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La Liga is renowned for housing some of the finest midfielders in the world and we take a look at the best performers in 2020.
Spain has consistently produced some of the best technicians in football and in the 21st century, they have been a different gravy altogether.
Teams like Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid have been blessed with having so many incredible individuals on their books that sometimes even the best of the best have to grind without a halt to earn a spot in the starting XI.
In the La Liga, the game is played at a more controlled pace than it is in, say, the Premier League. Midfielders are the ones who control the tempo of the game and as most teams in the Spanish top-flight play out from the back, they act as the link between defence and attack.
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Without further ado, let's take a look at 10 of the best midfielders in La Liga this year.
#10 Koke
Atletico Madrid's central midfielder Koke has been a reliable and consistent performer in the centre of the park for Diego Simeone. He is the quintessential holding midfielder who packs all the necessary traits that make a good midfielder.
The Atletico Madrid captain is excellent at holding on to the ball. He loves using his body as cover and wriggling out of tight situations and finding space in the middle of the pitch. He is a great passer of the ball as well and scored four goals and provided five assists in the 2019-20 season.
The 28-year-old contributes commendably in defence and never shies away from tracking back and helping his defenders. He has had a decent 2020-21 season so far but is yet to score or assist this campaign.
#9 Federico Valverde
Displacing the likes of Luka Modric and Isco from the Real Madrid starting XI is no mean feat but at the age of 22, it is exactly what Federico Valverde did. Unfortunately, he had to be sidelined for a while after fracturing his right leg but it's almost certain that he will earn his place back in Zinedine Zidane's starting lineup.
Valverde is an excellent midfielder and is the reason why Real Madrid were willing to let Dani Ceballos leave on loan. Valverde has an excellent passing range and is pretty good at progressing the ball thanks to his pace and dribbling ability.
He has excellent control and is gifted when it comes to picking a pass as well. He contributes well from midfield. After having scored two goals and provided five assists from central midfield across 32 appearances (only 20 of which were starts), Valverde has scored three goals and provided one assist from 12 appearances this season so far.
#8 Sergio Canales
Real Betis' attacking midfielder Sergio Canales is a Racing Santander youth academy product who found little joy after securing a dream switch to Real Madrid 10 years back. After not being able to come up trumps at Valencia and Real Sociedad, Canales ended up at Real Betis.
However, he has since shifted gears and has grown into one of the most mature attacking midfielders in the La Liga. He provided six assists and also scored six goals for Real Betis last season and has stepped it up this campaign. Canales already has a goal and four assists to his name from nine appearances so far.
He also earned a call up to the international side in 2019. Real Betis have been flying under Manuel Pellegini and if Canales can stay fit and not pick up another bad injury, the world will get to know the potential of a player who everyone nearly gave up on.
#7 Toni Kroos
The inimitable Toni Kroos continues to impress one and all with his languid elegance on the football pitch. The Real Madrid midfielder has been consistently world-class and continues to keep the Blancos' midfield ticking with his supreme technical ability and unreal vision.
Kroos scored four goals and provided five assists in the La Liga last season. But those numbers are not reflective of the impact that the German international has on the game. He generates space for his teammates and creates chances for Real Madrid with his incisive passing and tactical intelligence.
Kroos is also an excellent set-piece taker and loves testing the goalkeeper from range. At 30-years-old, he continues to pull the strings from midfield for Real Madrid and does that with an insane amount of flair.
#6 Frenkie De Jong
The Barcelona midfielder Frenkie De Jong is one of the finest young midfielders on the planet. He is an excellent deep lying playmaker who fit right in at Barcelona after joining from Ajax by virtue of his remarkable technical finesse and overall footballing intelligence.
De Jong has thrived in a more attacking role of late and Ronald Koeman's decision to give him more freedom in the centre of the park might just work wonders. It's a treat to watch De Jong navigate tight spaces. He has excellent close control and loves taking on defenders and slaloming past them.
He is definitely going to be a big player for Barcelona in the years to come and at 23-years-old, he has more than a decade of football left in him.
#5 Luka Modric
Just when we all thought Luka Modric was starting to fade, the Croatian has stepped it up once again and has proved his worth to the Santiago Bernabeu faithful with a string of impressive performances.
A player who deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as the Xavis and Iniestas, Luka Modric has been crucial to Real Madrid's dominance in Europe in this decade and his extraordinary playmaking skills from deep is among their greatest assets.
Modric provided seven assists and scored three goals from a holding midfield position last season dand has shown no signs of slowing down of late despite being 35-years-old. If the latest reports are to be believed, Real Madrid are looking to extend his current contract at least by a year.
#4 Dani Parejo
Villarreal midfielder Dani Parejo joined from Valencia on the back of an excellent 2019-20. He scored eight goals and provided three assists from 35 appearances in the La Liga last season for Valencia.
A master passer, Parejo is excellent at finding his attackers by virtue of his excellent passing range. Parejo is also a free-kick specialist. He loves switching play to the flanks with his long balls and he loves to dink the ball into the final third over the head of defenders for his attackers to pounce.
At 31-years-old, he might not have a lot of years left in him but as it stands, Parejo is one of the finest midfielders in the Spanish top-flight.
#3 Casemiro
Built like a tank, Casemiro provides an extra line of defence for Real Madrid all by himself. He is the spine of that Real Madrid midfield and the reason why the likes of Luka Modric, Toni Kroos etc. have thrived is in great part thanks to the platform provided for them by the Brazilian.
Don't get us wrong though, physicality is just one aspect of his game. Casemiro is an intelligent footballer and breaks up play quite regularly thanks to his ability to read the game better than those around him.
Casemiro is great when it comes to aerial duels as well. He bombs forward on occasion too and does reward himself and help the team out with a few goals. He has already scored three goals this season from 12 appearances playing from a defensive midfield position.
Last season, he scored four goals and provided three assists and was arguably their best player as Real Madrid became La Liga champions.
#2 Marcos Llorente
Marcos Llorente's transformation from a sparingly used defensive minded midfielder to that one of the best goalscoring attacking midfielders has been nothing short of remarkable. Credit goes to Diego Simeone who guided him through his change in position and then integrating him into the team at the right time.
Llorente has been excellent for Atletico Madrid and he has scored five goals and provided two assists from just 10 appearances in the league so far. He took a while to settle down after joining from Real Madrid in the summer of 2019. But towards the end of the season, Llorente started becoming a menacing presence in attacking midfield.
From being one of the best ball stealers in the league, Llorente has moved on and become an aggressive, technically gifted and creative attacker will surely drop several more spectacular performances before the season draws to a close.
#1 Mikel Merino
Real Sociedad are challenging for the La Liga title this term and their excellent run of form has a lot to do with how well 24-year-old midfielder Mikel Merino has been going about his business at the centre of the park.
Mikel Merino looked destined for a journeyman career before eventually finding home and settling down at Real Sociedad. Merino contributes on both sides of the pitch with his excellent close control and ability to hold on to the ball in addition to his intelligence which makes him great at reading what's going on around him and intercepting passes.
Merino also breaks up play incredibly well and is an absolute joy to watch with the ball at his feet. He loves finding his way out of tight spaces and playing a killer pass into the final third to release one of the forwards. Merino is simply the kind of deep lying playmaker that every manager wants to have on his team.
Merino recently earned a well deserved call up to the national team as well and is expected to hit greater heights in the years to come.
