International friendly: Italy vs England - Combined XI

European heavyweights Italy and England are all set to clash in the Juventus stadium for a crunch international friendly this Tuesday. Both the sides will be fresh from their respective Euro qualifying games and will be aiming to continue their unbeaten run.The two sides last met in the group stages of the World Cup last summer, where the Azzurris prevailed over, 2-1. This time, however, with some old guards missing out on injuries and several new faces donning the field, the razzmatazz surrounding the fixture has gone slightly up a notch.Both sides boast an array of talented players in their squad. What if we choose the best players from both the sides, from each position, and club them into one single team ? What an enticing prospect would it be!So here it is. A combined starting XI of Italy and England, picking up some of the best players in each position.

#1 Goalkeeper: Gianluigi Buffon

A really tough call as the custodians from both the nationals are doing a great job for their respective teams. But despite being 36, Italy veteran Gianluigi Buffon shades his England counterpart Joe Hart in goal for this dream XI.

After the World Cup disappointment last summer, Buffon returned in fine fettle for the Bianconeris and has proved to be Serie A’s safest hands, having conceded the least amount of goals with a paltry 14 in 28 games. Age seems no bar for the towering Italian, who, despite being in his dotage, continues to pull off magnificent saves of yore and is still regarded as one of the best in the business at the moment.

The most capped player of Italy has kept 2 clean sheets in his last 4 games for the Azzurris and is likely to take up his place in between the pipes for this crunch game.