My Football Team of The Year
2023 has been a great year for football. We’ve seen some surprising transfers, which include the likes of Messi, Ronaldo and Neymar, which have left the world shocked.
Anyway, at the end of every football year, EA allows us to make a Team of the Year or TOTY for short. I’m not sure about the previous years, but this year, TOTY players are being selected by a voting system. The players who get voted will be available as cards in EA’s football games, EA FC and FC Mobile.
I’m choosing the players based on the value that they are giving their respective teams. I feel like that’s a good way to select the winners. However, in some cases, I take the Games played to goal to assist ratio for some insights.
Here’s my TOTY.
This post contains only my opinions. Your opinions might differ and I respect them!
Defence
Goalkeeper
Marc-André ter Stegen
The German goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen who plays for Barcelona has had a wonderful year, having 6 clean sheets, and playing 1,170 minutes. Moreover, you can see the difference he makes to Barcelona’s defence. In Ter Stegen’s absence, you can feel the wobbly defence. A great keeper as well as a great leader, thus he gets my vote.
Right-Back
Trent Alexander-Arnold
TAA is undoubtedly one of the best RBs in the world right now. The lad of 25 has done some great defending in the right, giving great value to Liverpool.
Centre-Backs
Virgil van Dijk and Ruben Dias
Virgil van Dijk is one of the best CBs right now. He is a genius when it comes to defence, takes his time to pressure, as he scans for a weakness. He also has good pace. Along with him is Man City’s Ruben Dias. The Portugese centre-back is really good when it comes to assisting Ederson in keeping the ball clear. He makes good intereceptions and blocks.
Left-Back
Theo Hernandez
The 26-year-old Frenchman has found his spot in the list of best LBs right now. Playing very well for AC Milan and controlling their left flank, he has had a great year.
Midfield
Right Centre-Mid
Pedri
Pedri is one of Barcelona’s many young talents. He is an incredible midfielder at the age of 21, making fearless plays and scoring world-class goals, the Golden Boy winner gives Barcelona the needed value to control the midfield.
Centre Defensive-Mid
Rodri
The 27-year-old Rodri is a fantastic midfielder who likes can score brilliant goals as well as anchor. Rodri plays great box-to-box giving Man City chances while in the attack and defense while facing attacks. Many clubs dream of a player like Rodri!
Left Centre-Mid
Jude Bellingham
Do I even have to say anything about this 20-year-old absolute MAD LAD? Bellingham joined Real Madrid’s squad and instantly brought value to the club’s magical midfield. Bellingham is a goal-scoring machine, and I am not even exaggerating. Although Jude plays CM, it feels like he plays CAM or even SS. He finds a way to dribble, or pass, and bring the ball into the box, where he appears out of nowhere to score. He can score from inside the box as well as bangers from outside the box. His performance has been declared well against big clubs, and Jude doesn’t disappoint. Jude won the 2023 Golden Boy award, which I would’ve been surprised if he didn’t win. Real Madrid got a good deal on Bellingham. He’s got a big future ahead.
Attack
Right-Wing
Lionel Messi
The 36-year-old World Cup winner played great with his friend Neymar at Paris Saint-Germain. In 32 games, he scored 16 goals and assisted 16. He made some great plays in Paris during his stay.
In the same year, he joined forces with Inter Miami in the United States and scored a beautiful last-minute free-kick on his debut to give Miami the three points. Messi dragged the worst team in the MLS to one of the best. Messi’s absence can be felt to anyone, even a newborn baby can see Inter Miami playing and note that the right-flank is facing some difficulties and play-making is being weird. Moreover, Messi won his 8th Ballon d’Or in 2023. A great year for the GOAT.
Left-Wing
Rafael Leao
This is a controversial opinion. It’s a tough choice between Kylian Mbappe and Rafael Leao, but I decided to give it to Leao. Let’s take a look: Mbappe has had a crazy season, scoring 25 goals in 24 games and assisting 3. But let me address my honest opinion: Mbappe is playing in a farmers league. PSG have the best players and can easily score against the other teams. I just think Leao deserves my vote more, but Mbappe will most likely be the ultimate winner.
Leao has had a good season, giving good value to AC Milan. Scoring 5 goals in 22 games and assisting 6. This position has been the toughest for me, so I’d consider it a tie, but I voted for Leao for the system’s sake. Both players have great potential.
Striker
Harry Kane
Okay, hear me out. I think Kane deserves it. Haaland might’ve won a treble and scored a great amount of goals, but I’m going to give my vote to Harry Kane.
Harry Kane left the Spurs to join Bayern Munich in the German Bundesliga, and he’s bringing in the value. He’s scored 25 goals in 22 games and assisted 8, whereas Haaland scored 19 in 22 games and assisted 5. This has also been a tough choice, but I feel like Kane has been doing wonderful in Germany, and has given Bayern some good performances. So, he gets my vote.
So this is my Team of the Year, if you want, you can make it on EA’s website.
I’m looking forward to this year in football, and I bet this is going to be one wonderful year in all regions.
