“I built the best squad. I did not pick the 23 best French players.” Those were the words of France boss Didier Deschamps when he announced his squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, via ESPN FC‘s Pablo S. Torre.

It came in response to not selecting the likes of Gael Clichy and Samir Nasri for the tournament in Brazil, and over the next two months, he will have to do it all again as Les Bleus go into the 2016 UEFA European Championships as one of the favourites.

At the start of the season, when France beat Portugal 1-0 at the Estadio Jose Alvalade, the optimism around the squad was focused on the likes of Lyon’s Nabil Fekir, Geoffrey Kondogbia of Inter Milan, plus the veteran duo of Karim Benzema and Mathieu Valbuena.

Six months on, there is a very good chance that none of that quartet will be on Deschamps‘ list, with a new cluster of players, some old, some new, giving the former Marseille boss a few, probably welcome, headaches over the next few weeks.

Wins over the Netherlands and Russia during the most recent international break have brought a sense of excitement to the French people. The Stade de France crowd on Tuesday were in full voice as expectations have grown.

Seven goals scored in two games, four goals conceded to keep feet firmly on the floor. There were no looks of worry, no “what ifs” regarding the future decision regarding the ongoing case with Benzema‘s France future.

Back in September, Dimitri Payet‘s national team future looked bleak.

“Players can say what they want. I’m not going to use the media to respond to them,” Deschamps told the press when asked about his performances in the Premier League, via the Mirror‘s James Eastham. “He’s entitled to not understand why he’s not being picked, although, to be honest, it’s not really my problem.”

In the end, Payet‘s form meant even Deschamps couldn’t ignore the West Ham United forward, and against the Netherlands, the former Lille player took his chances. The 29-year-old was at the heart of everything France created, showing he could bring his club form to the international stage.

Then on Tuesday—his birthday—the Reunion-born forward came on as a second-half sub and scored a wonderful free-kick, all but firing himself into Deschamps 23-man squad. It’s Payet’s resurrection that has shown a different side to the national team boss.

Two years ago, there were calls for Morgan Schneiderlin, consistently impressing for Southampton, to get a call-up, but it took a long time for Deschamps to take the plunge. Even to this day, the inclusion of Mamadou Sakho and Moussa Sissoko still baffles some.

Deschamps is very loyal to the players he trusts. If you are on the outside, it used to be very hard to break through, or worse, get back into his plans. However, the World Cup winner seems to have softened that stance.

N’Golo Kante, while at SM Caen, was never mentioned in terms of an international call, and even after his virtuoso performances for Leicester City, there was scepticism that Deschamps would bring in an uncapped player so close to the Euros.

After 45 minutes against the Netherlands and then his first start, followed by his first goal—also on his birthday—it’s hard to see the energetic midfield man failing to make the 23-player shortlist.

Twelve months ago, Andre-Pierre Gignac and Lassana Diarra would probably have predicted their international careers were over, but Deschamps has begun to reward form and both look to have done enough to earn their place.

On the younger side, the future is looking very bright for Les Bleus. Raphael Varane and Paul Pogba are both still under 24, but it’s Manchester United’s Anthony Martial and teenager Kingsley Coman that are capturing the imagination of the home crowd.

The latter has excelled for Bayern Munich in both the Bundesliga and the UEFA Champions League, then on Tuesday, he came off the bench to score a wonderful goal against the Russians. His youthfulness, lack of fear and ability to terrorise defences could be key for France late in games.

The average age of the squad has actually increased from the 23 that were picked from Brazil. On one hand, Deschamps remains loyal, but he seems more open to bringing in younger players and newcomers, but only when their form deserves it.

You are never going to please everyone with a squad decision, but the teams and performances over the past week certainly give the feeling France are heading in the right direction. Perfect timing with the Euros just three months away.

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A “world-class” striker is reportedly Manchester United’s priority in the summer transfer window, as the club seeks to trigger a charge back towards the top of the Premier League. 

That’s according to Football Insider’s Wayne Veysey, who outlined the thinking behind this transfer plot. 

“United are in the market for an A-list front man as they attempt to reinforce a squad that has had a disappointing season,” he wrote. “… A well-placed source has told Football Insider that Jose Mourinho, who is set to be installed at Old Trafford at the end of the season, wants a ‘world-class’ forward who can score 30-plus goals a season.”

One of the forwards touted as a potential option for the Red Devils is Napoli hitman Gonzalo Higuain, who is enjoying a remarkable campaign. Veysey said United are “closely monitoring” the striker, although he’d potentially cost a whopping £74 million to prise away from Serie A. Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool are also said to be keeping tabs on the player.

It’s been a tremendous season for the Argentina international, who has netted 29 league goals so far. beIN Sports’ Matteo Bonetti put Higuain’s goalscoring feats into context:

Here is a look at some of those strikes:

Veysey offered some hope to United fans of this one potentially getting over the line, suggesting talks have not begun between the 28-year-old and the club over a new contract, which is set to expire in 2018.

It’s also noted in the piece that the Red Devils have Inter Milan man Mauro Icardi on their radar. While not as prolific as his compatriot Higuain, the 23-year-old is also a very talented striker and a player with the predatory instincts to make a difference at Old Trafford.

Here is a look at how he compares with the Napoli man in a variety of different statistical categories:

After a difficult beginning to the season, and a spell on the bench after the turn of the year, Icardi has rediscovered the kind of form that saw him share the Capocannoniere in 2014-15, when he netted 22 Serie A goals along with Luca Toni.

As these numbers from Squawka Football illustrate, Icardi is a natural in front of goal:

At the moment he isn’t befitting of a “world-class” moniker, though. In terms of finishing, perhaps, but in others areas of his game Icardi has a lot of work to do. 

Higuain, by contrast, is one of the best centre-forwards on the planet, performing at the absolute peak of his powers. If United want a player that can come in and make an immediate impact, the Napoli star would be perfect. But as is evident by his monster release clause, those types of strikers come at a significant premium.

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There is nothing like a crushing defeat to generate real perspective. In this sense, Italy’s dispiriting 4-1 loss to Germany on Tuesday night could be viewed as a blessing in disguise.

It highlighted, as bluntly as possible, exactly how much work Antonio Conte has to do before the UEFA European Championship begins in June.

After topping their qualification group without truly breaking sweat, the Azzurri perhaps had some false confidence going into this international break. But if a reality check was needed after the promising 1-1 draw with Spain last Thursday, it was duly received in the Allianz Arena.

Joachim Low’s Germany outfit were, at least, one level above Conte’s side. They snuffed out attacks with ease and cut through the visitors’ midfield like a hot knife through butter. It became all too easy, too quickly, as Die Mannschaft recorded a first win over Italy since 1995.

Afterwards, the Azzurri coach spoke to Rai Sport (h/t Football Italia) about the sobering result and said:

I repeat, there was no need to act triumphant after Spain and we realise there is a gap to be bridged to the other team.

Now we’ll wait for the season to end and try to pick the best players.

To play with a high tempo and intensity, you need it in your legs. It was inevitable some would suffer the effects of Friday’s games and that too will be evaluated.

Lack of fitness isn’t a viable excuse, especially given the fact that Germany played England two days after Italy’s trip to Spain. And besides, more obviously troubling themes had emerged even before a ball was kicked.

Conte’s selection policy has been under constant scrutiny during his time in the job, and rightly so. His decision to omit Napoli livewire Lorenzo Insigne—who, according to Squawka, has been the second-best player in Serie A this season—throughout qualification led to much head-scratching.

That particular issue was rectified in the last two friendlies, with the 24-year-old winger featuring in both games, but other selections and omissions continue to puzzle.

Conte has a natural headache in some areas ahead of this summer’s tournament. In attacking midfield, for example, he will have to choose between Insigne, Giacomo Bonaventura, Stephan El Shaarawy, Sebastian Giovinco, Antonio Candreva and Federico Bernardeschi.

But while there is an abundance of talent in some areas, in others there appears a dearth only exacerbated by the coach’s choices.

Against Germany, Italy’s central midfield looked slow off the ball and cumbersome on it. Riccardo Montolivo and Thiago Motta’s lack of pace was regularly exposed; any ball played through them was an issue as neither is quick on the turn.

In such dire straits it’s a wonder why Conte didn’t turn to Jorginho, who, according to WhoScored.com, makes more passes per game than anyone else in Serie A. The Brazil-born playmaker’s astute positional sense would have been invaluable under the circumstances.

Instead, Lazio’s Marco Parolo, a player who, while not quite as slow as Montolivo and Motta, is arguably less able on the ball and certainly less solid defensively, was introduced.

Italy’s back line was already missing two of the famed “BBC” trident of Andrea Barzagli, Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci going into the game, with the former pair unavailable because of injury.

This was compounded when Bonucci was carried off on a stretcher after sliding awkwardly in an attempt to break up another German attack.

In his place came Andrea Ranocchia, who spent much of the first half of this campaign on the outside looking in at Inter Milan. To his right was Matteo Darmian, who had failed in his marking duties for the concession of Mario Gotze’s headed goal before half-time.

It’s no surprise the Manchester United man made such mistakes; he is an attack-minded full-back by trade, yet he was chosen over the likes of Daniele Rugani, Alessio Romagnoli and Angelo Ogbonna for both friendlies in the three-man defensive line.

Worrying squad selections and substitutions aside, arguably the most concerning aspect of Italy’s Tuesday night performance was that Conte failed to adapt.

The former Juventus head coach is known as an experimental tactician, but he was unable to adjust to a German side that copied his 3-4-3 system.

He spoke about this in his post-match press conference, per Football Italia, and said:

I think Germany changed … and mirrored us, because usually (they) play with a 4-2-3-1. When you have the kind of players at their disposal who can allow you to change system from one moment to the next, it can make it one against one, a series of individual duels.

Up against a well-organised opposition utilising roughly the same shape, Italy couldn’t build good possession from the back and lacked penetration in the final third.

Direct balls to Simone Zaza often seemed the only outlet, but they were rendered ineffective by the striker’s poor touch and hold-up play. As a consequence, the Azzurri’s attacks petered out time and time again.  

Conte‘s poor decision-making had a huge impact on what was a disconcertingly tepid team performance; his squad looked underwhelming and his tactics unsure.

With less than three months to go until the start of the European Championship, he must move quickly to identify solutions.

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Suicide bomber Khalid El Bakraoui, who detonated explosives at Maelbeek metro station in Brussels as part of the coordinated terror attacks on the Belgian city last week, reportedly used the identity of former Inter Milan player Ibrahim Maaroufi in order to get into the country. 

According to Belgian authorities, El Bakraoui travelled to Italy, then Greece and finally Belgium using Maaroufi’s identity and rented a flat “where a terrorist cell is believed to have planned last November’s Paris attacks,” per Sky TG24 (via Lorenzo Bettoni of Calciomercato).

No evidence has emerged linking Maaroufi to the attacks that killed 35 people on the metro system and at Brussels’ airport. 

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When Thiago Motta joined Paris Saint-Germain from Inter Milan in January 2012, as well as bringing a level of solidity to the Ligue 1 side, the Italy international brought a change in attitude to the French capital.

To grow a team of winners, before you actually win anything, you need players that have been there and the sort of people that know what it takes to succeed at the highest level.

The former Barcelona and Atletico Madrid midfielder had won 11 separate club trophies before arriving in Paris, including lifting the UEFA Champions League trophy twice and despite turning 34 in August, Motta is as vital to how PSG play, as he was in 2012.

As an international with thousands of minutes spent on the pitch at the highest level, it’s not only important for Motta to be a winner, he still wants to play football in the right manner—despite a less than gentlemanly reputation.

“I have always said that you win football matches as a team, you lose as a team, defend as a team and attack as a team, it’s easier that way,” the 33-year-old midfielder told This is Paris on beIN Sports (h/t Ligue1.com).

He added:

Of course there are teams about that rely on individual brilliance but I think playing that way complicates things. Playing as a unit suits our team, not just because it’s my opinion but it works with our style, involving everyone makes for an easier game and in my opinion it’s better to watch too.

For PSG, winning now comes naturally, but as is the way in the city, you have to play with a certain style too. Motta’s experience is vital to that philosophy.

This season, although there have been some performances in the Champions League that have shown that he is no longer in the prime of his career, his role is as important as ever. He has played over 2,000 minutes in Ligue 1 this season, with only four players featuring more.

According to WhoScored, he is still completing a high number of his passes, up at 92.3 percent this campaign, which is actually his best return since joining the club.

Part of that could be down to the injuries picked up by Marco Verratti this season; the younger Italian has only started 11 times, compared to Motta’s 22 starts.

As Verratti continues to develop, there have been calls to see PSG go more attacking, especially at home, questioning if head coach Laurent Blanc really needs to play both defensive-minded midfielders in his starting XI.

However, it’s clear that Motta is still integral to how Blanc’s team play, and the tempo, style and direction they play at. There is still no one in the PSG side that touches the ball more than the Italian veteran.

This season, his average touches per game has gone up from 84.2 last term to 94.4 in the league. Then, to magnify his importance, when the level of difficulty is increased, Motta’s influence is increased in the Champions League.

Last year, Motta averaged 85.2 touches per game, but this season, as PSG reached the quarter-finals, his average has gone up to a staggering 114.9—amazingly, that’s 16 more per game than the next closest player, Bayern Munich’s Xavi Alonso.

He may not have any goals or assists to show for his dominance on the ball, but he is the type of player that the more you don’t notice him, the better a game he is having.

No outfield player at PSG makes more successful long passes than Motta. He may not make the final ball or the key pass, but he’s the man making the pass that gets the ball moving.

He’s certainly not lost that cynical side either. Only Serge Aurier, who does have a tendency of going to ground, has more yellow cards than Motta’s total of six this season.

For a player that only makes 2.2 tackles per game, compared to Aurier at 3.9 and Adrien Rabiot at 2.8, the veteran makes his presence felt when he needs to.

There are moments against the best sides when you may notice Motta slowing down or getting caught out, but he is still an integral part of Blanc’s squad and how PSG continue to develop and play their football.

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In a matter of days the international break will be over, and teams like AC Milan will be getting players back from national team camps.

From now until May those players will be able to focus exclusively on their clubs.  It will be all hands on deck for everyone going into the home stretch—especially at Milan, who are holding on for dear life to the sixth place in the table and a guarantee of returning to European competition.

In order to defend that place, they are going to need everyone to be on form.  They especially need a few players who have been scuffling to round into shape.

With only eight games left in the season—plus the Coppa Italia final against Juventus—these three players in particular need to get back on the right track and be major contributors if the Rossoneri are to achieve their goals.

Giacomo Bonaventura

Bonaventura has arguably been Milan’s best player this season.  Only Carlos Bacca and Gianluigi Donnarumma could present a real case for the title besides him.

But fantastic as he’s been this season, he’s dropped off a bit in the last month.  He hasn’t been terrible, but the drop-off has been marked enough that this column called him “the Milan player most in need of the international break” last week.

Bonaventura was called up to the national team, but circumstances kept him out of game action.  He didn’t feature in Thursday’s 1-1 draw with Spain, and any plans to play him in Tuesday’s game against Germany were scuppered when he took ill and had to return to Milan rather than fly to Munich.

While it’s disappointing that he wasn’t able to make another appearance in Savoy blue, the rest will probably help him.  He’s on pace to play more minutes than he’s ever played as a professional this year; a week without game action can only be beneficial.

Having him at top form will be important for Milan.  The 26-year-old has scored six goals and notched seven assists, and according to WhoScored.com he leads the team in both shots and key passes per game.

But over his last three games he’s suffered a mini slump.  In two of his last three games—Milan’s 2-0 loss to Sassuolo and 1-1 draw with Lazio—he has completed less than 70 percent of his passes, well short of his season average of 81.5 percent.

Those numbers suggest that fatigue is starting to set in—which is why the rest he’s gotten this week has been important.  With a bit of a breather under his belt and, presumably, his illness ended, Bonaventura should be able to attack the last eight games with his usual vigor—and become the danger man that Milan will need to set up their attack.

Mario Balotelli

With M’Baye Niang out for the rest of the year after being injured in an automobile accident, there is a huge opening in the starting XI next to Bacca.

From a pure talent standpoint, Mario Balotelli is the best man to do it.  He has the on-ball skills that Bacca lacks, and when he’s on his game he can be an unstoppable force.

But too often he’s not on form.  He raised the ire of manager Sinisa Mihajlovic after showing a low workrate in a late-game cameo against Genoa last month, and in his first start in the league since the new year in the immediate aftermath of Niang’s injury he was barely in the game at all, raising almost no threat against Sassuolo.

Balotelli’s form now is a stark contrast to what he showed at the beginning of the year.  In his first game since rejoining the Rossoneri on loan from Liverpool, Balotelli nearly turned the year’s first Derby della Madonnina against Inter Milan on his head.  He was denied an equalizing goal by Inter goalkeeper Samir Handanovic and barely stroked another shot wide by the width of the ball.

He played well again as a sub the next week, then started the next two games, scoring once on a textbook free kick.

But then he was shelved for three-and-a-half months due to a sports hernia, and he’s failed to regain the tantalizing form he showed at the beginning of the year since his return.

With Luiz Adriano’s form equally unconvincing and Jeremy Menez potentially the subject of internal discipline after allegedly refusing to warm up before coming on as a sub against Lazio, Balotelli will get his chances to play again.  If Milan’s attack is to regain its potency and take the end phase of the season by the horns, he will need to pitch in and show some of the form that so encouraged fans in September.

Andrea Bertolacci

You have to feel bad for Andrea Bertolacci.  He was unlikely to ever justify the fee Milan paid for him this summer.  He’s a good player, but €20 million was a massive overpay—the fee was likely influenced by the fact that Bertolacci is young and Italian.

But even though he doesn’t deserve criticism for not living up to his outsized fee, Bertolacci hasn’t even been playing to his own level this season.  He can be an excellent passer, as evidenced by his eight assists with Genoa last year.  Only seven players had more.

This year he’s only managed one, along with one goal.  WhoScored also notes that his average key passes per game have dropped to only one after registering 1.4 at the Marassi last year.

Part of his drop-off comes from the formation Mihajlovic has settled into as the season has gone on—he’s ill-suited to be part of a midfield pair in a 4-4-2.  But he’s the primary depth piece behind Riccardo Montolivo and Juraj Kucka in midfield, and with Kucka only two bookings away from the disciplinary threshold for a suspension he may end up needing to start before the year is out—to say nothing of the potential effects of injuries or red cards.

Bertolacci has to get back to some kind of form if Milan’s midfield—the team’s biggest weakness—is going to win the battle for control of the middle of the park.

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In Italy, there exists an idiom that warns against an attempt to repeat a past experience. Minestra riscaldata, or reheated soup, suggests the second time around is never as good as the first. AC Milan’s Mario Balotelli is experiencing the pertinence of this expression.

The 25-year-old rejoined the Rossoneri on loan last summer after a fruitless year spent with Liverpool in the Premier League, but he has been unable to repeat the form of his first spell with the Italian giants.

Between 2013 and 2014, Balotelli scored 26 goals in 43 league appearances for the club before departing for a second spell in English football. However, during his second time around at Milan, he has so far found the net a meagre three times in 16 outings.

It all began in a relatively positive manner. He rejoined the club not long after Sinisa Mihajlovic, whom he worked with at Inter Milan earlier in his career, had been appointed coach. And his new manager was initially impressed by the striker’s attitude.

“I knew Balotelli when he was 17, and I’m back with him at 25, I don’t know how he behaved in the meantime,” Mihajlovic told reporters prior to Milan’s win over Udinese in September. “Now he’s behaving in an exemplary way. I always try to encourage him to train at his best.”

The mercurial attacker’s discipline has been a consistent target for scrutiny throughout his career, but he agreed to a code of conduct upon his return to Milanello , per Corriere della Sera (h/t Football Italia), and he set about proving he still had plenty to offer.

And in his first start this season, Balotelli scored a wonderful free-kick on his way to picking up WhoScored.com’s man-of-the-match award in the aforementioned victory in Udine. Unfortunately, his promising beginning was soon halted by injury.

He made just one more start, in the 1-0 defeat away to Genoa in late September, before a prolonged period on the sidelines stultified any momentum he had gained. His next game in a Milan shirt would come on January 17 against Fiorentina.

Since his return to fitness and first-team action, however, Balotelli hasn’t been able to demonstrate the same quality of performance that he produced, albeit fleetingly, earlier in the campaign.

He has been restricted to substitute appearances with Mihajlovic suggesting that, even if the striker is no longer physically below par, he remains out of touch mentally.

The coach was fuming with Balotelli’s two-minute cameo in Milan’s win over Genoa in February, having to be restrained from publicly making an example of his own player by fitness coach Antonio Bovenzi at full time. After the match, he told Mediaset Premium (h/t Goal):

We should’ve scored a third goal and not risked at the end. It is also my fault, as those who don’t sacrifice themselves for the team to the 94th minute will no longer set foot on the field. It wasn’t just Balotelli, there were another two or three as well as him, they know who I’m talking about.

Mihajlovic would renege quickly as a result of M’Baye Niang’s season-ending injury, though his words acted as a stark warning.

However, such focus on Balotelli’s discipline is becoming tired to the point it may be missing the real issue. He does care for the club; he admitted his affection for the Rossoneri in 2009 while playing for city rivals Inter, per Il Giornale (h/t Goal). But while he is passionate about the cause, his suitability is questionable.

An exceptional dribbler with the confidence to try the outrageous, he is arguably the finest natural attacking talent at Milan, but he has always been an individual. Fitting him into a cohesive collective has been a constant challenge, and this issue has only been compounded by the pragmatic, functional approach underpinning Mihajlovic’s team.

Within the side, all players are expected to contribute defensively in the form of pressuring the opposition and maintaining good positioning, both of which Balotelli appears at best uncomfortable with and at worse entirely averse to.

Consequently, while he is capable of producing moments of genius in the final third, he can occasionally undermine the team’s shape without possession. The whimsical attacking magician is running out of time to prove himself a good fit for Mihajlovic’s tactical preferences.

Milan brought Balotelli back with the objective of rekindling his career and regaining a world-class striker in the process. It was a gamble worth taking, but with just eight league games and a cup final left to play, it looks increasingly unlikely that it will pay off.

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It has been a phenomenal season so far for Paris Saint-Germain and Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

The 34-year-old has been insatiable in front of goal and boasts 35 strikes and 15 assists from 39 appearances across all competitions with the French champions so far.

At international level, Ibrahimovic has added six goals from six outings, and he fired the Scandinavians to qualification for this summer’s UEFA European Championship in France.

In total, the towering striker has registered 41 goals and 15 assists from 45 appearances across all competitions for club and country—sensational statistics by anyone’s high standards.

Looking at Ibrahimovic’s role for Ligue 1 giants PSG and comparing it with the role he plays for the Swedish national team, there are lots of similarities to note.

Wearing No. 10 for both Les Parisiens and Blagult, he is also the talisman of both sides. While he is not the French capital outfit’s permanent skipper like he is Sweden’s, he does possess an influential role as Thiago Silva’s vice-captain at Parc des Princes.

Wearing the armband on a permanent basis for Erik Hamren’s men reflects Ibrahimovic’s seniority and status as an inspirational figure for the Scandinavian team.

However, it also emphasises his wealth of experience and—with all due respect—the fact that he is simply head and shoulders above anyone else in the team in terms of his ability.

Ibrahimovic occupies the same role on the pitch for PSG and Sweden, playing as the focal point of the attack.

There is one major difference, though; his supporting cast is of far superior quality in Paris than it is with his home country.

This means that he is required to be just as—if not more—creative at international level with Sweden as the team relies on him to score goals, whether it is taking the chances or making them.

That said, although he is more than capable of creating and finishing opportunities, Ibrahimovic’s main function in both teams is to put the ball in the back of the net.

Whether playing domestically or in Europe with PSG, or representing his country, the former AC Milan, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Juventus, AFC Ajax and Malmo FF man scores goals with unerring consistency.

In 116 Ligue 1 appearances for the French champions, Ibrahimovic has scored 102 goals and racked up a further 35 assists. He can add 16 domestic cup goals and another three assists from 22 matches to those league figures, while chipping in a further 19 goals and 12 assists from 31 UEFA Champions League outings.

All told, Ibrahimovic has scored 137 goals and directly provided another 50 from just 166 appearances across all competitions with PSG.

Although he has played fewer games for Sweden than he has for the recently crowned Ligue 1 champions, Ibrahimovic’s international statistics still make for impressive reading.

In just 39 matches for Blagult since he signed for Les Parisiens, the man from Rosengard has netted 34 goals and tallied eight assists in 39 outings across all competitions.

To be averaging better than one goal every two games with PSG is one thing, but to be boasting that at international level as well is another. His scoring record for Sweden is arguably more impressive than his club one—that is some feat considering his achievements in France.

Ibrahimovic can—and has—single-handedly led both teams at times. However, the weight of expectation on the super Swede is arguably greater with his country than it is with his club.

When playing for PSG, it is possible for him to take a back seat and allow the likes of Angel Di Maria, Edinson Cavani, Lucas Moura and Javier Pastore to step forward instead. With Sweden, he is rarely afforded that luxury.

If Ibrahimovic does not play for Hamren’s men, they generally tend to struggle. Although Laurent Blanc’s Paris side is still “Zlatan-dependent” to a degree, Le President has more alternatives available to him than his Swedish counterpart.

One thing is clear, though. In his current form and despite his age, Ibrahimovic is irreplaceable for both club and country.

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When fans think of the premier footballers of the last decade, the names Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are ubiquitous. Zlatan Ibrahimovic usually is included in the mix, perhaps with Luis Suarez and a few others.

Until recently, Thomas Muller probably would not have been among the very elite class for many. But as he approaches the end of his seventh full year at senior level, it’s become impossible to overlook the Bayern Munich and Germany man as a true phenomenon of the modern game, an elite footballer who deserves to be recognized in the league of Messi and Ronaldo.

A main cause for Muller taking so long to be recognized is that he is so unclassifiable. His role is so unorthodox, so unique that he really can’t be compared to anyone. And complicating things is the fact that he appears to play differently, whether at Bayern or for Germany.

When he was first brought into his national team, Joachim Low used Miroslav Klose and occasionally Mario Gomez as the main striker. With Mesut Ozil a lock in the playmaking position behind the striker, Muller was used in a wide position with Lukas Podolski opposite.

This was an effective strategy, as Germany played to counterattack, and the wingers (who were very striker-like in characteristics) were able to work hard on the wings and defend before moving into any available central space when their side broke forward in possession.

It was a strategy that had worked for Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan in their treble-winning side, which employed natural striker Samuel Eto’o in a wide role. And Muller was devastating.

Muller’s first three goals as a Germany international (all at the 2010 World Cup) came in situations in which the defense hadn’t had time to settle and he had moved to a position typical of a striker, with no teammate in a more striker-like position at the time he scored.

The other two goals he scored at the World Cup demonstrated why his role would survive later on while Podolski would be phased out of the starting lineup.

Muller’s header against Argentina and poacher’s finish against Uruguay following a parried shot from distance were other dimensions to Muller’s game that underlined the player’s incredible instincts for goal and the threat he could pose from a wide range of different situations.

Low’s Germany team has evolved since then, with Klose having retired and Gomez rarely starting at striker. Yet despite possible temptation to use Muller formally in the center forward position, Low has kept him wide right with Mario Gotze and even Ozil on occasion playing at “striker.”

It might, perhaps, appear strange for such a goal-getter to be “relegated” to a wide role, yet Muller has consistently scored even as Germany have evolved. With master technicians like Toni Kroos in midfield and with opponents more wary of their quality, Germany keep much more of the ball now than in 2010.

They counter when possible, but Muller has had to become much more poacher-like: Nowadays he scores less often from the counter, but much more from headers and redirecting low crosses from inside or near the six-yard box. Without a Klose or Gomez-type in the lineup, he needs to spend more time in the penalty area, and he does.

In not deploying Muller formally as a striker, Low has delivered a tactical masterstroke. Pep Guardiola at Bayern tried Muller as a center forward on occasion in previous years, with very mixed results. He’s not quite physical enough to play at his best as a lone striker, and being the focal point of the attack mutes his ability to slip into space unnoticed.

When formally lined up as a winger, Muller can cut outside the full-back’s zone and into that of a center-back without the latter noticing. And having Gotze and Ozil as central players in and around the penalty area, Germany can make sure not too much attention is paid to Muller.

It’s worked time and time again, and that’s why Muller still scores. And at the defensive end, the fact that Germany play a double pivot allows Muller’s wing position to be covered by a holding midfielder in the event that his side lose possession.

For Bayern, Muller’s role is different. He was indeed a winger at times earlier in his career but now is quite decidedly fixed on a central role just off main striker Robert Lewandowski. With Bayern’s creativity coming from the wings in the form of Douglas Costa and Franck Ribery, there is no overlap between Muller as a central player and the playmaker. And with Lewandowski as the primary target, Muller can look for space in a congested central area.

In previous years, Guardiola’s Bayern played an extremely possession-heavy tactical game and didn’t rely on pace to counter, making it more difficult for Muller to use his best talents and score. His goals:assists ratio was nearly 1-1 last season, with 21 goals to 18 assists.

In the current campaign, in which Guardiola has embraced the German model of using speed to transition play from defense to attack, his record stands at 28 goals and 12 assists.

Muller’s goals:assists ratio is higher this year in part because the Bavarians are getting fewer goals from Costa and his wing opposites than they did from Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben in previous years. Thus, Muller has been used more for scoring purposes.

In this regard, despite the difference in formal positioning, Muller has become more similar in function for Germany and Bayern as of late. Since the 2014 World Cup, when Klose’s ability to score was starting to wane and the idea of a “false” striker was becoming more and more a tactic that Low would rely upon, Muller has scored 14 goals but given just five assists. Previously, his record stood at 17 goals and 22 assists.

By now, it seems that Muller is actually becoming more like himself than ever before. He was a great player from an early age and played whatever role was necessary. It’s a great talent of his to be able to adapt to any situation, and the evidence of that is clear when noting how consistently brilliant he is for both Germany and Bayern, whereas other greats of today’s game suffer at least a moderate downturn when they leave their clubs for international duty.

But because Muller now is decidedly the best scorer for Germany and no less a superstar at Bayern than any of his club teammates, he’s being used in the role that suits him best: Scoring goals, in whatever way possible.

Whether lined up formally on the right or centrally behind a main striker, his style of play is similar in effect and devastating in any case.

@Mr_Bundesliga

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