The hard player: Pascal Chimbonda
Born on 21 February 1979 in Les Abymes, Guadeloupe, Pascal Chimbonda built his career well away from the spotlight. He made his name in France at Le Havre AC (93 games, 5 goals) and SC Bastia (72 games, 4 goals) before England called via Wigan Athletic (44 games, 2 goals).
His longest stint came at Tottenham Hotspur, where he made 98 appearances and scored 4 goals, before continuing his Premier League journey at Blackburn Rovers (37 games, 1 goal). On the international stage, he represented Guadeloupe on 6 occasions without scoring. A low-key but well-travelled career that took him from the Caribbean island to the top flight of English football.
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PlayThe medium player: Patrick Kluivert
Born on 1 July 1976 in Amsterdam, Patrick Kluivert burst onto the European scene at a remarkably young age. At just 18 years and 327 days, he came off the bench in the 1995 Champions League final with Ajax Amsterdam and scored the only goal of the match, becoming the youngest scorer in a Champions League final in history. A moment that immediately set the tone for an exceptional career.
After 100 appearances and 52 goals with Ajax, he moved to FC Barcelona where he played 257 games and scored 122 goals, adding the Spanish league title in 1999. He also had stints at AC Milan (33 games, 9 goals), Newcastle United (37 games, 13 goals) and PSV Eindhoven (21 games, 3 goals). After his playing days, he became PSG’s sporting director in 2016, then moved into coaching as Curaçao national team manager, head coach of Adana Demirspor, and most recently national team manager of Indonesia.
The easy player: Karim Benzema
Born in Lyon, Karim Benzema joined Olympique Lyonnais’ academy at the age of ten and signed his first professional contract in 2005. He went on to win four consecutive Ligue 1 titles (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008), a Coupe de France in 2008 and two Trophées des Champions (2006, 2007) before making his move to Madrid for €35 million in 2009.
At Real Madrid, he racked up 648 appearances and 354 goals, first playing alongside Cristiano Ronaldo before taking over as the team’s attacking leader after the Portuguese star’s departure in 2018. The haul: four Liga titles, two Copa del Rey trophies and five Champions League crowns. In 2022, he claimed the Ballon d’Or and UEFA Player of the Year – the ultimate recognition for an extraordinary career. Capped 97 times for France between 2007 and 2022, he remains the all-time top French scorer in Champions League history and the fifth-highest scorer in Les Bleus history.