My Favourite XI Since 1990 (When I Was Born) In a 4-4-2 Formation

I had a good root round my memories and compiled a list of my favourite players since I was born (1990). Remember they might not be the best, but they are the players I have always had a massive affection for so there can be few arguments.

James

Goalkeeper – Jose Luis Chilavert, Paraguay

A goalkeeper who scores goals is possibly one of the greatest things in football, especially when you’re a young boy, and that is one of the reasons why Paraguayan ‘keeper Chilavert is my all time favourite. His free-kicks, his penalties, his temper and his all round mental behaviour made him a huge cult hero with me and my friends. Scored 62 professional goals, won the IFFHS award for the world’s best goalkeeper 3 times, was voted South American Footballer of the year in 1996 and has a better international scoring record than Emile Heskey, who can argue with that?

Defender Right – Javier Zanetti, Argentina

I think my first memory of Zanetti was the goal he scored against England in the 1998 World Cup after a clever free-kick which blew my mind. Known for his reliability, versatility and his tough tackling, also his surging runs forward were a sight to behold. He is the most capped Argentine of all time (139) and has amassed over 700 appearances for Inter; he’s become an absolute legend for club and country. The fact that he’s still playing at the top level at the age of 37 shows how important to Inter he still is.

Defender Centre – Alessandro Nesta, Italy

Alessandro Nesta is my favourite ever defender, a magnificent centre-back. He is one of the coolest defenders I have ever seen, the way he reads the game is second to none, extremely intelligent, outstanding agility and very efficient with the ball at his feet. I can not speak highly enough of this player. He has won everything there is to win at club level and he also has a world cup winner’s medal to add to that, although he unfortunately got injured during that tournament in 2006. He has been named in the UEFA team of the year four times; a tally only bettered by Thierry Henry, he has won Serie ‘A’ defender of the year five times between 2000 and 2005 whilst playing for Lazio and Milan and on top of all that, he is a very handsome man. It’s great to see him still playing well for Milan at the age of 35 particularly when you consider all the problems he’s had with injuries.

Defender Centre – Tony Adams, England

14 years as Arsenal captain since the age of 21, an absolute inspiration. Adams was a hero because of his gutsy, determined performances for Arsenal and England. He was the sort of player you could just trust on the pitch, you knew he wouldn’t let anyone down. He was fantastic in the air, loved a tackle and was one of the greatest leaders I have ever seen. I will always remember him for the scoring the final goal in Arsenal’s 4-0 win against Everton to clinch the title in 97/98 and Martin Tyler going mental in his commentary (‘‘That just sums it all up!’’).

Defender Left – Roberto Carlos, Brazil

This was basically a toss-up between Roberto Carlos and Paolo Maldini, but Carlos edged it simply because he was so exciting. He had explosive pace and will always be remembered for his trademark free-kicks and distinctive run up, but he was very under-rated defensively as well. He had the biggest thighs I had ever seen! Anyone who can last 11 years at Real Madrid have got to be special and he scored 67 goals for them which is astonishing for a defender. I can’t mention Roberto Carlos without talking about his free-kick he scored against France in La Tournoi in 1997 which was just about the most phenomenal thing I had ever seen at the time. Just a great character, always playing with a smile on his face.

Midfielder Right – Steve McManaman, England

Steve McManaman is one of the main reasons I support Liverpool. When I was a very young boy and I was just getting into football, McManaman immediately became my favourite player. He is the very definition of a ‘wing wizard’, because of his trickery, pace and all round ability to embarrass defenders. He is often criticized for not performing at a high enough standard for England but he needed more of a free role and didn’t get that for England. Also I have just found out that it’s very enjoyable to type ‘McManaman’ on my keyboard, try it now you’ll find it very rewarding.

Midfielder Centre – Carlos Valderrama, Colombia

Now, Carlos Valderrama is probably most remembered for his hairstyle and that’s the thing which first drew my attention to him but he was also a magnificent player. He was the best player in what was probably Colombia’s most talented side ever. In my head, he never broke into a jog; he played every game at walking pace. One of the best passers of the ball I’ve ever seen as well. More than just a hairstyle, Valderrama is an all time South American great.

Midfielder Centre – Danny Murphy, England

Being a Liverpool fan and also going to watch Crewe Alex play every other week I have seen a lot of Danny Murphy’s career over the years and he has always been an absolute pleasure to watch. In my opinion, he is one of the most under-rated players ever to grace The Premier League. It’s an absolute disgrace that he only has 9 England caps to his name, especially when you think that England have lacked a player of Murphy’s creative qualities in recent times. His advanced footballing brain leaves his opponents one step behind him, he rarely gives the ball away and if spectacular goals are what you are after, Murphy will have never disappointed you. He also had an incredible knack of scoring against United for Liverpool, particularly at Old Trafford which is one of the reasons why he will always remain firmly in the hearts of Liverpool fans.

Midfielder Left – Ronaldinho, Brazil

Ronaldinho was just breathtaking to watch for a while when he was at Barcelona, he always reminded me of a kid playing in the park, just playing for fun, doing what he wants, with no pressure and enjoying every second of it with a great big toothy grin on his face. He was head and shoulders above any other player in the world for a couple of years because of his unbelievable skills, his amazing goals and his ability to play a killer pass. I can’t think of many better individual players than Ronaldinho when he was at the top of his game.

Forward Centre – Thierry Henry, France

Probably the best player ever to play in The Premier League. He was absolutely unstoppable in his pomp; you would just expect him to score every single week. Henry had a bit of everything as a forward; pace, skills, ball control, finishing abilities and everything was done with such grace. As well as being Arsenal’s all time top goal scorer he would also provide a lot of assists for his team-mates. I have always loved watching him play and by the look of it, he would love playing.

Forward Centre – Ronaldo, Brazil

The easiest decision I have ever made is putting Ronaldo in my favourite XI. He’s quite simply the best player I have ever seen. O Fenomeno’s career has been nothing short of astounding with the goals he has scored and the phenomena he created around the world. My overriding memory of him was defenders trying to tackle him but getting nowhere near the ball. He had awesome skills and a blistering turn of pace. His season at Barcelona was outstanding, and his individual performance at the 2002 World Cup will live long in the memory for many football fans.

That was my favourite XI but because there were far too many players to choose from, here’s a list of honorable mentions:

Rene Higuita, Jorge Campos, Alessandro Del Piero, Rivaldo, Cafu, Pavel Nedved, Gaizka Mendieta, Xavi, Patrick Kluivert, Denis Bergkamp, Marc Overmars, Roberto Ayala, Edgar Davids, Ally McCoist, Henrik Larsson, Gabriel Batistuta, Juninho Pernambucano, Roberto Baggio, Angelo Di Livio, Marcelo Salas, Christian Vieri, Jay Jay Okocha, Samuel Eto’o, Steven Gerrard, Sami Hyypia, Michael Ballack, Paolo Maldini, Hristo Stoichkov, Paul McGrath, Georgi Kinkladze, Zinedine Zidane.