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Apart from Pelé, all the greats of football have worn the white of Real Madrid or the blue and red of Barcelona. Creating an all-star XI of players who have played in the Classic rivalry is one thing, but there are so many big names that they can be divided into different countries.
Spain, Argentina, Brazil, France, the Netherlands and Portugal have had enough top-tier players playing for Real Madrid or Barcelona to make a team of 11, while countries like Germany, Italy and England fall short. Here are our picks
Spain
In this great team, we have included six players from Real Madrid and four from Barcelona. Alfredo Di Stefano, born in Argentina, also represented Spain internationally: the fight to initially sign the player was one of the catalysts for the Classic rivalry we know today.
This team does not include stars like Raúl, Pep Guardiola, Ricardo Zamora, Xabi Alonso, David Villa or Fernando Hierro.
Argentina
The times of Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona collide, here, as the two Argentine stars of Barcelona lead the attack. Di Stefano, a native of Argentina, joins them up front. Gonzalo Higuaín and Santiago Solari are among those who fail the cut.
Brazil
This squad includes the dazzling front row of Ronaldo Nazario, Ronaldinho, Romario, Rivaldo and Neymar, while the wingers Dani Alves and Roberto Carlos are not bad either. There is no place here for Juliano Belletti, Didi or Philippe Coutinho.
France
Zinedine Zidane, Raymond Kopa and Thierry Henry are the featured players in this XI, which also features a multifaceted defense of Lilian Thuram, Laurent Blanc, Raphael Varane and Eric Abidal.
The inconstancy of Antoine Griezmann and Nicolas Anelka for Barcelona and Real Madrid respectively has cost them both a place in the team.
Netherlands
The Dutch have a rich history when it comes to contributing to El Clásico. Johan Cruyff defined a generation and more at the Camp Nou, while Patrick Kluivert and Clarence Seedorf also starred in the meeting. Current Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman also makes the cut.
Such is the talent on display in the Netherlands, there is no place for Frank or Ronald de Boer.
Portugal
As has been at times for the Portuguese national team, Cristiano Ronaldo is the focal point of a team that also includes Luis Figo, who played for both sides of the division, and Pepe.
The rest
Just because they can’t present a full team doesn’t mean these countries haven’t had their share of El Clásico fame.
Germany can boast of players like Bernd Schuster, Toni Kroos and Marc-Andre ter Stegen; Italy has Fabio Cannavaro; Hungary featured stars like Ferenc Puskas and Zoltan Czibor; England have been represented by Gary Lineker and Laurie Cunningham, while Uruguay has seen Luis Suárez and Fede Valverde play in recent years.
Source: m.allfootballapp.com
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