My 2019 Team Of The Year
The decade has ended, in the footballing world the 2010s will be remembered for the domination of Spanish football at both club and national team level.
However, it is Liverpool who hold the European cup as 2019 comes to a close, therefore 4 of their players are in my XI of the best performing players in the last 12 months. The team is as follows:
1.Goalkeeper: Ter Stegen has become Barcelona’s second most important player in 2019, adding to his immense shot stopping reflexes with increased contribution to their build-up play.
Honourable mention: Jan Oblak
2.Left-Back: Jordi Alba may be 30 years old but his form in 2019 shows that he is still at the peak of his powers. He has remained in top form during a time when his contemporaries Marcelo and Alaba have declined.
Honourable mention: Andy Robertson
3.Centre-back: Virgil Van Dijk marshalled Liverpool’s leaky defence to 4 trophies this calendar year. His timing and reading of the game totally transformed the red’s defence, giving their forwards more freedom to impact the game.
Honourable mention: Aymeric Laporte
4.Centre-back: Matthijs De Ligt captained Ajax at the age of 19 to the UCL semi-finals for the first time since 1997. Now playing for Juventus, the young Dutchman is further refining his defensive skill by learning from the masters of Catenaccio.
Honourable mention: Kalidou Koulibaly
5.Right-back: Trent Alexander-Arnold has been the best attacking right full-back in the world for some time now. His creativity and athleticism in the final third is presently unmatched.
Honourable mention: Joshua Kimmich
6.Left-centre midfield: Frenkie De Jong was the main creative force in Ajax’s run the UCL semi-finals. Since his move to Barcelona, the young dutchman’s composure and skill on the ball has filled the Iniesta-shaped void in Cules’ hearts.
Honourable mention: Bernardo Silva
7.Centre-defensive midfield: Fabinho added that special creative spark that has made the difference in so many Liverpool games this year. His defence first mentality was a major factor in the Reds’ success in 2019.
Honourable mention: Sergio Busquets
8.Right-centre midfield: Kevin De Bruyne’s 2019 was marred by injuries but whenever the Belgian was fit, he showed that he is still the best at pulling midfield strings.
9.Left-wing: Sadio Mané may not get as much media spotlight as his teammates Firmino and Salah. Yet, the Senegalese forward has quietly shown that he is best forward of Liverpool’s front three with clutch performances big games all year.
Honourable mention: Cristiano Ronaldo
10.Centre-forward: Robert Lewandowski is the most lethal striker in the world, the Pole scored 54 goals in 58 games during 2019. Only Lionel Messi with 50 comes close to his goal tally.
Honourable mention: Kylian Mbappé
11.Right-wing: Lionel Messi is the player with the most goals and assists during the 2010s decade. Last month, he won a record-breaking 6th Ballon D’or for his performances in 2019. Even at 32 years old, he has shown little signs of slowing down anytime soon.
Honourable mention: Raheem Sterling
