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#2 Samuel Umtiti
The 24-year-old Cameroon-born French international defender has been one of the rocks of the Barcelona defence since his 2016 transfer from Lyon.
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After enduring a rocky start to his Camp Nou career, he has overcome that to become a mainstay in the Barcelona team, helping cover up for the more error-prone Gerard Pique, and his absences in the Barcelona defence is always felt, as they usually lack the composure and solidity the Frenchman offers.
He contributed to Barca's La Liga triumph last season making 25 appearances, and was also very instrumental in France's World Cup triumph, marshalling the defence, and scoring the vital only goal in the 1-0 semifinal victory over Belgium which helped Les Bleus make it to the final.
Umtiti was an integral member of two title-winning teams, and if his international partner Raphael Varane was good enough to be nominated, then so is he.
