Assessing the FIFPro World XI nominations – Part 1

The first two shortlists for the FIFPro Player of the Year have been announced – and, amongst the obvious names, there questionable nominations and surprise omissions on the list of goalkeepers and defenders.

FIFPro is the worldwise players’ union. For players, reputation is favoured over actual level of performance. Players, after all, are busy preparing for (and playing) matches when spectators are enjoying multiple games per weekend. Footballers are excellent judges of talent, but not always trustworthy when considering recent form.

Here’s a look at the nominations, with a few alterations…

GOALKEEPERS

On paper, goalkeeper should cause few problems: they are individuals, and their performances are easy to judge. Nevertheless, only three of the panel’s five merit their inclusion…

To keep:

There can be no arguments about the inclusion of Manuel Neuer, who has helped to revolutionise the sweeper-keeper role, most notably in Germany’s 2-1 extra-time victory over Algeria in the World Cup second round.

Thibaut Courtois, meanwhile, also had a truly outstanding calendar year, winning La Liga with Atletico Madrid and coming within minutes of lifting the European Cup, too. He made some great saves at the World Cup – one against Clint Dempsey is particularly memorable – and has started life at Chelsea without any problems. Claudio Bravo, who performed solidly for Real Sociedad and for Chile at the World Cup then started his Barcelona career with 8 clean sheets, has also earned his place.

To scrap:

The two unimpressive nominations, however, are Iker Casillas and Gianluigi Buffon. Unquestionably the outstanding duo of their generation, their time has now passed. Casillas, in particular, endured a difficult 2014: second-choice at Real Madrid last season, he played European Cup matches but dropped a clanger in the final against Atletico, then made some horrendous errors at the World Cup. He’s regained his place at Real, but his mistakes for Spain have kept coming. Buffon hasn’t been so costly, but 2014 hasn’t been his finest year. A recent shaky display against Croatia underlined the impression Buffon lacks the commanding presence of his youth.

To introduce:

Instead, Keylor Navas should be present. He gained a reputation for spectacular saves with Levante, then turned in a succession of brilliant displays for Costa Rica at the World Cup, which helped earn a move to Real Madrid. He’s the most notable absentee.

In place of Buffon, meanwhile, a few goalkeepers deserve recognition for a great World Cup. Tim Howard and David Ospina had good tournaments, but Guillermo Ochoa of Mexico was quite superb, and also impressed in Ajaccio’s unsuccessful fight against relegation from Ligue 1. He hasn’t played much since moving to Malaga, but the World Cup displays, where he was twice named man of the match, are good enough for inclusion.

DEFENDERS

Judging defenders can be more difficult – defensive play is about working as a unit, rather than as individuals. Perhaps that’s why this shortlist is massively dominated by Europe’s major clubs, but not all of them deserve their place…

To keep:

Bayern provide three players. Philipp Lahm showed his all-round footballing ability by playing in midfield but is still the best right-back around, while David Alaba is similarly versatile from the opposite flank and Jerome Boateng has matured into a top-class centre-back. Lahm and Boateng’s international teammate Mats Hummels also had a good World Cup.

European Champions Real Madrid contribute four players on the list, and it’s tough to disagree with Sergio Ramos, who was excellent in both penalty boxes, or the impressive right-back Dani Carvajal. Pepe didn’t have his best year, but is probably a fair choice.

Real’s city rivals Atletico rightly contribute Diego Godin, who had a great year defensively and scored some crucial goals, plus left-back Filipe Luis, now at Chelsea. His new teammate Branislav Ivanovic is also an understandable selection.

Barcelona’s centre-back partnership of Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano are also tough to disagree with. Pique has quietly turned in some fine performances without much praise, while Mascherano was superb at the World Cup for Argentina, admittedly as a defensive midfielder.

To scrap:

Others shouldn’t be here. Barca’s full-back duo of Jordi Alba and Daniel Alves have both been disappointing, with Alba not matching his attacking energy with defensive discipline, and Alves’ end product infuriatingly bad. He had a poor World Cup, too, replaced by Maicon midway through the tournament.

Amazingly, three other Brazilian defenders must also be cut. David Luiz had a meltdown during the 7-1 thrashing by Germany – the only player who performed worse was left-back Marcelo, out of position for the entire first half. Even Thiago Silva must be crossed off – he’s declined since his peak and has made some poor decisions for PSG. He was suspended for the Germany game, then returned for the third-place play-off against the Dutch and should have been sent off within five minutes for fouling Arjen Robben.

Two Manchester City defenders are also flattered by their inclusion. Pablo Zabaleta didn’t have a great World Cup despite reaching the final – he was terrorised by Ahmed Musa against Nigeria, looked tired towards the end of the tournament, and hasn’t yet recovered. His club captain, Vincent Kompany, has made far too many positional mistakes in the build-up to goals, usually without much attention. Elsewhere, Raphael Varane remains extremely promising but hasn’t looked particularly convincing at points this year.

To introduce:

Put simply, all four of Atletico’s La Liga-winning back four must be present, so let’s start by introducing Miranda, the composed centre-back, plus attacking right-back Juanfran, whose forward bursts won Atletico the European Cup semi-final against Chelsea.

Chelsea, meanwhile, should contribute two more players. Cesar Azpilicueta and John Terry have been at least as consistent as Ivanovic – and in a disappointing year for full-backs, it’s particularly amazing the versatile Azpilicueta was overlooked. Daley Blind should also be included: though often fielded in midfield, Blind generally played left-back during the World Cup and was great, particularly in the 5-1 thrashing of Spain.

The other major absentees are all centre-backs. How about Ron Vlaar, who was outstanding for the Netherlands at the World Cup, Argentina’s impressive Ezequiel Garay and Greece’s Sokratis Papastathopoulos, who has also performed well for Dortmund?

For defenders, it’s 12 out of 20 – like with the goalkeepers, only 60% of the choices make sense.