I’d love to boss this Euro team

Posted Thursday, March 17, 2011 by The Sun

I’d love to boss this Euro team
DREAM TEAM ... Harry Redknapp has picked out the cream of this season's Euro talent

TOMORROW we'll see all the runners and riders lining up - but it's the Champions League I'm talking about, not the Cheltenham Festival.

The draw for the quarter-finals is 24 hours or so away and it has been an exciting experience for me and my Tottenham players in our first season involved.

We've already seen some amazing football and the knockout stages are by far the most unpredictable - which means it is only going to get better.

It's the perfect time to pick out the best all-star team from what we've seen so far with my best XI. I've deliberately excluded my Spurs players to avoid fights in the dressing room at White Hart Lane!

EDWIN VAN DER SAR Manchester Utd

RETIRING at the end of the season but still world class. Not only is he a great keeper but also an excellent user of the ball with his feet. His control under pressure is superb.

DANI ALVES Barcelona

WHAT an attacking right-back. He plays more like a winger than a defender. He is just amazing and a joy to watch. I am always impressed by his energy levels too. He has been superb this season in Europe.

THIAGO SILVA AC Milan

A CENTRE-HALF who is so comfortable with the ball even when under extreme pressure. He brings out the ball from the area so well and quickly. A lot of attacks are built from back in his own goal area. He was excellent against Spurs at White Hart Lane recently.

NEMANJA VIDIC Manchester Utd

THE perfect complement to someone like Silva. The Milan man is a great reader of the game but Vidic attacks the ball ruthlessly. A brilliant header of the ball he is uncompromising and unflinching. What a pair these two would make at the heart of your defence.

ASHLEY COLE Chelsea

FOR me, still the world's best left-back. Has been a consistent performer in Europe and in the Premier League in a difficult season for his club. Another full back, like Alves, with incredible energy levels and just seems to run and run and run.

ANDRES INIESTA & XAVI Barcelona

IMPOSSIBLE to split these two. I have watched their passing more closely than ever in the Champions League this season and it is almost perfect. They control the midfield in any game in which they play and are always ready to accept the ball even in the tightest situations.

BASTIAN SCHWEINSTEIGER Bayern Munich

A STRONG character in midfield. Did you see how he ran the game against England in last year's World Cup? Has done just that in Europe even though his team was unlucky to get knocked out in the week.

CRISTIANO RONALDO Real Madrid

HIS record has been unreal. Goals, speed, strength, the world's most expensive player has them all. Four goals this season in Europe and a key figure for Jose Mourinho at Madrid.

LIONEL MESSI Barcelona

THE best player in the world. So watchable, a proper footballer, not a brick built bulldozer. Unrivalled skill and technique, I love watching him anytime he's on the pitch, a real entertainer who has wowed fans across Europe this season.

SAMUEL ETO'O Inter Milan

EIGHT games, eight goals this season - including one this week to help Inter into the last eight. He may be 30 but he's still a superb player.

Now, just imagine the team-talk with that lot in the dressing room.

It reminds me of what Alec Stock did when he had Bobby Moore and Alan Mullery at Fulham in the 1970s.

Bobby used to tell me Alec would stroll in around 2.30pm and say 'right lads, play well, play with style, I'm off to the boardroom for a couple of gin and tonics'.

I could get used to that.