A 39-year old chasing one last World Cup trophy. A 27-year-old trying to take the crown off him. A 23-year-old dragging England toward history and an 18-year old who bends entire defenses without touching the ball. The World Cup semifinals have gathered the four best teams in the FIFA rankings for the first time ever, and more to the point for this exercise, they're matching the best players in the sport against each other.
France plays Spain on Tuesday in Arlington, Texas. England meets defending champion Argentina on Wednesday in Atlanta. The winners meet Sunday, Jul 19 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Here's the 10 best players still standing:
Eight goals in six matches, including a hat trick against Algeria that tied the World Cup's all-time scoring record and a goal against Austria that broke it. At one point he had scored in nine consecutive World Cup matches, a streak ****** ody in the tournament's history has touched. The legs might be 39 years old, but the left foot is timeless.
Also eight goals, plus three ****** ists, and the betting favorite for both the Golden Boot and the Golden Ball. His goals against Senegal and Morocco both belong in the goal-of-the-tournament conversation. France has outscored opponents 16-2, and he is the biggest reason why.