The Union of European Football Associations, known better as UEFA, will select the best 11 footballers of 2018. Luka Modrić and Ivan Rakitić are among the 50 nominees.
UEFA announced the 50 nominees for the best team of 2018 on Monday, reports Gol.hr on December 10, 2018.
As expected, the list is dominated by Real Madrid stars, who won their third consecutive Champions League title in the 2017/18 season. A total of nine members of the royal club are on this list, including Cristiano Ronaldo, who moved to Juventus this summer.
Barcelona has seven representatives, while Liverpool and Atletico Madrid have six players. Following these top clubs are Juventus (4), Manchester City (3), and PSG (3).
Ten French representatives made the list, followed by six Spaniards, five Brazilians, and four Uruguayans.
Most of the nominees play in La Liga (22), while the English Premier League boasts 14 players and Serie A has 7.
The oldest player among the candidates is Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini (34), and the youngest PSG attacker Kylian Mbappe (19).
Somewhat surprisingly, only two Croatians, Ivan Rakitić and the world’s best footballer Luka Modrić, made the list. Last year, more than 8.7 million fans voted for the team of the year, and Luka Modrić found a spot in the best 11. The midfielder of Real Madrid and the Croatia captain also made the team for the 2016 season, and we should expect that after the season of his career, he’ll find himself among the best 11 once again.
You can vote for your favorites here until January 11 next year.
Goalkeepers: Alisson, Hugo Lloris, Keylor Navas, Jan Oblak, Marc-Andre Ter Stegen
Defenders: Virgil Van Dijk, Raphael, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo, Diego Godin, Giorgio Chiellini, Samuel Umtiti, Jordi Alba, Kalidou Koulibaly, Kostas Manolas, Lucas Hernandez, José Maria Gimenez, Gerard Pique, Joshua Kimmich, John Stones
Midfielders: Luka Modrić, N’Golo Kante, Kevin De Bruyne, James Milner, Casemiro, Isco, Toni Kroos, Paul Pogba, Ivan Rakitić, David Silva, Miralem Pjanić, Saul Ñiguez, Eden Hazard, Dimitri Payet, Florian Thauvin
Strikers: Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mane, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, Antoine Griezmann, Harry Kane, Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Edin Džeko, Robert Lewandowski, Paulo Dybala, Luis Suarez, Edinson Cavani, Gareth Bale
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