World XI: 11 Best Players In The World Right Now

Our World XI plays 4-3-3 and is out of this world.

Every year, FIFPro, the worldwide representative organisation for 65,000 professional football players, invites its members to pick their best team of the last 12 months. This team, commonly referred to as a "World XI", can contain stars from any league, and is to include one goalkeeper, four defenders, three midfielders and three strikers. The World XI for 2013 will be announced on January 13, 2014, when the shortlist of football's greats will be whittled down to a final 11 man team. With the much-awaited results incoming, we thought we'd use the shortlist and put together our own World XI, and here it is.

GK. Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich)

Gianluigi Buffon of Juventus, Real Madrid's out-of-favour Iker Casillas, Chelsea's Petr Cech and Barcelona stopper Victor Valdes have all joined Manuel Neuer on the shortlist for 2013's greatest goalkeeper. But it is Neuer who stands out above the rest, and if the fact he was named as the world's best goalkeeper by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics earlier this week is any indication, he should earn a place in the FIFPro World XI. He's definitely in ours. The Germany international helped his side qualify for the World Cup finals last year and won FIVE trophies with Bayern Munich, including the Champions League. Bayern's Arjen Robben may have scooped much of the plaudits in the Champions League Final, being named man of the match last May, but it was Neuer who really shone on Europe's biggest stage, making a series of sublime saves to keep Borussia Dortmund out in an end-to-end contest. But where the issue of the world's best goalkeeper is concerned, there can be no contest.
Contributor
Contributor

Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.