Team of the Club World Cup: Messi, Xavi and Iniesta seize majority for champions Barcelona

The pyrotechnics during the ceremony at the end of the 2011 competition were nothing compared to the fireworks the Catalans produced on the field

19 Dec 2011 11:59:00

More On :  , , Auckland City, Barcelona, Espérance sportive de Tunis (Taragy), Kashiwa Reysol, Monterrey, Cesc Fàbregas, Ganso, Éric Abidal, Takanori Sugeno, Lionel Messi, Xavi, Neymar Santos Júnior, Sergio Busquets Burgos, Hiroki Sakai, Carles Puyol, Andrés Iniesta Luján
Barcelona x Santos (Shaun Boterill/FIFA)
Shaun Boterill/FIFA
ANALYSIS
By Cesare Polenghi

2011 Club World Cup

Team Of The Tournament

Tournament Guide


The temptation after observing such a performance would be to mark down all of Pep Guardiola's men as the tournament's best XI, and few could criticise such a choice; however, the showpiece in Japan has also revealed some interesting new faces. So, here is Goal.com's Best XI.

GOALKEEPER

Takanori SUGENO
Kashiwa Reysol
We all know he is not better than Victor Valdes or Rafael Cabral, but Takanori Sugeno was the only keeper in the tournament who actually made some decisive saves, including the one during the PK contest against Monterrey that sent Reysol into the semi-final.
DEFENDERS

Hiroki SAKAI
Kashiwa Reysol
Carles PUYOL
Barcelona
Eric ABIDAL
Barcelona

Japanese right-back Hiroki Sakai was the real surprise of the tournament. The 21-year-old is essentially in his first season as a professional, but impressed thanks to his dynamism and his physical strength. To balance Sakai's young age, the natural choice is Carles Puyol, who had two spotless games. In the semi-final against Al Sadd, he alone would have probably been enough to stop the opponents. Eric Abidal completes the three-man defence, after providing two consistent performances, characterised by his unstoppable runs on the left flank.

MIDFIELDERS

Cesc FABREGAS
Barcelona
Sergio BUSQUETS
Barcelona


Andres INIESTA
Barcelona
GANSO
Santos
Xavi HERNANDEZ
Barcelona
Andres Iniesta, Xavi Hernandez, Sergio Busquets and Cesc Fabergas come as a package, and they are probably the most complete midfield in the history of football. With them in this hyperbolic line-up, the MVP of the semi-finals: Santos' Ganso. The 22-year-old could not repeat against Barca the sensational performance he showed in the previous match, but he is clearly a very talented player.

FORWARDS

Neymar
Santos
Lionel MESSI
Barcelona

Neymar was the striker who thrilled the spectators. The young Brazilian prodigy scored a wondergoal against Kashiwa Reysol, and of course he is also the one who sported the best hairstyle of the tournament - sorry, Puyol!

To complete the XI, Lionel Messi. The Argentine delighted those in attendance with two goals and countless dribbles. In a week where he competed for Barcelona in a Clasico win against Real Madrid and clinched Club World Cup glory for his side, he once again solidified his position as the best player in the world.

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