How the FIFA rankings would look if things were based on a nation’s three best stars.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has claimed that Europe is well behind South America in terms of producing top-class strikers, but is that true across the whole of their respective squads?
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As an experiment CaughtOffside decided to create a FIFA rankings which is judged solely on each nation’s three best players. See if you agree.
15. Ivory Coast
Best players: Wilfried Bony (Swansea City), Gervinho (AS Roma), Yaya Toure (Manchester City).
Just sneaking in ahead of Bosnia & Herzegovina is the only African nation on the list, with Gervinho in fine form and Toure a proven world-class talent.
14. Portugal
Best players: Joao Moutinho (AS Monaco), Pepe (Real Madrid), Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid).
Other than superstar captain Ronaldo the Portuguese have very little to write home about and have basically made it this far based on the 2013 Ballon d’Or winner alone.
13. Italy
Best players: Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Daniele de Rossi (AS Roma), Andrea Pirlo (Juventus).
A very aging squad and one that was shown up at the 2014 World Cup, but veterans Buffon and Pirlo can still cut it with the best.
12. England
Best players: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), Raheem Sterling (Liverpool), Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool).
English fans have come to accept that the Three Lions are no longer a powerhouse in international football, but the likes of Rooney and Sturridge are still top-class.
11. Chile
Best players: Claudio Bravo (FC Barcelona), Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal), Arturo Vidal (Juventus).
South American football is going through a real boom period currently and the Chileans proved that with their performances at the World Cup in Brazil.
10. Uruguay
Best players: Edinson Cavani (Paris Saint-Germain), Diego Godin (Atletico Madrid), Luis Suarez (FC Barcelona).
Suarez is the standout performer here and without him the country would not be anywhere near as high, although Godin is a La Liga winner and Cavani cost PSG £52.7m.
9. Croatia
Best players: Mario Mandzukic (Atletico Madrid), Luka Modric (Real Madrid), Ivan Rakitic (FC Barcelona).
With the midfield generals from opposite sides of El Clasico and the poaching abilities of Mandzukic, the Croatians aren’t to be sniffed at.
8. Colombia
Best players: Juan Cuadrado (Fiorentina), Radamel Falcao (Manchester United), James Rodriguez (Real Madrid).
Another South American nation now and another who impressed at the World Cup, which they did without the injured Falcao.
7. Netherlands
Best players: Arjen Robben (Bayern Munich), Kevin Strootman (AS Roma), Robin van Persie (Manchester United).
Robben is now considered among the best in the world for his displays for club and country, whilst Strootman is a highly regarded box-to-box midfielder.
6. Brazil
Best players: Neymar (FC Barcelona), Oscar (Chelsea), Thiago Silva (Paris Saint-Germain).
Were humiliated 7-1 on home turf by Germany, but with Neymar leading the line don’t expect the Samba Boys do be down and out for long.
5. Belgium
Best players: Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea), Eden Hazard (Chelsea), Vincent Kompany (Manchester City).
The Belgians have arguably got the strongest squad in their history currently, with Courtois and Hazard looking to lead the Blues to Premier League glory this season.
4. France
Best players: Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Paul Pogba (Juventus), Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich).
The French really fluctuate in terms of on-field success, but with youngsters like Pogba coming through the ranks success can’t be far away.
3. Spain
Best players: Andres Iniesta (FC Barcelona), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), David Silva (Manchester City).
The 2010 World Cup winners crashed out in the group stages this summer, but whilst many of the old guard are retiring they still have an enviable squad.
2. Germany
Best players: Toni Kroos (Real Madrid), Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Marco Reus (Borussia Dortmund).
The reigning world champions don’t actually make top spot, but they are surely going to enjoy years of success with the current players they have available.
1. Argentina
Best players: Sergio Aguero (Manchester City), Angel di Maria (Manchester United), Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona).
Based on individuals alone the beaten finalists in Brazil are the best in our opinion, with the brilliant Messi flanked by further world-class talent in Aguero and di Maria.