A combined Premier League North vs South XI

Ever wondered what it would look like if the Premier League decided to have a one off exhibition game staging two teams divided up of players from the North and the South?

We created two mock-ip teams, Up North F.C. and A.F.C Down South and here are what the two sides could potentially look like if this fantasy ever came to fruition.

The Northern XI:

GK – Ederson

The North side of the country would be spoilt for choice in between the sticks. David De Gea has undoubtably been the ‘King of the Sticks’ over the last half-a-decade, but a string of recent blunders has got us wondering whether or not he’s the best for the job.

We’ve decided to follow the PFA TOTY line and go with Ederson, but there really isn’t much between the two. You make your mind up about this one.

DEF – Robertson, Van Dijk, Laporte, Alexander-Arnold

Build up play in the wide areas has been a key component of Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool taking the challenge to Manchester City this year and no-full back pairing has notched more assists than the Anfield duo.

Andrew Robertson currently sits on 11 assists in the league and is on course to break the existing record for a defender (12), whilst Trent Alexander-Arnold is trailing slightly behind with 9.

Furthermore, Liverpool currently possess the record for the most clean sheets (18) and least goals conceded (20) this season and that is why Virgil van Dijk could not miss out.

The Dutchman has been an ever-present at the heart of the Liverpool backline and been the outstanding factor in turning the Anfield outfit’s defensive fortunes around.

Laporte’s supreme confidence when bringing the ball out from the back has made him an ideal fit for Pep Guardiola’s patient passing philosophy and has landed him a place in our North eleven next to van Dijk.

The Frenchman has completed the most passes on average per game (86.4) for a defender in the Premier League with a near-perfect accuracy of 92.3%.

MID – Fernandinho, Pogba, B. Silva

Anchoring the midfield will be another Manchester City player in the form of Fernandinho.

Fernandinho remains undeniably one of Manchester City’s most crucial players in their pursuit of the quadruple and the reigning champions struggle hugely when he is absent.

City’s average goals conceded per game drops from 0.8 with Fernandinho to 1.4 without the 33-year-old and consequently they suffer a points deficit of 0.4 when he is not at the base of their midfield.

Offering some box-to-box dynamism will be the only non-City or Liverpool player in this list, Paul Pogba.

Free from the constraints of Jose Mourinho’s rigid system, the arrival of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has enabled Paul Pogba to express himself and 13 goals and 9 assists is exactly the reason why he makes our list.

And the last place in our midfield trio goes to the younger of City’s golden Silvas, Bernado.

Having been a bit part player in the blues’ 100 point campaign last year, Bernardo Silva has delighted us all with his wonderous footballing ability this year. If David Silva was the ‘magician’, Bernado must be the wizard.

ATT – Salah, Aguero Sterling

Finally, we move onto the players who every fan lauds as they produce the aesthetically-pleasing, match-winning moments of stardom that grab the headlines.

Two players who are consistently under the scrutiny of the media spotlight are Mohamed Salah and Raheem Sterling and they make up the wide spots in this North team.

Since his arrival on Merseyside, Salah has bagged 92 goal contributions (66 goals and 26 assists), which is considerably more than any other player in that time, whilst still creating 14 more chances than any Liverpool player this season (50).

His opposing number, Raheem Sterling, has also endured another stellar season and under the guidance of Guardiola his game has continued to elevate.

Sterling only just missed out on the PFA Player of the Year award, but by no means does that take away from the kind of season he’s had. Racking up an incredible 27 goal contributions in the league this year is exactly why he’s in the squad.

Down the middle of that pair is Sergio Aguero. The Argentine striker has once again been in clinical form this season, grabbing 19 goals so far, and is one of the leading contenders for the golden boot award.

North XI: David De Gea, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk, Aymeric Laporte, Andrew Robertson, Fernandinho, Paul Pogba, Kevin De Bruyne, Mohamed Salah, Sergio Aguero, Raheem Sterling

The Southern XI:

GK - Kepa

The South’s leading choices in the goalkeeping department come from the capital. Although Lukasz Fabianski and Bernd Leno have turned out to be astute bits of business from West Ham and Arsenal, Kepa Arrizabalaga of Chelsea edges them out to make it into the eleven.

Chelsea paid a world-record fee to land the promising Spaniard to replace the departing Thibaut Courtois and Arrizabalaga has endured a terrific debut season in English football keeping 12 clean sheets.

The former Athletic Bilbao shot stopper is also comfortably adept with the ball at his feet and no other goalkeeper in the Premier League has made more accurate short passes per game (19.2) than Arrizabalaga.

DEF – Wan-Bissaka, Alderwiereld, Vertonghen, Chilwell

Onto the South’s defensive selection now and the best full-back options surprisingly come from outside the top six teams in the country. At right-back, Aaron Wan-Bissaka has emerged as one of the brightest prospects in the country for Crystal Palace.

At just 21-years-of-age, Wan Bissaka plays like a man that has gained years of experience at the top level. A defensive stalwart, the Englishman maintains a tackle success rate of 85.1%, which is higher than any other defender in Europe’s top five leagues.

Similarly, Ben Chilwell has brightened England’s prospects of having a long-term left-back option. Following on from the demise of both Danny Rose and Luke Shaw, Chilwell’s marauding runs down the left-hand side have made him the clear favourite to be England’s current and future number one in that position.

Finishing off the defensive side we have the Tottenham duo of Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen. The two Belgian’s have forged a formidable partnership at the heart of the Spurs’ defence over the past few seasons and since the beginning of the 2015/16 season no other defensive pairing have gathered more clean sheets (31) together.

MID – Kante, Neves, Eriksen

Although he has found himself in a more advanced role under Maurizio Sarri, N’Golo Kante will revert back and occupy the defensive midfield position in our South eleven.

Playing in a deeper role, Kante was an instrumental figure in title wins at two different clubs with Leicester City in 2015/16 and then with current employers Chelsea a season later.

His gritty determination and endless energy in the middle of the park has led the French World Cup winner to complete more interceptions (361) than any other player since he arrived in English football back in 2015.

Speaking of new additions to the Premier League, Wolves have experienced an exceptional return to the top flight and Nuno Espirito Santo’s side could potentially find themselves in the Europa League if they overcome the clubs around them.

A fundamental reason for that has been the form of Ruben Neves. The Portuguese midfielder was key in Wolves getting promoted to the promised land of the Premier League and has been just as important this season.

Neves is the orchestrator at the centre of the Wolves midfield and this is reflected in the former Porto man maintaining seven more average passes per game than his nearest teammate with a total of 55.4, earning him a place among our South midfield trio.

Supporting them is the creative ingeunity of Christian Eriksen. No player has assisted more goals this season than Eriksen (12) and he joins the legendary David Beckham as the only Premier League players to register 10 or more assists in four consecutive seasons.

ATT – Hazard, Aubameyang, Kane

The South’s forward line is every bit as exciting as their counterparts with Eden Hazard, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Harry Kane combining to form a tantalising trio.

If this is to be Hazard’s last season in England before a move to the shores of Spain then what a campaign the Belgian has had.

Despite playing in a Chelsea team that has struggled for large parts of the season, Hazard has shone and his individual brilliance has driven him to a league-high 28 goal contributions (16 goals and 12 assists). Furthermore, the 28-year-old has also been responsible for creating the most chances (74) in English football’s top flight.

With London rivals Kane and Aubameyang ahead of him on 17 and 18 goals respectively in 2018/19, if this trio ever played together it would take an almighty effort to stop a goal glut from ensuing.

South XI: Kepa, Wan-Bissaka, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Chilwell, Kante, Neves, Eriksen, Hazard, Aubameyang, Kane

Do you agree with our combined North and South Premier League elevens? Who would you have included that we missed out? Who do you think would win in a match if these two sides faced off? Head to our social media and let us know your thoughts over on our Instagram and Twitter pages.