UCL Best XI of decade: Ronaldo, Messi & Bale form attacking trio, Neuer in goal

It's been one hell of a decade for the Champions League.

The years 2010 to 2020 (well, almost – one group stage shouldn't be too transformative but we 100% reserve the right to make a change or two if they do) have seen some phenomenal football: two trebles, perhaps the greatest team of all time, one of the most successful teams of all time and an against-all-odds win to top it all off.

But what about the players? This decade has, more than any other in the competition's history, been dominated by players. Two in particular, of course, but there have been other great individual talents throughout the last 10 years of Champions League football. 

So here we selected the best team over the past 10 seasons.

BEST XI OF THE DECADE IN UCL

Manuel Neuer

Winner: 2012/13 (treble)

Runner-up: 2011/12

He began the decade getting lobbed from 50 yards by Dejan Stankovic and having Darron Gibson score against him, but Manuel Neuer recovered, joined Bayern Munich and became a supernatural force of goalkeeping for the vast majority of the last 10 years. He's made more saves (261) than anyone else in that timeframe.

Dani Alves

Winner: 2010/11 (double), 2014/15 (treble)

Runner-up: 2016/17

A sublime playmaker, a relentless ball of energy and a master of the dark arts. Dani Alves could do it all and pretty much did do it all for Barcelona. His later tour for a third win was unsuccessful, but no one can deny that the Brazilian is Més Que un Right-Back.

Gerard Piqué

Winner: 2010/11 (double), 2014/15 (treble)

Runner-up: n/a

Came into this decade a treble winner and maintained that absurd level for the ensuing 10 years with more clearances (410) than any other player in that timeframe. His bad games are so memorable precisely because they are the rare exceptions in the career of the most consistent defender in the last decade of Champions League football. A colossus.

Sergio Ramos

Winner: 2013/14, 2015/16, 2016/17 (double), 2017/18

Runner-up: n/a

How do you describe Sergio Ramos? In terms of pure defending, you'd take both men from the second XI over him. But Ramos has an X-factor that simply cannot be denied. Almost single-handedly (headedly?) won Real Madrid their first two Champions League titles this decade, Ramos is a glorious leader and a gargantuan figure in the history of the competition.

Marcelo

Winner: 2013/14, 2015/16, 2016/17 (double), 2017/18

Runner-up: n/a

Quite possibly the most underrated player in the last decade of Champions League football. Marcelo is unparalleled on the ball and so often the man who set the table for Real Madrid, controlling the tempo of games and kickstarting Madrid's attacks from deep. A wizard.

Sergio Busquets

Winner: 2010/11 (double), 2014/15 (treble)

Runner-up: n/a

Sergio Busquets changed the game for defensive midfielders. An exemplar of Pep Guardiola's passing philosophy, he's been running the show in the Blaugrana midfield this whole time. And considering people only ever look at his passing, it's worth mentioning that Busquets has more tackles (268) and interceptions (196) than anyone else in the last decade of Champions League football.

Xavi

Winner: 2010/11 (double), 2014/15 (treble)

Runner-up: n/a

Xavi bowed out of the competition halfway through the decade and his peak straddles its beginning, but even three years of peak Xavi is enough to make this team. The Catalan controlled space and time like he was wielding god-damn Infinity Stones, running quite possibly the greatest midfield in competition history with a serene sense of inevitability. It's not about how many you win but how you win them and no one won them better than Xavi. The whole of the modern game is built in his image.

Andrés Iniesta

Winner: 2010/11 (double), 2014/15 (treble)

Runner-up: n/a

Where Zinedine Zidane embodied a certain role in the 90s and 00s, Andrés Iniesta did so in the 00s and 10s. A magical, almost ethereal, midfielder who seemed to glide over the pitch and was always able to pick the right pass and. The bigger the stage, the better Iniesta played. A gift to watch.

Gareth Bale

Winner: 2013/14, 2015/16, 2016/17 (double), 2017/18

Runner-up: n/a

Gareth Bale began this decade blowing the European Champions off the park with an unreal hat-trick for Spurs against Inter, and he only got better from there. Real Madrid may never love him, but he scored the winning goal in two of their four Champions League finals and powered them to a third. Put some respect on his name, please!

Cristiano Ronaldo

Winner: 2013/14, 2015/16, 2016/17 (double), 2017/18

Runner-up: n/a

No one player had scored more than 70 goals in the 55-year history of the Champions League prior to this decade beginning. Cristiano Ronaldo has, in the last 10 years, scored 105 times. One hundred and five times. He's also won the competition four times while scoring in three finals (a record). Goals change games and nobody does goals like Ronaldo.

Lionel Messi

Winner: 2010/11 (double), 2014/15 (treble)

Runner-up: n/a

An inconceivable hybrid of world-class goalscoring (93), goal-making (23 assists, 58 big chances created) and dribbling (427). To emphasise his brilliance he has completed 168 more dribbles than the next best man – a margin of victory no one else can come close to in any major statistical category. He is breathtaking to witness in full flight, like a bolt of lightning come to life. The best player on planet earth, bar none.

Manager: Zinedine Zidane

Winner: 2015/16, 2016/17 (double), 2017/18

Runner-up: n/a

Zinedine Zidane has never not won the Champions League as a manager. Is he any good tactically? Not really. But, again: he has tried three times to win the UEFA Champions League and every single time he took home the trophy. You can't ask for more than that.