Real Madrid / Pepe

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Pepe's team of 2008. Would Pepe be in your team of 2008?
Friday 9 January 2009

Real Madrid CF defender Pepe defers to Portugal team-mate Ricardo Carvalho and Rio Ferdinand in selecting the centre-back in his team of 2008. What do you think of his selection?

Pepe was choosing from the 60 nominees for the uefa.com users' Team of 2008.

Goalkeeper: Iker Casillas (Real Madrid CF) I play with him at Real Madrid and know how good he is. For me, he is the best goalkeeper in Europe.

Right-back: José Bosingwa (Chelsea FC) He was a team-mate at Porto and we also play together for Portugal. José is very fast and has just what a right-back needs: he defends and attacks very well.

Central defenders: Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United FC) and Ricardo Carvalho (Chelsea FC) I will pick Ferdinand for his great season with Manchester United, he won it all. And Ricardo is my defensive partner in Portugal. He keeps it simple and he is a great centre-back to play with.

Left-back: Patrice Evra (Manchester United FC) I really enjoy watching him play. His attitude is great, he is a fighter on the pitch.

Right midfield: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United FC) He is the best player in the world, so that was an easy one to pick!

Central midfield: Marcos Senna (Villarreal CF) He was so important for Spain during EURO 2008, my vote goes to him.

Attacking midfield: Cesc Fàbregas (Arsenal FC) He brings a lot to both the Arsenal and Spain teams. He's got lots of skills and raises the level of every midfield.

Left midfield: Arjen Robben (Real Madrid CF) He's been playing so well lately and I think he did very well at EURO 2008 for Holland.

Forward: David Villa (Valencia CF) Villa is my favourite striker. He is so smart, so fast and he needs only half a chance to score a goal. He is always there waiting for the defender to lose the ball.

Forward: Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona) He is fantastic, the way he dribbles at speed is astonishing and it is very hard for defenders to steal the ball from him.

Coach: Luis Aragonés (Spain) After all the criticism he suffered here in Spain, I enjoyed watching his team playing during EURO 2008. He deserves the prize.

Fans have until Monday to select their star performers from a list of 60 players and coaches who have shone over the past 12 months.