World Cup Draft (1994 - 2010) - Formation and Tactics

Taffarel 98 - finalist and model of consistency. Saved two pens in the semi shoot out.

Sagnol 06 - finalist. Part of the French defence that conceded 3 goals in 7 games including clean sheets against Brazil and Portugal and shut out a David Villa inspired Spain in the second round. Scored in the final shoot out.

Baresi 94 - finalist. Only played three times but only conceded one. Exceptional performance in the final where Italy were the only team to keep Brazil from scoring.

Puyol 10 - winner. Phenomenal as always in the Spain team that didn't concede a single goal in the knockout stages. Scored the winner in the semi final. All star team.

Abidal 06 - finalist. Exactly the same as Sagnol - also scored in the final shoot out.

Pirlo 06 - winner. The best tournament this genius has had. Four assists and one goal. Three man of the match awards including the final and semi. Top of the assist charts. Bronze Ball Winner. Scored in the final shout out. All star team. Legend.

Gattuso 06 - winner. The brawn to Pirlo's brain but a great footballer too. All star team. Quarter final man of the match. Crucial in the Italian team's defensive brilliance.

Iniesta 10 - winner. Brilliant as always as the main creative force for Spain. Scored the winner and was man of the match in the final. All star team.

Ronaldo 06 - semi finalist. Portugal's best player at the tournament especially in the knockouts. Would have won young player of the tournament if not for the incident with Rooney..this is a fact FIFA even admitted themselves.

Djorkaeff 98 - winner. Incredibly influential creative force for France who bar Zidane had little creativity in their side..they had Stephane ****ing Guivarch up front. Started every game bar a meaningless group game.

Suarez 10 - semi finalist. The tournament he proved he could step up and become the player he is now. Three goals, three assists. Two goals in the second round plus kept his team in the tournament with that save so has the added versatility bonus of being able to play in goal.

Tactics : score loads and don't concede [to be expanded]

 

From top to bottom:

Miroslav Klose 2010: Scores goals. Will be the focal point in my team. 9

Roberto Baggio 1994: Very few men can have a ponytail and still be described as divine. Scored 5 in the knockout stages of 94. He will have the license to roam around and do what he wants whilst Klose is the number 9. 10

Maxi Rodriguez 2006: Rodriguez is a very flexible attacking player, so he will drift inside from the left if he desires. Could play some tasty interchanges with Baggio. 11

Luis Figo 2006: Captained Portugal to the semis in 06, by this point he was a wizened professional. He should feed the front men nicely from wide and can score goals himself. Ammunition for Klose. 7

Bastian Schweinsteiger 2010: Will play a slightly more advanced role then Frings. The complete midfielder, he can create opportunities for the forwards, score, and also defend and read the game well. Ammunition for Klose. 8

Torsten Frings 2006: Took Germany far on home soil. Will play as the mature and disciplined defensive midfielder. 4

Giovanni van Bronckhorst 2010: Captained Holland to the final as a grizzled veteran. His long-range piledriver showed he still had it. 3

Fernando Hierro 2002: It's always nice when an experienced top-class international captain centre-back doubles up as a genuine attacking threat. 6

Rio Ferdinand 2006: ffs I thought Terry was already taken. Never mind, still a top centre-half and in his prime. 5

Dan Petrescu 1994: Will run all day long up and down the right flank. If Figo goes infield in search of the ball Petrescu will take his place ably. Ammunition for Klose. 2

Iker Casillas 2010: What a keeper, backed up his multiple world goalkeeper of the year awards by taking Spain to glory at last. Has everyone's respect. Captain. 1

 

​

Team​

Buffon 06 (Italy)
Aged 28 World cup winner

Maicon 10 (Brazil)
Aged 28 World cup quarter finalist

Blanc 98 (France)
Aged 32 World cup winner

Maldini 94 (Italy)
Aged 25 World cup runner up

Grosso 06 (Italy)
Aged 28 World cup winner

Baggio 94 (Italy)
Aged 22 World cup runner up

Albertini 94 (Italy)
Aged 22 World cup runner up

Villa 06 (Spain)
Aged 24 World cup round of 16

Laudrup 98 (Denmark)
Aged 33 World cup quarter finalist

Zidane 98 (France)
Aged 25 world cup winner

Bebeto 94 (Brazil)
Aged 30 world cup winner

Tactics ​

The defense is extremely solid with Maldini (probably the greatest defender of the last 20 years) and Blanc marshaling things. Maicon and Grosso both offer plenty of defensive work and offensive width.

The Italian engine room of 1994 dictate play with Dino Baggio breaking up play and shielding the defence and Albertini controlling the tempo of the game. Baggio is a goal threat from distance and set plays.

Zidane, Laudrup and Villa occupy the offensive part of my team with Laudrup linking up with Albertini and playing Zidane and Villa into dangerous areas and all 3 can support Bebeto up front. Zidane won't drift too far out and the width on the left is made up by Grosso. Maicon adds to the width on the right

 

I've gone for a 4-4-2 diamond with Didi Hamann at the base protecting a rock-solid defence (not that Thuram, Lúcio, and Chilavert need much protection!). Zé Roberto is a fine all-rounder and will play a shuttling role on the left of the diamond. Riquelme, Xavi, and Bergkamp are three of the best passers of their generation so El Matador Salas will have excellent service. Zambrotta and Coentrão are terrific on the overlap and will stretch the play on either flank.

Normally I prefer a bit more pace and width but this team is very much set up for the slower tempo that comes to the fore at these tournaments. My midfield is defensively disciplined and good on the ball which will provide a solid base for Riquelme and Bergkamp to work their magic. I've also got three major set-piece threats in Riquelme, Xavi, and... Chilavert.

 

Cláudio Taffarel (1994)
Played in all 7 games for Brazil in this tournament and picked up 5 clean sheets along the way for the World Cup winners, including in the semis and the final. He was also part of the dramatic penalty shoot-out at the end where he saved a penalty.

Lilian Thuram (1998)
He was a key player for the French side who had an impressive defensive record in this tournament, conceding only 2 goals in 7 games. He also had a massive part to play in the semi-final against Croatia, where he scored twice. He won the Bronze Ball, which makes him the only full-back in this draft to have done so in this timeframe, and he was in the All-Star Team.

Marcel Desailly (1998)
He is another French defender who was part of the 1998 side which only conceded twice. He was part of the All-Star team for his performances.

Sol Campbell (2002)
He was the best defender for the England side which only conceded 2 goals in the tournament, despite being in the ‘Group of Death’ and playing the eventual champions Brazil. He was a part of the All-Star team because of his performances.

Robert Jarni (1998)
One of the best players in the Croatia side that shocked the world to finish in 3rd place. He scored 1 goal and got 2 assists for Croatia in the tournament and was a danger throughout with his runs down the left side.

Mark van Bommel (2010)
He is a player who isn’t afraid to get his foot in and was one of the main defensive players for the Netherlands, who were runners-up in this World Cup. He is also very dirty and is good at taking advantage of situations and is the steel in midfield that my team needs.

Maniche (2006)
He is one of the best players for the Portugal side which finished in 4th place. He scored 2 goals in this campaign and his stamina made him the engine of the Portuguese team. He was therefore in the All-Star Team and was the only Portuguese player to be shortlisted for the Golden Ball award.

Wesley Sneijder (2010)
He had simply one of the best individual performances ever seen in a World Cup. Along the way he picked up 4 man of the match awards, 5 goals and 1 assist from attacking midfield for the runners-up. For his performances he won the Silver Ball and was part of the All-Star Team.

Thomas Haßler (1994)
This man is criminally underrated and in this tournament he was more so. In a Germany team which went out at the quarters and scored 9 goals, he assisted 5. That means he incredibly assisted over half of Germany’s goals. He also has more assists than anyone else in this timeframe.

Brian Laudrup (1998)
He was one of the key players in the Denmark team that made the quarter-finals. He scored 2 goals and got 3 assists for the Danish side. Laudrup also did well against the best the World Cup could offer when he got a goal and a assist against Brazil.

Kennet Andersson (1994)
Who? Well despite the fact he isn’t well known he had a good World Cup. He scored 5 goals, with 4 coming in the knockout stages, and got 2 assists for a Sweden side that finished in 3rd place. He will be the target man of my team and I will abuse his height of 6’4”.

Tactics

Attack

Style will be secondary in my side. I will be looking to chuck balls in the box for Andersson to get his head on. I have a lot of players who are more than capable of sending a good ball in. Set pieces will also be a big part of my side. I have players like Sneijder who can deliver a great ball in and the players in the box are all good in the air. In the box I’ll have Desailly, Campbell, Thuram, van Bommel and Andersson and they will win headers. Even though Andersson will be my main striker, I have other players who can strike a ball. Laudrup for example is a great finisher and Sneijder can hit a great long shot. Jarni will also be there create width for my team and send crosses in the box.

Defense

My defense is rock solid. I have both Desailly and Campbell at the back who are pacey, great in the air and have a great tackle. I also have Thuram are right-back, who I would argue is one of the best right-backs of all time. Even though Jarni is more of an attacking threat at left-back he is also solid defensively. I would hope though that if he is caught out I’ll have a solid back 3 of Thuram, Desailly and Campbell or I’ll have Maniche there for cover. Van Bommel is the cover for my defense and is ultimately the steel in my midfield. Maniche will be the engine room of my team; he’ll be running back and forth getting tackles in and helping both defense and attack.​

 

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Will keep this short.

My defence is rock solid, it just aint going to concede goals and with Neuer in goal it ooses class.
my midfield has 2 sides to it. With Dunga and De Jong you just aint getting through ,they are as strong as it gets and then you have the craft and brilliance of Rivaldo and Zidane..... could you get a better attacking midfield than those 2?
then you have goals galore in Vieri and Klinsmann.

To sum up there is no weak links just goals and steel.

 

The three players behind Batistuta are interchangable and will rotate positions regularly to make life as difficult as possible for opposition defences. Batistuta snapping up any chances created by the three Rs.

Hargreaves and Deschamps sitting back. Hargreaves working hard closing down the opposition, winning the ball and giving it to Deschamps to make things happen in the middle.

The back four is very much filled with leaders. Very hard to choose a captain but i'd have to give the armband to Didier Deschamps. de Boer and Lucio behind him behind him ready to take the job of captain should the need arise.

 

1994-2010 World Cup Draft Team

Team Name:
Samba d'Invincibles with added Totti



Marcos 02 (Brazil)
Aged 28. Played every game as Brazil won the World Cup!

Cafu 98 (Brazil)
Aged 28. First choice RB as Brazil reached the final.

Roberto Carlos 98 (Brazil)
Aged 25. Made the All Star team as Brazil reached the final!

Roque Junior 02 (Brazil)
Aged 25. Played every minute (other than the final group game) as Brazil won the World Cup, conceding just one goal in the knockout stages!

Marcio Santos 94 (Brazil)
Aged 24. Made the All Star team as Brazil won the World Cup!

Lucio 06 (Brazil)
Aged 28. Played every game as Brazil reached the quarter finals and conceded only two goals in the entire tournament!

Gilberto 02 (Brazil)
Aged 25. Played every minute as Brazil won the World Cup!

Patrick Vieira 06 (France)
Aged 29. Made the All Star team as France reached the final.

Francesco Totti 06 (Italy)
Aged 29. Made the All Star team and was top assister as Italy won the World Cup!

Thierry Henry 06 (France)
Aged 28. Made the All Star team as France reached the final.

Ronaldo 02 (Brazil)
Aged 25. Tournament top scorer with 8 goals and made the All Star team as Brazil won the World Cup! He scored both goals in the final and was named man of the match.


T.Henry06—Ronaldo02
F.Totti06
R.Carlos98—P.Vieira06--Gilberto02--Cafu98
Lucio06--M.Santos94--R.Junior02
Marcos02​

Tactics

Defence
Without the ball Gilberto and Vieira would join the three CBs to completely crowd the box (Tony Pulis style). Gilberto would play the holding role in midfield but Vieira would also help to plug the hole between midfield and defence making it impossible for the creative 'in the hole' trequartista types. There would be no space for teams looking to pass through the middle and so teams would be forced outside. Once forced to make crosses from outside, the height of the three CBs and Gilberto/Vieira from midfield would mean that teams had little success from crosses!

Midfield
The CM will be the same as Arsenal in the invincible season with Gilberto doing more of the defensive work and Vieira being more of a box to box midfielder. Gilberto did the 'dirty work' in midfield for Brazil brilliantly in the 02 world cup win and Vieira bossed the midfield for France in 06. The two make the perfect pairing. The two full backs are equally as good going forward as they are defending and add width to the midfield. Totti provides the link between midfield and attack and will be the creative force in midfield.

Attack
This team includes the top scorer (Ronaldo with 8 goals) and top assister (Totti with 4 assists). As a pairing, they'd be awesome, but then I've added another dimension – Thierry Henry! Ronaldo would be the focal point of the attack, holding the ball up and poaching any chances in the box. Henry would drop deep to get more involved, but also pull out wide to add width when the full backs are defending. Totti would play 'in the hole' and be the link between midfield and attack playing through balls for Henry to use his pace to get on the end of. Both Henry and Totti would be given the freedom to roam and could pop up anywhere, proving a nightmare for opposition defences! The front three all made the All Star team in the World Cup from which they are picked.

The full backs (Cafu and Carlos) are both extremely attacking and would add width to the attack. With Gilberto doing the defensive work in midfield, Vieira would also be able to get forward and assist the attack.

From set pieces, we have dead ball specialist Roberto Carlos making any free kick on the edge of the area almost as good as a penalty! The height within the squad, with all three CBs, Vieira, Gilberto and even Henry all being well over 6' would make the team deadly from corners and set pieces.

Balance
The Brazilian spine of the team means communication (especially at the back) will not be a problem. There aren't many better full backs available in this draft, Cafu and Carlos are both suited to the attacking wing back position. In central midfield, the pairing of Gilberto and Vieira have proven at Arsenal to be 'invincible', the link up between Vieira and Henry is another proven success (with both making the All Star team for France). Totti's role linking the midfield and attack adds that little bit of extra creativity to a very physical team.

Although the team has three big powerful CBs, all three can play the ball out from defence. Similarly the 'invincible' central midfielders are used to playing a passing game. Despite the flair and technical ability there is a massive physical presence throughout the team - the perfect combination of defensive grit and attacking flair!!!

 

GK) Prud'homme 94
RB) Jorginho 94
CB) Gamarra 98
CB) Alpay 02
LB) Lahm 06
RM) Leonardo 98
CM) Hagi 94
CM) Prosinecki 98
LM) Malouda 06
CF) Stoichkov 94
CF) Suker 98

4-4-2.

A Golden Gloves winner in nets, 2 top scorers up front, 2 very creative CM's, with pace and flair provided by wingers and the 2 full backs, 2 solid centre half's, may not be household names but both were selected in those tournamments all star teams. We are going on the attack, no holding players, very old fashioned approach, if we lose it will be a high scoring classic game.

 

Write up and ting later.