UNINTERRUPTED FOOTBALL ODYSSEY'S BEST XI OF 2018/19

UNINTERRUPTED FOOTBALL ODYSSEY'S BEST XI

            2018/19...a year filled with the bizarre, the brave, the crazy, the ridiculous and the surreal. 
           It was about the statuesque defense of Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp's magic usurping all in Europe and lifting the first European title of Klopp's career; it was about the youth of Ajax storming the castle; it was about the mystical powers of Lionel Messi at his greatest, and we also saw Manchester City fly past everyone...except VAR.
         We witnessed a pattern of young guns climbing out of the woodwork and  staking a claim as great players themselves, with the arrival of Jadon Sancho, Serge Gnabry, Frenkie De Jong, Hakim Ziyech, Hudson-Odoi and Trent Alexander-Arnold, while Kylian Mbappe, Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva displayed their extreme growth as top players capable of ascending to levels just below the Messi-Ronaldo status.
       There were many pretenders too: Vinicius Junior's hype falling flatter than his finishing, Paulo Dybala...wait...did he play for Juve this year(???), Gareth Bale failed to make Real Madrid his own after waiting five years for Ronaldo to finally leave, Jorginho coming into the Chelsea setup and passing the ball backwards infinitely, Pogba playing amazing when he felt like it and was anonymously godawful whenever he felt like it, which was often...and to some extent Neymar can be considered a major flop...he had a damn good season by the numbers considering how little he played, however this is a player who's 27 and has had nothing except bad luck, bad vibes and darkness surrounding him like a curse since his departure from Barcelona.
         We saw one of the most competitively elite Premier League seasons between Manchester City and Liverpool, both on the cusp of 100 points and an overall resurgence of English football and an enhanced importance on the DNA of their game being adapted by players of all nationalities and in all leagues: hard work, pressing the opponent into errors, hardcore entertainment, scoring loads of fantastic goals, and a "never say die" aura.
          Due to that, we've seen "the Year of the Comeback" in 2019 where we witnessed Juventus come from behind 2 goals against Atletico, Spurs come from behind against both Ajax and Manchester City in heart-palpitating fashion, Ajax turn a 2-1 home loss into a 4-1 destruction of Real Madrid, an absolutely depleted Manchester United turning around a 2-0 home defeat in Paris to rescue their UCL lives with a surreal 3-1 win and the granddaddy of them all, Liverpool coming from 3 goals down to Barcelona (while being shutout at the Camp Nou as well) without Salah, Firmino or Robertson for 45 minutes and somehow, someway coming back to dispatch Messi and co. 
            This was the year of the young gun, the comeback and the mid 20s' superstars taking the next step into world class freakdom (Hazard, Sterling, Ziyech, Bernardo), so we tried to do our best and really give you the best XI, not just a flavor of the month ultra-reaction.

BEST XI

GK

MARC-ANDRE TER STEGEN  (BARCA)

-46 appearances 
-23 clean sheets
(Notable Shutouts vs Real Madrid (×2), Man United (×2), Liverpool, Lyon, Atletico Madrid)
BEST PERFORMANCE: against Sevilla, featuring a triple-save from the German 

                        Look...I get it, Alisson is so good it's unbelievable...but here's the thing that was so stunningly clear from that Champions League Final: of all Spurs' 16 shots attempted and 8 that were eventually on target, only the Eriksen free kick and a late Son blast (from a Dele Alli key pass) seemed to trouble the Brazilian and that was down to the defending of Virgil Van Dijk, Andrew Robertson & TAA on the wings, the midfield tracking back and even crazy old Joel Matip. 
          Shit, Barcelona know this lesson too well from those crazy bastards at Liverpool: they will take a wide open opportunity on goal and hustle-press the shot into being slightly off-kilter, even forced, and at times far too comfortable for Alisson to deal with.
             This is all thanks to the large masses of humanity called VVD and Joel Matip pressing down on either side of you as you go to swing your leg straight into the ball with everything you've got...they make you think twice about being willing to snap your leg when one of these doods come charging you down with a lunging challenge to block the attempt.
            Alisson could theoretically be #1 if this writer were reactionary, as everyone seems to be since his 8 save performance in the Champions League final. But we're not falling for it. Some of his weaknesses haven't been exposed this season thanks to the outrageous defensive efforts at the back on Merseyside and their historic title charge and Champions League haul, which is why Marc-Andre Ter Stegen is really the best goalkeeper in the world.
           The sheer amount of saves and unbelievable interventions this German has done this season speaks for itself if you're willing to watch the tape, go through the effort of watching his brilliance in this campaign and dissect how he took charge of a piecemeal back-line with a 30+ year old Gerard Pique  (at the peak of his powers), an unnatural right back, a left back tasked with playing left wing, left forward and defending, and a new center back to his left (Clement Lenglet) as Samuel Umtiti's knee problems took him out of the equation.
           This is all good, though his value only expands when watching his endeavors unfold over the course of an entire year and my my my was it thrilling.      
           He saved Barcelona's blushes more than Kevin Spacey caught in a closet with a 13 year old, second only to Messi in pure importance (as far as wins and losses).
           It had been Dembele who was saving the Catalan club's ass on more than a few occasions when fit & actually being played; it was sometimes Suarez, it was never Coutinho, often Jordi Alba, but it was always Messi scoring or assisting and opening the gate for Barcelona victories bookended by four or five miraculous Ter Stegen saves that made Gerard Pique leak his pants. 
         

RB

TRENT
 ALEXANDER-ARNOLD (LIVERPOOL)

-38 appearances 
-15 assists 
-1 goal, a stunning free kick
-6 uncredited direct goal contributions 
-Liverpool lost 3× without TAA: vs PSG, Barcelona, Red Star Belgrade and drew 0-0 vs United and Manchester City, while winning all reverse fixtures when he started
 (barring Man City). 
-TAA hasn't been yellow carded since August
BEST PERFORMANCE: his 3 assists in a 5-0 drubbing of Watford, or his hell or high water engineering of the 2nd leg comeback vs Barca.

                Alexander-Arnold is a freak of nature, a cat who is ahead of his time in the fullbacking position, however he's more than that.
            We don't even know what his final position could be: he started as a midfielder and has now transitioned back into defense, if you can call it that.
            He crawls up the wing with snap-quick inside passes back to the center backs to recirculate the ball, relieving the pressure coming on to him and the center backs at Liverpool, all of whom have dominated the EPL & Europe.
           Virgil Van Dijk and Joel Matip, are smart on the ball and don't merely shuffle the ball along the lines, they'll check back on TAA for a surging run up the same direction from whence the ball originally came...something footballers don't naturally feel they should or could do (considering the press that is usually coming from this area).
           He gains his space from the wide-men with these smart passes and even better runs into space, taking full advantage of every yard and being able to whip any and all crosses from these areas, utilizing nearly every pass in the game to orchestrate goals and all of this nicely wrapped up in a neat little package ornamented with breathtaking footballing IQ.
          This young man has a sense of adventure that is taking him to dizzying heights: 2 Champions League finals in 2 1/2 seasons in the top tier senior squad of Liverpool, setting the record for most assists by a defender in EPL history with 12 (15 in all competitions), being voted into the EPL team of the year, starting a World Cup match as a teenager and being one of only 4 Englishman to accomplish this (and playing fantastically well against Belgium)....
          ....who knows what's next for this kid but sign me up.

CB

MATHIJS DE LIGT  (AJAX)

-54 appearances 
-11 goals 
(scoring 7, assisting 1 and 3 UDGC)
-had 2 assists in a single match for the Dutch...(he's supposed to be a defender)
BEST PERFORMANCE: the way he altered and blocked many shots vs Real Madrid, cutting down wide open shots for Vinicius, Benzema and Bale into shots off of the post or screwed wide completely.

               You only needed to hear the Conan the Barbarian timbre of De Ligt's thick Dutch accent for him to have your attention. During his victory parade speech after securing the Eredivisie and KNVB Beker (Dutch cup), the young Dutchman could have many running through brick walls for him.
           It's not just a loud, careening voice desperate with stress: it's an urgent alarm, a call to arms, an organizing, encouraging leadership that has been seen as so valuable to the structure, strategy and success of the club that he was made captain at only 19. 
           At any club, in any country, at any professional level...that is insane.
           And De Ligt was completely priceless for Ajax, especially when playing in the Champions League against the best opposition (Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Juventus) raising every possible level as an individual within the unit. 
           Ajax were rampant in all phases of the game under the wise young influence of De Ligt, his personality covering lots of territory: steely, youthful determination combined with renegade unorthodoxy...aka the DNA of Ajax.
           And he's been doing this for a few years now, starting for Ajax in a Europa league final and being internationally capped in the senior squad at 17.
          The kid is fast becoming a man, which makes me almost delirious knowing this defender is only going to get better with age. 
          Can you imagine De Ligt at 28?
         

CB

VIRGIL VAN DIJK  (LIVERPOOL)

-50 appearances 
-never dribbled past in the entire EPL season
-only 4 yellow cards total
BEST PERFORMANCE: his brutal defending and constant pressure on Lionel Messi over two legs vs Barcelona must be noted, however he was dominant against Bayern Munich, Tottenham and Porto as well. 

                Nobody has questioned, noticed or cared that a defender has won the Premier League player of the Year in 2019 when usually that sort of stupid discussion would be had and hyperbole would be overused, stretched and twisted like a gob of spit coming out of Jamie Carragher's mouth. 
          But in all reality, VVD was the best player out on the pitch in the entire Premier League. 
          VVD was pounding the pavement, bringing the lunch pail mentality to the Liverpool back four in a way that hasn't been seen since (let me clear my throat) Jamie Carragher, and that's just (to quote Michael Stipe) "talking about the passion"
         ....Liverpool haven't seen a more dominant center back in their ranks since the days of Allen Hansen or Mark Lawrence. 
          And just like those titans of the 1970s and 80s, Van Dijk brings the ball forward with precision and clarity, always taking care of the ball (even when making daring forward passes such as the diagonal balls he continuously launches to either wing with both fullbacks enjoying 28 assists combined due to the speed and accuracy of these long balls from VVD).
          Rarely do we see TAA or Andrew Robertson having to earn space to cross the ball; usually there's ten or more yards in between them and the next defender, often from the aggressive attacking precision and speed of thought from deep: his 5.3 accurate long balls per 90 in the Premier League and 4.8 in the Champions League spells this out loud and clear.
         Most assume the art of defending in football is the amount of tackles completed, interceptions grabbed and the general overall physical exertion that's then quantified by numbers, leaving us feeling we know who the best are. 
          But when looking at the best defender in the game, Virgil Van Dijk, it's about the least amount of tackles he can fly into; we know a frequency of tackles indicates fouling...and fouling usually entails injuries and yellow or red cards  both ways. 
          Instead we see VVD read the game like an expert chess player, seeing the match two or three moves ahead while remaining focused on the task at hand, an unbelievable oxymoron that makes the best performers in any business, sport or field on planet earth...straddling the invisible line, always on a razor's edge. 
          VVD is only fouling opponents 0.3 times in the Premier league and 0.4 per 90 in the Champions League, an absurdly low number that points to his world class abilities and why he's the best defender in the game.

LB

JORDI ALBA  (BARCA)

-54 appearances
-16 assists total
-combined with Messi for 10 goals, assisting 8 of them 
BEST PERFORMANCE: his hat trick of assists vs Tottenham at Wembley is one that will be remembered forever, truly astonishing from the left back

                As bad as the climax of Barca's 2018/19 was (and is), as moronic as his supportive, selfish comments about Valverde, and as disappointing as Jordi Alba was in the 2nd leg at Anfield....it must be said that this was his greatest season ever.
          Not only did the La Masia product turned former Valencia man register a career high in assists (topping 2017/18's career best), he rampaged up and down the left wing as if he were from a murderous Mayan tribe defending their home land. Rambunctious and untethered, Alba was given a free role to roam, attack and defend as he wished. 
           Sure, this worked fantastically for 95% of the season, but when it comes to a club like Liverpool with the manager they possess and the fire-breathing talent on the wings, you cannot expect your left back to be your biggest supplier to Messi, your hardest running and tirelessly working engine on the wings, and to maintain top fitness and form every second of the 90 minutes, while also defending world class attacking talent with finesse and brutality?
          The world of a fullback doesn't work that way...you simply cannot be in fifteen places at once, your positioning is a defender in and of itself to be frank, so when Jordi Alba is caught up at left forward and Lenglet is needing to fly out to the left wing to shut Salah's run, it's not because Alba is too lazy to get back and defend, it's purely he doesn't have the energy to teleport 99 yards when he's that far away at the other end of the pitch.
           Ernesto Valverde thought Jordi Alba could be Neymar, Iniesta and himself in one package and it was a pleasure, a privilege and a passion to see Jordi pull it off for the most part, stretching his body and mind to the absolute limit as he did everything he could to will Barcelona in all three phases of the pitch.
           Nobody worked harder or ran more (for Barca) in 2018/19 than Alba and when it comes to creating goals with Messi, only Luis Suarez's 11 joint goals trumps Jordi's 10 with the Barca captain....and Alba is a player who must run 60+ yards to just create a chance....who knows how many more assists and Barca victories he would've been a part of had he been adequately rested. More importantly, he would've been in better physical and mental shape to handle the Liverpool frenzy of the 2nd leg (the absence of Salah gave Valverde indications that he could let Alba fly up the wing with abandon, rather than just starting Malcolm...however, Valverde had never heard of Trent Alexander-Arnold).
           He's had great competition this year for the best left back spot with Liverpool's Andrew Robertson being his closest competitor for prolific creativity and defensive panache.
            But why settle for less when you can have the best?  

DM
FRENKIE DE JONG (AJAX)

-52 appearances
-73.1 (UCL), 79.3 (ERED) passes completed per 90 for 90% combined accuracy
-In February 2019, he completed 354 of 390 passes and made 53 recoveries alone
BEST PERFORMANCE: the entire Champions League

                 Sergi Busquets was my first pick, but as soon as i filled out his name I realized Frenkie had a better campaign in totality, given he's just into his 20s and steamrolled through the class A midfield technicians of Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Juve. 
             Frenkie De Jong was already on his way to Barcelona before the miraculous knockout round siege by Ajax, yet the past 3 months would've only seen his stock climb ever higher. 
             De Jong has enjoyed an incredible campaign, being fleet of foot and displaying his otherworldly grace and passing vision: there isn't a pass De Jong can't make, there isn't a player he isn't willing to take on, and there is no limitations to his positional domination and versatile nous: being just as comfortable in between the center backs as he is in midfield, equally dangerous on the wings and deadly around the box. 
              It's Frenkly outrageous that in 986 Champions League minutes, De Jong had only been dispossessed 12 times, fewer than any player who completed in excess of 253 passes in the tournament.
              Not only that statistic proves his undying worth and intrinsic value: he completed marginally fewer passes than his (now) club-mate Busquets in the UCL (80.8 to 73.1) however he completed more accurate through balls per 90 than Busquets and was far more daring and aggressive in his phenomenal play while Sergi's 76.5 accurate short passes out of 80.8 total passes proves the Barca man went for the safer option, while De Jong was far more daring.
             It's hard to compare the two and almost does a disservice to both players, as Busi is valuable in his controlling, measured possession at the base of a midfield three while De Jong is more advanced as an interior of a midfield three or alongside Lasse Schone in a midfield two base that gives De Jong freedom and help whenever possession changes hands. 
             It is the manner in which Frenkie controlled the transition play that set him and Ajax apart from their little brother club.
            While Barca shied away from the ball against Liverpool and allowed the tempo to be stripped away from them  (Busquets struggling in isolation in the center of a scattered, archaic 4-4-2), Ajax were playing true "Total football" at its purest....at its apex. 
            Their boots were on the throats of opponents from the first second to the last, elevating the Cruyff 3 man gang-press to a higher art form and ripping filthy goals left and right thanks to the never-ending energy supply of their young guns to keep up the pressure. 
                      

CM

BERNARDO SILVA  (MAN CITY)

-43 appearances
-13 goals & 13 assists 
-he ran 13.7 km vs Liverpool and 13.65 vs Spurs, the two highest distances covered of any EPL player in 18/19
BEST PERFORMANCE: both performances in the Manchester derbies show his overall qualities: 2 assists in a 3-1 win and the winning goal in another 2-0 victory. 

                He may have only marginally missed out on our final season-spanning ASSISTKINGS QUARTERLY (https://uninterruptedsportsodyssey.blogspot.com/2019/06/assistkings-quarterly-best-of-201819.html), but that is only a fart in the wind compared to this mastergod's priorities.
           Every time Manchester City needed the cutting edge of the injured and often MIA De Bruyne, Bernardo was there with a massive goal or assist, conjuring and orchestrating the City attack from all areas and depths on that right wing.
           Cutting inside on his left, he's able to possess the ball like a midfielder, cross into the box or play a through ball across any of the available inside channels and he easily trips out any defender like a party at Charlie Sheen's circa 1997.  He's at both times a midfielder and a winger with the work ethic of a high-pressing forward, his hard work turning into a load of goals and dominance for Manchester City.
           He's been equally rampant in all areas of the pitch, doing whatever it takes to deliver City victories and given the fact that he scored or assisted in every single one of City's defeats this season, his leadership qualities are evident and vibrant for all to see. His goal vs Lyon nearly turned the tide in the 2-1 defeat, same with his efforts in the 2-3 loss to Crystal Palace...he's a beacon of hope and a Dark Side of the Moon-pulse that keeps on ticking like a madman walking across the water.
           His vision is only getting better as he pushes on in his development, however the player we knew from his time at Monaco is growing into a working world class hero of breathless control and quality, deceptive pace and astute timing all at the mercy of his fever dreaming mind.
            At nearly every turn, in every match of consequence Bernardo was there to deliver the first blow: he ushered in the 6-0 drubbing of Chelsea by setting up Sterling's goal, he started the 7-0 destruction of Schalke by earning a penalty, he assisted Aguero's opener in the title deciding tilt vs Liverpool, he earned the penalty in a 1-0 win over West Ham....Silva is for real and he's only going to get better.
           Without Kevin De Bruyne, with Leroy Sane on the fringes of the team and losing Fernandinho to injury, Guardiola's squad could've easily been adrift without Bernardo Silva. In fact, Liverpool lost one EPL match....so one could make the argument that without Riyad Mahrez's 12 goals and 12 assists they don't win the Premier League, but City most definitely don't without Bernardo Silva's constant graft, expert creation, devastating goals and chameleon influence.

CAM 
HAKIM ZIYECH  (AJAX)

-49 appearances 
-19 assists & 21 goals
-10 shots off post
-10 UDGC
-2.7 tackles per 90 
(4-7 each UCL knockout stage match)
BEST PERFORMANCE: his otherworldly ascension into the "best football players in the world club" when he scored against and outclassed Real Madrid, Juventus and Tottenham, being 10/10 in all knockout stage matches.

                 One of my favorite players over the last five years has finally been witnessed by the mainstream thanks to Ajax's galloping jaunt through the Champions League and Morocco's brilliant 2-2 draw with Spain...but even now it still feels as if Hakim Ziyech is underrated.
            Not only did he create the most chances in European competition, he conjured the most uncredited direct goal contributions, hit the post 10 times from his shots (2nd only to Messi), buried a career high 21 goals, 19 assists and scored huge goals against Real Madrid, Juventus and Tottenham.
            But as we detailed in his profile for the last edition of ASSISTKINGS QUARTERLY, it's his tackling and pursuit of possession in the final third that makes him so great.
            His hunger began in the World Cup when he drove into Spain's world class passing ping-pong and had 6 tackles by the time he was subbed off. He never stopped working either, averaging 2.7 completed tackles per 90, stocking up 4-7 completed tackles in every single knockout stage match in the UCL and won possession 59 times in the Eredivisie alone, more than Frenkie De Jong.
            Someone better grab him and fast.
    

LF

EDEN HAZARD  (CHELSEA)

-51 appearances (31 starts)
-21 goals and 17 assists
-set up 7 shots on the post
BEST PERFORMANCE: His two assists against Manchester City provided the 2-0 win, but his overall performance was stunning: the dribbling, the shots on target, the patient build-up, the deceptive movement, and all together with outrageous passing play. This guy is on a mission. Also, if you've never seen his goal in the CC Cup vs Liverpool, go crack an egg over your head and watch it, damnit.

                I don't feel I have a single argument to make in defense of this decision: he's absolutely the best left forward on the planet, but more than that: he's becoming a more horizontally deadly player, something that makes him 10× better.  
           He has crucified teams this season with his movement, a new wrinkle which I believe may be directly influenced by Raheem Sterling, a player he only beats out for this list due to the obvious fact: Hazard is a one-man show for Chelsea while Sterling (despite being the key cog) is once again one of a few major forces in the City team...while Hazard has had to do it all on his own, of course with support from an underrated and resurgent Ross Barkley and Europa League levels of aid from Willian and Olivier Giroud. 
           Hazard must be included as he posts slightly less goals than his English competitor, while grabbing 2 more assists, he scored that thrilling goal vs Liverpool and displayed a host of other filthy finishes, 90% of them being solo efforts advertising the brutal cutting edge of a man at the peak of his powers.
           Please...don't go to Madrid and waste your career, Eden.  
           But the deal is most likely done and every Barcelona fan's worst nightmare is about to come to fruition: they'll have Mendy, Hazard, Jovic and whoever the fuck else and Barcelona still have Valverde...
            

CF

LIONEL MESSI  (BARCA)

-50 appearances
-51 goals and 19 assists
- 9 UDGC
-4 hat tricks & 15 multi-goal matches
-3 multi-assist matches
-scored 12 goals in 9 matches, scoring every single match
-hit the post 11x & set up 5 chances that struck the post
BEST PERFORMANCE: vs Spurs, Liverpool, Lyon, Levante, PSV, Huesca, Sevilla (x3), Manchester United (x2) and Real Betis

               The man...the myth...the legend. 
            In his inaugural season as captain, Messi trumped Valverde as leader of the team, throwing down the gauntlet with match-saving heroics in a nonstop feverish output of ridiculous madcap insanity.
           There were times he made even the best defenders look like millimeter tall characters in a Hieronymous Bosch painting. 
           We didn't think Messi could get any better, right?
           Bullshit.
           The man was, is and will always be in a time and space all of his own making, showing profound leadership as he combined masterfully with the wrongfully under fire Ousmane Dembele, the pair of them going for 7 goals together.
          He kept up his usual antics with Luis Suarez, the Uruguayan going for 20+ goals and 10 assists again for Barcelona, 11 goals combined with Lionel Messi. He was constantly attracting the filthy passes of Jordi Alba, the pair of them lighting it up for multiple goals against Tottenham, Huesca and going altogether for 10, a personal high for the two together.
           Yet when looking at what Lionel Messi's campaign amounts to, the blame is not on him or even on one match at Anfield: it lies directly at the feet of his lethargic supporting cast who weren't rotated properly throughout the season and the hapless, negative creeps pulling the strings. 
             Pique, Suarez, Busquets, Rakitic, Sergi Roberto, (even Messi with a broken arm only rested 6 total matches) and the only left back on the team all played 46-50+ matches this season...categorically insane for a Barcelona core who's collective average age is around 30 and this is with a massive squad that boasts such talents as Semedo, Todibo, Riqui Puig, Carles Alena and Ousmane Dembele hardly getting a regular sniff from the idiot wind at the helm.
            Messi's greatness goes beyond the ineptitude of Barca's management or club board: the man was sensational, beyond words and a freak...an alien.                         Many should go watch his performances over the two legs vs Liverpool, especially how he took on the entire team in the second leg, setting up a sackless Coutinho, an injured Suarez and a breathless, overworked Jordi Alba with one on one situations thanks to his supernatural dictatorship of the through ball.
           Messi was let down, time and time again, whether it was both Denis and Luis Suarez shanking wide open chances he set up in the same five minute period, the Dembele miss at the end of the 1st leg vs Liverpool, or Coutinho missing wildly, we saw Lionel forced into a creative role and he excelled. But it didn't bring the Champions League title Messi had promised, though we know: had it been up to Messi's finishing, Barca are celebrating a treble right now.
       

RF
KYLIAN MBAPPE (PSG)

-46 appearances 
-39 goals & 15 assists
-combined with Neymar for 11 goals 
BEST PERFORMANCE: his 4 goals (and a shot off of the post) vs Lyon showed dominance, craft and perfection at the sport's highest levels 
  
                 Fans of Raheem Sterling will feel aggrieved again by the installation of Mbappe over the England and Man City winger, but the performances and the eye test never lie when concerning someone like the 20 year old.
           His confidence may be so sky high he's begun doing things (his outrageous and near criminal red card in the Coup De France Final vs Rennes & his post-Ligue 1 Player of the Year speech) that he possibly wouldn't have done had he not been soooo good.
           The #7 was commanding in the finish, ending second only to Lionel Messi for goals (39), 1st in the Champions League for assists (5, with 15 overall), had 7 matches of 2+ goals, and his filthified circus with Neymar and Cavani has been prolific, though marred by injuries of the worst ilk and timing.
            By the end of the season, it was Mbappe or nobody for PSG and the 20 year old (just turned 20 in December) was delivering every match as if he were a robot. 
           Many expected a post-World Cup hangover for Mbappe; it would've been understandable and he would've been given a pass with a 20 goal and 5 assist campaign, but instead he only continued to grow and use his World Cup exploits as a springboard.
            His outrageous abilities in the final third have expanded, pulling off speed-freak dribbles, alien-being passes, smacking shots from all angles, trying the impossible and usually pulling these attempts off.
           These include his deadened touch and rigorously dispatched shot vs Toulouse, his outrageous goals against St. Etienne or his toe poke aimed through De Gea vs Manchester United, Mbappe's 4 goal haul vs Lyon and hat trick up against former club Monaco, and his chip over a sprawling defender and on-rushing goalkeeper vs Dijon all had a level of difficulty hard to spot by mainstream fans who've now come to expect this sort of riotous finishing from the Frenchman.
            It's madness...but it is the bar he has set for himself.
            When the PSG man is making a habit of shooting through the legs of defenders and gazing on at the magic emanating from his boots falling into the back of the opponent's net, embarrassing them with nutmeg after nutmeg from his shooting boots, even he must realize how good he is... hell, even when it doesn't go cleanly through their legs he still scores.
           Mbappe is the complete package and it's frightening to imagine him at 26. This is a kid who could legitimately topple Messi as the greatest of all time by 2033 or so when Mbappe retires. 
           I don't say that lightly: Lionel Messi does things mere mortals cannot and he does it like an executioner who's been trained at Hogwarts. 
           But others have tarnished segments of Messi's career and achievements (Gonzalo Higuain, Di Maria's leg muscles, every Argentine manager especially Jose Pekerman) spoiling what should be a career without argument, without doubt: instead, Messi hasn't used his full powers off of the pitch to affect change for the betterment of himself which unanimously improves the team as a whole. 
           Messi could've raised his voice and had Valverde and Bartomeu ousted in seconds, instead he's played nice and is stuck with Bartomeu as the club president until the day his Barca contract runs out in 2022 and Valverde is still in charge somehow after the two worst copulated capitulations we've ever seen, and in consecutive years. 
           Mbappe's confident (some may say even cocky) language uttered about moving clubs or not moving may just be to get an improved contract, considering that PSG shouldn't let him go for anything less than 300 million, maybe even more than that. 
           However, what this audacious speech declared loud and clear was that the PSG #7 knows exactly how good he is, he knows how much he's worth, he's aware of how he should be managed, what players he wants around him and the best part, he knows just how damn good he can become.
            He's only letting us all know (especially the Sheik owners of PSG) that he won't take any daft crap, no funny business with aloof managers and pathetic transfers, he's putting winning as the highest priority. 
             If excelling to his maximum and striving for titles, Mbappe's recent talk should be excused, maybe even celebrated...
             ...for him to be aware of the G.O.A.T's only mistake at 20 is astute and sets Mbappe up as a player not to be trifled with, on or off the pitch.

B XI

GK 
ALISSON  (LIVERPOOL)

RB 
JOSHUA KIMMICH (BAYERN MUNICH)

CB
GERARD PIQUE  (BARCA)

CB
AYMERIC LAPORTE  (MAN CITY)

LB 
ANDREW ROBERTSON  (LIVERPOOL)

DM
SERGI BUSQUETS  (BARCA)

CM
TEJI SAVANIER  (NIMES)

CAM 
DUSAN TADIC (AJAX)

RF
RAHEEM STERLING (MAN CITY)

LF
SADIO MANE (LIVERPOOL)

CF
SERGIO AGUERO (MAN CITY)


by LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN 2019
(not my photos, used with fair usage from Google Images, thank you & credit shown in each photo image)