Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior and Manchester City forward Erling Haaland lead the star-studded team of the season in the just concluded 2023–23 UEFA Champions League campaign, as announced by the organisers on Sunday.
The full eleven which was selected by UEFA’s Technical Observer Panel and was released on their official Twitter handle includes seven players from the newly-crowned champions, City, and two players each from Madrid and finalists Inter Milan.
????✨ Introducing the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League Team of the Season, as selected by UEFA's Technical Observer panel.
Who would be your captain? ©️????♂️#UCL || #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/tMrT2z3LPQ
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) June 11, 2023
Vinicius enjoyed a stellar campaign in the Champions League this season despite losing out to eventual champions Manchester City in the semifinal. The Brazilian finished the competition with seven goals and six assists in 12 games.
Haaland, on the other hand, finished as the competition’s top scorer for the second time in his short career as his 12 goals in eleven games were very vital in the Cityzens’ road to victory.
Like Haaland, Belgian talisman Kevin De Bruyne and Spanish midfielder Rodri, who won the Man-of-the-Match award in the final and was also voted as the competition’s best player, are joined on the list by the Portuguese duo of Ruben Dias and Bernardo Silva and Three Lions defenders John Stones and Kyle Walker for Pep Guardiola’s side, following their one-nil triumph on Saturday.
The 2022/23 Player of the Season ????#UCLfinal || #UCL pic.twitter.com/k47YoElORS
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) June 11, 2023
Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois joins Vinicius as the contingents for Los Blancos, while the Italian duo of Federico Dimarco and Alessandro Bastoni completes the team as the representatives for the Nerazzurri.
This is Vinicius’ second time being named in the Champions League team of the season after the 2021–22 campaign, while Haaland gets his first call-up. Courtois, like his Madrid teammate, also gets his second; while De Bruyne leads the list with his sixth inclusion into the team of the season, the remaining players have been named for the first time ever.
