The 2022 World Cup has taken its final curtain call as Argentina and Lionel Messi were crowned world champions after one of the best finals of all-time. It was the perfect end to a captivating tournament in Qatar and not even a Kylian Mbappe hat-trick could hand France glory in a heart-wrenching loss for Les Bleus. Nonetheless, Messi finally added the World Cup trophy to his monumental list of accolades and rightfully so, also being awarded the Golden Ball for best player of the tournament. Below, we take a look at the World Cup Best XI but with the mandate of allowing just one player per nation.
Goalkeeper: Wojciech Szczęsny (Poland)
Having being named in our Best XI of the Group Stage, Wojciech Szczęsny makes the team after some impressive performances in Group C. Being able to keep out a penalty by Messi is something that isn’t as rare as it first seems but it will still be a great memory for the Juventus goalkeeper, particularly after the wonderful tournament the Paris Saint-Germain forward has had. Szczęsny wasn’t able to stop Mbappe in the round of 16, however, but he still had a strong display overall.
Right-back: Denzel Dumfries (The Netherlands)
It seems very harsh to omit Achraf Hakimi from the side but we couldn’t leave out another Moroccan elsewhere, considering the rule of one player per team. Denzel Dumfries was fantastic in the Netherlands’ win over the USA in the first knockout round, providing two assists for the opening two goals before sealing the victory with a goal himself. The Inter man still remains a worthy selection in the World Cup Best XI here and also helped keep two clean sheets.
Centre-back: Josko Gvardiol (Croatia)
The 20-year-old has proven to be one of the most prodigious young stars to have emerged from Qatar and he was a rock at the heart of the defense for Zlatko Dalic’s men. Despite Messi getting the better of him for Argentina’s third goal in the semi-final, Josko Gvardiol was immense all tournament, displaying a maturity and composure to his game that you’d expect to find in a veteran, not a young man who was still a teenager less than 12 months ago. The future is bright for the RB Leipzig defender – expect him to make a big money move across Europe soon.
Centre-back: Maya Yoshida (Japan)
Maya Yoshida led the Japanese defense in their impressive run in the competition which could have seen them go further against Croatia if it wasn’t for a heroic performance by goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic in the shootout. The 34-year-old played every minute of the Blue Samurai’s campaign as he captained his nation at what was likely his final World Cup.
Left-back: Antonee Robinson (USA)
Fulham left-back Antonee Robinson was solid all tournament for the USA and put in some rigid defensive performances throughout, with Gregg Berhalter’s side conceding just one goal during the group stages. The Stars and Stripes did let in three goals against the Netherlands in their last 16 match up but Robinson still put in a credible display nonetheless, also offering a threat going forward at times.
Central-midfield: Jude Bellingham (England)
The world is Jude Bellingham’s oyster at the moment and he continues to impress more and more with every performance he puts in. The Dortmund teenager continues to be linked with moves away from Signal Iduna Park and his spectacular performances in the Middle East will have done very little to quiet those rumours.
A M R A B A T ? pic.twitter.com/wZc2DNzRvE
— Nima Tavallaey Roodsari (@NimaTavRood) December 14, 2022
Central-midfield: Sofyan Amrabat (Morocco)
Despite a number of impressive performances in the midfield by the likes of Aurelien Tchouameni, Antoine Griezmann and Luka Modric, Amrabat had to make the cut after a monstrous tournament in Qatar. He played the holding midfield role exquisitely and was imperative to Morocco’s romantic venture into the final four, with a highlight being his superb sliding challenge on Mbappe in the semi-final. The Fiorentina man has also been heavily linked with a move away as a result but it remains to be seen if he’ll be leaving Serie A or not.
Right-wing: Kylian Mbappe (France)
It truly is incredible what Mbappe is doing at just the age of 23 but he will have to wait at least another four years to claim a second World Cup title. The PSG star was electric all tournament and despite failing to score against England and Morocco in the quarter-finals and semi-finals respectively, he proved he can be a clutch player after scoring three goals in the final, as well as converting his penalty in the shootout.
Attacking-midfield: Bruno Fernandes (Portugal)
Bruno Fernandes did impress for Portugal this winter, making five goal contributions in just four World Cup matches. Of course, that does also include the one that Cristiano Ronaldo tried to claim against Uruguay which would have equalled Eusebio’s tally of World Cup goals.
Left-wing: Lionel Messi (Argentina)
The 2022 World Cup was truly all about Messi as thousands of Argentinian fans flooded the Lusail Stadium to witness the great man lift his first-ever World Cup trophy. He was impactful at every stage of the competition, contributing to goals and assists in the group stage to overcome their shocking opener against Saudi Arabia, before scoring in every knockout round. A beautiful display of vision and awareness in his assist for Nahuel Molina was the embodiment of his elegance, coupled with his weavering run against the highly impressive Gvardiol in the semi-finals. Everything else was him thriving under the pressure to not just win the trophy for himself, but the rest of Argentina. Surely he is the the greatest of all-time?
Centre-forward: Richarlison (Brazil)
The man to lead the World Cup Best XI is Brazil’s Richarlison. He was deployed as a centre-forward by Tite and was preferred over Arsenal’s Gabriel Jesus. The Tottenham Hotspur man certainly proved he had what it takes, scoring an incredible overhead kick against Serbia in their Group G opener. Richarlison also scored the third goal in the round of 16 tie against South Korea but couldn’t do enough in the last eight as Brazil crashed out of the tournament. Nevertheless, he impressed overall in a strong Brazilian team that underperformed in Qatar.