Football: Barca, Real dominate World XI shortlist

PARIS: Players from Barcelona and Real Madrid made up almost half of the 55-man shortlist revealed by Fifa for the Fifa FIFPro World XI 2011, which will be announced on January 9. Barcelona have 11 players in the list, while Real has 10. World champions Spain is the most well-represented country with 12 players ahead of Brazil, which has eight. Brazil star Neymar, of Santos, is the only player on the list who plays his club football outside Europe. The 50,000 professional players registered with FIFPro-affiliated unions who will vote for the team must select an XI in a 4-3-3 formation.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 2^nd, 2011.