The South American trio – all previous winners of the FIFA Club World Cup – were in Qatar for the 2020 edition of the annual competition after it was postponed last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The tournament reached its climax on Thursday with UEFA Champions League holders FC Bayern Munich defeating Mexican side Tigres UANL from the CONCACAF region 1-0 in the final.

It also completed a magnificent sextuple for the Bavarian behemoths, emulating the achievement of Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona in 2009/10.

Alongside Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium, Education City Stadium has been front and centre, while the world’s top clubs have battled it out for the prestigious title.

As anticipation builds for the tournament’s final match day on Thursday, the ‘Diamond in the Desert’ is ready to showcase an exciting conclusion to the week-long event by staging the third-place play-off between Al Ahly SC and SE Palmeiras and the final between FC Bayern München and Tigres UANL.

In a highly-anticipated match against the 2020 AFC Champions League winners, Qatar Stars League champions Al Duhail were on the front foot from the start and their French boss was pleased with their overall performance in their debut appearance.

“I am very proud of the performance of the team in this match, and the performance in the previous match (against Al Ahly), especially in the second half,” said Lamouchi.

Mana Iwabuchi produced a goal for the ages, Son Heung-min and Jeong Woo-yeong flew the flag for Korea Republic, while Takumi Minamino and Mat Ryan both made impressive debuts for new Premier League clubs. Plus, Mehdi Taremi and Sam Kerr continued their exceptional form in front of goal.

But who was the best of them all? There were so many worthy contenders this week that our usual perfect 10 has expanded to become a dream dozen.

Study the shortlist below, based on performances from February 4 to 10, and don’t forget to vote for the player you consider the most deserving.

Also Try:

The Asian Football Quiz: Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, Round 4, Round 5, Round 6, Round 7, Round 8, Round 9, Round 10, Round 11, Round 12, Round 13, Round 14, Round 15, Round 16, Round 17, Round 18, Round 19, Round 20, Round 21, Round 22, Round 23, Round 24, Round 25, Round 26, Round 27, Round 28, Round 29, Round 30, Round 31, Round 32

The 38-year-old custodian was part of the Jordan squad in their inaugural AFC Asian Cup participation in 2004, helping the team reach the quarter-finals of the competition that year.