According to Imna news agency, after 104 matches, 308 goals and five weeks of intense competition, the 2026 World Cup file was closed; The tournament, which was called the biggest World Cup in history with the participation of 48 teams, and finally ended with the championship of Spain. GOAL website has chosen the best team of this competition; A team of stars who made the biggest impact during the tournament. In the first part of this report, we review the goalkeeper, four defenders and the first selected midfielder.
The goalkeeper Vozinia (Cape Word)
The 40-year-old Vozinia made one of the most interesting stories of this World Cup. The experienced defender of Cape Verde was the most important part of his team on the unexpected way to the elimination stage; A team that may not have won a single victory, but with three draws against Spain, Uruguay, and Saudi Arabia, they qualified for the round of 16 and faced Argentina.
He attracted attention for the first time with seven interceptions against Spain; The match ended in a goalless draw. But Vozinia's real masterpiece was against Argentina; Where, with eight extraordinary reactions, he repeatedly prevented Lionel Messi and his teammates from scoring and kept his team in the match until overtime.
The veteran goalkeeper of Cape Verde has now become a national hero and a lasting figure in the history of the World Cup; To the extent that they even put his name on a new species of sea creature.
Right defender Pedro Poro (Spain)
The World Cup can change a player's career path forever, and Pedro Poro was one of those people. The Tottenham defender wasn't even Spain's first choice on the right side of the defense at the start of the tournament, but since replacing Marcos Llorente against Austria, he has never lost his place and left the tournament with a World Cup medal.
In the match against Austria, in addition to blocking the opponent's left flank, Puro scored Spain's second goal with a header. Then, against Portugal in the Round of 16, he registered the highest defensive performance of the match by recording 9 defensive actions, and then he gave a brilliant performance against Belgium.
In the semi-final against France, he also scored a valuable goal, and in the final, his accurate pass was the foundation of the only goal of the match. The performance that made him the best right defender in the cup.
Central defender Pau Cobarsi (Spain)
Despite being only 19 years old, Pau Cobarsi was one of the main phenomena of the 2026 World Cup. Barcelona's young defender became the main pillar of Spain's defense line; The team that conceded only one goal on the way to the championship and finally won the cup.
In these competitions, Kobarsi stopped attackers such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi, and his performance against Mbappe in the semi-final was one of the best defensive performances of the entire tournament.
In addition to his defensive ability, with his exemplary calmness and high-quality passes, he repeatedly took Spain out of pressure and played an important role in starting his team's attacks. This performance made him win the best young player award of the World Cup.
Central defender Lisandro Martinez (Argentina)
Although Argentina did not go through weak days in terms of defense in this World Cup, Lisandro Martinez was still the symbol of Albiceleste's fight and indomitable spirit.
The defender of Manchester United, despite not being very tall, had an extraordinary quality in making plays from the back of the field and, as always, provided an unparalleled performance in physical battles and mental wars.
In terms of statistics, he was one of the most successful central defenders in the cup and played a decisive role even in the offensive phase; First, he set up Lionel Messi's goal with a wonderful long pass, and then he scored with a finisher in extra time in a breathtaking match against Cape Verde.
The only bitter thing for Martinez was the injury that made him leave the final halfway through.
Left defender Mark Cucoria (Spain)
If before the World Cup there were still doubts about Mark Kokoria's place among the best left backs in the world, this competition removed all those doubts.
The Chelsea defender, who has now joined Real Madrid, was one of the main pillars of the Spanish championship. He did not dribble even once in the five matches leading up to the final and did not allow them to show off against stars like Ousmane Dembele and Michael Ulis.
In addition to the defensive strength, Kokoria was also a very effective piece in attacks. He gave a goal assist against Saudi Arabia in the group stage, and then against Austria in the round of 16 with two accurate passes, he scored two goals for Mikel Oyarzabal to be named one of the most complete defenders of the cup.
Defensive midfielder Rodri (Spain)
It was no surprise that Rodri was selected for the World Cup. The winner of the 2024 Ballon d'Or became his best version again at the most critical moment and led Spain to the championship from the heart of the midfield.
The Manchester City star was the usual leader in the role of midfielder number 6; A player who controlled the rhythm of matches with exemplary calmness, made hundreds of accurate passes and repeatedly thwarted opponents' attacks before formation.
Rodri was the main pillar of Luis Delafuente's system and without his presence, Spain's style of play would not have been implemented in this quality. His statistics are also indicative of this extraordinary effect; He recorded the highest percentage of success in midfield duels among all midfielders in the cup, he made the most line-breaking passes in the attacking third among the players of this era; A statistic that was unprecedented since Toni Kroos in the 2014 World Cup (62 line-breaking passes).
Furthermore, no player completed as many correct passes in the attacking third as Rodri, and more surprisingly, he recorded the most number of successful passes recorded by a player in World Cup history since records began in 1966.
The 2026 World Cup for Rodri was nothing less than a tactical masterpiece in the midfield; A lackluster performance that eventually earned him the World Cup Golden Ball award as the best player of the tournament.
Midfielder Jude Bellingham (England)
In fact, if Jude Bellingham was not there, what would be the fate of England in this World Cup? The star of Real Madrid for the second big tournament in a row, was again the same player that the Three Lions relied on in the most difficult moments, and he once again answered their trust with brilliance.
By scoring seven goals, Bellingham scored 35% of England's goals in the World Cup. A statistic that made him the best scorer in the history of England in a World Cup period. He made the difference many times with powerful penetrations from deep in the field or timely presence in the penalty area.
His unforgettable display against Mexico in the round of 16, where he scored twice to lead his team to victory, will forever be etched in the history of English football and the World Cup. The decisive goal against Croatia and the double against Norway were also his other decisive moments in this tournament.
Bellingham proved once again that he is a player for big matches and big moments and gave a decisive answer to all doubts about his place in Thomas Tuchel's squad.
Now his role in the English national team is undeniable.
Attacking midfielder Michael Ulysses (France)
Almost no one doubted that Michael Ulysses was going to carry over his superb form at Bayern Munich to the World Cup, but a tactical change by Didier Deschamps has seen the best version of him in America.
After only one match, the head coach of France changed the places of Ulysse and Ousmane Dembele and transferred Ulysse to the role of number 10; A decision that had a wonderful result, because the Bayern star seemed to have played in the same position for years.
In this cup, Oliseh was reminiscent of the classic football polymakers; A player who moved calmly on the field, constantly looking to create chances and with his stunning technique, he took the defenders out of the flow of the game one after another.
His performance against Sweden in the Round of 16 was one of the best individual performances of the Cup. He completely controlled the pulse of the match and with two wonderful assists in the second half, he paved the way for the goals of Bradley Barkola and Kylian Mbappe; First, with an explosive move and passing the opponent's defender with a spectacular pass, he put Barkola in a goal position, and then with a perfect deep pass, he gave Mbappe an ideal position.
This performance made Oliseh win the title of the best passer of the World Cup with seven assists. A statistic that is a new record in the history of these competitions.
Right winger: Lionel Messi (Argentina)
What else is left unsaid about Lionel Messi? The legend of Argentina, who had many doubts about his participation in this World Cup before the start of the tournament, at the age of thirty-nine once again overturned all the predictions; Not only did he appear in the tournament, but he was one of the most influential players in the entire tournament.
With complete freedom in the offensive line, Messi once again displayed his usual magic and many believe that with his performance in this cup, he put the final stamp of approval on his position as the best footballer in history, because he repeatedly carried Argentina, who had an ordinary performance in many competitions, to the finals.
He scored six goals in the group stage; Including a superb hat-trick against Algeria, and in the knockout stages he was again the savior of his team with six direct effects on goals. The peak of his brilliance was in the semi-final against England; Where, with two decisive assists, he led Argentina to the final match.
Messi is still the best player that football has ever seen; The only big regret was that he could not finish this legendary story by winning the final.
Nok attacker Erling Holland (Norway)
Did anyone doubt that Erling Holland will shine in his first World Cup? Manchester City's goal-scoring machine produced a superb display in his first appearance at a major tournament, dispelling any doubts about his ability to shine at national level; And while playing with a smiling face and exemplary self-confidence.
Holland played a major role in Norway's performance beyond expectations. He scored two goals in each of his team's opening two matches, scored the winner in the round of 16 against Ivory Coast and then, in the biggest surprise of the World Cup, scored a brace against Brazil in the round of 16, the most historic victory in Norwegian football history.
We can only hope that Norway will not have to wait another 28 years to participate in the World Cup again, because it would be a shame to be deprived of the biggest football tournament in the world from the presence of such a great talent as Holland.
Left winger Kylian Mbappe (France); King of the World Cup
Although France's championship dream ended with defeat in the semi-finals against Spain, and Mbappe will bear part of the responsibility for this failure, the 27-year-old French superstar successfully completed his personal mission; By passing all the competitors, he became the best scorer in the history of the World Cup.
Given his age and Lionel Messi's possible retirement from the World Cup, there is almost no doubt that Mbappe will make this record even more elusive in the coming years.
As always, Mbappe shined on the biggest football stage in the world. He had a great performance in all the French matches except the semi-final against Spain; Two goals against Senegal, two goals against Iraq, a double against Sweden, two assists against Norway, scoring in the knockout stages against Paraguay and Morocco, and finally two more goals in the ranking match, which made him win the Golden Boot of the 2026 World Cup and also become the best scorer in the history of these competitions.
Some may not consider this achievement very valuable due to France's failure to win the championship, but considering that Mbappe has at least two more World Cups ahead of him, many believe that sooner or later he was supposed to pass Lionel Messi and record this historical record.
