Goalkeeper: Jan Oblak

Age: 26
Club/country: Atletico Madrid/Slovenia
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €100 million

The Atletico Madrid and Slovenia shot-stopper is the first surprise on the list, pipping arguably the top goalie in 2019, Liverpool's Alisson, to our XI. Oblak and Atleti might have finished a distant second to Barcelona in La Liga last season, but Oblak was a star from start to finish: Diego Simeone's side conceded just 29 goals in 38 league matches and outperformed their expected goals allowed by over 12 goals (data models believe they ought to have conceded 41 times across the season). As such, this pillar of consistency gets the nod.

What the experts said:

- "We don't really know how well he'd perform outside of Diego Simeone's defensive structure, but we also don't really care. He's the best shot-stopper in the world, and that's a keeper's No. 1 job." -- Ryan O'Hanlon

- "It took Oblak just 178 games to keep 100 clean sheets for Atletico Madrid; that is an astonishing achievement for a 26-year-old keeper who could easily have a dozen more years at the very top. His positioning and shot-stopping underpin everything good about Simeone's side." -- Nick Ames