Messi and Ronaldo lead the line

With 2020 approaching, Goal has decided to pick out the best players to have graced the game over the past 10 years

As the 2010s come towards their end, Goal has picked the best XI of players to have starred over the past decade.

Goal journalists Peter Staunton, Stefan Coerts and Sam Brown formed the selection panel as some of the game's biggest names battled it out for places in the team.

Taking achievements at both club and international level into account, here is what they come up with...

 

GK: Manuel Neuer
Manuel Neuer has had his injury issues in recent seasons but there has been no more influential goalkeeper over the past decade, as underlined by the fact that he was named the world's best shot-stopper by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) four years in a row between 2013 and 2016.

Indeed, the German helped redefine the role, ushering in the era of the 'sweeper-keeper' by essentially becoming an extra outfield player in defence thanks to his intuitive reading of the play, excellent ball control and wide range of passing.

After helping Bayern Munich pull off a historic treble triumph in 2013, Neuer even made the Ballon d'Or podium the following year thanks to the part he played in his nation's World Cup success in Brazil.

GOAL