There is no better place to start than with our flying goalkeeper, Fabien Barthez. I think few goalies reached his level, although he had great competition from the excellent Bernard Lama. Aimé Jacquet chose Barthez, so I’ll go along with his preference. Fabien was a great help to his defence in times of trouble because he was never afraid to come off his line, to intervene. A very brave goalkeeper.

In Barthez’s back-line, I would have Lilian Thuram – I don’t think there’s ever been anyone better at right-back for France, both in the way he defended and his capacity to get forward, too. Of course we had Manuel Amoros, who was excellent as well, but nobody was as strong as Lilian. And he preferred to play in the middle, don’t forget.

Alongside him, Marius Trésor was an example for many players. He was a great captain, the figure of solidity. Trésor was one of those defenders who reads the game so well he was always able to intervene, intercept. He was also very tough when it came to man-marking – if you had to play against him you would know you’d been in a battle. Maxime Bossis was the complete defender. Great agility, and with his long legs he was speedy, very quick.

Strong physically when he needed to be, he also knew how to step up, bring the ball forward, even though he never had the midfield background like Laurent Blanc. I was lucky enough to play alongside Max at Nantes for a year. Bixente Lizarazu, he was defensively irreproachable, a bit like Thuram. He was fast, and he never hesitated to push forward, taking advantage of any space offered him. A very modern left-back and he had a great understanding with Zinedine Zidane and Christophe Dugarry from their Bordeaux days.

In midfield, first a player with so many qualities: Alain Giresse. A No 8 par excellence, capable of defending, always well-placed, alert, ready to intercept and launch attacks. He had great passing ability and was particularly good at finding team-mates between the lines. He also had that capacity to pop up with an important goal when necessary.

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In the middle, Jean Tigana and Michel Platini. Tigana had such agility, grace and yet he would run miles and miles. The ideal defensive midfielder with great vision, he was able to do the hard work the French team of the 80s around Platini needed. But he also fitted in to the attacking mindset of that side, which made him such a precious player. Platini was, of course, one of the greatest playmakers of all time and also scored a lot of goals – just look at his record with Juventus. Platini was perhaps the best player of long passes and he’d be great in my team for picking out the runs of my two strikers.

Michel anticipated movement brilliantly and made everything look simple. Any France midfield would not be complete without the magician, Zinedine Zidane. His control, the ability to change the tempo of a game, his eye for a pass – Zidane had it all. He created space, for himself and particularly for his team-mates. His technique was unparalleled, exceptional. It’s very simple – if you wanted a show, Zidane was your man.

Up front, a pairing of Thierry Henry and Jean-Pierre Papin. Henry was perhaps more appreciated in England – I think he was a little underrated in France – but Thierry had everything you would want from a forward. He was so speedy, making it tough for us defenders to intervene. And he had such lucidity in front of goal. The famous side-foot finish he made his trademark was a thing of joy.

Alongside him, Papin was the ultimate goalscorer. A bit like Filippo Inzaghi, always on the look-out for a chance to strike, the fox in the box, as the English say. Jean-Pierre was one of our great centre-forwards and had an uncanny ability when it came to hitting volleys and half-volleys – he scored some truly spectacular goals.