Spain Football Formation

Lineup (4-5-1)

Íker Casillas (c) · Fernando Hierro · Santamaría · Camacho · Carles Puyol · Pep Guardiola · Xavi · Andrés Iniesta · Paco Gento · Alfredo Di Stéfano · David Villa

Spain's Greatest XI of All Time


Spain has produced some great players over the years and are a well-established footballing nation. For the generation born in the late 90's which will be in their early teens by now, the Spanish brilliance of the late 2000's will be their great footballing memory.

Indeed, there is no overstating the fact that Spain are the dominant force in World Football now.

However, it wasn't always like this. There was a time when Spain were the "also-rans" of International competition.

After winning the second European Championship with the likes of Gento and Amancio in their ranks (they, in fact withdrew from the first European Championship, when refusing to travel to Russia, when they had the great Di Stefano in their ranks), it would seem that Spain would dominate the following World Cup in England. They were haplessly knocked out of the group stage.

More strife followed as the Spaniards failed to qualify for two subsequent World Cups, in 1974 and 1978. However, salvation came for them in the 80's, where they managed to reach the European Championship final in 1984, against France.

Sadly, they lost 2-0 to Michel Platini's "carre magique" France side. The subsequent World Cup was a good one, as a Butragueno-inspired Spain reached the quarter-final, only to be knocked out by Belgium (4-5 on penalties).

The 90's were eventful for a Spanish football, as Barcelona came to the fore during the early years to dominate Europe and Real Madrid in the late years to win two more Champions Leagues.

For the National team, there was yet more heartbreak to follow, as they were dispatched three times, giving their best performance in USA '94, when losing to a last-gasp Roberto Baggio winner.

The 2000's were the most successful period in the history of Spanish football. They showed well at Euro 2000, reaching the quarter-finals and losing to eventual winners France. At the subsequent World Cup, they lost to South Korea in the quarters, but were ranked the fifth best nation in the tournament.

Euro 2004 and the World Cup in Germany were much the same. But Spanish fortunes changed during Euro 2008. With the emergence of Cesc Fabregas and Fernando Torres, it was noticeable that an unusually talented group of players were in the squad, more than almost any time before.

Spain romped to a European Championship victory and with much the same squad, won the World Cup in South Africa.




GK : Íker Casillas Fernández
"San Iker" has saved Spain on many occasions. His brilliant anticipation, presence in the box and and reflexes have made him the greatest goalkeeper Spain has ever had.
He was integral in Spain's run to the 2010 World Cup final, where they kept clean sheets all the way through the knockout stages. He is widely acknowledged to be the best goalkeeper in the world right now.
I would go further. I rate him as the best goalkeeper Spain ever had.

LB : José Antonio Camacho
José Antonio Camacho, is sadly known for being the guy with sweaty armpits in the sweltering heat of the Far East. This was, of course, during his tenure as Spanish national team manager.
However, his managerial career, mediocre though it was, is not what brought him onto this list.
Camacho was an inspirational left-back, one of the very best in the game. He was so good that he gained 81 Spain caps and more than 400 caps for Real Madrid.
He was the driving force of the Spanish side which reached the final of the European Championship in 1984.

CB : Fernando Ruiz Hierro
Hierro is one of the best sweepers the game has ever seen, and definitely the best scoring record for any top-flight defender in the modern history of the game. A fixture in the Real Madrid side, and a Spanish national team stalwart (scoring 29 goals in the national team!).
He often played the role of a libero (a free man) in the Spanish defence, as well as that of Real Madrid, using his passing ability, tackling ability and movement in a role that gave him freedom to get forward.

CB : José Emilio Santamaría
Santamaría was an Uruguayan to be fair. It was only when he came to Spain from Montevideo and signed for Real Madrid that he was eligible to play for the Spanish national team.
But what a great defender he was. He was part of the great Uruguay side with Schiaffino, which won the World Cup in 1950.
He also played for Spain in the 1962 World Cup. He was dropped as Spain fell 2-1 to Garrincha's Brazil.

RB : Carles Puyol i Saforcada
Puyol is an amazing defender, center-back by trade, but did play right-back in his early days for Barcelona and the national team.
He is similar to Jamie Carragher as a player in that he prefers the last-ditch tackle as opposed to his teammate Pique's cultured approach to defending. Puyol is more about sweat, grit and hardwork than guile or art, but he is dependable and he is fantatstic.
He has been a stalwart for Barcelona and Spain, helping them become the force in Europe that they are now.

RM : Francisco Gento López
"The little, dark winger from Santander," as Hungarian legend Ferenc Puskás described him, has won more European Cups than any player in the history of the game (6).
Paco Gento was a fixture in the Real Madrid and Spain side, after the likes of Di Stéfano and Puskás and Kopa. His skill with the ball earned him many plaudits.

CM : Xavier Hernández i Creus
Passing is synonymous with Xavi in the modern game. Considered to be the natural successor to Guardiola, the man himself (now Xavi's manager) admitted that he (Guardiola) would eventually be left behind by the Catalan talent, when Xavi was just emerging as a Barcelona youth team player.
Many rate him as the best player in the world, ahead of Lionel Messi, arguing that he provides the creative spark for many of Messi's goals and assists. Indeed, he has dominated Europe statistically, making far more successful passes than any player in Europe for the last three years.

CM : Josep Guardiola i Sala
The Original all-purpose midfield general, Josep Guardiola was the forerunner of the likes of Fàbregas, Xavi and Iniesta.
Blessed with passing ability and tackling ability, he was a fixture in the Barcelona "Dream Team" and the Spanish team of the late 90's.

LM : Andrés Iniesta Luján
Iniesta's talent is such that Scouse superstar Wayne Rooney called him the best player in the world after the Champions League final in 2009. He also achieved the man of the match in the 2010 World Cup final.
He plays a more offensive game than Xavi, being a little less talented in the passing department, but more endowed in the dribbling department. He of course, scored that all-important goal that gave Spain a European Championship, and later a World Cup.

CAM : Alfredo Stéfano Di Stéfano Laulhé
The "Blond Arrow" is one of the greatest players the game has ever known. He played as a playmaker at Real Madrid and was a great passer, with a great range and finesse unlike any since.
He was mainly a forward, however, and when Puskás came to Madrid he settled into the business of goals scoring and dribbling.
Apart from his great club career at Madrid, he came to Spain from Argentina and gained a Spanish passport and played a huge part in Spain's run in the inaugural European Championship.
Some people rate him higher than the likes of Pelé and Maradona. That's how good he is.

ST : David Villa Sánchez
Simply put, Villa is Spain's top goal scorer of all time, has contributed more to Spain than any other striker before or since, and he is a great player with great finishing skills and great flair.



Coach/Manager : Vicente del Bosque González, José Luis Aragonés Suárez, José Villalonga Llorente and Miguel Muñoz Mozún.

Reserves include : Ricardo Zamora Martínez, Raúl González Blanco, Emilio Butragueño Santos, Amancio Amaro Varela, Andoni Zubizarreta Urreta, Iván Helguera Bujía, Iván Santillán and José Martínez Sánchez "Pirri".