regards to his hand placement and footwork — meant he didn’t need to make any wild movements or adjustments as he traversed his goalmouth in preparation for each shot on target. By the time the ball was struck, he was almost always a step or two ahead of the play, and already in the optimal position with his body and hands in the correct shape to make the save. He also took the quickest and most direct path to the ball in order to make the save. And it’s a big reason he was able to make as many saves as he did look so routine and effortless in moments when many of his peers would be wildly throwing themselves about to keep the ball out of their goal. Schmeichel was an eccentric figure both on the field and in the dressing room, but Van der Sar never needed to be flamboyant. While it was a common occurrence to see Schmeichel barking out orders to the players in front of him, Van der Sar opted for a different, more subdued approach. He quietly but efficiently organised his defence, directing and orchestrating them into the right positions at exactly the right times to disrupt the opponent’s attack. Often when you see a goalkeeper scream at a defender, the defender walks away and ignores the yelling or, at worst, gets into a shouting match with the keeper. This rarely happened with Van der Sar. By being calm yet constructive, he was able to get his points across while supporting his team-mates and the efforts they were giving. After all, the last thing any goalkeeper wants is for his team-mates to think that he doesn’t appreciate their work and effort." But yeah, our place, or someone as Navas for that matter, is just to be a decoration for the "real football nations". That's how certain martial minds work.
Ah yeah, in this case the second XI is picked up from Hagi's choices for FourFourTwo magazine, in 2008, seemingly (maybe he forgets how soon Jorginho was substituted in the 1994 World Cup Final though potentially - Cafu coming on after he was injured...not that he can't say he played brilliantly for 20 minutes in theory). Gheorghe Hagi: Perfect XI | FourFourTwo Goalkeeper Claudio Taffarel I spent many seasons with Claudio at Galatasaray and he is a great goalkeeper. The defence always felt safe when he was behind them, and he was a good organiser of the players around him. Typically for a Brazilian, he also had excellent technique with his feet. Right-back Jorginho He was brilliant going forward, so dangerous and capable of scoring fantastic goals. He was the kind of player fans would pay to watch, but he was also solid in defence and played brilliantly against Italy in the 1994 World Cup Final. He never let anyone down. Centre-back Franco Baresi This guy is a monument in world football. Milan and Italy built their teams around him, as I found out when Milan beat Steaua Bucharest 4-0 in the 1989 European Cup Final. He was able to construct the game from the back, coming out of defence and launching some amazing passes to devastating effect. Centre-back Fernando Hierro I played with Fernando at Real Madrid. He was really impressive, what you would call a complete player: he was superb in the air, could pass equally well with both feet and had a terrific shot from long range. His scoring record was fantastic considering he was a defender. Left-back Paolo Maldini Paolo is another sensational player from the Italian school of defence. He is always very elegant on the pitch, often going forward to support attack and he has scored some important goals in big games for AC Milan as well as for Italy. He’s a real role model for defenders coming through today. Right-midfield Luis Figo Luis is another former team-mate of mine from Barcelona. We played together in his first year in Spain: he was a great character and a fantastic player who could do anything he wanted with the ball. He gave the team great assists, great crosses, incredible goals, and he had everything in a player that you would always want to watch. Defensive-midfield Pep Guardiola Pep was probably one of the best ever midfielders whose job was to break up attacks and just win the ball. He would sit in front of the defence and would be impossible to pass. He would keep a great balance in any team’s midfield. Attacking-midfield Diego Maradona There’s only one word for this man: genius. What he was able to do with a ball was not football, it was art. He was one of the best players ever seen. I also met him when he was only 21 and even then, I was shocked to see the level of the play he had. Left-midfield Zinedine Zidane It is a great regret of mine that I never played alongside Zidane, but only played against him. That was hard enough: he was a leader on the pitch, and only looked happy with the ball at his feet. He had everything in his game you could admire, from his free-kicks to his clever passes to his team-mates. Forward Marco van Basten Marco was able to score goals from impossible positions, such as that amazing volley in Euro 88 against the Soviet Union. He had all the qualities for a perfect striker, and his technique made him very hard to stop in the box. His movement was also good. He was a nightmare for defenders. Forward Ruud Gullit Maybe it’s a surprise that I’m picking another Dutch forward, but Gullit was a legend. He was more powerful than Van Basten, so it was almost impossible to get the ball from him. But he had a different style, and was Van Basten’s perfect partner: every coach’s dream is to have a technical player partnered with a physical one. Coach Johan Cruyff He must be one of the most creative coaches in f�ootball history, because I always loved his ideas and he was always talking about something new. I learned a lot from him and I feel happy and grateful that I had the chance to work with him at Barcelona.
So to expand on this; there is possibly no contradiction or even change of mind concerning the differences in his selections. All the players not included here, but in the subsequent selection, were from before his playing days (or at least didn't play in a game vs him - if Ronaldo Nazario didn't which off the top of my head I'm thinking maybe he didn't) or after them I think.
Ronald de Boer talking here below. It is slightly different as what he said to FourFourTwo https://www.fourfourtwo.com/feature...dor-he-gave-us-all-a-silver-plate-to-thank-us Van der Sar; Rijkaard, Blind, F. de Boer; Guardiola; Seedorf, Davids; Litmanen; Figo, Kluivert, Rivaldo Seedorf is on his bench for FFT though. He put many Ajax players in there because he felt/thinks those just reached the higher level, higher than the ones at Barcelona or Oranje. In an absolute manner, not relative ("no, you can play extremely well and still not become champion, that's the roll of the dice"). Davids: "Every good team needs a knickerbocker. Neeskens, Bakero. Who can trigger aggression. Who delivers things others cannot do. That was Edgar Davids. Who could put on the fire if it was all slumping. He was above this, not unimportant, a gifted footballer. Positionally sound. But that combination made him more or less unique. It was very pleasant to play with him." Seedorf: "We named him grandpa Seedorf. As a 16-years old he knew it all better, how we have to do it, and the coaches approved. That was funny. Also tiring sometimes. We laughed a lot, but he was of course an exceptionally good player. You can put him anywhere on the wing or midfield, powerful, strong. [...] Clarence had that also a bit yes, like Cruijff. But only concerned about football. That example you say about golf not [young Cruijff saying to the national champion how he has to play golf], but football yes. Not tennis or so, football, and then he had an idea how it all had to fit together. If we did a competitive game on the training then he was explaining how we had to win this. Thus... that is inside you or not and the staff didn't put an end to this. On the contrary. What I say, I enjoyed him a lot. Sometimes you could slap him in the face, not literally, but that also keeps you sharp." Litmanen: "An all-rounder in this position. Score goals, assists. Also for the team doing his work, defending his own back." --- Andy van der Meijde made also one for us and he said this was the best team ever in the history of football, at least until Guardiola's Barcelona. "That is what I don't know... On Jari, he wasn't a classic playmaker right? Baggio, Del Piero. That were really like, they didn't do a huge amount, you give them the ball and they're creative. With free kicks and whatever. Jari was more than this. Jari was, cliche, a real team player. Jari needs to be put in a real team. Jari not... that was the fault at Inter with Jonk, Bergkamp and even Ronaldo [outscored by Bierhoff, Batistuta, equalled by Inzaghi excl. penalties]. That you think 'I have Ronaldo, he will figure it out, he scores us towards the cups. We keep it close at the back'. Yes, even Ronaldo cannot do this. That was also with Bergkamp and Jonk of course. You have to do it as a team and Jari was a real team player. Then he excels like no other. He knows precisely the right gaps. Make the goals. He did that constantly and my match or chemistry with him was also very good. I stood often as center-forward. Moved deep and he bombed past me at the right time. He felt that perfectly." --------------------- Next Figo, Kluivert and Rivaldo. I thought this is a good addition @PDG1978
Rivaldo: "That can be only one... Well, not one. Then I do not do Marc Overmars justice. Overmars was in my eyes great. Two-footed. Overmars I would always like to have in my team. But Rivaldo or Overmars, then I think you still end up at Rivaldo then. Marc himself would agree. Rivaldo was an individualist, an egomaniac/ego-tripper, but a great ego-tripper. This player at Barcelona sometimes did things like 'how is it possible'. Hat-trick with bicycle kick as cherry on the cake. That's a player, if you have set it well in midfield and at the back, he scores 20 goals, can make the difference." Figo: "Another one with a quite long career [like Seedorf, he means; best player in Brazilian league at age 37]. My mate, that I played the best football with was of course Finidi George. About the same as with Marc, I would like to have him in too. But I need to pick Luis Figo. The two players I have mentioned have both become world player of the year. That is not for no reason. This was also such a player who had a good charisma, engaged the one vs one. It often succeeded too. Not the mentality of Rivaldo." Kluivert: "This is only one... and now for real. This is Patrick Kluivert. I experienced him at Ajax, and Barcelona and the national team. In form at all three. The striker who possessed everything. Power, speed, technique, effectiveness. His kicking technique from a distance wasn't so special, even. Shooting from distance then. But still no nonsense, no thinking, bam. Left and right he could do well. At that age as eighteen years old scoring all those goals in the Champions League and national side. Fourty-five goals for Oranje and something like 50 in Europe for club. [...] What I say, there are only a few players, that I played with and against, that were this strong. I always say, if you touch his arm it is steel. Then he was relaxed right? That man... we did a test at Barcelona, they can measure your muscle tone. Top sporters have between 300 and 600, normally. I had this too. As a gradation. He had 2000! That is already an indication, and he was almost never in the gym or so. Seedorf has probably this too. He laces his boots for a legend match and bangs one in the corner. The muscle tone, probably genetic, is so incredibly strong. And I also find it a nice man, seriously. It is a golden guy. I always say, if I have a problem I can call him immediately and he'll be there for me. I happily grant him this place, but I think it is deserved." If you also want to hear the other players (VdS, Rijkaard, Blind, F. de Boer, Guardiola), let me know. But I know PDG is especially interested in Figo (and this only gains context next to other creative or half-creative positions).
I had a look at what team Sweden could have fielded in World Cup 1954, if they had allowed foreign pros. Sweden didn't qualify for the tournament, but would have, almost for sure, if they had used their pros. I think this team could have been winners in 1954. Only Hungary looks stronger, if any. Bench: T. Svensson - L. Samuelsson - Sven-Ove Svensson, Rosén*, S. Andersson* - Palmér, G. Sandberg. Players in bold were pros. Players with an asterisk had been, or would later become pros. I also checked how Sweden without the pros did against Hungary around this time: 5th July 1953, 2-4 loss in Sweden (K. Svensson, Bergmark, S. Svensson & Sandberg played). 15th November 1953, 2-2 draw in Hungary (K. Svensson, Samuelsson, Bergmark, S. Svensson, Gustavsson & Hamrin played). This was a full strength Hungary side that 10 days later went to Wembley and beat England 6-3. 11th May 1955, lost 3-7 in Sweden (K. Svensson, Samuelsson, Bergmark, S. Svensson, Gustavsson, Hamrin & Sandberg played). 13th November 1955, lost 2-4 in Hungary (K. Svensson, S. Svensson, Gustavsson & Hamrin played). Club details for the pros:
It's an interesting thought, and I see that Brian Glanville wrote in the mid 50s that in recent years no nation had produced more (in number not quality it meant I think) outstanding players than Sweden in recent times, and that he was including Hungary (in a piece about professionalism in football etc). Although I think the 2-2 with Hungary was seen as a surprise, and that Hungary under-performed a little and/or were still the better team in the game (it was noted I think that they had a better plan for Hidegkuti than England did and that helped stop Hungary playing their best). I think Gren plus perhaps Liedholm and even Skoglund would be considered more as inside forwards at that time (although probably Skoglund as left winger would still make sense). I would imagine the most likely to make it in a Hungary/Sweden XI as of 1954 could be Gustavsson (for Lorant), Bergmark in one of the full back positions, and perhaps Hamrin if he was already of a good enough level to displace both Budai and Jozsef Toth, and Liedholm but probably only if he was put as left half in a double-playmakers pivot with Bozsik (in reality would it be considered more prudent to retain Zakarias?). Skoglund over Czibor might seem doubtful, and inside left is blocked off by Puskas of course (with probably Hidegkuti as deep-lying centre forward supporting Kocsis and Puskas). This was apparently declared a Europe XI of 1952 (published in the Daily Mirror in December 1952, in an article about Hungary agreeing to play a game with England that was much anticipated - note that Bozsik is Hungarian too of course even though the comment focuses on Kocsis and Puskas...but anyway no Swedes in that): I think there was some talk in 1953 that it was a bit surprising that Gunnar Nordahl still got selected for the Rest of Europe team to play England (albeit Jeppson was named as an alternative himself). Gunnar Nordahl did have a decent game when they actually played I'd say, but it seems that he'd only have been getting slower and less agile in reactions etc by the summer of 1954, and that his peak was really in the late 40s and early 50s (which can probably be said for Gren and Liedholm also, albeit Liedholm did have a very good period as a mature player later in the 1950s). Although Glanville did say "Nordahl and Liedholm still play well for Milan" in that 1955 piece I mentioned anove. I tend to think, although for example Hamrin wouldn't be involved, 1950 might be the more likely call for a full-Sweden to be one of the main contenders (a team without Gunnar Nordahl, by then an AC Milan player, and Liedholm, was highly praised for the 3-1 game vs England in 1949, and the 1948 Olympics team that included both, although Liedholm as left winger was regarded very well of course, and there are positive views about Norkkoping as a club, for example when playing games in England, too). Not to say that they couldn't still be among the contenders for 1954 though (and of course West Germany won the actual World Cup, with less of a pedigree and reputation even if Fritz Walter had been back to prominence in 1952/53 for example and Posipal had been selected for that Rest of Europe vs England game). I'm thinking an actual full-Sweden XI of the 1950s wouldn't quite be rated as high as Hungary (and perhaps Uruguay?) were in general though....
Just to note that no Hungarians were in that 1953 Rest of Europe/FIFA XI because they decided not to participate in that, as alluded to here (I think in some initial squad lists the likes of Kocsis and Puskas, and Bozsik, were indeed included) - Sebes was not correct to say a team made up of players from different nations couldn't compete with England though (they largely outplayed England to be fair, albeit it's still true the final result wasn't close to what Hungary themselves then achieved):
Do these archives also say sometimes something about Wilkes? I do remember in his biography he was usually noticed when he played for representative Europe/FIFA teams (not necessarily by Brits though) or even short after the war against England (losing 2-8). Of course, certain someones happily freeze him out entirely (just like 2003-04... Michael Cox and pals nod) and then put eleven Hungarians in their yearly team. The brother people of Nazi Germany, the Swabian dude called Puskas. Who could have played for the Germans.
https://www.wsc.co.uk/the-archive/otherwise-occupied/ https://www.wsc.co.uk/the-archive/serie-a-1950-51/ Some nice implicit lashing out to Simon Kuper his bile and nasty book (one of three nasty works in English about our football) in the first link
Apparently the originally selected 1955 Rest of Europe team for the game with Great Britain in 1955 was also set to include Kocsis and Puskas but they were de-selected (with reference to Mitropa Cup commitments). Sebes had been set to be the manager/coach that time even though, until a family illness. The French federation made an announcement of this XI, as reported on the 22nd July (with AN Other in Kohlmeyer's place though because he was having to pull out): Buffon (Italy); Hanappi (Austria), Kohlmeyer (W.Germany); Ocwirk (Austria), Gustavsson (Sweden), Boskov (Yugoslavia); Sorensen (Italy stated but actually a Dane), Kocsis (Hungary), Kopa (France), Puskas (Hungary), Vincent (France) Subs: Erikson (Denmark), Van Brandt (Belgium), Schleger (Austria), Jonquet (France) In the end of course Vukas played along with Travossos (instead of Kocsis and Puskas), and Jonquet came into the defence - in effect the centre half position was a central defender one I assume, as normal for that time - with Gustavsson moving to right back and Van Brandt left back....unless they did play the old-fashioned 2-3-5 indeed with Jonquet as old-fashioned centre half...but I assume it's just that line-ups were still often written like that, just like in that Team of Europe XI of 1952 indeed where Froggatt would be centre back in effect (I can't find a more detailed report about that by the way though). The available footage for that 1955 game is limited of course, unlike for the 1953 one.
I know there were some positive observations (also by British reports) that have been cited previously, including in the game which Rest of Europe lost 6-1 IIRC (about the skills of players like him in attack not being inferior to those of England players despite the result and suchlike). I don't find a lot on Britishnewspaperarchive necessarily at the moment, but some mentions like these (before that 1947 game and in 1955 respectively - the latter piece again by Glanville and mentioning Swedes again in relation to professionalism): (Praest did go on to establish himself as star left winger for Juventus of course, but here it seems he was being selected out of position at the time a bit, so that he and Wilkes could be fielded together - Wilkes played as inside right rather than left at Inter Milan quite a bit himself I think too didn't he, with Skoglund in the team indeed for example....)
I can't find any such Team of Europe selection for 1950 or 1951 though for example (Wilkes could more likely be a candidate in those years potentially I guess, albeit it might not be surprising if Gren and Puskas could be selected as inside forwards perhaps?)....