Shropshire Star

Is it possible to create a football team of players whose initials are also their position?

These players will never have come up against stricter selection criteria than this.

Published

It’s a question every football fan has surely wrangled with at some point: could a football team ever be filled with players whose initials also represented their position?

Alright, maybe not every football fan, but surely a handful.

With that in mind, the following proves the impossible can indeed be done. From Gabor Kiraly to Claude Makelele, ladies and gentlemen, your Initial XI.

A graphic showing an XI of footballers whose initials also reflect their position on the pitch

Gabor Kiraly

Former Hungary goalkeeper Gabor Kiraly
(Martin Rickett/EMPICS Sport)

Left-back

Leighton Baines

Everton left-back Leighton Baines
(Dave Thompson/EMPICS Sport)

Centre-back

Carlos Bocanegra

Carlos Bocanegra and Wayne Rooney at the 2010 World Cup
(Adam Davy/EMPICS Sport)

Centre-back

Chris Baird

Former Northern Ireland footballer Chris Baird
(John Walton/PA)

Right-back

Rainer Bonhof

Former West Germany footballer Rainer Bonhof
(Peter Robinson/EMPICS Sport)

No matter, as former Germany international footballer and 1974 World Cup-winner Rainer Bonhof comes into the side. Nice to have a bit of tournament experience in the team, eh?

Central midfield

Claude Makelele

Former Chelsea midfielder Claude Makelele
(Mike Egerton/EMPICS Sport)

Central midfield

Claudio Marchisio

Italy footballer Claudio Marchisio
(Mike Egerton/PA)

Attacking midfield

Aaron Mooy

Huddersfield Town's Aaron Mooy
(Anthony Devlin/PA)

A key cog in the midfield of a Huddersfield side who look as though they might have secured their place in the Premier League next season, Aaron Mooy is the next man in.

Attacking midfield

Anthony Martial

Manchester United forward Anthony Martial against Tottenham
(Adam Davy/PA)

Forward

Fred

Brazil footballer Fred
(Joe Giddens/EMPICS Sport)

Striker

Svetoslav Todorov

Former Portsmouth footballer Svetoslav Todorov
(Adam Davy/EMPICS Sport)

Instead, former Bulgaria striker Svetoslav Todorov joins the team, having scored heavily for Portsmouth and FC Litex Lovetch, as well as appearing for West Ham, Charlton and Wigan.

In this team, the name on the back of the shirt is just as important as the badge on the front.

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