Eight Barca players nominated for UEFA Team of the Year

Eight Barca players nominated for UEFA Team of the Year

Eight Barca players nominated for UEFA Team of the Year

European champions Barcelona featured
prominently in the 40-man shortlist for
the UEFA Team of the Year announced
on Tuesday.
Barca, who claimed their fifth European
title after beating Juventus 3-1 in June’s
Champions League final, have eight
representatives with the Serie A
champions accounting for six.
Cristiano Ronaldo was included in the
shortlist for the 12th straight time,
having been named in the final 11 last
year for a record eighth successive
season.
Bayer Leverkusen’s Turkish midfielder
Hakan Calhanoglu, 21, was the youngest
player to make the list with veteran Italy
and Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi
Buffon the oldest at 37.
Internet users have until January to
register their votes on the UEFA website,
with the Team of the Year revealed three
days later.
List of nominated players:
Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon (ITA/
Juventus), Denys Boyko (UKR/Dnipro),
Joe Hart (ENG/Manchester City), Manuel
Neuer (GER/Bayern Munich)
Defenders: David Alaba (AUT/Bayern
Munich), David Luiz (BRA/Paris SG),
Diego Godin (URU/Atletico Madrid),
Ricardo Rodriguez (SUI/Wolfsburg),
Thiago Silva (BRA/Paris SG), Sergio
Ramos (ESP/Real Madrid), Gerard Pique
(ESP/Barcelona), Jerome Boateng (GER/
Bayern Munich), Leonardo Bonucci (ITA/
Juventus), Giorgio Chiellini (ITA/
Juventus), Dani Alves (BRA/Barcelona),
Javier Mascherano (ARG/Barcelona)
Midfielders: Kevin De Bruyne (BEL/
Manchester City), Eden Hazard (BEL/
Chelsea), James Rodriguez (COL/Real
Madrid), Yevhen Konoplyanka (UKR/
Sevilla), Hakan Calhanoglu (TUR/
Leverkusen), Arturo Vidal (CHI/Bayern
Munich), Paul Pogba (FRA/Juventus),
Ivan Rakitic (CRO/Barcelona), Grzegorz
Krychowiak (POL/Sevilla), Andres Iniesta
(ESP/Barcelona), Claudio Marchisio (ITA/
Juventus), Marco Verratti (ITA/Paris SG)
Forwards: Cristiano Ronaldo (POR/Real
Madrid), Robert Lewandowski (POL/
Bayern Munich), Lionel Messi (ARG/
Barcelona), Luis Suarez (URU/Barcelona),
Neymar (BRA/Barcelona), Thomas
Mueller (GER/Bayern Munich), Zlatan
Ibrahimovic (SWE/Paris SG), Sergio
Aguero (ARG/Manchester City), Antoine
Griezmann (FRA/Atletico Madrid), Alexis
Sanchez (CHI/Arsenal), Alvaro Morata
(ESP/Juventus), Gareth Bale (WAL/Real
Madrid)