Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne and Ruben Dias have been named in the International Federation of Football History and Statistics’ (IFFHS) Team of the Year.
The organisation has chronicled football stats since its founding in 1984, under the blessing of FIFA, and since 2020, it has begun to select a Top XI for every continental confederation, including UEFA.
Along with Dias and De Bruyne, three Chelsea players were included in the team (Cesar Azpilicueta, Jorginho and N’Golo Kante), with Thomas Tuchel also being named as coach.
Paris Saint-Germain duo Gianluigi Donnarumma and Kylian Mbappe, Juventus pair Giorgio Chiellini & Leonardo Bonucci, Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski and Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo made up the rest of the team.
Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi did not make the cut, while no English players were included, either in the eleven or on the bench. City star Joao Cancelo was, however, deservedly selected as a substitute for his performances in 2021.
