We all saw the La Liga World XI released by FIFA last week and while there was plenty of faces in there that deserved their places, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi for example, there is a definite case for a different centre back pairing.
Gerard Pique and Sergio Ramos were voted as the two best centre backs in the world for the last season but Ramos plays predominantly as a right back for Real Madrid and Spain, although injury to captain Carlos Puyol saw him deployed in the middle for Euro 2012, and Pique’s season was hardly his most prestigious.
Due to injury and a dip in form Gerard Pique made played in just 22 of 38 of Barcelona’s league games last season, the lowest total since his return to Barcelona from Manchester United in 2008. Despite Pique’s relatively poor season for his club Vicente Del Bosque selected him in the Spain squad for Euro 2012 where Spain won an unprecedented 3rd major international tournament in a row.
Pique featured in all 6 of Spain’s games at Euro 2012, converting his penalty in the semi-final shootout against Iberian rivals Portugal. Spaniard’s dominated the ‘Team of Euro 2012’ and Pique was chosen alongside fellow defenders Sergio Ramos and Jordi Alba, as well as 7 other compatriots.
The obvious replacements for Pique and Ramos in the World XI are Manchester City’s Vincent Kompany and Paris St Germain’s former AC Milan defender Thiago Silva.
Vincent Kompany achieved just about everything he could in the Premier League with Manchester City last season. The Belgian, signed from Hamburg in 2008, is the captain and at the heart of Manchester City’s defence that led The Blues to a first league title in 44 years on the final day of the season.
In the 2011/12 Premier League season Kompany made 31 appearances and scored 3 goals, the most important of which was the winner in a 1-0 win over rivals Manchester United to put City on top of the league with 2 games left to play.
Kompany’s superb performances for his club side were recognised for his international side when he was made captain of Belgium by, then coach, Georges Leekens in November 2011 for a friendly against Romania.
Manchester City conceded just 29 goals in their title winning season, thanks mostly to Kompany’s organisational skills of the defensive line in play and at set pieces as well as his cool head on the ball and ability to position himself well.
Kompany was rewarded by Manchester City at the end of the 11/12 season with a new 6 year deal, the longest ever given to a Manchester City player, however he wasn’t rewarded with a place in the FIFA World XI.
Brazilian Thiago Silva couldn’t lead his side to such an impressive title win but he showed his own undoubted class in a season that AC Milan were runners up to a Juventus side that went the whole season without defeat.
Milan conceded just 33 goals in the league and Silva played a major part in the heart of their defence and was named captain of the club in November and Serie A defender of the year for 2011.
Silva’s individual accolades didn’t stop there; he picked up the Samba D’Or trophy (the award given to the best Brazilian footballer in Europe) for the second year running and was named in the UEFA Team of 2011.
An impressive 2011/12 season for Thiago Silva was ended when he earned himself a summer move to mega rich Paris St Germain, reported to be around £40 million, with a reported weekly wage of £185,00 which the Brazilian described as “too good to turn down”.
PSG have bought themselves one of the classiest defenders in European football, who had been targeted by Barcelona and Manchester City, with strength in the air and his array of passing at his strengths Silva would have been the perfect partner to compliment Vincent Kompany in the World XI for 2011/12.
Sam Jewell