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‘Did Garth Crooks pick this team?’ – Fans baffled by Fifa’s ‘horrendous’ FIFPRO World XI

FOOTBALL fans have been left puzzled by the 'horrendous' FIFPRO World XI.

The Best Fifa awards were held on Monday with Lionel Messi picking up the main prize to equal Cristiano Ronaldo's haul of two.

The FIFPRO Best XI used a strange 3-3-4 formation
The FIFPRO Best XI used a strange 3-3-4 formation
Emi Martinez was left out of the line-up despite winning the Fifa Best goalkeeper award
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Emi Martinez was left out of the line-up despite winning the Fifa Best goalkeeper awardCredit: Getty
Lionel Messi scooped up the top prize for a second time
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Lionel Messi scooped up the top prize for a second timeCredit: Getty

The Paris Saint-Germain star was a shoo-in for the award following his World Cup win and he was also included in the FIFPRO World XI.

But he had to be shoehorned into a line-up that included three other forwards, including team-mate Kylian Mbappe.

Fans were left confused by the strange 3-3-4 formation that was used to fit in Karim Benzema and Erling Haaland.

Many also took aim at the defence and the decision to pick Thibaut Courtois in goal over World Cup hero Emi Martinez, despite the latter winning the Fifa Best goalkeeper award.

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The presence of Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk in defence also baffled some supporters.

He is joined in defence by Achraf Hakimi and Joao Cancelo, while a midfield three consists of Casemiro, Luka Modric and Kevin De Bruyne.

Mystified fans hit out at the line-up with one describing it as "horrendous".

Another made a joke in reference to a BBC pundit who regularly picks controversial weekly best XIs: "Did Garth Crooks pick this team?"

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And a third said: "What a joke 😂"

Another commented: "Who chucked Van Dijk in?😂"

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