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FIFPro World XI: Real Madrid dominates, Buffon takes home 2nd prize

REUTERS/Eric Gaillard

Real Madrid was well represented when the FIFPro World XI was revealed during Monday's ceremony in London, with players from the Spanish side occupying five of the 11 spots.

The team, comprised of players which are voted on by players worldwide, features relatively few changes compared to last season.

Along with winning the Goalkeeper of the Year award, Gianluigi Buffon was also honoured with a spot in the World XI, replacing Bayern Munich's Manuel Neuer. Neymar replaced former Barcelona teammate Luis Suarez while Leonardo Bonucci supplanted Gerard Pique on defence.

(Courtesy: FIFPro)

The final team was whittled down from the 55 finalists that were revealed in September. While it's hard to argue with such a star-studded team, players such as Kylian Mbappe, Robert Lewandowski, Antoine Griezmann, Marco Verratti, Paul Pogba, Thiago Silva, Manuel Neuer, and others may feel aggrieved to miss out on selection.

There were, however, several players, such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, who essentially own their respective places in the FIFPro World XI attack.

Here are the results:

GK: Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus and Italy)

DF: Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid and Spain), Marcelo (Real Madrid and Brazil), Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/AC Milan and Italy), Dani Alves (Juventus/Paris Saint-Germain and Brazil)

MF: Andres Iniesta (Barcelona and Spain), Toni Kroos (Real Madrid and Germany), Luka Modric (Real Madrid and Croatia)

FW: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid and Portugal), Lionel Messi (Barcelona and Argentina), Neymar (Barcelona/Paris Saint-Germain and Brazil)

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