The World Cup came to an end on Sunday when Spain beat defending champions Argentina 1-0 at MetLife Stadium.
The 2026 edition started and ended with spectacular performances from football’s biggest names.
In goal, I will personally go for Athletic Bilbao’s Unai Simón, who conceded just one goal in the whole tournament. The 29-year-old was a towering presence between the posts when he was called upon.
My two center-backs are Pau Cubarsí and Cristian Romero. The Barcelona teenager was at the heart of Spain’s defense, which conceded only one goal in the tournament.
Romero also put up some breathtaking performances throughout the campaign. He scored a goal to start a comeback against Egypt in the round of 16.
My fullback spots go to Marc Cucurella and Pedro Porro.
The Real Madrid-bound left-back was an ever-present in La Roja’s backline. He provided two assists against Austria in the round of 32.
Porro was also on the right side of Spain’s defense and scored two goals in the knockout phase.
I will go for two holding midfielders in the names of Enzo Fernández and Rodri.
Fernández put up stellar performances in the knockout phase to help Argentina reach the final. He scored the winning goal against Egypt in the round of 16 and popped out of nowhere to score a belter against England in the semifinal.
Rodri, who won the Golden Ball, was arguably the best player in the tournament. Mesmeric displays against Portugal, Belgium, France, and Argentina were enough to earn a spot in my team.
The player to occupy my No.10 spot is Jude Bellingham. What a tournament this fella had. The La Liga star scored 7 goals and provided one assist. He scored twice against Mexico and followed it with another brace in the quarterfinals to send England into the last four.
My front three goes to Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, and Erling Haaland.
These three were thorns in the flesh of their opponents throughout the tournament.
Messi started the campaign with a hat-trick against Algeria, before scoring a brace against Austria.
He came off the bench to score against Jordan in the final group-stage game.
He followed it up with goals against Cape Verde and Egypt, making it eight goals in the competition. He also had four assists.
Mbappé scored 10 goals to win the Golden Boot and also made 4 assists.
Haaland’s first-ever World Cup was a revelation. After Norway’s 28-year hiatus, he helped them take a seat at the table of giants. His best performance came when he scored two goals against Brazil.
GK – Simón
RB – Porro
LB – Cucurella
RCB – Romero
LCB – Cubarsí
DM – Rodri
CM – Enzo
CAM – Bellingham
RW – Messi
LW- Mbappé
ST- Haaland
Honorable mentions:
Kane
Olmo
Olise
Dembélé
Laporte
Vozinha
De Ketelaere
Balogun
Quiñones
