Liverpool and Real Madrid combined XI: Reds dominate central defence, Mohamed Salah and Jude Bellingham are shoo-ins, but which Champions League-winning Anfield star misses out?
- The two giants meet in a repeat of the 2018 and 2022 finals - both won by Real
- Arne Slot's side lead Premier League by eight points and Real are 2nd in La Liga
- SOCCER A-Z: Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, or watch on YouTube. New episodes every Wednesday
Two Champions League giants collide on Wednesday night as Liverpool and Real Madrid face off in a mouthwatering group stage tie.
The Anfield fixture is the kind of clash-of-the-titans encounter the competition's bosses would have dreamed of when they conjured up a new league format enabling Europe's finest to meet in the early weeks of the tournament.
It is a repeat of both the 2018 and 2022 finals, which saw Los Blancos clinch their 13th and 14th titles, courtesy of a mesmerising second-half performance from Gareth Bale in the former and an opportunistic Vinicius Junior winner in the latter.
The two sides meet in good form, with Arne Slot's Reds unflappably racing to an eight-point lead at the top of the Premier League, while Real have put humiliating losses to AC Milan and Barcelona behind them to win two on the trot.
But which stars makes a combined XI of these two giants, who have lifted an eye-watering 21 European Cups between them, ahead of the huge match?
Mail Sport makes the painstaking selections so you don't have to.
Liverpool and Real Madrid meet in the Champions League in a repeat of the 2022 final
The Reds are flying at the moment and lead the Premier League by a whopping eight points
Real Madrid are just starting to build up some form themselves after a 3-0 win over Leganes
Goalkeeper - Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid)
A fit Alisson would be the obvious choice after a stellar career at Anfield and a start to the season which saw him concede just three times in eight matches, but the Brazilian shot-stopper is facing a couple more weeks on the sidelines with a hamstring injury.
But former Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois is not a bad replacement.
The towering Belgian has been beaten a respectable nine times in 13 games this campaign and has a save percentage of around 70 per cent so far.
Like many in the Real side, this is not his first rodeo and he edges talented number one Caoimhin Kelleher thanks to his depths of experience, which includes an outstanding display in the 2022 final.
Thibaut Courtois is picked on the depth of his experience, which includes winning in 2022
Right back - Federico Valverde (Real Madrid)
Our team has something of a crisis on the right-hand side of defence, with Liverpool star Trent Alexander-Arnold injured with a pulled hamstring and Los Blancos stalwart Dani Carvajal out for the season with a torn cruciate ligament.
Enter the wildcard: Federico Valverde. The centre-midfielder produced a masterclass at full-back against Leganes on Sunday, scooping up the man of the match award thanks to a solid defensively display and a goal to boot.
The tidy Uruguayan completed 94 per cent of his passes on the weekend and took 86 touches, which showed his heavy involvement from the right flank.
With five goals already this season, the 26-year-old will provide a real threat as he bombs up the pitch but if Alexander-Arnold makes a miraculous recovery - a possibility given his involvement in training today - then his place is at risk.
Federico Valverde was the best player on the pitch in an unusual right-back role on Sunday
Centre back - Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Something of a no-brainer at the heart of defence. Virgil van Dijk has been a mainstay at Anfield for years, lifting a Champions League trophy and a Premier League.
Of his many qualities, the Dutchman's ability to win almost everything in the air is perhaps his most valuable, succeeding in more than three aerial duels per game in the Premier League this season.
Confident on the ball, van Dijk can cut a defence open with a pinpoint long pass and has attempted a whopping 84 passes per match in the opening months.
To top it all off, the 33-year-old Liverpool skipper also has an eye for goal, scoring twice already this season and 25 times in his Reds career.
Virgil van Dijk is rarely beaten in the air and is a shoo-in for our all-star defence
Centre back - Ibrahima Konate (Liverpool)
Joining van Dijk at the back is his partner in crime Ibrahima Konate, who was proved an assured presence this season and become one of the first names on Slot's teamsheet.
The Frenchman has looked good in the Champions League, scoring a header in an emphatic 3-1 win at Milan and shipping just one goal.
Konate is also effective in the air, winning 82.4 per cent of his aerial duels this campaign, putting him in the top three per cent of centre-backs.
He is also putting a run together for his country, playing 90 minutes in the last four Nations League matches and even captaining Les Bleus against Italy this month.
Ibrahima Konate's assured displays have answered the question of who will partner van Dijk
Left back - Fran Garcia (Real Madrid)
It might not please Liverpool fans but flying Scotsman Andy Robertson has not been on the finest run of form this season, failing to provide a goal or assist in 16 matches.
Fran Garcia's selection largely comes as a result of his Reds counterpart's subdued displays.
While also drawing a blank this campaign, the Spaniard has looked a threat making more than six progressive passes per match and, in a very Spanish way, has completed a whopping 97 per cent of his passes.
Garcia has also looked defensively astute as Real have bounced back from the 4-0 El Clasico debacle last month with two consecutive clean sheets.
Fran Garcia has been solid at left-back this season and rarely misplaces a pass
Centre midfielder- Ryan Gravenberch (Liverpool)
Dutchman Ryan Gravenberch has been one of the stories of the season after being largely frozen out by Jurgen Klopp following his arrival from Bayern Munich last year.
The midfielder revealed that Slot called him to express his faith in him as soon as he assumed the Anfield hot seat and he has paid back his boss handsomely.
A Rolls Royce of a player who also knows how to steal the ball back, Gravenberch has racked up more than 55 passes per match in the league this campaign and can spray it long or short.
He also shields van Dijk and Konate excellently, winning a whopping 84 per cent of his battles in the air and will keep our side rock solid so the attacking stars can flourish.
Ryan Gravenberch is one of the most improved stars this term with some dominant showings
Centre midfielder - Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool)
World-Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister has an eye for the big occasion after playing a vital role in Argentina's victory over France in Qatar two years ago.
The midfielder joined Liverpool from Brighton shortly after and has impressed in a red shirt, putting in a host of impressive displays in his 64 appearances.
His one goal this season came in the Champions League and saw him tuck home a fine Mohamed Salah cross to put his side a goal up.
Another dependable figure in our XI, the 25-year-old scores particularly highly in the amount of blocks he has made and dribbles he has stopped, while Mac Allister has also won 2.34 tackles per game to add steel to the midfield.
Alexis Mac Allister enjoys the big occasion and adds yet more solidity to our midfield
Attacking midfielder - Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid)
Now it's time for the attacking flair, starting with England talisman Jude Bellingham. The once-in-a-generation star is a shoo in for our squad, providing a passing range, dribbling skill and eye for a wondergoal that few in the world can.
The 21-year-old's campaign has been frustratingly stunted by injury but he has showed glimpses of his old self with a goal in each of his last two matches.
Bellingham made a big money switch from Dortmund to Los Blancos in 2023 for £94m and scored 23 times in a magical debut season which ended with him lifting the Champions League and La Liga.
The jury is still out on what his best position is but in our team he has the freedom to make those driving runs into the box with the two Liverpool men sitting behind him, or alternatively dictate the play in the midfield with his unparalleled confidence on the ball.
Arguably world football's biggest star, few look as good on the ball as Real's Jude Bellingham
Right winger - Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
His future at Anfield may be uncertain, but Mohamed Salah's importance to Arne Slot's side certainly is not, with the Egyptian making an electric start to the campaign.
The winger joined Liverpool from Roma in 2017 for £37million, having spent two forgettable years at Chelsea, and has been the club's talisman ever since, scoring 223 goals in 367 matches and assisting a further 99.
He gave a tiny reminder of how much the Reds depend on him with a brace against Southampton on Sunday which overturned a 2-1 deficit to seal three points and extend Liverpool's lead at the top of the Premier League to eight points.
In 18 appearances this season he has 12 goals, 10 assists, four shots per game, nine touches in the opposition area per game and 3.42 dribbles into the opposition area per game. Simply sensational... good thing we don't need to negotiate his contract to get him into our side.
Mohamed Salah has been there and done it all before, winning the Champions League in 2019
Striker - Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid)
One of the world's most valuable players, Kylian Mbappe moved to Real on a free in the summer in what was the worst kept transfer secret in football.
The goal machine joined Los Blancos on the back of a fantastic spell at Paris Saint-Germain which saw him score 256 times in 308 games and provide 108 assists.
Mbappe has 12 goals in the World Cup at the age of just 25, four of which have come across two finals, making him an odds-on favourite to overtake Miroslav Klose's record.
His form has dipped somewhat with just the nine goals in 17 matches for Carlo Ancelotti's side but we're sure he will find the net in our dream team.
How could you not include Kylian Mbappe? The Real star has already broken a litany of records
Left winger - Luis Diaz (Liverpool)
Completing our selection of megastars is Colombian winger Luis Diaz, who also offers the option to rotate with Kylian Mbappe and lead the line, much to the chagrin of any opposition defence.
He was a late absentee for Liverpool's match against Southampton but the Reds managed to scrape past the bottom-placed side without their in-form wide man.
Diaz has really kicked on this season, with nine goals in 17 including three in four in the Champions League and has looked unplayable at times thanks to his trickery and speed.
The 27-year-old has also racked up an impressive 1.7 shots on target per match in the competition, and incredibly has scored with 60 per cent of his attempts.
Luis Diaz completes our XI after a fine start to the term which has seen him terrorise defences
Mail Sport took on the unenviable task of creating a Liverpool and Real Madrid combined XI
Sofascore's XI shows changes in defence and midfield as Andy Robertson breaks into the team
Sofascore's side
The stats experts at Sofascore have also taken on the unenviable task of picking the best XI of these two European giants and what they have churned up has its similarities to our attempt.
They have opted for the same dynamic front three and also plumped for Courtois in goal but have selected slightly different defences and midfields to Mail Sport's.
Sofascore prefer the safe bet of Robertson at left-back, clearly hoping he will turn in some of the performances which helped Liverpool to Champions League glory in 2019.
Meanwhile, their midfield takes on a different feel with the more attacking Dominik Szoboszlai chosen instead of Mac Allister after his opener against Southampton on Sunday.
