The team, which was not well-received by many Barca fans, did not feature any Blaugrana player. As if to add salt to injury, Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo led the attack in the list, flanked by Hulk at the centre and Thomas Muller on the right-wing.
At the midfield, Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling, Chelsea’s Wilian and Gent’s Kums provided a shield for the back four. The defense was marshalled by Bayern’s Alaba, Atletico Madrid’s Godin, PSG’s Thiago Silva and Juventus’ Barzagli, while PSG goalkeeper Trapp stood in between the posts.
In total, Bayern Munich and PSG had the most players in the team, with two each.
However, it was the absence of the attacking trio of Messi, Suarez and Neymar that raised eyebrows. Messi’s absence was quite justifiable, as he missed most of the matches at the group stage due to injury. Ronaldo’s presence, on the other hand, was also expected especially after scoring 11 goals in six matches for Los Blancos at the group stage.
The 30-year-old celebrates one of his four goals for Real Madrid against Malmo .jpg)
The MSN trio managed to score a total of nine goals between them, something that clearly explains why Ronaldo was preferred in attack for the group stage team.
Suarez scored five Champions League goals this season at the group stage in five appearances, while his Barcelona counterpart Neymar Jr. managed to score twice (against BATE) and provided three assists in 5 appearances for the Catalans.
Here is a quick preview of the Champions League group stage best XI
Goalkeeper: Kevin Trapp
The PSG forward was in top form for the French giants, having conceded just once in a group that included the likes of Shaktar Donetsk, the unstoppable Real Madrid and underdogs Malmo.
Right Back: Andrea Barzagli
The Juve right back was in superb form for the Old Lady in the group stages of the Champions League. He managed to shield his side from soaking goals, and only conceded once. He also provided an assist for Alvaro Morata when Juve dismissed Spanish giants Sevilla.
Center back: Thiago Silva
The Brazilian was one of the men behind PSG’s solid defence throughout the campaign. He made four appearances for the French giants in the Champions League.
Centre back: Diego Godin
The Atletico Madrid ace was one of the reasons why Atletico Madrid made it to the 2013-2014 Champions League finals. In the group stage of the 2014-2015 campaign, he ensured that the Spanish giants only conceded thrice, and eventually topped Group C.
Left back: David Alaba
Alaba only featured in four group games for the Bavarians but during that period, he ensured his side was well-protected at the back. He even scored a goal against Arsenal at the Allianz Arena and provided an assist.
Right midfield: Sven Kums
Before featuring in UEFA’s squad, Sven Kums was not very popular among many fans of European football. Amazingly, he steered Gent to a second-place finish behind Zenit St. Petersburg. The 27-year-old stood out for his sleek passes which inspired his side to victory against favorites such as Lyon.
Centre midfield: Willian
Chelsea’s Willian stood out for his outstanding free-kicks throughout the Champions League group stage. His five goals helped the below-average Chelsea cruise past Maccabi Tel Aviv, Dynamo Kiev and FC Porto and conquer their group.
Left midfield: Raheem Sterling
The Man City youngster scored three goals to steer his new club to their first ever last-16 seeding in the Champions League. He scored two goals against Borussia Monchengladbach in their last game of the group stage and provided an assist.
Right forward: Thomas Muller
The Bayern Munich star had a great outing in the group stage, having netted five times for the Bundesliga giants. He also made history for being the youngest player to make 50 appearances in the Champions League. At the age of 26, he can only get better.
Center forward: Hulk
The bulky Brazilian leads the attack in the UEFA group stage team for steering his Russian side to group victory. He scored thrice and provided four assists for his side in the Champions League.
Left forward: Cristiano Ronaldo
Ronaldo needs no introduction in the world of football. The Real Madrid star was the top scorer in all groups combined with a record 11 goals. He summed up his performance with a hat trick against Shakhtar and four more goals against Malmo.
However, some fans and pundits on social media questioned the legitimacy of the selection process by arguing that a player like Hulk had only three goals in the tournament with four assists, but made it to the list, yet Luiz Suarez (five goals) was not included. While some selections were quite controversial, no one could argue against Cristiano Ronaldo, Muller, the young Sterling and Trapp, whose performances were clearly visible, even without statistics for backup.
