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Juventus v Barcelona: Team of the Year nominees compared

UEFA.com reporters Paolo Menicucci and Graham Hunter stake the claims of their clubs' Team of the Year representatives ahead of tonight's meeting between Juventus and Barcelona.

Juventus v Barcelona: Team of the Year nominees compared
Juventus v Barcelona: Team of the Year nominees compared ©UEFA.com

Chiellini or Piqué? Dybala or Suárez? Room for Iniesta? Ahead of Juventus and Barcelona's meeting in Turin this evening, UEFA.com reporters Paolo Menicucci and Graham Hunter look at the two clubs' Team of the Year nominees.

PICK YOUR TEAM OF THE YEAR

THE GOALKEEPER

Does Buffon make your Team of the Year?

Gianluigi Buffon
Paolo: At 39 you'd expect most players to be winding down. Wrong! In 2017 Buffon was once again at his very best, on and off the field. I cannot remember how many great saves he made but I do remember one – probably not the most spectacular – against a rising star 21 years his junior: "I swapped shirts afterwards with Mbappé because when I was young, a famous player refused and I hated it," he said. Legend.

THE DEFENDERS

Giorgio Chiellini*
Paolo: After an injury-hit 2016, the veteran centre-back returned to his best in 2017. Three-man defence or back four? It doesn't matter to Chiellini, who remains simply formidable. Brave and selfless, I've lost count of the number of times he's finished a game with a bandaged head. "I've got three points on the pitch and eight stitches in my head," he said recently after cutting his head open against Olympiacos.

Alex Sandro
Paolo: It may not have resulted in Juventus winning the UEFA Champions League, but Mario Mandžukić's goal in the Cardiff final was one of the finest strikes of the year. Sandro played no small part with a brilliant first-time cross. His attacking quality is well documented, but his defensive ability has really improved since he joined Juve.

Barcelona stalwart Gerard Piqué
Barcelona stalwart Gerard Piqué©Getty Images

Gerard Piqué
Graham: He may not wear the captain's armband, but Piqué sets the tone. Competitive, stylish and totally committed to the idea of playing out from the back, above all else he is a ferocious competitor. When he's in the groove, when he's in his athletic prime, this is the best, most elegant and intelligent central defender around.

THE MIDFIELDERS

Miralem Pjanić
Paolo: It took him time to adapt to his new team, but Pjanić's controlled and classy play in the middle of the park is now integral to Juve's game. Also known as 'The pianist', he is equally comfortable in a two or three-man midfield, while his set pieces provide a real threat from all angles.

PICK YOUR TEAM OF THE YEAR

Andrés Iniesta
Graham: Whenever I've asked Iniesta's opponents or team-mates about him they always say the same thing: this is a footballer who makes the difficult things simple. The fact his style is so beautiful to watch is a bonus. That he's also conquered injury problems, taken on the load left by Xavi Hernández's departure and become a successful, trophy-winning captain is indicative of his greatness.

THE FORWARDS

Five great goals from Argentina featuring Dybala and Messi

Paulo Dybala
Paolo: Many observers billed last season's much anticipated UEFA Champions League quarter-final between Juve and Barça as a duel between Lionel Messi and his potential successor Dybala. Not many players elicit such a sincere comparison, and Dybala duly lived up to the hype with two goals in the Turin first leg. He's not called 'La Joya' (The Jewel) for nothing.

Lionel Messi
Graham: Not only is Messi's talent an absolute one-off, so is his ability to keep producing era-defining displays, stunning goals, brilliant assists and fabulous entertainment. Pressure, form, physical issues, generational changes, coaching departures – these are no distraction to Messi. He just keeps delivering, as only a genius can.

Luis Suárez
Graham: The world knew the Uruguayan was an arch-competitor, that he was prolific in front of goal and that he had oodles of top-level experience. But this has been the stage of his career when, because of his immense regard for – and connection with – Messi, he's shown even more of his football smarts and capacity to create as well as score goals.

PICK YOUR TEAM OF THE YEAR

*Written before Chiellini was declared unavailable for Wednesday's game due to a thigh injury