Old is still gold: Best XI of 30-plus footballers in Europe

For most footballers, the early 30s are the start of the twilight years of their career. Towards the mid-30s even the most gifted footballers tend to call it a day. This age can be a difficult time for most players as they tend to be surrounded by players who are much younger than they are and their body also develops a habit of deceiving them. That is why many top clubs tend to sell some of their top players when they turn 30, or as soon as they start to show signs of going over the hill.That being said, there are some other players who are like wine, because they just keep getting better with age. These seasoned campaigners know the game inside out and don’t let age catch up to them. Moreover, their presence on the field is a morale booster for their teammates. Take for example the case of Antonio Di Natale and Udinese Calcio. The Italian has enjoyed prolific seasons in front of goal consistently despite crossing the 30-years barrier a long time ago, and his side Udinese is a different proposition with their talismanic striker on the field. For players like Di Natale, age is nothing but a number.Here is a team of players who are currently 30 years of age or above and are still among the best in their position at what they do.

#1 Goal Keeper: Iker Casillas

Yes, Iker Casillas may no longer be the superhuman figure in front of goal which he used to be a few years ago, but the Real Madrid captain is still one of the best goalkeepers in the game.

The Spaniard was dropped from the Real Madrid starting 11 towards the end of Jose Mourinho’s reign at the club and was restricted to just Cup games during Ancelotti’s first season in charge. But Casillas’ contributions cannot be overlooked in Real Madrid’s successful Cup double last season.

His performance in the second leg of the quarterfinal against Borussia Dortmund was the highlight of them all. The Spaniard was a towering figure between the sticks on that night, and kept out wave after wave of Dortmund attacks for most part of the game which ensured that the Germans didn’t overturn Real Madrid’s lead from the first leg.

With the backing of Ancelotti, Casillas put in a string of brilliant performances last season to earn the right to be Real Madrid’s first choice keeper in all competitions for the current season. He has now benched one of the standout performers in Spain last season, Keylor Navas.

In the current season Casillas averages 2.30 saves per game which is more than the likes of Manuel Neuer and David De Gea.

Honourable mentions: Gianluigi Buffon and Petr Cech

#2 Right Back: Branislav Ivanovic

Branislav Ivanovic’s magnificent performance as a right back is making it increasingly hard to digest the fact that he was once a centre back.

The Serb played as a centre back before he joined Chelsea and shifted between his preferred role and his new role during his first two seasons with the club. The 2009-10 season turned out to be his breakthrough season with Chelsea, and he went on to make the PFA Team of the Year at the end of the season as a right back!

Ivanovic is a huge threat going forward. He makes marauding runs down the right hand side while often overlapping brilliantly with the wingers to provide crosses a player in the box could die for. In addition this, his ability to attack the ball from set pieces makes him a very valuable asset.

So far this season, the 31-year-old has scored six goals and has three assists to his name; this is more than what many attacking players have managed.

While his game going forward is a joy to watch, the defensive side of his game is also equally adept. He doesn’t mind putting his body on the line to prevent a goal, and often comes up with crunching tackles to stop the opposition players.

Honourable mentions: Dani Alves and Stephan Lichtsteiner

#3 Centre Back: John Terry

When Jose Mourinho took charge of Chelsea for the first time in 2004, John Terry was a crucial player in his side. 10 years on, at the age of 34, Terry is still one of the first names on Mourinho’s team sheet and the only one from his first stint who is an indispensable member of his side.

That alone speaks volumes about the former England captain’s abilities; Mourinho accepts nothing but the best, nor does he show any room for sentiment in football, as he proved by benching Casillas. If he still trusts Terry, then Terry must be doing something very right.

The Englishman showed signs of regression during the season under Rafa Benitez and was dropped on occasions in favour of David Luiz or even Branislav Ivanovic in central defense. But he has picked himself up after Mourinho took over, and returned to the heart of the Chelsea defense.

What is interesting is that Terry’s defensive statistics for the current season have improved in many aspects in comparison to the previous one. For example, last season he won just 0.53 tackles per game, but that number has shot up to 1.19 tackles per game this season.

Terry has been the spine of the Chelsea defense for nearly a decade and a half now, and yet his game only seems to be getting better and better with age. His performance makes the current group of central defenders in the England squad look mediocre.

Honourable Mentions: Pepe & Naldo

#4 Centre Back: Thiago Silva

It is difficult to comprehend the fact that Thiago Silva has hit the 30-year mark already. He has been playing in Europe for only the last six years, and he doesn’t look 30 by any standard either!

Silva’s game play has drawn comparisons with the legendary Franco Baresi, and the Italian himself has gone on record to state that Silva is the player who resembles him the most.

The Brazilian can be described as a consistent defender, a leader at the back who is very quick for a central defender. That makes it very difficult for players to beat him. Silva is also excellent in the air and a brilliant reader of the game, and his technical abilities as a central defender may be unparalleled in football today.

His performances have been rightfully noted and rewarded as he has been named in the UEFA Team of the Year three times in succession – from 2011 to 2013 – and also voted into the FIFProXI in 2013 and 2014.

Silva’s importance to his team was highlighted at the 2014 World Cup when Brazil were humiliated 7-1 by Germany in his absence. But despite Brazil finishing fourth, he was named in the tournament’s All-Star team and Dream Team.

His superiority can be highlighted from the fact that it took him 13 games, or 1,201 minutes of football, to commit his first foul of 2015 against AS Monaco.

Honourable mentions: Giorgio Chiellini and Javier Mascherano

#5 Left Back: Philipp Lahm

Pep Guardiola has coached players like Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta and Xavi in his career but he didn’t call any of them the most intelligent player he has ever coached. That honour was bestowed upon Philipp Lahm!

What is amazing about Lahm is that he had quick thinking and versatility as a youngster, and even as he has he reached the pinnacle of greatness he is still the same. Lahm’s extraordinary versatility makes him a dream player for any manager.

He started out as a left-back during his loan spell at VfB Stuttgart and played in the same role at the 2006 World Cup. After playing in the role for a significant period of time he was moved to his preferred right hand side by Louis van Gaal during the 2009-10 season, and he was played in the same position at the 2010 World Cup. Lahm also formed a potent partnership with Robben down the right hand side for Bayern Munich.

Later, when Guardiola took over, he moved the best right back in the game to central midfield. Lahm adjusted to his new role as if he had been playing there his whole career, and as a result once again he played a different position for Germany at the World Cup.

Honourable mentions: Patrice Evra and Leighton Baines

#6 Central Midfield: Andrea Pirlo

When AC Milan let Pirlo walk out for free in 2011, they started to dig their own grave. Not only did they let one of the best central midfielders in the country leave for free, he went on to join their rivals Juventus and has so far helped them win three back-to-back Serie A titles, with the possibility of a fourth come the end of the season.

Pirlo’s performance after joining Juventus has drawn the spotlight on him considerably, and he has been rewarded with the Serie A Player of the Year award for each season he has spent with the Turin club.

The Italian is one of the best deep-lying playmakers in football and his ability to spray long passes across the field is immense. His passing ability and composure on the ball even when under pressure are worth the price of admission alone.

His teammate Buffon has called him a genius and has also declared that together with Pirlo and Baggio are the greatest talent that Italian football has produced in the last 25 years.

After joining Juventus Pirlo’s free kick taking ability has gone up a notch and he has consistently produced mind-blowing free kicks in recent times. He has also scored plenty of breathtaking goals from outside the box in open play. In fact, this season, the Italian scored a last-second stunner against Torino in the Turin Derby to win the game for his side.

Honourable mentions: Xavi and Steven Gerrard

#7 Central Midfield: Yaya Toure

Personally I feel that Yaya Toure doesn’t get the plaudits he deserves for the kind of performances he puts in week in week out and for the immense influence he has on his team. It is clear as daylight that Manchester City have struggled the most in recent times without Toure, even more so than when they have been without the likes of Sergio Aguero, Vincent Kompany or David Silva.

Last season the Ivorian scored 24 goals in 49 games across all competitions for Manchester City; this figure is close to a goal every second game, which is better than the goals-to-games ratio for most strikers.

In the Premier League alone he scored 20 goals, of which four were from direct free kicks and only six were from the penalty spot. Such is the ability of this man.

Even at the age of 31, Toure makes lung-bursting runs from midfield and uses his body strength to shield the ball and get past players in an attempt to open up defenses. The Ivorian also has brilliant vision and picks out his players, making runs with brilliantly weighted long balls for them to latch on to.

Toure’s absence from the Manchester City squad in January due to his participation in the African Cup of Nations has significantly dented his club’s title ambitions, and it is now up to him to help his side cover up lost ground and fight till the very end.

Honourable mentions: Daniele De Rossi and Thiago Motta

#8 Central Midfield: Xabi Alonso

When Bayern Munich signed a 32-year-old Xabi Alonso to replace the departing Toni Kroos, who is much younger than the Spaniard, many eyebrows were raised. But the former Liverpool man has put all doubts and questions to rest with a blistering start to his Bayern Munich career.

He quickly established himself in the Bayern midfield and won the Man of the Match award in his first two appearances for them. He made many jaws drop with his scintillating performance against Cologne, where he completed 175 passes in the whole game which was more than the entire opposition put together. He also had 206 touches of the ball, which equates to him having a touch every 26 seconds, thereby smashing the previous Bundesliga record held by his teammate Thiago Alcantara (177 touches).

The Spaniard used to lift the crowd off their feet with his brilliantly executed long balls during his time at Liverpool and Real Madrid, and is now also entertaining the German crowds with some well-executed free kicks, despite the vast number of players in the side who can do the same.

Alonso’s performance at Bayern Munich is yet another testament to the fact that age is just a number for players like him.

Honourable mentions: Andres Iniesta and Bastian Schweinsteiger

#9 Left Wing: Cristiano Ronaldo

It is very difficult to believe the fact that Cristiano Ronaldo is now 30 years old; it seems like yesterday that he was tearing down the defenses of Premier League clubs during his time at Manchester United.

Although Ronaldo may be entering the final few chapters of his playing career, he still has a lot to offer. In the ongoing season Ronaldo is the leading goal-scorer in Europe with 40 goals to his name and 13 assists to go with that.

At present the Portuguese is going through a lean patch in comparison to his incredible goal-scoring record in the first half of the season. But knowing Ronaldo, it is only a small matter of time before he gets back to his old ways.

Ronaldo’s gameplay has evolved and changed with time, and now he has become a goal-scoring machine instead of the pacey, tricky winger he was at Manchester United. Such a change may prove effective in the long run as even Ronaldo may start to lose his pace with age.

Honourable mention: Franck Ribery

#10 Right Wing: Arjen Robben

It is easy to say that most players lose pace with age, but to state that in the case of Arjen Robben should be a criminal offense.

At the 2014 FIFA World Cup he became the fastest football player in the world while architecting Netherland’s 5-1 win over Spain. He was clocked moving at a speed of 37 km/h, and thus eclipsed Theo Walcott’s previous record of 35.7 km/h.

Robben’s game has gone from strength to strength over the years at Bayern Munich, and it is difficult to identify a better right winger than him at the moment across all age categories.

This season his form has been so good that he is just four goals short of surpassing his personal best goal tally for a season. His current best is 23 goals from 37 games in his debut season for Bayern Munich, and at present he has 19 goals from 25 games with a good portion of the season still remaining.

Robben’s resurgence after the disappointments he went through between 2010 and 2012 is outstanding. The most notable of these disappointments were missing two glorious chances to win the World Cup for his country in 2010 and then missing a penalty in the final of the 2012 Champions League which eventually proved costly. But all that is history, and now Robben is back to his glorious best.

Honourable mention: Ricardo Quaresma

#11 Striker: Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is another player whose performance defies his age. Well, sometimes he defies physics and logic too.

The Swede’s goal-scoring ability has been phenomenal throughout his career, and that has been the case even after he turned 30.

Ibrahimovic celebrated his 30th birthday in 2011 and after that he has still hit the 20 goals per season benchmark every season from 2011/12 to 2013/14. In fact, he has touched or crossed the 35-goal barrier in the last three seasons.

This time around Ibrahimovic may not get to 35, but he is just three goals short of reaching 20 for the season. His lowered goal tally this season has been due to a lengthy period he spent on the treatment table midway through the season, which is also unusual for someone like Ibrahimovic who has managed to keep himself fit consistently.

Zlatan can still score acrobatic goals despite his age, and is easily still one of the best active strikers.

Honourable mentions: Robin van Persie and Carlos Tevez

#12 How do they line up?

This team of players in their 30s will be a treat to watch, and what is interesting to note is the number of captains in the side. This is a team of leaders and born winners.

Iker Casillas: Real Madrid and Spain captain

Branislav Ivanovic: Serbia captain

John Terry: Chelsea and former England captain

Thiago Silva: PSG and former Brazil captain

Philipp Lahm: Bayern Munich and former Germany captain

Yay Toure: Ivory Coast captain

Cristiano Ronaldo: Portugal captain

Zlatan Ibrahimovic: Sweden captain