Ronaldo Suker
(Brazil) (Croatia)
   
Veron Petit Davids Brian Laudrup
(Argentina) (France) (Holland) (Denmark)
       
Jarni Bilic Desailly Thuram
(Croatia) (Croatia) (France) (France)
       
 
Van der Sar
(Holland)
 
Van Der Sar - Frankly few of the star goalkeepers had a great World Cup. Van Der Sar was probably the most consistent, pulling off impossible saves against Argentina and Brazil in particular. Not to blame for Holland’s Swiss cheese like defence

Jarni - Similar to the goalkeepers, left-backs didn’t make a massive impression. Jarni is more renowned for his attacking qualities but he was more than competent when defending and of course excellent when going forward

Bilic - Will be remembered for clutching his face when getting a palm strike on the chin from Blanc, but it was a definite red card. World Class displays for Croatia throughout the tournament, superb tackler, good in the air and managed to avoid the red cards that he collected with ease at Everton last season

Desailly - Very average at Milan but on another planet for France. Formed a formidable defensive partnership with Blanc. Tough tackling, good in the air and ruthless

Thuram - Still plays at right back for France despite playing in the centre for Parma. Like Desailly, a physical specimen. Clean tackler, great in the air and surprised everyone with two fine goals against Croatia

Veron - Great vision and a great workrate. Also a good crosser but didn’t get much of a chance to show that because of Passarella’s insistence on playing though the middle

Petit - Got his chance once France had already qualified for the second round and never looked back. Awesome workrate, great tackler, far more effective than Deschamps in midfield. Also grabbed two goals and one assist. Added a World Cup Winners medal to a league and cup double for Arsenal. A fabulous season, a fabulous player

Davids - Was on shit creek without a paddle after a miserable time at Milan. Left for Juve, started to dominate midfield just as he had done at Ajax and carried that form through for Holland in the World Cup. Won more tackles than any other player in the World Cup. Helped shield an average Dutch defence. Every team needs a player like Davids

Brain Laudrup - First made his mark at international level in Euro 92. Has had to wait a long time to show his ability in the World Cup. It’s fitting his last game for Denmark was against Brazil were he gave an off the charts performance, just as his brother did in Denmark’s previous match against Nigeria

Ronaldo - According to the same media that hyped him to the moon he failed to live up to expectations, 4 goals and 4 assists suggests otherwise. Will probably be remembered for a poor final, but the fact that he was on the field is a miracle in itself as he suffered from a fit in which he swallowed his tongue hours before the match

Suker - 7 games, 6 goals. Put a poor season behind to help lead Croatia to 3rd place in their first World Cup. Always in the right place at the right time but really should have had a hat-trick against Germany. I wonder how many goals Suker would have scored had Boksic been fit?