Fifa’s technical study group have chosen 23 players including seven players from Italy and four from fellow finalists France in their squad of the tournament.

There is no room for Brazil’s Ronaldinho, the player tipped to be the star of the tournament, with Ze Roberto the only representative from Carlos Alberto Parreira’s squad.

No players from the African or Asian nations made the squad which is dominated by European players.

Fifa’s World Cup squad of the tournament:
Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon (Italy), Jens Lehmann (Germany), Ricardo (Portugal)

Defenders: Roberto Ayala (Argentina), John Terry (England), Lilian Thuram (France), Philipp Lahm (Germany), Fabio Cannavaro (Italy), Gianluca Zambrotta (Italy), Ricardo Carvalho (Portugal)

Midfielders: Ze Roberto (Brazil), Patrick Vieira (France), Zinedine Zidane (France), Michael Ballack (Germany), Andrea Pirlo (Italy), Gennaro Gattuso (Italy), Luis Figo (Portugal), Maniche (Portugal)

Strikers: Hernan Crespo (Argentina), Thierry Henry (France), Miroslav Klose (Germany), Francesco Totti (Italy), Luca Toni (Italy)