Exclusive: Tim Cahill Picks His Current World XI


Messi? Ronaldo? Neymar? How about all of them? Which names would you choose if a benevolent soccer genie named Phantasy emerged from the vuvuzela you had just blown into and gave you the chance to construct you ultimate world XI? We posed the question to Sydney-born Socceroos superstarFIFA 2014 video game ambassador, and the man behind the fastest gooooaaaallllll!!!!! ever scored in Major League Soccer history, Tim Cahill, who went for an attacking 4-4-2 possible only in the video games. Here’s what he came up with… 
TIM CAHILL’S CURRENT WORLD XI
GK: Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich / Germany)
Tim says: A consistent shot blocker.  
RB: Dani Alves (Barcelona / Brazil)   
Tim Says: He’s very attacking and he can get up and down the pitch.
CB: Vincent Kompany (Manchester City / Belgium) 
Tim says: He’s a strong defender. You need someone solid as a rock up the back.  

CB: Gerard Pique (Barcelona / Spain) 
Tim says: Great ballplayer and a good leader. Will play as a distributor from the back. 
LB: Gareth Bale (Real Madrid / Wales) 
Tim says: I’d love to squeeze him in on the left wing but I need to fit in other players as well. He’s a top player who doesn’t stop running.
  
CM: Andres Iniesta (Barcelona / Spain) 
Tim says: He starts the play and finishes the play. He breaks lines. He can play football pretty much anywhere. He’ll create the chances for me.    
CM: Yaya Toure (Manchester City / Ivory Coast) 
Tim says: He can defend and break up the play but also score goals and produce ridiculous moments that turn a game. 
LM: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid / Portugal) 
Tim says: He needs no introduction. One of the two best players in the world. 
RM: Lionel Messi (Barcelona / Argentina)    
Tim says: An absolute god. 
ST: Neymar (Barcelona / Brazil)
Tim says: Unbelievable on the ball. Scores some great goals. He’s one of the best young players in the world.  
ST: Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Paris Saint-Germain / Sweden) 
Tim says: A beast. An absolute machine. 
Who you got?

Tim Cahill is the cover athlete of EA Games’ FIFA 14, available now on PS3, Xbox 360, PC, Wii, 3DS, PS4 and Xbox One.

Lead image by Brendon Thorne via Getty.

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