Zinedine Zidane named his all-time Premier League XI in 2016 and it contained some surprises

Zinedine Zidane is one of the greatest footballers in history.

During a career spanned 17 years, the graceful attacking midfielder lit up pitches around the world with his unique brilliance.

Zidane didn’t possess a single weakness. The French icon was tall and powerful, had a first touch so good that it looked like he had pillows for feet and could also wreak havoc on the opposition with either foot.

The 50-year-old received a plethora of individual honours throughout the course of his career, including three FIFA World Player of the Year awards (1998, 2000 & 2003) and a Ballon d’Or (1998).

As well as being one of the game’s great players, Zidane has proven in recent years that he’s an elite-level manager.

‘Zizou’ was the mastermind behind Real Madrid‘s historic three-peat in the Champions League from 2015/16 to 2017/18.

So when a man with a CV like Zidane gives his opinion on the all-time Premier League XI, you stand up and take notice.

And the Frenchman did just that during an interview in 2016. He selected a team packed with legendary figures, one with a few surprises thrown in for good measure.

Let’s take a look at Zidane’s chosen XI, which is lined up in a classic English 4-4-2 formation…

The XI: Peter Schmeichel, Gary Neville, Rio Ferdinand, Jaap Stam, Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard, Claude Makelele, Patrick Vieira, Paul Scholes, Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo.

It’s a quality team, of that there can be no doubt.

However, it’s interesting to note that the four leading goal scorers in Premier League history, Alan Shearer, Wayne Rooney, Andrew Cole and Sergio Aguero, all miss out.

There’s also the absence of Roy Keane, a man revered as arguably the greatest captain to grace the division since its inception in 1992/93.