Position: Defender

Born: 13.04.78

Club: Barcelona

With the exception of Ronaldinho there is no player who has contributed more to the Barcelona revolution than Carles Puyol.

A tough, no-nonsence defender, Puyol made his debut in 1999 and has been at the heart of Barcelona's defence ever since.

He began his career at the Nou Camp playing right-back but his determination and hard work saw him transfered to the centre of defence, where his ability to read the game shone.

By the time the likes of Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto'o and Deco joined Barcelona, Puyol, born in the north of Catalonia, had long been a crowd favourite.

In 2004/2005 Puyol, by now club skipper, led the side to the La Liga title with his marshalling of the defence providing the foundation for Barca's memorable forward play.

Despite the occasional niggling injury, Puyol is rarely absent from Frank Rijkaard's side and missed just one game for the Catalans throughout the whole of 2005.

In Spain colours the defender is an equally important figure with his steady hand present in all but one of Spain's qualifiers.

He made his debut for the national side in 2001 and appeared at World Cup 2002 and Euro 2004.