Team Physio_______________________________________Team harms (after tactical change)
Team harms - original formation before tactical change (made 7 hours before final whistle)
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Team Physio
Tactics – Attacking
Formation - 4222
Defensive Line Balanced
Marking – Zonal
Inspired by the Brazilian sides of the 1990s. Vieri (64 goals in 75 games in Serie A ) will be the focal point of the attack who will bully harms' CBs in the absence of Vidic. This allows Shevchenko his best role were he can drop deep and roam left and right. Rivaldo and Silva will also be positionally fluid. This get the best out of Rivaldo: he has licence to roam score and create as well as utilise his crossing ability to find Vieri's monstrous head (he is the all-time scorer of headed goals in Serie-A history). Rivaldo will also be a threat from set pieces and now has Rijkaard to find as well as Vieri in the air. David Silva reprises his Spain role as a hardworking wide playmaker.
Albertini will run the midfield as the DLP, utilising his excellent long-passing Mascherano will screen the back four and will drop into the CB position when needed. Both Albertini and Mascherano will be positionally reserved to allow Jorginho and Bennarivo to push high up and offer a lot in attack. Rijkaard and Thuram are excellent defenders and athletes who will be comfortable pushing wider when needed when harms plays on the counter.
In goal we have the all-time great Buffon as the last man in defence.
Motto - score more than the opposition.
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Team harms
The actual formation is a bit lopsided to adjust to my player's strengths and weaknesses. In fact, it's a hybrid formation between a 3-5-2 and a lopsided 4-4-2 with Evra moving back and Beckham and Iniesta moving to wide midfield roles.
Defense
On the left Evra will be more conservative (for a wing-back), and you'll notice that he is paired with a more attacking midfielder in Iniesta, while on the right Beckham has more freedom to push forward with Mendieta providing more cover to those wide areas. My team would defend aggressively & proactively this time though, making the most of Koeman's and Rio's ability to sniff out the danger — I don't think that sitting back suits this side at all.
All three of my centre backs have their own tasks. Before you'll even ask — of course Tassotti played as a centre back, but in this case his role won't be too different from your usual man-marking right back from the 80's/early 90's. He will focus his attention on Rivaldo — not that he'd follow him around even when the latter goes to the bathroom, but most of the time when it doesn't hurt structural integrity. Rio's main focus would be on Sheva, with Koeman having relative freedom to participate in attacking build-up.
Introduction of Jari Litmanen
It would be an easy decision to start with Carlos Tevez — an all-rounded hard-working striker who has a proven partnership with Cristiano, but I wanted to partner Litmanen with the latter for quite some time now. Litmanen is one of the smartest players that I've seen and his role at Ajax suits Cristiano perfectly — especially before Kluivert fully established himself as a starter, Jari played this 9,5 role up front, scoring almost a goal per game (36 goals in 39 games during his break-through season) and constantly providing his partners with goalscoring opportunities. That Ajax side was a thing of beauty because it had so many possible goalscorers — Litmanen, de Boers, George, Overmars, Kluivert, Davids, Seedorf, Rijkaard, Blind... and Litmanen's movement and smart interplay made him the perfect conductor for this free-flowing attacking football.
Set pieces advantage
I have 2 of the greatest set-piece takers of all-time in David Beckham and Ronald Koeman, as well as peak Cristiano who had scored 6-7 free kick goals per season before completely losing that ability for whatever mystery reason. Corners, direct free kicks, long-distance bullet-esque shots & curled beauties, I have it all — and set pieces often end up becoming a match-winning advantage in close games.
Big game players & variety of goalscoring options
Andrés Iniesta has arguably the greatest big game resume of all-time with his insane MotM collection. Cristiano, Litmanen, Mendieta, Koeman, Beckham also has a history of match-winning performances in late stages of CL & international competitions. Even Čech has provided one insane performance after another in different CL seasons, most notably keeping Messi quiet for 10 actual hours — before finally conceding, already while wearing an Arsenal shirt.
Maximizing Cristiano's influence
We all know how demanding Cristiano is of his partners — and this team provides him every type of service available. Smart interplay, one-twos and through-balls from Iniesta, Litmanen & Evra, long passes from deeper areas from Koeman, Beckham, Dunga and Mendieta, Beckham's impeccable crossing...
Team harms - original formation before tactical change (made 7 hours before final whistle)
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Team Physio
Tactics – Attacking
Formation - 4222
Defensive Line Balanced
Marking – Zonal
Inspired by the Brazilian sides of the 1990s. Vieri (64 goals in 75 games in Serie A ) will be the focal point of the attack who will bully harms' CBs in the absence of Vidic. This allows Shevchenko his best role were he can drop deep and roam left and right. Rivaldo and Silva will also be positionally fluid. This get the best out of Rivaldo: he has licence to roam score and create as well as utilise his crossing ability to find Vieri's monstrous head (he is the all-time scorer of headed goals in Serie-A history). Rivaldo will also be a threat from set pieces and now has Rijkaard to find as well as Vieri in the air. David Silva reprises his Spain role as a hardworking wide playmaker.
Albertini will run the midfield as the DLP, utilising his excellent long-passing Mascherano will screen the back four and will drop into the CB position when needed. Both Albertini and Mascherano will be positionally reserved to allow Jorginho and Bennarivo to push high up and offer a lot in attack. Rijkaard and Thuram are excellent defenders and athletes who will be comfortable pushing wider when needed when harms plays on the counter.
In goal we have the all-time great Buffon as the last man in defence.
Motto - score more than the opposition.
Gianluigi Buffon (03-06)
Jorghino - (92-95)
Antonio Benarrivo - (92-95)
Lilian Thuram - (97-00)
Demetrio Albertini - (92-95)
David Silva (09-12)
Rivaldo - (97-00)
Andriy Shevchenko - (03-06)
Jorghino - (92-95)
Antonio Benarrivo - (92-95)
Lilian Thuram - (97-00)
- French Player of the Year: 1997
- Guerin d'Oro: 1997
- FIFA World Cup Bronze Ball: 1998
- FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 1998
- ESM Team of the Year: 1998–99
Demetrio Albertini - (92-95)
- ESM Team of the Year: 1998–99, 1999–00[95]
- FR Yugoslavia player of the Year: 1999
David Silva (09-12)
Rivaldo - (97-00)
- La Liga Foreign Player of the Year: 1997–98
- FIFA World Cup All-Star Team (2): 1998
- ESM Team of the Year (2): 1998–99, 1999–2000
- World Soccer Player of the Year: 1999
- Onze d'Or: 1999
- Ballon d'Or: 1999
- FIFA World Player of the Year: 1999
- Copa América top goalscorer: 1999
- Copa América Player of the Tournament: 1999
- UEFA Champions League top goalscorer: 1999–2000
- IFFHS World's Top Goal Scorer: 2000
- FIFA World Player of the Year: Bronze award 2000
Andriy Shevchenko - (03-06)
- Ballon d'Or: 2004
- ESM Team of the Year: 2003–04, 2004–05
- UEFA Team of the Year: 2004, 2005
- Serie A Goal of the Year: 2004
- FIFPro World XI: 2005
- L'Équipe Team of the Year: 2004, 2005
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Team harms
The actual formation is a bit lopsided to adjust to my player's strengths and weaknesses. In fact, it's a hybrid formation between a 3-5-2 and a lopsided 4-4-2 with Evra moving back and Beckham and Iniesta moving to wide midfield roles.
Defense
On the left Evra will be more conservative (for a wing-back), and you'll notice that he is paired with a more attacking midfielder in Iniesta, while on the right Beckham has more freedom to push forward with Mendieta providing more cover to those wide areas. My team would defend aggressively & proactively this time though, making the most of Koeman's and Rio's ability to sniff out the danger — I don't think that sitting back suits this side at all.
All three of my centre backs have their own tasks. Before you'll even ask — of course Tassotti played as a centre back, but in this case his role won't be too different from your usual man-marking right back from the 80's/early 90's. He will focus his attention on Rivaldo — not that he'd follow him around even when the latter goes to the bathroom, but most of the time when it doesn't hurt structural integrity. Rio's main focus would be on Sheva, with Koeman having relative freedom to participate in attacking build-up.
Introduction of Jari Litmanen
It would be an easy decision to start with Carlos Tevez — an all-rounded hard-working striker who has a proven partnership with Cristiano, but I wanted to partner Litmanen with the latter for quite some time now. Litmanen is one of the smartest players that I've seen and his role at Ajax suits Cristiano perfectly — especially before Kluivert fully established himself as a starter, Jari played this 9,5 role up front, scoring almost a goal per game (36 goals in 39 games during his break-through season) and constantly providing his partners with goalscoring opportunities. That Ajax side was a thing of beauty because it had so many possible goalscorers — Litmanen, de Boers, George, Overmars, Kluivert, Davids, Seedorf, Rijkaard, Blind... and Litmanen's movement and smart interplay made him the perfect conductor for this free-flowing attacking football.
Set pieces advantage
I have 2 of the greatest set-piece takers of all-time in David Beckham and Ronald Koeman, as well as peak Cristiano who had scored 6-7 free kick goals per season before completely losing that ability for whatever mystery reason. Corners, direct free kicks, long-distance bullet-esque shots & curled beauties, I have it all — and set pieces often end up becoming a match-winning advantage in close games.
Big game players & variety of goalscoring options
Andrés Iniesta has arguably the greatest big game resume of all-time with his insane MotM collection. Cristiano, Litmanen, Mendieta, Koeman, Beckham also has a history of match-winning performances in late stages of CL & international competitions. Even Čech has provided one insane performance after another in different CL seasons, most notably keeping Messi quiet for 10 actual hours — before finally conceding, already while wearing an Arsenal shirt.
Maximizing Cristiano's influence
We all know how demanding Cristiano is of his partners — and this team provides him every type of service available. Smart interplay, one-twos and through-balls from Iniesta, Litmanen & Evra, long passes from deeper areas from Koeman, Beckham, Dunga and Mendieta, Beckham's impeccable crossing...
Petr Čech (2004-2007)
Simply incredible goalkeeper. Not the flashiest one, but his control of the box was simply unparalleled. Schmeichel will always be my choice if only for a sentimental value, but Čech has a very strong claim on being the greatest PL goalkeeper ever if we combine the level of his performances with his incredible longevity.
Such a marvelous player. He had scored 41 goals over those three seasons even becoming CL top-scorer in 1993/94. He had scored the winning goal in the 1992 CL final, reached another in 1993/94 as well as winning a bunch of other titles with Cruyff's Dream Team.
Rio Ferdinand (2006-2009)
Rolls-Royce of a defender, he really had it all — pace, power, composure & leadership ability. Sometimes it felt simply unfair to the opposition when Rio would gracefully and visibly effortlessly break their attack & stride forward with the ball at his feet.
Mauro Tassotti (1992-1995)
Tassotti was a part of the greatest club defense that ever were — Maldini, Baresi, Costacurta & Tassotti. He was an excellent defender with decent attacking contribution (something that is often overlooked when people talk about him). During this period he had reached three consecutive Champions League finals, captaining his team in the famous 4:0 demolition of Barca’s Dream Team (with Stoichkov & Romario) — where he and Maldini had to compensate for the absence of both Baresi & Costacurta. That 1993/94 season was outstanding in many ways — in the league Tassotti’s Milan won the league by scoring just 36 goals in 34 games, all because of their defense that conceded mere 15 goals throughout the entire season!
Patrice Evra (2008-2011)
The integral part of our best ever defensive unit and all-round nice guy. After 2011 he started getting a bit dodgy in defense but before that he was absolutely brilliant — Neville appropriately named him the best fullback in the world between two boxes. You can find a more productive player in the final third, you can find a sturdier defender, but you'd find it hard to find a player that influence the overall play more than Uncle Pat.
Dunga (1992-1995)
A player that got a whole era named after him! «Dunga Era» was a bit of a misrepresentation of him to be honest, he was not just a thug, but a very technically refined player with an outstanding passing range — even with an outside of his boot. Still, I can’t ask for a better player to patrol the zone in front of my defense. Scarily consistent, physical, with methodically accurate passing — with his performance in the World Cup final of 1994 being the highlight of that era.
Gaizka Mendieta (1998-2001)
Becoming UEFA Club Midfielder of the Season is no mean feat — let alone doing it twice in a row while competing with peak Redondo, Keane and Davids. Before his inexplicable failure at Lazio Mendieta was on his way to becoming a modern version of Johan Neeskens — starting out as a right back he developed in a fantastic all-rounded midfielder with endless energy, great passing range & dribbling and, of course, a special knack for scoring all sorts of goals. His performances from that peak period were borderline genius — winning multiple trophies with Valencia & leading them to two consecutive Champions League finals. Maybe I’ll do a gif of a moment from the game against Real Madrid that explains him the best — first he makes a last-ditch tackle on Raúl, who is already getting ready to shoot & a minute later he finds himself on the other side of the pitch, scoring the first goal of the game. Mendieta in a nutshell.
David Beckham (1998-2001)
The man could run for days, created chance after chance with incredible consistency and scored some crucial goals — both from free kicks and from an open play. Cristiano would've loved playing with him
Andrés Iniesta (2009-2012)
Don Andrès is football. He doesn’t pull rabbits out of his hat, he pulls out big, beautiful peacocks.
Cristiano Ronaldo (2009-2012)
Weirdly enough, it’s somehow easy to forget just how good he was during his first years in Madrid, especially when you look at him now. He still had that flair & creativity, he was able to beat players for fun & even scored free kicks on a regular basis — all while scoring 50-60 goals per season. Best player in the draft.
Jari Litmanen (1993-1996)
He was the crown jewel of the last great pre-Bosman team and truly one of the stand out players of the 90's — before the injuries subdued his career he was so influential and decisive that Ajax were actually happy to let Bergkamp go. They had a better alternative. “Jari had great vision. He was always free. You could always give him a pass. Not so fast but always right on time. He could also defend, Bergkamp didn’t defend. I think for Ajax it was perfect that Dennis left and Jari came,” says Van Gaal.
85 goals in 122 games for Ajax, 2 CL finals, Eredivisie & CL top scorer, Player of the Year in Netherlands — I can go on and on, but those who watched football in the 90's don't need me to hype him up.
Simply incredible goalkeeper. Not the flashiest one, but his control of the box was simply unparalleled. Schmeichel will always be my choice if only for a sentimental value, but Čech has a very strong claim on being the greatest PL goalkeeper ever if we combine the level of his performances with his incredible longevity.
- Most clean sheets in a season for Chelsea: 28 clean sheets in 2004–05.
- Most consecutive clean sheets for Chelsea in all competitions: 7 in 2005–06 (shared record)
- Most Premier League clean sheets in a season: 24 in 2004–05.
- Best European Goalkeeper: 2005, 2007
- UEFA Club Football Awards Best Goalkeeper: 2005, 2007
- UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament: 2004
- Premier League Golden Glove: 2004–05
- PL record of 1,025 minutes without letting in a goal (later beaten by VDS)
Such a marvelous player. He had scored 41 goals over those three seasons even becoming CL top-scorer in 1993/94. He had scored the winning goal in the 1992 CL final, reached another in 1993/94 as well as winning a bunch of other titles with Cruyff's Dream Team.
Rio Ferdinand (2006-2009)
Rolls-Royce of a defender, he really had it all — pace, power, composure & leadership ability. Sometimes it felt simply unfair to the opposition when Rio would gracefully and visibly effortlessly break their attack & stride forward with the ball at his feet.
Mauro Tassotti (1992-1995)
Tassotti was a part of the greatest club defense that ever were — Maldini, Baresi, Costacurta & Tassotti. He was an excellent defender with decent attacking contribution (something that is often overlooked when people talk about him). During this period he had reached three consecutive Champions League finals, captaining his team in the famous 4:0 demolition of Barca’s Dream Team (with Stoichkov & Romario) — where he and Maldini had to compensate for the absence of both Baresi & Costacurta. That 1993/94 season was outstanding in many ways — in the league Tassotti’s Milan won the league by scoring just 36 goals in 34 games, all because of their defense that conceded mere 15 goals throughout the entire season!
Patrice Evra (2008-2011)
The integral part of our best ever defensive unit and all-round nice guy. After 2011 he started getting a bit dodgy in defense but before that he was absolutely brilliant — Neville appropriately named him the best fullback in the world between two boxes. You can find a more productive player in the final third, you can find a sturdier defender, but you'd find it hard to find a player that influence the overall play more than Uncle Pat.
Dunga (1992-1995)
A player that got a whole era named after him! «Dunga Era» was a bit of a misrepresentation of him to be honest, he was not just a thug, but a very technically refined player with an outstanding passing range — even with an outside of his boot. Still, I can’t ask for a better player to patrol the zone in front of my defense. Scarily consistent, physical, with methodically accurate passing — with his performance in the World Cup final of 1994 being the highlight of that era.
Gaizka Mendieta (1998-2001)
Becoming UEFA Club Midfielder of the Season is no mean feat — let alone doing it twice in a row while competing with peak Redondo, Keane and Davids. Before his inexplicable failure at Lazio Mendieta was on his way to becoming a modern version of Johan Neeskens — starting out as a right back he developed in a fantastic all-rounded midfielder with endless energy, great passing range & dribbling and, of course, a special knack for scoring all sorts of goals. His performances from that peak period were borderline genius — winning multiple trophies with Valencia & leading them to two consecutive Champions League finals. Maybe I’ll do a gif of a moment from the game against Real Madrid that explains him the best — first he makes a last-ditch tackle on Raúl, who is already getting ready to shoot & a minute later he finds himself on the other side of the pitch, scoring the first goal of the game. Mendieta in a nutshell.
David Beckham (1998-2001)
The man could run for days, created chance after chance with incredible consistency and scored some crucial goals — both from free kicks and from an open play. Cristiano would've loved playing with him
| season------------- | games----------- | goals--------- | assists---------- | gpg------------- | apg---------- |
Andrés Iniesta (2009-2012)
Don Andrès is football. He doesn’t pull rabbits out of his hat, he pulls out big, beautiful peacocks.
Cristiano Ronaldo (2009-2012)
Weirdly enough, it’s somehow easy to forget just how good he was during his first years in Madrid, especially when you look at him now. He still had that flair & creativity, he was able to beat players for fun & even scored free kicks on a regular basis — all while scoring 50-60 goals per season. Best player in the draft.
Jari Litmanen (1993-1996)
He was the crown jewel of the last great pre-Bosman team and truly one of the stand out players of the 90's — before the injuries subdued his career he was so influential and decisive that Ajax were actually happy to let Bergkamp go. They had a better alternative. “Jari had great vision. He was always free. You could always give him a pass. Not so fast but always right on time. He could also defend, Bergkamp didn’t defend. I think for Ajax it was perfect that Dennis left and Jari came,” says Van Gaal.
85 goals in 122 games for Ajax, 2 CL finals, Eredivisie & CL top scorer, Player of the Year in Netherlands — I can go on and on, but those who watched football in the 90's don't need me to hype him up.
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