Skip to main content
FourFourTwo FourFourTwo FOOTBALL NEWS, FEATURES, QUIZZES
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
flag of UK
UK
flag of Australia
Australia
flag of US
US
flag of Canada
Canada
flag of 대한민국
대한민국
flag of Türkiye
Türkiye
  • Soccer Cleat Buying Guides
  • Newsletter
  • News
  • Video
  • Features
  • Quizzes
  • Clubs
  • More
    • Interviews
    • The Magazine Archive
    • Subscribe
    • Lists
    • How to watch
    • About
FourFourTwo Magazine
FourFourTwo Magazine
Why subscribe?
  • Fascinating feature articles, covering everything from grass-roots football to the international scene
  • 'ACCESS ALL AREAS' pass to exclusive interviews with the biggest and best names in the game!
From$29.99
View
Trending
  • WATCH the UCL
  • Transfers
  • Interviews
  • Messi
  • Ronaldo
  • EPL
Recommended reading
Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring a header for Barcelona against Manchester United in the 2009 Champions League final in Rome.
Football The Greatest Football XI of All Time - according to FourFourTwo
Thomas Tuchel
Stories England World Cup qualifiers squad: Thomas Tuchel's full team
Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has enjoyed a season to remember
Football The Greatest Ever Premier League XI - according to FourFourTwo
Quiz Quiz! Can you name every English player nominated for the Ballon d'Or since 2000?
England goalkeeper David Seaman at Euro 96
Stories “I never faced anybody that had what I call ‘disguised power’ as much as him. I saved his free-kicks in training and felt the ball almost forcing my hands open” David Seaman on David Beckham’s hidden attributes
Wayne Rooney reacts after scoring for England against Switzerland at Euro 2004.
Quiz Quiz! Can you name every England player to have been to three or more tournaments?
David Beckham
Stories Sir David Beckham: Here's the full list of footballing knights that Becks is joining
  1. Features

Who'd be in a combined England/Brazil team?

By Greg Lea published 14 November 2017

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

England vs Brazil: What if you could pick a combined XI?

England vs Brazil: What if you could pick a combined XI?

Let's be honest: England's international record doesn't bear comparison to Brazil's. While the Selecao have won the World Cup five times and scooped eight continental gongs at the Copa America, the Three Lions have just a single major trophy to their name - and even that triumph came on home soil in 1966.

Brazil are riding high after qualifying in style under Tite, with optimism comparatively low in England ahead of next summer's World Cup in Russia. Yet as this combined XI shows, Gareth Southgate does have a few top-notch players to call upon...

Page 1 of 12
Page 1 of 12
GK: Ederson (Brazil)

GK: Ederson (Brazil)

The Manchester City goalkeeper isn’t even first choice for his country at the moment, with Roma custodian Alisson preferred between the sticks. The ex-Benfica man is in fine form right now, though, and looks to be on the path to grabbing the No.1 jersey before the action gets under way in Russia next summer.

For that reason, Ederson beats off competition from his countryman to mind the net for our combined XI. In truth, none of Joe Hart, Jack Butland or Jordan Pickford come close to challenging Pep Guardiola’s go-to glovesman.

Page 2 of 12
Page 2 of 12
RB: Dani Alves (Brazil)

RB: Dani Alves (Brazil)

He may turn 35 later this season, but Alves remains among the world’s best right-backs. The former Barcelona mainstay is superb in possession and a significant attacking threat, while he’s still fit enough to shuffle up and down the flank when required.

Alves came close to joining Manchester City in the summer, before ultimately settling on a move to PSG. That decision prompted Pep Guardiola to move for Kyle Walker, who is England’s leading candidate at right-back but not quite good enough to see off the 34-year-old in this team.

Page 3 of 12
Page 3 of 12
CB: Marquinhos (Brazil)

CB: Marquinhos (Brazil)

With five full seasons under his belt in two of Europe’s toughest leagues, former Roma man Marquinhos has a great deal of experience for someone who’s still only 23. The PSG centre-back is a fine reader the game who takes up excellent defensive positions, while he also excels with the ball at his feet.

A team-mate at club and country, Thiago Silva is now past his best at 33, while PSG’s decision to sell David Luiz to Chelsea in 2016 was at least partly influenced by Marquinhos’ emergence as a regular starter. Neither Gary Cahill nor Phil Jones can match the Brazilian’s well-rounded repertoire.

Page 4 of 12
Page 4 of 12
CB: John Stones (England)

CB: John Stones (England)

It’s fair to say Stones isn’t your typical English defender. While John Terry and Rio Ferdinand were both fine ball-players in the heart of the backline, both men were also capable of the type of sleeves-up, muck-and-nettles style of defending which tends to be venerated on these shores.

There have, conversely, always been question marks over Stones’ natural defensive instincts, but even his harshest critics cannot deny that the Manchester City defender has been imperious so far this season. His standout quality remains his ability in possession, but Stones has also been solid and robust in a more traditional sense.

Page 5 of 12
Page 5 of 12
LB: Marcelo (Brazil)

LB: Marcelo (Brazil)

Marcelo has been a Real Madrid player for 10 years now, but it seems as though the left-back has only begun to receive the credit he deserves in the last couple of seasons. A defender in the loosest sense of the word, the Brazilian is a wonderfully talented footballer who pushes forward at every opportunity, often underlapping to create in central areas rather than overlapping to whip crosses into the box.

Critics who assert he cannot defend are often guilty of missing the point: playing for sides like Madrid and Brazil, Marcelo is instructed to advance up the pitch – it’s largely down to his team-mates to provide cover.

Page 6 of 12
Page 6 of 12
CM: Casemiro (Brazil)

CM: Casemiro (Brazil)

Being a defensive midfielder for Brazil and Real Madrid must be a mixed blessing: watching the magic at close quarters, yet having to get through an awful lot of work to help it happen. Casemiro doesn’t mind, having firmly established himself for los Merengues under Zinedine Zidane and the Selecao under Tite.

For Brazil, he has been so impressive that he has edged out Manchester City’s Fernandinho; Tite has been wondering aloud about trying the two of them together. That might sound slightly defensive, but let’s not forget that when allowed to range forward, Casemiro can produce the sort of shot that flew past Gigi Buffon in the 2017 Champions League Final.

Page 7 of 12
Page 7 of 12
CM: Eric Dier (England)

CM: Eric Dier (England)

This was perhaps the toughest pick of the entire team, in a position in which neither Brazil nor England is particularly blessed with high calibre options. Paulinho and Renato Augusto have been important players for their country under Tite but doubts persist, while Jordan Henderson still doesn’t fully convince for Liverpool or England.

It’s therefore Dier who gets the nod, forming a solid base alongside Casemiro which should provide the team’s forward line with a vital defensive platform. An underrated passer, the Tottenham man is adept at recycling possession and linking the back of the team with the front.

Page 8 of 12
Page 8 of 12
RW: Raheem Sterling (England)

RW: Raheem Sterling (England)

Unfairly scapegoated following England’s ignominious exit at the hands of Iceland at Euro 2016, Sterling remains one of the Three Lions’ chief attacking threats and most important players.

The 22-year-old has been showing his worth at club level this term, scoring seven goals and providing two assists to help Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City march to the top of the Premier League table. Willian is a useful player who thrives on the counter-attack, but Sterling edges out the Chelsea man on the right flank.

Page 9 of 12
Page 9 of 12
AM: Philippe Coutinho (Brazil)

AM: Philippe Coutinho (Brazil)

Coutinho has mostly been deployed on the right in his last few outings for Brazil, with Neymar commandeering the left flank and no No.10 in Tite’s system. We’ve opted for a 4-2-3-1 formation for our joint team, though, which means the Liverpool schemer can be deployed behind the striker.

Tottenham’s Dele Alli is England’s foremost candidate for this position. The 21-year-old would offer a different interpretation of the role – he’s more of a second striker these days – but Coutinho gets the nod as our attacking midfielder.

Page 10 of 12
Page 10 of 12
LW: Neymar (Brazil)

LW: Neymar (Brazil)

The easiest choice of the lot, Neymar is one of the world’s top three players and is therefore a shoo-in for our combined XI. The Brazilian’s earth-shattering move from Barcelona to PSG in the summer brought plenty of attention to the 25-year-old off the pitch, but he’s already started to show why the Ligue 1 giants smashed the world record transfer fee to bring him to France.

Marcus Rashford is a talented youngster who’s impressed on the left for Manchester United this year, but he’s not yet anywhere near Neymar’s level.

Page 11 of 12
Page 11 of 12
ST: Harry Kane (England)

ST: Harry Kane (England)

Gabriel Jesus has established himself as Brazil’s first-choice No.9 under Tite, fighting off competition from Roberto Firmino to lead the line for his country. A fantastic young talent, the Manchester City striker has also been in tremendous form at club level, averaging a goal every 86 minutes in the Premier League this season.

Despite that, Kane is our choice up front. The England centre-forward continues to confound expectations and would be the perfect focal point for this team, with Sterling, Neymar and Coutinho likely to provide the Spurs frontman with plenty of ammunition.

Total players per country: England 4, Brazil 7

Page 12 of 12
Page 12 of 12
Greg Lea
Greg Lea
Social Links Navigation

Greg Lea is a freelance football journalist who's filled in wherever FourFourTwo needs him since 2014. He became a Crystal Palace fan after watching a 1-0 loss to Port Vale in 1998, and once got on the scoresheet in a primary school game against Wilfried Zaha's Whitehorse Manor (an own goal in an 8-0 defeat).

Read more
Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring a header for Barcelona against Manchester United in the 2009 Champions League final in Rome.
The Greatest Football XI of All Time - according to FourFourTwo
Thomas Tuchel
England World Cup qualifiers squad: Thomas Tuchel's full team
Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has enjoyed a season to remember
The Greatest Ever Premier League XI - according to FourFourTwo
Quiz! Can you name every English player nominated for the Ballon d'Or since 2000?
England goalkeeper David Seaman at Euro 96
“I never faced anybody that had what I call ‘disguised power’ as much as him. I saved his free-kicks in training and felt the ball almost forcing my hands open” David Seaman on David Beckham’s hidden attributes
Wayne Rooney reacts after scoring for England against Switzerland at Euro 2004.
Quiz! Can you name every England player to have been to three or more tournaments?
Latest in
Arsenal target Viktor Gyokeres
Arsenal 'agree five-year deal' with Viktor Gyokeres, with deal within touching distance: report
Alexander Isak has been continuously linked with a move to Arsenal
Liverpool report: 'Historic wage-breaking deal' coming for Alexander Isak, with Reds looking at other attackers
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe waving
Newcastle United launch monster bid for defender: report
Liverpool target Marc Guehi
Liverpool strike 'agreement in principle' over Marc Guehi move: report
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is looking reshape his midfield
Arsenal midfielder edging towards exit, following frosty comment: report
Lionel Messi #10 of Inter Miami CF walks out of the tunnel prior to the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 group A match between Internacional CF Miami and SE Palmeiras at Hard Rock Stadium on June 23, 2025 in Miami Gardens, Florida.
Barcelona given green light for stunning Lionel Messi homecoming: report
Latest in Features
Tim Howard in action for Everton in 2012
Quiz! Can you name every Premier League player with between 80 and 100 goals?
Women's Euro 2025 predictor
Women's Euro 2025 predictor: Play with our interactive prediction game
Esther Gonzalez plays against Leah Williamson and Alex Greenwood during the UEFA Women's Nations League 2024/25 Group A3 match between Spain and England at RCDE Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, on June 3, 2025.
Women's Euro 2025 fixtures: The full schedule
Newcastle United 2025/26 third kit
The Newcastle United 2025/26 third kit is out - and this is one of the Magpies' greatest-ever efforts
Paul Gascoigne in action for England at the 1990 World Cup.
Quiz! Can you name every nation to have reached a World Cup semi-final?
Quiz! Can you name every English player nominated for the Ballon d'Or since 2000?
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Arsenal target Viktor Gyokeres poses with his medal after the Portuguese League football match between Sporting CP and Vitoria Guimaraes SC at Jose Alvalade stadium in Lisbon, on May 17, 2025. Sporting Lisbon defended their Portuguese crown today with a 2-0 win over Guimaraes to hold off rivals Benfica on the final day of the Primeira Liga season.
    1
    Arsenal 'agree five-year deal' with Viktor Gyokeres, with deal within touching distance: report
  2. 2
    Liverpool report: 'Historic wage-breaking deal' coming for Alexander Isak, with Reds looking at other attackers
  3. 3
    Newcastle United launch monster bid for defender: report
  4. 4
    Liverpool strike 'agreement in principle' over Marc Guehi move: report
  5. 5
    Arsenal midfielder edging towards exit, following frosty comment: report

FourFourTwo is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About FourFourTwo
  • Advertise with us
  • Worldwide
  • How to pitch to FourFourTwo

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...