Ranking the 10 best midfielders in the world

We are in an era at the moment where attractive football seems to be taking over the sport. 20 years ago, you may have relied on the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid at club level, and Brazil at international, who went out with the intention of playing attractive football, but that has all changed now.

Football is no longer about just winning, it is about winning well. If you look at the top sides across Europe at this current moment in time, every one of them have managers that want to have their team playing attractive football. Perhaps with the exception of Diego Simeone and Jose Mourinho, and it isn’t exactly going well for the Manchester United manager at the moment.

Obviously, the great Brazil team of 1970 were the first to do this, but it has really been bought into the modern game by Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona side. His midfield including the likes of Andres Iniesta and Xavi was superb, and massive to the way the game is played now all around the world.

This modern way has bought about a new breed of centre midfielders, who rely solely on the technical aspects of their game. Obviously, this hasn’t meant the end of players who do the dirty work, it just means there are fewer of them around.

Here are the ten best midfielders in the world at the moment.

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#10 Jorginho (Chelsea)

Jorginho has made an excellent start to life at Chelsea

Jorginho is possibly one of the best passers of the ball in the world at the moment. He may not have the same numbers in terms of goals and assists as the other players on this list, but the simplicity to his game is one of the beauties of it. The game seems to slow down when the ball is at his feet, and he makes it look very easy. He is also perfectly suited to the way Maurizio Sarri wants his sides to play, and that has shown over the last couple of years.

He is crucial in the base of a midfield three for Chelsea, just as he was at Napoli, and he already seems to be adapting well to life in the Premier League. In the recent match against Newcastle United, Jorginho completed 158 passes, the second most in a single match in Premier League history. He is now 26, so may have been a slightly late developer, but he is already one of the top midfielders in the world, but will improve in the coming years.

#9 Casemiro (Real Madrid)

Casemiro is a man who does the dirty work at Real

With all the talented players that we have seen at Real Madrid over the years, it would be easy to forget Casemiro. With the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale, Marco Asensio and Isco all playing ahead of him over the last few years, Casemiro is almost the silent man in this midfield. He does the dirty work that will never hit the headlines, but is just as important as the men in front of him.

The Brazilian has proved a bit of a bargain in his time at Real Madrid, having joined the Spanish club from Sau Paulo for £5.4 million. He has now won four Champions League titles in his time at the Bernabeu, including scoring in the 2016/17 final against Atletico Madrid. Although he may not get the personal plaudits of some of the other players on this list, he has been a huge part of Real’s success in recent years.

#8 Sergio Busquets

Busquets was part of one of football's great midfields at Barcelona

Much like Casemiro, Busquets has perhaps been a victim of the success of the players around him. The Spaniard was part of one of the greatest midfields of all time, along with Xavi and Andres Iniesta. He wasn’t as talented as that pair, but he still played a massive part in that side’s success. He is still a very gifted player technically, just not as good as Iniesta or Xavi, who are probably two of the greatest midfielders we have seen.

Busquets reads the game as well as any midfielder in the world, and recovers the ball better than any other player in that Barcelona team. He won’t get the headlines, very much in the same way Casemiro won’t either, but he has proven his value to this Barcelona so many times over the last decade. He has won seven La Liga titles with Barcelona, as well as the Champions League three times.

#7 Thiago Alcantara (Bayern Munich)

Alcantara has suffered from injuries throughout his career

Had it not been for injuries, there’s a good chance that Thiago would be right at the top of this list. He was a favourite of Pep Guardiola, who first bought him into the side at Barcelona, and then took him with him when he moved to Bayern Munich in 2013. However, he has been held back by injuries in the last few years, and it has restricted his progress.

He is now entering his sixth season with Bayern Munich, but because of injuries, he has been limited to just 98 Bundesliga appearances. It is a shame, because from a young age, he had all the attributes to become the next Xavi. He is still only 27, so if he can stay free from injuries, he can still hit those heights. He is technically an excellent footballer, and the hope will be that he can finally fulfil that undoubted potential.

#6 Toni Kroos (Real Madrid)

Kroos has been a World Cup winner with Germany

This list is dominated by Real Madrid players, and Kroos is just another one. He may have been surpassed by one or two other members of the Real midfielders, but he is still a brilliant midfielder. He is another one of those midfielders who has the ability to make the game look very easy, and dictate play in the centre of the park.

It seems incredible that Real Madrid paid only £22.5 million to bring Kroos to the club. He adapted so well to the style of La Liga, and has gone on to become a massive part of the success that Real have achieved in recent years. He has had the success at both club level with both Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, and at international level, having won the World Cup with Germany in 2014.

#5 David Silva (Manchester City)

Silva has been superb in his eight years at Manchester City

Silva is the oldest player on this list, but the longevity he has had at the top is something that is seriously impressive. The Spaniard joined City from Valencia in 2010, but he still seems to be getting better. He has also been able to reinvent himself in recent years under Pep Guardiola. He was very much someone who played in behind the striker when Guardiola first took over, but he has now been transformed into a top centre midfielder.

His football brain is probably among the best in the world, and despite not being the quickest player, has an ability to get himself into the right areas to control a game. His ability to split a defence with a pass is quite extraordinary, and he has produced some brilliant assists during his time with City. He has been a constant in their success over recent years, and has been a key part of their three Premier League title wins.

#4 Isco (Real Madrid)

Isco's influence on this Real Madrid team is often forgotten

Isco is somehow forgotten when it comes to talking about the attacking talent at Real Madrid. Cristiano Ronaldo has dominated proceedings for the nearly the past decade, and if it hasn’t been him, it’s been Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema or Marco Asensio. But it’s Isco who makes that side tick, and his influence on that front line cannot be underestimated.

It’s easy to forget that he is still only 26, given that he has been at the top of the game for five years, and he has the composure of a veteran in big game moments. He is versatile in those attacking areas as well, and he has had to be at Real Madrid. He may do his best work as a number ten in behind the striker, but he can also operate from the flanks, and from slightly deeper. He may not have been mentioned too much in regards to Ronaldo’s replacement at the Bernabeu, but in his absence, he becomes a vital member of this team.

#3 N’Golo Kante (Chelsea)

Kante's rise to the top has been remarkable

Five years ago, no one would have predicted the rise of N’Golo Kante, least of all the man himself. Having joined Leicester City for just £5.6 million from Caen in 2015 as a relatively unknown name, Kante quickly established himself in the Premier League, and was brilliant in the Foxes’ remarkable run to the title. This was enough to persuade Chelsea to make a move for the Frenchman, and even at £30 million, that looks like a real bargain for the Blues.

He isn’t the most technically gifted player on the list, but he brings so much to the teams he plays for. He covers so much ground, wins the ball back on so many occasions, and just gives the players around him a license to go forward, fully in the knowledge that he is capable of covering for them. He was the best player in the Premier League in the 2016/17 season, and was brilliant once again as France won the World Cup in Russia this summer. All this, and he still remains one of the most humble players in football.

#2 Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City)

Chelsea may still regret selling de Bruyne in 2014

De Bruyne is a part of what is arguably one of the greatest transfer misjudgements in modern football. In January 2014, Chelsea, managed then by Jose Mourinho, sold de Bruyne to Wolfsburg for just £17 million. Fast forward four years, and the Belgian is one of the best midfielders in the world, and worth infinitely more than that £17 million. How Chelsea would love a player like that right now.

Chelsea’s loss has been Manchester City’s gain, as since signing for City in 2015, he has been arguably the best player in the Premier League. He stepped up to a new level last season, in the process becoming the first player to win the Premier League Playmaker of the Season award for his 16 assists. He is deadly in and around the opposition box, either with his ability to find a team mate, or find the back of the net. He is probably the best playmaker in the world, and at 27, he still has a lot of time left at the top of the game.

#1 Luka Modric (Real Madrid)

Madrid was recently named UEFA Player of the Year

Not many people would have predicted this in 2013 after he was voted as the worst signing in LaLiga history following his first season with Real Madrid. No one believes that now, and he benefitted greatly from the appointment of Carlo Ancelotti, and later Zinedine Zidane, as manager. Ancelotti allowed him the freedom to express himself in the middle of the park, and with Zidane, firstly as assistant manager, and then as number one, there aren’t many better men for a centre midfielder to learn from.

Modric may have peaked later than most, as he is currently 32, and this has potentially been his best year. He was the Golden Ball winner at the World Cup, and looks set to end the Messi and Ronaldo dominance over the Ballon d’Or. He has found his best position as sitting slightly deeper in the centre of the park, and dictating play. He may not always take the glory, particularly at club level, but without him in that Real Madrid team, they would not have had the same success that they have had over the last few years.