Chelsea are going to put Ballack, Makelele, Lampard and Essien in the same midfield, that's why they are keen to sign Ashley Cole to give them the width. Not sure it'd work though, it did work for Porto mind...
I think the 'best' term here refers to the 'effectiveness' of the sides in getting results, if it's about entertainment value, Arsenal 91 and Chelsea 06 should get no where near the 'best'. The liverpool 88 side and Arsenal 04 side would've been contenders for that title
Gerrard's decision making on the pitch seems to be dictated entirely by his instincts, if he'd have the calmness on the ball as Pirlo combined with his physical strengths, he'd be the perfect midfield player.
Croatia played alright, but they were not good enough up front. Should've done more when they virtually had a one-man advantage until Ronaldo came off...