Teenage sensation Lamine Yamal has named his all-time Barcelona XI and as you might expect, the team is pretty good.
When it comes to selecting the best XIs in the history of football, you will be hard pressed to find a better club to do it from than the Catalan giants.
Twelve Ballon d’Ors have been won by Barca players, endless amounts of trophies and some of the most legendary figures in the history of the sport have won the blaugrana stripes.
The latest among them is Yamal, with the 18-year-old well on his way to matching the feats of some of his predecessors. Before then though, the skilful winger has named his favourite XI from Barcelona’s history.
GK: Victor Valdes
Starting in goal is the man who made playing out from the back a necessity for goalkeepers.
While the likes of Ederson and Alisson are praised now for their ability with their feet, it was Valdes who pioneered the role and his commitment to this was why he was a mainstay in Pep Guardiola’s team.
Of the keeper, Yamal said: “I would pick Victor Valdes because in my mind he is the most legendary goalkeeper we have had and it’s who I saw play.”
Valdes played 536 times for Barca, winning six league titles, two Copa del Reys and three Champions Leagues.
CB: Carles Puyol
If you wanted a hard-hitting defender who would do anything to keep the ball out of the net, look no further than Carles Puyol.
The iconic Barca captain represented not just the club’s playing style but also the ‘Mes Que un Club’ attitude on and off the pitch.
He captained the side for a decade and was a rare one-club man, retiring in 2014 after almost 600 games with the team.
CB: Gerard Pique
Pique was not the only La Masia talent to slip through the net after Sir Alex Ferguson lured him to United in 2004 but four years later and he was back at the Camp Nou.
He formed a perfect partnership with Puyol and played for Barca for 14 years.
CB: Javier Mascherano
When Mascherano joined Barcelona from Liverpool, he did so as a defensive midfielder, but it was Guardiola who pushed the Argentine further back into the defence.
From there, Mascherano could combine the tackling and interceptions with an ability to pass the ball, meaning Barcelona attacks could start from their defensive line.
He started the Champions League final in 2011, in which Barcelona destroyed Manchester United, and by the time he left Spain in 2018, he had won 19 trophies.
CDM: Sergio Busquets
Sergio Busquets may not be talked about as much as other Barcelona midfielders, but ask anyone who played with him and they will say the tall, lanky defensive midfielder was the most important part of the team.
The work Busquets did often went unnoticed but he was arguably the best ever at transitions, able to take the ball from an opponent and begin an attack in one swift movement.
His longevity and ability to always be fit meant he played 722 times for Barca, only Xavi and Lionel Messi played more in the club’s history.
CM: Xavi
The passing metronome of the midfield. Xavi’s greatest ability was to control the tempo of a game even in the most high-pressure moments.
There are dozens of YouTube videos of the Spnaird picking up the ball and scanning every angle around him before picking the perfect pass and if Guardiola could have made a player of how he wanted his team to play, it would have been Xavi.
He was the first to come through of Barcelona’s famous midfield trio and he left the club in the way every player would want to, with the treble.
CM: Andres Iniesta
One of the greatest midfielders ever to play the game, Andres Iniesta’s close control of the ball was a joy to watch.
A player that seemed universally respected, even by Madrid fans, he could operate both centrally and out wide and aside from a certain Argentine up front, Iniesta was the most naturally talented player of that Barcelona era.
He was not just a passer either, as he could score plenty of goals. He netted 57 times for the club, including a fair few in the Clasico, but his most famous goal came in 2010 when he scored a late winner to secure Spain’s first World Cup.
CAM: Ronaldinho
It is telling that Ronaldinho has a spot in Yamal’s team despite the Brazilian leaving Barca when the future winger was just one year old.
But such was the cultural impact that Ronaldinho had on the game as a whole, he often features in lists like this.
Ronaldinho controlled the ball as well with his feet as us mere mortals could with our hands and he could do things on the pitch that even Messi would struggle to replicate.
His off-field lifestyle meant success was short-lived lived but when a Barcelona player gets a standing ovation from the Santiago Bernabeu, you know he is something special.
RW: Lionel Messi
The greatest player not just in Barcelona’s history but arguably football history, it is no surprise to see Messi on this list.
It’s hard to know where to even begin to describe the Argentinian’s time at the club. Brought over from Argentina at the age of 13, Messi progressed through La Masia at a rapid rate.
By the time he made his first team debut, anyone who had played with him knew just how special he was and football statistics and records can be seen as before Messi and after Messi.
He won seven Ballon d’Ors at the club but more than that, he turned Barcelona into the dominant force of that era. His 46 team trophies make him the most decorated player in football history.
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ST: Luis Suarez
There were a few eyebrows raised when Barcelona paid £64.98 million for a player who had just been banned for biting an opponent (the third time he had done so) but Suarez repaid that fee several times over.
The only player in 11 years to win the European Golden Boot and not be called Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo, Suarez was a lethal striker during his time in La Liga.
At Barca, he formed the deadly trio of Messi, Suarez and Neymar and it was that front three that powered the club to Champions League success in 2015, the most recent time the club has won the iconic trophy.
He was forced out of the club in 2020 but got his revenge by helping Atletico Madrid win the title in the following season.
These days, he is still by Messi’s side as the two play for Inter Miami.
LW: Neymar
Described by Yamal as “my favourite player” and it’s clear to see why Neymar captured the attention of the next generation.
The closest player to Ronaldinho since the Brazilian himself, Neymar’s tricks and flicks were not always to everyone’s liking, but away from that skill, he was also an incredibly efficient goalscorer.
His best period at the club came when Messi was out with injury, allowing Neymar to be the main man, and perhaps it was during this period that he decided he needed to leave Messi’s shadow if he was ever to be the best in the world.
The €222 million fee changed football forever and while Neymar’s success at PSG can be argued, he remains one of the best and most naturally gifted players to ever put on the Barcelona shirt.
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