All-time foreign XI

[Uncle Leo]

Interesting article here

http://www.sportingintelligence.com...t-foreign-player-up-to-then-heres-how-130305/

He's looking for an updated XI, suggestions can be tweeted to him @sportingintel

I've gone for: Schmeichel; Babbel, Hyypia, Carvalho, Desailly; Alonso, Vieira, Pires, Ronaldo; Henry, Bergkamp

Don't really remember seeing Thijssen/Muhren/Ardiles. Drogba only just missed out to Bergkamp.

 

[BLUEBLOOD]

No Petter Belsvik ??

Shocking

 

[Rob Noxious]

Van der Saar; Petrescu, Stam, Gullit, Heinze; Kanchelskis, Vieira, Ardiles, Overmars; Cantona, Henry.

 

[Harold Bishop Killer]

Schmeichel; Desailly; Vidic; Evra; Stam; Vieira; Makelele; Ardiles; Cantona; Henry; Zola

 

[ian_the_girth]

My X1 is based on foreign players who made an impact over a long period of time & were at their peak while playing in the english league.
No messing about. Defenders who defended. Midfielders who worked hard & create chances for others. Strikers who put the ball in the net.

4-3-3
Peter Schmeichel,
Dennis Irwin, Alan Hansen, Mark Lawrenson, David O'Leary,
Liam Brady, George Best, Robert Pries,
Theiry Henry, Kenny Dalglish, Ian Rush

 

[Uncle Leo]

My X1 is based on foreign players who made an impact over a long period of time & were at their peak while playing in the english league.
No messing about. Defenders who defended. Midfielders who worked hard & create chances for others. Strikers who put the ball in the net.

4-3-3
Peter Schmeichel,
Dennis Irwin, Alan Hansen, Mark Lawrenson, David O'Leary,
Liam Brady, George Best, Robert Pries,
Theiry Henry, Kenny Dalglish, Ian Rush

The bloke who did the original article classed 'foreign' as anyone born outside the British Isles, so in terms of this exercise, most of your team would be ineligible.

A bloody good side though!

 

[EastStandBlue]

4-2-3-1

Schmeichel, Hyypia, Stam, Carvalho, Desailly, Essien, Vieira, C.Ronaldo, Cantona, Bergkamp, Zola

 

[BLUEBLOOD]

Much as i hate him shouldn't Tevez get a gig here ??

 

[EastStandBlue]

Much as i hate him shouldn't Tevez get a gig here ??

I wouldn't say so... He fumbled around West Ham until February, was a bit-part player for large swathes of his time at United and is still angling for a move away from City. The Premier League has been "blessed" with forward players that aren't just more talented than him, but also stuck around for a lot longer. Players like Bergkamp, Henry, Zola, Cantona, Nistelrooy and Drogba all far exceed Tevez IMO.

 

[Rob Noxious]

4-2-3-1

Schmeichel, Hyypia, Stam, Carvalho, Desailly, Essien, Vieira, C.Ronaldo, Cantona, Bergkamp, Zola

Don't quite get that formation, ESB.

 

[EastStandBlue]

Don't quite get that formation, ESB.

I've always thought of Cantona and Bergkamp playing best just behind the forward, so I'd be inclined to play them both behind Zola (Who I think is the probably the most instinctive finisher in the Premier League), with Ronaldo able to work whichever channel he finds himself on. Essien and Vieira as the holding midfielders.

 

[Rob Noxious]

I've always thought of Cantona and Bergkamp playing best just behind the forward, so I'd be inclined to play them both behind Zola (Who I think is the probably the most instinctive finisher in the Premier League), with Ronaldo able to work whichever channel he finds himself on. Essien and Vieira as the holding midfielders.

Thanks. Yeah, I could see those two as the midfielders - I got a bit confused with the back four as they all looked like central defenders.

 

[EastStandBlue]

Thanks. Yeah, I could see those two as the midfielders - I got a bit confused with the back four as they all looked like central defenders.

I couldn't really think of many truly brilliant, foreign full-backs that had plyed their trade over here to be honest, so I went with two centre-halves who I thought were fantastic. Desailly could probably do a job over on the left anyway, but Hyypia deserves a spot for being one of the most hideously underrated defenders I've seen. In his prime, he was just unbeatable and anybody who's played with him would tell you the same.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

Schmeichel; Nilsson, Evra, Desailly, Stam; Keane, Viera, Ronaldo, Pires; Drogba, Henry.

Just goes to show that the Premier$hite isn't all that as few of those would even enter the conversation if you were coming up with a World XI over the same period.

 

[ian_the_girth]

Schmeichel; Nilsson, Evra, Desailly, Stam; Keane, Viera, Ronaldo, Pires; Drogba, Henry.

Just goes to show that the Premier$hite isn't all that as few of those would even enter the conversation if you were coming up with a World XI over the same period.

Was Japp Stam, really all that, really?
Only here for three seasons, granted he won three titles, fa cup, champions league...

No better that Vidic I.M.O.

Carvalue (as i call him) was quality & he made John Terry look good.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

Was Japp Stam, really all that, really?
Only here for three seasons, granted he won three titles, fa cup, champions league...

No better that Vidic I.M.O.

Carvalue (as i call him) was quality & he made John Terry look good.

My point was are any of them really all that?

For the best league in the world (TM) there's a distinct lack of the world's greatest players.

Vidic, Stam, Carvalho are/were all very good players (and much of a muchness IMO, although I'd give the edge to Stam - I think his value can be seen in how hard Man U found it to replace him), but we're not talking Baresi, Maldini, Thuram, Costacurta, Cannavaro etc.

Desailly in his prime, maybe fair enough, but he was on the decline when he moved to England. So was Blanc, Klinsmann, Shevchenko, Gullit etc

The Premier League has never attracted world class players in their prime. It's signed a fair few players on the verge of it, but the only ever superstar moves have always been in the other direction: ie Gazza, Beckham, Christiano Ronaldo etc. Man City came close, but Kaka turned them down.

 

[canveyshrimper]

My point was are any of them really all that?

For the best league in the world (TM) there's a distinct lack of the world's greatest players.

Vidic, Stam, Carvalho are/were all very good players (and much of a muchness IMO, although I'd give the edge to Stam - I think his value can be seen in how hard Man U found it to replace him), but we're not talking Baresi, Maldini, Thuram, Costacurta, Cannavaro etc.

Desailly in his prime, maybe fair enough, but he was on the decline when he moved to England. So was Blanc, Klinsmann, Shevchenko, Gullit etc

The Premier League has never attracted world class players in their prime. It's signed a fair few players on the verge of it, but the only ever superstar moves have always been in the other direction: ie Gazza, Beckham, Christiano Ronaldo etc. Man City came close, but Kaka turned them down.

Good points. I disagree about Desailly he signed for Chelsea prior to the 1998 World Cup and was still playing for them 4/5 years later. IMO Bergkamp was very much in his prime and one of the best players in the world when he signed for Arsenal. A lot of other players such as Ronaldo & Viera have come here as youngsters, been nurtured here before moving on. I think Thierry Henry was at the top of world class, but he wasn't great in Italy and it was his arrival at Arsenal after being in the French side that won the world cup that really made his career as a top striker.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

Good points. I disagree about Desailly he signed for Chelsea prior to the 1998 World Cup and was still playing for them 4/5 years later. IMO Bergkamp was very much in his prime and one of the best players in the world when he signed for Arsenal. A lot of other players such as Ronaldo & Viera have come here as youngsters, been nurtured here before moving on. I think Thierry Henry was at the top of world class, but he wasn't great in Italy and it was his arrival at Arsenal after being in the French side that won the world cup that really made his career as a top striker.

Desailly was still a bloody good player (and in my team!) but he was definitely on the way down.

Bergkamp was a flop at Inter and his stock was down when he signed for Arsenal. Similarly Henry. Both enjoyed their primes in England but weren't world superstars when they joined Arsenal, although they clearly both had the possibility of becoming them.