Throughout football history, a majority of right-footers have succeeded for club and country, but the left-footers have also enjoyed great careers. These are some of the best left-footed and right-footed players in history.
- Left-footers XI
Goalkeeper: Iker Casillas
Iker Casillas was an undisputed starter at Real Madrid for more than a decade and was successful, winning many games and trophies at his boyhood club.
Succeeding at Madrid is no trivial task, and many have fallen while San Iker was in net for Los Blancos. His understudies also were class, but he showed incredible character to make them sit on the bench. The likes of Jerzy Dudek were forced to watch on due to Casillas' superb footballing ability.
Iker was the starter in 2000 and won La Decima fourteen years later. He never lost his place until Jose Mourinho brought Diego Lopez to the Santiago Bernabeu. After falling out with the Special One, Casillas lost his seat to Lopez in La Liga. San Iker was still cup and continental keeper for a year due to his prestige and was vital in his side's road to La Decima.
He also kept Victor Valdes out of the team for Spain's golden age and started in the three finals they played in four years, winning two European Championships and one World Cup.
Right-Wing Back: Ashley Cole
Many fans of the beautiful game have touted Ashley Cole as one of the best left-backs in history. However, he is going to be deployed as a right-back in this team.
The attacking full-back started at Arsenal and went, controversially, to Chelsea. Nonetheless, he became an Invincible at Arsenal and went from strength to strength under Jose Mourinho at Stamford Bridge.
A big part of The Blues' golden era, Cole won many domestic honours before winning the coveted Champions League in 2012, being part of their miraculous semi-final tie against Barcelona and winning the final against Bayern in their backyard.
He also possesses many individual honours, appearing in the PFA Team of the Year on four occasions. A legendary addition to this team.
Defender: Laurent Blanc
Laurent Blanc is a Montpellier legend, even though he did not win a handful of trophies at La Mosson. However, he then went on to win several medals with Auxerre, Barcelona and Manchester United but most importantly with France, being part of their golden generation.
His best achievement is undoubtedly the 1998 World Cup win, in which he scored the golden goal against Paraguay in the round of 16. Facing the wall that was Jose Luis Chilavert, the Frenchman went against Aime Jacquet's orders and roamed into the attack to score the all-important goal.
Defender: Paolo Maldini
Paolo Maldini spent 25 years on the pitch, stopping opposition attacks as a left-back and as a centre-back. Alongside Alessandro Costacurta, who also was on a mission to have the longest playing career ever, the defender made Milan a fierce team in their golden age as the club won five Champions League out of their seven with Maldini in their side.
A son of a Milan legend, Paolo is perhaps the most excellent defender in the history of the Lombardy outfit as he won so many accolades with his boyhood club.
Left-Wing Back: Roberto Carlos
Roberto Carlos was not rated highly by Roy Hodgson at Inter Milan. He played a significant role in the white side of Madrid as he won a handful of trophies with Iker Casillas and played 370 league games for Los Blancos from 1996 to 2007.
The left-back's left foot was his biggest weapon, and he scored several frightening goals for keepers during his career. His rocket against France with Brazil is seen as an impossible goal for fans, but the attacking full-back scored another thunderous effort against Tenerife in 1998.
A winner with both club and country, he won a World Cup, two Copa America titles and three Champions Leagues at Madrid and won many more trophies with other sides.
Holding Midfielder: Edgar Davids
Edgar Davids was an absolute bully in midfield, terrorizing opposition attacks. A tenacious midfielder, he broke down attacks relentlessly. He began at Ajax, winning a Champions League alongside a teenage Patrick Kluivert. He then joined the red side of Milan for a season. Snapped up by Juve a year later, he appeared more than 150 times in the Serie A, winning it three times.
He finished fourth in the 1998 World Cup with the Netherlands and is one of the best midfielders to ever play this game.
Attacking Midfielder: Johan Cruyff
The late Johan Cruyff is the 20th century's most influential player and his achievements for club and country were really groundbreaking.
The Dutchman is Ajax's best-ever player, and he was close to winning the World Cup in 1974 against West Germany had the Germans not played the game of their lives.
When he arrived at Barca, he outshone every player, and the Catalans found a star as big as Alfredo Di Stefano was for Real Madrid.
He managed the Blaugrana outfit to glory for eight years,as they won their first European Cup final thanks to a Ronald Koeman free-kick in the final against Sampdoria.
Right-Winger: Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi destroyed consistently many players and teams and is now feared all over Europe. Teams such as Leverkusen, Sevilla or Real Madrid have suffered from his insane goalscoring ability, and Messi scored 91 goals in 2012, breaking Pele's record
The Argentine's career is filled with outstanding moments and is now a captain for both club and country. He dethroned Gabriel Batistuta as Argentina's top scorer and then went on to become Barcelona's top scorer a few years later.
His trophy haul is astonishing and listing every trophy would make this eleven so much longer.
Left-Winger: Ryan Giggs
Much like Maldini, Ryan Giggs is another legendary one-club man who had a lengthy and successful career at his club.
The Welshman played 24 years for Manchester United and was one of Sir Alex Ferguson's favourite players, appearing in 672 league games for the Red Devils as they strolled to success under the Scottish manager's leadership.
At United, he won a treble and many more honours, and his legacy is unrivalled. After Davis Moyes' sacking, Giggs was named as caretaker manager and lead the team before Van Gaal was appointed.
Centre-Forward: Diego Maradona
Diego Maradona is the biggest star in Napoli's history. The eccentric attacking midfielder has a superb highlight reel consisting of mesmerizing dribbles, assists and goals. He made Napoli a real force in Italy, and for once the Neapolitans were a fierce rival in Serie A.
With Argentina, he obliterated the English defence to win the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup, and his goal was named goal of the 20th century.
He went on to win the World Cup with his native country and was seen as the best player in the world after this tournament.
Striker: Ferenc Puskas
Real Madrid's dominance in the European Cup comes from their incredible five titles in a row from 1955 to 1960. In that time, Los Blancos had the best players and Ferenc Puskas was the pick of the bunch.
A frightening striker, the mighty Magyars' best striker ever had a left foot feared by any defender in the game. Nowadays, his name is still on many people's lips, with the Puskas award nominating the best goal of the year.
Even though Hungary inexplicably lost the 1954 World Cup final to West Germany, they were sensational and Puskas is one of the best strikers ever.
- Right-footers XI
Goalkeeper: Manuel Neuer
Manuel Neuer is one of the most groundbreaking goalkeepers in the modern era, and he is highly rated by everyone affiliated with the sport.
The sweeper-keeper was a fan-favourite thanks to his eccentric displays even though he paid the price sometimes just like when Dejan Stankovic scored a goal from the halfway line after the german's horrific header for Schalke against Inter.
However, the German did not back off after that mistake. He showed incredible audacity in the 2014 World Cup, especially against Algeria in the Round of 16, winning the tournament with clean sheets against the likes Argentina or France.
After Schalke, he went to Bayern Munich and dominated the German game by winning the league for several years in a row and winning a treble in 2013 under Jupp Heynckes.
Defender: Dani Alves
Dani Alves is one of the best right-backs in the history of the beautiful game, and the Brazilian was a star for every team he played for.
After a great stint in Seville, where he won three Europa Leagues in a row, Pep Guardiola decided to buy the attacking full-back, and he is perhaps the former Barcelona coach's best signing ever.
At Barca, Dani Alves had one of the best connections ever with Leo Messi as he is one of the players that assisted the Argentine magician the most.
In 2019, he captained Brazil to a Copa America win, being the man of the match in the semi-final against Argentina to add to his 36 other titles to make him the most decorated player ever.
Defender: Franz Beckenbauer
Few defenders have revolutionized the game as much as Franz Beckenbauer. The German defender was an elegant player that changed the way defenders played in the 20th century.
Widely regarded as the inventor of the sweeper role, Beckenbauer is also seen as one of the best defenders in the history of the beautiful game.
The German had a famous career at Bayern, where he won many trophies including three European Cups in a row and four Bundesliga titles.
For West Germany and Germany, he is one of the few who won the World Cup both as a player and as a manager. However, his most heroic moment came in the 1970 World Cup, four years before winning the tournament. In a seven-goal thriller, Franz was at the wrong end of a 4-3 loss to Italy in the semi-finals but the Germans played nearly an hour with a broken collarbone.
Defender: Franco Baresi
Franco Baresi is another legendary centre-back who dominated the game for two decades at AC Milan.
The Italian was one of the most feared centre-backs back in the day. His outstanding ability accompanied by his loyalty to Milan made him achieve legendary status for both club and country. He appeared 532 times in the league for his boyhood club.
Throughout his career, he has won many titles in Milan's golden era and was part of the Milan sides that won three Champions League titles and was one of the best in Italy's World Cup-winning squad in 1982.
Defender: Philipp Lahm
Fans of the beautiful game will surely admit that Philipp Lahm retired too early. He retired at 34, and many people would argue that he had the talent to play for many more years.
Lahm was one of the most versatile players in history, and the man who began his career as a left-back in Munich finished it as a holding midfielder under Pep Guardiola while being deployed as a right-back for the majority of his career.
A winner for both club and country, Philipp Lahm's professionalism combined with his ability made him the first name on any team sheet. He won many titles alongside Manuel Neuer as a starter in Bayern's and Germany's dominance last decade.
Midfielder: Zinedine Zidane
Zinedine Zidane played brilliantly for Bordeaux and Juventus before joining Madrid and there he went on to become a legend. His goal in the 2001 Champions League final is a career-defining moment alongside his two goals against Brazil in the 1998 World Cup final.
In 2006, he returned to the French national team setup and took the world by storm in the World Cup playing at the peak of his abilities to reach the unfortunate final against Italy.
Midfielder: Xavi Hernandez
Xavi Hernandez was the whole package. The Spaniard was an essential part of Pep's historical treble-winning side, and he changed the way midfielders played forever.
Alongside Sergio Busquets and Andres Iniesta in midfield, he dominated the midfield no matter the opponent. Even Paul Scholes once admitted that Sir Alex Ferguson's side dreaded playing the Catalans and it was mostly because of their midfield.
Xavi was one of the players to make an impact in the 2009 UCL final, crossing the ball to Messi for him to score an improbable header. He was also part of Spain's golden generation and won the three titles they won in four years.
Midfielder: Andres Iniesta
Iniesta formed an outstanding partnership with Xavi and Busquets to write history. The three of them are now role models for the newest generation of midfielders.
The midfielder is now missed at Barca, and the Cules' midfield seems a bit lost since he left in 2018.
It has been 11 years since his golazo against Chelsea, a career-defining moment for a clutch player as incredible as Iniesta.
One of his most significant moments in moments came in the 2010 World Cup final, in which he scored the goal to gift Spain their first World Cup.
Centre-Forward: Pele
Pele is the youngest goalscorer in World Cup history is a legend in his country and also is Santos' greatest ever player.
His goalscoring record speaks for itself, and the Brazilian is still in the debate for greatest player ever. He was named joint-beat player of the century with Diego Maradona, only showing how much of a great he was.
With Brazil, he won three World Cup medals, a big reason why his story is known to this date.
Striker: Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo's goalscoring record speaks for itself, and the Juve player has been labelled Mr.Champions League by pundits and fellow superstars.
He is the record goalscorer in the competition he has won 5 times and his superb moments have made him a real force in the UCL.
At Real Madrid, he reached his peak and anchored himself in history as he was the main man in the three-peat, demolishing Bayern Munich, Juventus or Atletico along the way. He is one of the best players ever and was the first name in this eleven.
Striker: Ronaldo Nazario
At every club Ronaldo Nazario played in, he shone and outscored every other player. For example, he scored 47 goals in his single season at the Camp Nou.
At Inter, he destroyed Lazio in the UEFA cup final in 1998 and drove Alessandro Nesta crazy to win the final.
At Real Madrid, he scored that supernatural hat-trick against Manchester United in 2003 in the Champions League.
For Brazil, he held the record for goals in the World Cup before Miroslav Klose dethroned him in 2014, and won the cup in 2002 as a starter.
Every defender feared, all in all, one of the best strikers ever.
- How this game could develop:
These two teams have some outstanding talents, and the defences look unbreakable even though the attacking firepower of the two sides is incredible.
Still, the left footers' top-heavy eleven might be able to break the legends that constitute the right footers' defence.
A formation as audacious as the left footers' one would undoubtedly be coached by a madman like Marcelo Bielsa while the other eleven looks more like Pep's creation.
An interesting tactical battle would then develop between two of the most innovative coaches ever.
The left footers squad will be forced to play a more meticulous style of play. They will have to play out from the back before getting the ball to the forwards for them to run at the defence. It would also be interesting to see some of the best players ever playing in the same side and attacking Baresi and Lahm's left side.
The right footers eleven is well-prepared to match up against such an offensive side, as some of the defenders have faced sides that played a variant of Total Football.
Also, the right footers have some of the most press-resistant midfielders in Xavi and Iniesta accompanied by a man of many tricks in Zidane.
Zidane's class and unpredictability are his most significant assets and he would be able to deliver a moment of magic at any time just like against Leverkusen in 2001.
All in all, it would be a high-scoring game that could go either way, but the right footers' balance might be able to see them through in this game.
And how do you think?
