West Ham teammates, childhood friends and fellow Frenchmen | Kurt Zouma’s World XI | West Ham United F.C.

CB – John Terry

He was simply one of the best defenders in the game. I played with him for around three years, and he helped me a lot. When I first joined Chelsea I was a bit intimidated by him, but he taught me how tough the Premier League is, how to deal with the best strikers and how to be a leader. I saw every day in training how focused and serious he was – he was just unbelievable.

CB – Nayef Aguerd

For me, he is one of the best left-footed centre-backs around. His left foot is a joke, and he has all the attributes to be one of the best. From the first day he arrived at West Ham we had a strong connection, and we are really good friends now. He’s got a good soul, and I love playing with him.

LB – Faouzi Ghoulam

He’s someone I came through the academy with at Saint-Étienne, and he went on to become an important player for Napoli in Italy. He’s now at Hatayspor in Turkey. His left foot is just a joke. I played with him for six or seven years, and he’s still one of the best left-sided defenders I’ve ever seen.