[THREAD]



Best world XIs by nationality, 1992-present.

If each country could call upon all their players to have played in the modern era, who would come out on top?

The following thread orders the top 40 nations.

As always, a variety of factors have been applied:

• performance for club and country
• peak vs. longevity
• World Cup, CL, Euros, Copa America weighted highest
• Ballon D’Or voting
• team balance; each side must be vaguely coherent
• some personal preferences

Why 1992-present and not all-time?

To make the selection process easier, essentially. I started watching football properly around then so using the Premier League / Champions League as the cut-off makes sense for me.

Why 40 teams?

Dunno. Sorry, Hungary, Austria,

Some players may have been forgotten, some selections may be ridiculous.

Feel free to disagree in the replies, but be nice about it. Just a bit of fun.

Ready?

40. Switzerland
39. Russia
38. Bulgaria
37. Greece

Kicking off with four European teams. Greece might be the weakest of these on paper, but their 2004 spirit counts for a lot.

Russia’s midfield looks classy, but that defence could be better.

36. Paraguay
35. Ukraine
34. Australia
33. Poland

Some brilliant players in these teams but all lacking a bit of depth which stops them making the cut for the imaginary 32-team Best XI World Cup.

Nice to reunite that Ukraine strikeforce though.

32. Ireland
31. USA
30. Wales
29. Senegal

Bit of home nations bias here, do & deserve to be this high? Not sure. Plenty of Champions League wins in those sides though.

Senegal’s 2002 team with a couple of newer additions looks good though.

28. Romania
27. Egypt
26. Turkey
25. Serbia

Egypt’s lack of impact at the World Cup hurts them here, but four AFCON wins and Salah make up for it.

Most of this Turkey side made a World Cup semi, while Serbia’s defence looks virtually impregnable.

24. Ghana
23. Cameroon
22. Japan
21. Czech Rep

Pavel Nedved is the third Ballon d’Or winner in the thread so far - who can name the other two?

Samuel Eto’o wasn’t bad either, while that Japan midfield is lovely. The Ghana strikeforce too, excellent. Great.

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20. South Korea

Most of the 2002 semi-final side here, with Son Heung-Min added for a bit of extra star quality.

Representatives at every World Cup in the thread’s time-frame, they’re possibly being rewarded for consistency over talent on paper.

19. Ivory Coast

OK, there are some weak links in this side. But it’s Yaya Touré and Didier Drogba. And Gervinho. Wilfried Zaha on the bench would be a decent impact sub.

Having been hamstrung by awful groups when they’ve reached the World Cup, this team would do better.

18. Colombia

Now we’re talking. Valderrama was past his best by the 1994 World Cup so only just sneaks in.

That front four has a bit of everything: pace, creativity, intelligence and fire-power. This team would be great fun.

17. Nigeria

Not entirely sure about Yobo at right-back, but this easily flips to a 3-5-2 in possession anyway.

Okocha and Kanu given largely free roles, this is another fun forward line.

16. Denmark

A slightly pedestrian midfield base, but they’d all be about giving Eriksen and the Laudrups freedom to play.

Michael Laudrup’s best days might have been pre-92 but he was still pretty good after that. And they’ve got one of the best keepers in the competition.

15. Mexico

In the seven World Cups that this thread spans, Mexico have reached the last 16 in each but never got further. 15th will do, then.

With four Copa America semis and a Confederations Cup win under their belt too, this team is greater than the sum of its parts.

14. Sweden

Another sexy front four. Just look at that! Brolin, Ljungberg, Larsson and Ibrahimovic. Brilliant.

The keeper’s decent, the defence is decent, the midfield is decent. Doesn’t matter. That front four.

13. Chile

Most of the victorious 2015 Copa América team here, but with a formation rejig to get Salas and Zamorano in.

The defence looks a little suspect (and Claudio Bravo’s the keeper) but it doesn’t really matter.

12. Uruguay

Yes, ok, this team is probably far too attacking. But who do you drop from that front four? They’ll figure out a way to make it work.

When you have Godín and Montero in your backline you probably don’t need to worry too much about balance.

11. Belgium

Nine of this side are still playing and Kompany only retired last year. Now this is a Golden Generation.

Hard to judge totally fairly, without recency bias, but this team’s international form is excellent. Plus plenty of trophies at club level.

10. England

So much quality in this side but under tournament conditions of course it doesn’t work.

Lampard in for Gerrard from the PL version to mix up the replies.

Loads of trophies, Ballon D’Or noms and depth, but international underperformance pushes them down the table

9. Croatia

World Cup finalists, a Ballon D’Or winner, five CL winners plus a few more on the bench (e.g. Mandžukic, Boksic, Kovacic, Lovren).

This is two very good teams mashed together to make an excellent one.

8. Portugal

Before 2016 they might have been a place or two lower. But winning the Euros means a deserved place in the top eight.

There’s an argument that the midfield lacks a bit of steel, but it’s pretty classy. Pauleta wasn’t perfect but should be a decent foil.

7. Netherlands

Some difficult choices here:

• Davids over Seedorf (for balance)
• RVP over RVN (superior international record)
• Stam over F. De Boer

You might disagree with all of them. It’s a lovely team though, really nice balance. But they’ll falter at the end.

6. Argentina

Getting good now aren’t they?

This side is probably inferior to the Dutch in terms of all-round quality, but they have Lionel Messi. Imagine if Batistuta had been playing in 2014 instead of Higuaín.

Masch & Simeone would have been overkill, so Cambiasso’s in.

5. Germany

On paper, arguably worse than or . But it’s Germany, so they’ll find a way.

Kahn over Neuer thanks to his WC Golden Ball. Özil over Podolski for balance and club performances, Hummels/Boateng a coin toss.

And no room for Matthäus whose best days were pre-92.

4. Italy

That defence, oh boy. Cannavaro can’t even get in (Nesta was better). You’re not scoring many against this team.

The midfield has a bit of everything and the forward line is great too. Del Piero maybe unlucky to miss out, but who do you drop?

3. Spain

Arguably the best side at their peak, but they don’t span the generations as much as some of the other sides, with Raúl the only player getting in from outside that golden period.

Possibly lacks a bit of directness, while Fàbregas and Torres could easily get in.

2. France

Just look at that. Beautiful.

You can make arguments for Griezmann over Ribéry/Mbappé or Pogba over Vieira but the rest is probably set.

This is mostly two World Cup winning sides mashed together. It would work.

1. Brazil

Possibly less balanced than France, but look at the full-backs and the front four. That front four!

Neymar doesn’t even get in, as Kaka, Ronaldinho, Rivaldo and Ronaldo all won the Ballon D’Or. Because they were all brilliant.

Apologies for the repost, the thread got broken near the end. Oops.

RTs of the whole thread massively appreciated, hope you enjoyed it.

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