1) Sebastien Frey (Fiorentina) – It was a straight fight out of Frey and Julio Cesar for the goalkeeper’s jersey but the Frenchman just shades it following a sensational season in Florence. The 28-year-old was heroic in a whole host of games, and his performance in the UEFA Cup last 16 second leg at Everton was of miraculous proportions. Without Frey, would Fiorentina have qualified for the Champions League?
2) Maicon (Inter) – Legend has it that Douglas Maicon was meant to be named after the American actor Michael Douglas, only for the register officer to bodge up his birth certificate. Whether this hilarious story is true or not I do not know. What is certain though is that the Brazilian is the best right back in Serie A, and quite probably the whole world. His defending still needs a little polishing, but going forward he is immense.
3) Juan Manuel Vargas (Catania) – There are two things to fear in life. One is death, and the other is being hit by one of Vargas' long-range missiles (which in itself may cause death). Nicknamed “Catania's Roberto Carlos” by club fans, the 24-year-old has more of a passing resemblance to the former Real Madrid hero. His rampaging runs down the wing have become something of a trademark, and his lethal left foot has chipped in with an impressive five goals in Serie A, not to forget a wonder strike against Milan in the Coppa Italia as the Sicilians made it all the way to the semi-final. Vargas will deservedly earn a move to a big club this summer.
4) Ivan Cordoba (Inter) – Cordoba only played 20 games in Serie A before injury ruled him out for the rest of the season in late February. However in the first six months of the season, there wasn’t a centre back in Serie A who got even remotely close to matching the quality of the Colombian jack-in-the-box. When Cordoba was in the team, Inter rarely looked like conceding. After his injury they kept just one clean sheet in their next eight games and almost threw away the Scudetto having been 11 points clear at one point. Statistics such as these sum up why Cordoba deserves to be in the team.
5) Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus) – Alessandro Gamberini will feel he deserves to be in with a shout, but he is pipped to the post by Chiellini. The 23-year-old has been a revelation since switching into the centre of defence from left back. His heart, determination, and fighting spirit has symbolized what the Bianconeri have always been about over the years. This season the 30-plus old guard from the pre-Calciopoli years have largely carried the Bianconeri. Chiellini has been one of the few exceptions to this premise. His victorious battles with Zlatan Ibrahimovic were particularly memorable.
6) Daniele De Rossi (Roma) – For the first time in a while, Roma’s player of the season was someone other than Francesco Totti. De Rossi has really emerged as a true leader for the Giallorossi, and he has finally matured from boy to man. The 24-year-old has won many midfield battles this season, and Euro 2008 could be the tournament when he really stamps his class on the international game. In a few years time it is scary to think how good De Rossi could become. The future of Roma, and possibly the Azzurri too.
7) Javier Zanetti (Inter) – It is difficult to talk about Zanetti without repeating the same things you have been saying for 13 years now. At the age of nearly 35, there still isn’t a more consistent player around than the Argentine, who just seems to never have a bad game. The Nerazzurri may not be the most popular team around at the moment, but I am sure that every football fan in the world will find it is impossible not to love Il Trattore. A champion both on-and-off the field, he oozes class in everything he does. Quite simply a legend.
Marek Hamsik (Napoli) – Hamsik’s incredible solo goal against Milan in week 37 was the signature on what has been a breathtaking season. The 20-year-old is a guaranteed world class star of the future, and indeed every team in Europe already want him. Hamsik’s box-to-box thrusts have been key in Napoli’s resurrection towards the Serie A elite. He scored nine goals in the league to finish top-scorer of his side, and although he is Slovakian, he really is justifying his tag as the “new Pavel Nedved”. Juve are one of the teams who want him, but they missed their chance to bag him last summer, opting for Tiago and Sergio Almiron instead.9) Antonio Di Natale (Udinese) – The Neapolitan forward partnership of Di Natale and Quagliarella is one of the most exciting in Serie A, and this season the duo hit 29 goals between them. Di Natale scored 17 of these to finish fourth in the race for the Capocannoniere crown, while he also offered numerous assists for his team-mates as the Zebrette earned a place in the UEFA Cup. The 30-year-old is also now first choice in the Italian national team, and he could play an important role at Euro 2008.
10) David Trezeguet (Juventus) – Statistics say it all for this natural born goal machine after yet another prolific season. The 30-year-old rippled the net 20 times from just 36 games in the eighth season of his astounding forward partnership with Alex Del Piero. Trezegol missed just two matches all term, and started all but three in Serie A, thus making more appearances than any of his team-mates. Despite all of this the former Monaco man failed to even make France coach Raymond Domenech’s 30-man preliminary squad for Euro 2008, with the great Djibril Cisse and Sidney Govou preferred instead.
11) Alessandro Del Piero (Juventus) – If there is one man, other than Pippo Inzaghi, who just continues to prove the critics wrong then it is Del Piero. Despite being written off at the beginning of the season, and being torn to shreds by the media after a poor game for Italy against France in a Euro 2008 qualifier in September, the Golden Boy has gone on to have his best season since 1997/98. The 33-year-old racked up 21 goals in Serie A from just 32 starts to win the Capocannoniere crown, one ahead of Trezeguet. He has also become only the second person in history to win the top-scorer award in Serie A and Serie B in successive seasons. The other was 1982 World Cup hero Paolo Rossi.
Formation: 4-3-3
Frey
Maicon Cordoba Chiellini Vargas
Zanetti De Rossi Hamsik
Di Natale Trezeguet Del Piero
Honourable Mentions
Julio Cesar (Inter)
Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus)
Christian Maggio (Sampdoria)
Alessandro Gamberini (Fiorentina)
Max Tonetto (Roma)
Esteban Cambiasso (Inter)
Gokhan Inler (Udinese)
Massimo Ambrosini (Milan)
Mauro Camoranesi (Juventus)
Cristiano Doni (Atalanta)
Mirko Vucinic (Roma)
Adrian Mutu (Fiorentina)
Marco Borriello (Genoa)
Antonio Cassano (Sampdoria)
Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Inter)
What are your views on this topic? Who would be in your Serie A Team of the Season? Goal.com wants to know what YOU think
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