BRUNO FERNANDES and Erling Haaland are on Uefa’s shortlist for the 2020 Team of the Year.
Fans will vote for the top XI from the 50 players selected in Tuesday’s announcement.
Bruno Fernandes make the cut after scoring twice for Manchester United in the Europa League mini-tournamentCredit: EPA
Erling Haaland has made a big splash in the Champions LeagueCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Last season’s pandemic-affected Champions League and Europa League campaigns saw the last-eight in both competitions battle in a unique mini-tournament.
Atalanta and RB Leipzig were the surprise packages in the premier competition, the Germans even reaching the semi-final.
But Bayern Munich won the crown and are well-represented on this year’s shortlist.
Manuel Neuer, David Alaba, Joshua Kimmich, Alphonso Davies, Robert Lewandowski, Leon Goretzka, Thomas Muller, Serge Gnabry, final goalscorer Kingsley Coman and recent Liverpool signing Thiago Alcantara all feature.
Eight Liverpool players make the cut, including Thiago, Jordan Henderson and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
The right-back is joined by Raheem Sterling and Harry Kane as the four Englishmen on the shortlist.
Chelsea have Thiago Silva and Kai Havertz in the running but both players only signed for the club midway through the year.
Bruno Fernandes is the only Manchester United star selected having netted penalties in both of his side’s games in the Germany run-off.
Kevin De Bruyne completes the 15-man Premier League contingent after Manchester City’s disappointing defeat to Lyon in the quarter-finals.
Pep Guardiola’s conquerors have two men nominated in Houssem Aouar and goalkeeper Anthony Lopes.
Two other sides exiting earlier than many expected, Barcelona and Real Madrid, have just one man featured apiece in Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos.
Paris Saint-Germain follow Bayern in boasting the most nominations.
Seven stars of the Ligue 1 champions make the cut, including Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, following their first-ever appearance in a final.
Europa League champions Sevilla have just Ever Banega on the list, the Argentine now plying his trade with Al Shabab in Saudi Arabia.
Beaten finalists Inter Milan earn two more nominations with Romelu Lukaku, whose own goal gave Sevilla the trophy, in alongside Nico Barella and Stefan de Vrij.
Josip Ilicic leads Atalanta’s trio of nominations after banging an amazing four goals in the last-16 dismissal of Valencia.
There are also places for Matthijs de Ligt, Cristiano Ronaldo and Ciro Immobile to complete the Serie A selection.
They will compete with Borussia Dortmund hotshot Haaland who took to the Champions League like a duck to water.
After impressing for RB Salzburg, the Norwegian switched to Germany in January and racked up a total of ten goals in the Champions League.
UEFA TEAM OF THE YEAR NOMINEES
GK: Alisson Becker, Keylor Navas, Jan Oblak, Anthony Lopes, Manuel Neuer
DEF: Thiago Silva, Virgil van Dijk, Angelino, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Dayot Upamecano, Sergio Ramos, Andrew Robertson, Presnel Kimpembe, Joshua Kimmich, Hans Hateboer, Stefan de Vrij, Matthijs de Ligt, Alphonso Davies, Juan Bernat, David Alaba
MID: Thiago Alcantara, Kevin De Bruyne, Houssem Aouar, Ever Banega, Bruno Fernandes, Nico Barella, Kingsley Coman, Papu Gomez, Leon Goretzka, Kai Havertz, Jordan Henderson, Josip Ilicic, Marquinhos, Thomas Muller, Marcel Sabitzer
ATT: Raheem Sterling, Mohamed Salah, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe, Sadio Mane, Romelu Lukaku, Angel Di Maria, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Joao Felix, Serge Gnabry, Ciro Immobile, Robert Lewandowski
Gerard Piqué says he is ‘first to offer to go’ if Barcelona need ‘new blood’ following 8-2 battering by Bayern Munich in Champions League quarter-final
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
