La Liga teams are the most successful in European Cup history, lifting the trophy on 120occasions.
Selecting a greatest ever La Liga XI is no easy feat. Comparisons need to be made between the dominant teams of decades past and the golden era 21st century icons.
La Liga All-Time Best XI:
- Iker Casillas
- Dani Alves
- Gerard Pique
- Sergio Ramos
- Roberto Carlos
- Xavi
- Andres Iniesta
- Zinedine Zidane
- Johan Cruyff
- Lionel Messi
- Cristiano Ronaldo
Some names, like Barcelona and Real Madrid in La Liga betting, are locks. Other positions were more contentious.
Our team lines up in a 4-3-3 with marauding full-backs from Brazil and an entirely non-Spanish front line featuring three of the most important players in the history of the sport.
The midfield was perhaps where the decisions were trickiest, with some big names left out of the XI.
Wherever La Liga ranks among the best leagues in European football, there’s no denying the strength of this team. It’s the the most impressive of any we’ve compiled so far.
Iker Casillas
Becoming a Real Madrid starter as a teenager, Iker Casillas amassed over 500 appearances for Real and became a European champion three times along the way. Success in La Liga was frequent, too.
Casillas’ legacy at Real Madrid is immense. He spent 16 seasons at the club, and for the majority of that time he was among the top three or four ‘keepers in the world.
Unlike other great goalkeepers of his generation, there was never a period when he was the unquestioned best in the world, but the longevity and consistency made this an easy pick. Arguments can be made for others, but Casillas' combination of team success and individual brilliance make him our number one here.
Dani Alves
A good right-back when he signed from Sevilla, Dani Alves evolved into a unique player at the position.
He was as important as anyone in Pep Guardiola’s majestic Barcelona sides, and his chemistry Lionel Messi made their play a joy to watch. In total, Alves won 43 trophies for club and country across his career.
His role at Barcelona led the way for players like Trent Alexander-Arnold – Alves took attacking play from full-back to a new level, becoming a primary creator rather than a charging overlapper.
Gerard Pique
There was strong competition for this spot. Carles Puyol, Fernando Hierro or Ronald Koeman could have slotted in, but it’s Gerard Pique who gets the nod.
A great reader of the game, superb passer and sturdy tackler, Pique is the perfect image of the modern centre-back. He’s as comfortable on the ball as he is competing in the air.
When he left Manchester United, he was a defender with promise but little else. Three Champions League and eight La Ligas later, Pique is one of the greats. That's before we even mention his success with Spain.
Sergio Ramos
To utilise a popular footballing cliché; Sergio Ramos is a player you love if he’s on your side and you despise if he’s against you. He’s an irritant, he’s hot-headed, but he’s absolutely brilliant.
There are some players who always deliver in big games. More often than not, Ramos does. He was the heart of the Real Madrid side that enjoyed such success in Europe. After a disappointing stint in Paris, Ramos returned to La Liga for a second spell with Sevilla. Only six players have made more appearances in the history of the Spanish topflight.
He’s usually a good online betting option to get booked and score. That’s just the way Sergio Ramos rolls.
Roberto Carlos
It was a case of picking between two of Real Madrid’s Brazilian left-backs here. Both Marcelo and Roberto Carlos were adored by neutrals.
Attack was their main priority, and they were capable of the spectacular, albeit that’s slightly more relevant for Carlos.
Carlos is one of the best full-backs in the history of the game. He won it all at Real Madrid, defending when necessary and troubling opponents as he flew down the left flank.
Xavi
Xavi was the centre of Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona. He was the hub of Spain’s international dominance. What he did in midfield was usually simple, but it was done perfectly.
Along with his teammate Andres Iniesta, Xavi ticked the game over, he kept the ball moving and surgically examined the opposition’s defence, waiting for an opportunity to play the defence-splitting pass. It's no wonder he was regularly in the discussion for FIFA Player of the Year.
His 505 La Liga appearances rank 11th all-time, while just nine players have won more La Liga titles (four of which are Xavi's former teammates).
Andres Iniesta
Usually playing further forward than his long-time accomplice, Andres Iniesta provided some goal threat from midfield.
Iniesta’s ability to retain the ball out of the tightest of spaces, to slide passes behind the defence, created chances aplenty for Barcelona across his 16-year stint with the Catalan giants.
When Iniesta and Xavi played, few who bet on football went against Barcelona.
Zinedine Zidane
Zinedine Zidane is our third midfielder, playing just ahead of Iniesta. He spent some of his Real Madrid career playing out wide, but he could play wherever his team needed him.
The Frenchman combined silky footwork with a steely edge. A managerial career, and great success, has followed for Zidane, who made football look so, so easy. The statistics will never quite do his play justice.
Zidane, who was among the highest paid La Liga stars during his day, was undoubtedly the most influential player of his generation.
Johan Cruyff
Although his period in Spain was shorter than many others in this team, Johan Cruyff cannot be left out. What he did for Barcelona, how he changed how football is played, earns a place in any XI.
The introduction of Total Football to Barcelona, first as a player and then a manager, altered the course of the sport worldwide. Cruyff is as iconic as they come.
Silverware and individual numbers do not paint a full picture of Cruyff's influence. The entire history of the game was changed by the Dutchman's revolutionary thinking as both a player and manager.
Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi was by far the best player on the planet for over a decade. His presence made Barcelona a constant favourite for the Champions League, and only Paco Gento can better Messi's tally of 10 La Liga titles.
The eight Ballons d’Or, 10 La Ligas and four Champions Leagues speak for themselves. Messi’s lethal left-foot, precise passing and mesmeric dribbling made him the supreme force in European football for over a decade.
There will never be another Messi. Many name him as the greatest player in the history of the sport.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Of course, it is Messi’s long-term rival who takes the final spot in the front line. Cristiano Ronaldo is the Rafael Nadal to Messi’s Roger Federer.
Ronaldo and Real Madrid could not match Barcelona domestically. The Portuguese forward won just two La Ligas in his time in the Spanish capital, though Real were superior in Europe in the second half of the decade, winning four Champions Leagues.
A freak of an athlete and a ferocious competitor, Ronaldo and Messi are so very different as footballers and people. They are two of the greatest ever, and will be the first names mentioned when football in the 2010s is reflected on in decades to come.
*Credit for the photos in this article belongs to Alamy*
