Ghana defender Marvin Senaya has earned a spot in Opta’s Best XI for the 2026 FIFA World Cup group stage after a string of impressive performances for the Black Stars.

The AJ Auxerre right-back played in all three of Ghana’s Group L games against Panama, England, and Croatia, making a name for himself as one of the tournament’s top defenders.

His best game was against England, where he stayed focused and managed to keep Barcelona’s €80 million winger Anthony Gordon mostly out of the action.

Senaya’s stats show his impact. He made a tournament-high 18 tackle attempts, won 24 out of 38 duels, and had a 72 percent success rate in Opta’s “true tackle” metric.

Thanks to his strong performances, he joins a standout defensive lineup with Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha, Spain’s Pau Cubarsí, Cape Verde’s Diney, and Japan’s Nakamura.

The Best XI also features USA midfielder Weston McKennie, Ecuador’s Pedro Vite, Argentina captain Lionel Messi, France’s Kylian Mbappé, Norway’s Erling Haaland, and Brazil’s Vinícius Júnior.

Senaya is likely to keep his spot in Ghana’s starting lineup when the Black Stars play Colombia in the Round of 32 on Saturday.