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Midfielders are the players who run the game of football. They are crucial in setting up the style of play and controlling the flow of the game.
These players are the link between attack and defence often playing defence-splitting passes and breaking up opposition play as and when required. This season, the top leagues around the world have witnessed many amazing midfielders go about their business and pull the strings for their respective sides.
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All the best teams in the world have that one player in the centre of the park capable of making a difference with a moment of magic. We take a look at the 10 best midfielders in the world in 2016
Voting by fans
We sent out a poll for fans to vote for who they believed to have been the best midfielder this year. Apart from that, the in-house team had a discussion of its own on the same.
The one with the highest vote received 10 points, and the one with the lowest got 1 point. The scores from Sportskeeda’s list and the Reader’s choice are then added together, with the total score being taken. In the situation of two players being tied, Sportskeeda’s ranking takes preference.
Surprisingly, there is a lot of difference between what we have picked, and what you readers have chosen. After taking the total from both the readers and our in-house set of experts, we have come up with this list.
#10 Koke (Reader's rank: 10 | Sportskeeda's rank: 10)
Atletico Madrid had another wonderful season under Diego Simeone this year, and the man who has pulled the strings in midfield for Rojiblancos has been Spanish midfielder Koke. Koke has played a crucial role assisting in both defence and attack and making things tick in the centre of the park.
His combination play with both Torres and Antoine Griezmann (and now Kevin Gameiro) has been amazing this year and his assists have helped Atletico compete in the La Liga and reach the finals of the Champions League where they lost in a close encounter to rivals Real Madrid.
The Spaniard has easily been the best midfielder at Atletico Madrid and he will be looking to continue his good form in the coming months. Even Barcelona legend Xavi took time to praise the youngster calling him an ‘extraordinary’ player.
“He has everything: talent, physical ability, he is a footballer of the present and the future... He has been marked out as the conductor of Spain's orchestra for the next 10 years. I have a special affection for him because we play in the same position and I think he is an extraordinary player.”
#9 Arturo Vidal (Reader's rank: 9 | Sportskeeda's rank: 8)
The Chilean midfielder has been among the top midfielders of the world since the last 3 years and this year as well, Vidal has kept up his high performance levels guiding Bayern Munich to the Bundesliga title, DFB Pokal and more importantly Chile to the Copa America Centenario title.
After a lacklustre start to his Bayern career, Vidal has become one of the main players for the Bundesliga giants and is one of the best midfielders in the planet at the moment. Vidal is a complete midfielder, known for his marking, positional sense, tackling, and anticipation, attributes which allow him to be effective at intercepting passes, winning back possession, and subsequently starting an attack.
Gifted with good technique, pace and vision, Vidal has been one of the most consistent and hard working performers in the last few years.
#8 Dimitri Payet (Reader's rank: 8 | Sportskeeda's rank: 7)
When West Ham signed Dimitri Payet from Marseille, everyone knew they had managed to pull off a coup by signing a player of his calibre, but not even the most optimistic of West Ham fans would have imagined the impact he has had at the Hammers.
The Frenchman has put in some amazing displays for his club and country throughout the year and has often been the best player on the pitch for his team. The first true world class player to play for the Hammers since the departure of Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano, Payet will be absolutely instrumental for West Ham this season.
His performances have drawn praise from all quarters and the Hammers’ manager, Slaven Bilic, showed just how impressed he was when he said:
"I have to get poetry lessons to describe his importance to us," said Croatian Bilic.
"I haven't seen better players than that. He is also doing the dirty work and on the ball he is up there with Luka Modric from the players I have trained so far, Dimitri is one of the best I have trained and every week I want these questions about him to continue, but it is hard to be surprised."
#7 Andres Iniesta (Reader's rank: 2 | Sportskeeda's rank: 9)
The diminutive Spaniard has been astonishing the footballing world since 2005 and there are no signs of him slowing down. A true gem in the crown of the Barcelona midfield, Iniesta almost has a telepathic understanding of his team mates’ positions. Always setting up goals or scoring crucial ones, Iniesta is truly a big match player and one of the greatest players of this generation.
This year, Iniesta has not been at his brilliant best and struggled with some injury and form issues, however, he is still a crucial member of the Barcelona side and the La Liga giants look completely different with him in the playing XI.
The Barcelona captain might not have had the best of years, but he is so good that he is still among the best midfielders in the game and he will be determined to top this list next year.
The ones where fans and the in-house experts disagreed the most was with regards to Andres Iniesta. While we at Sportskeeda ranked him at 9, you readers ranked him at 2nd, giving him a total rank of 7.
#6 Toni Kroos (Reader's rank: 5 | Sportskeeda's rank: 5)
Another Real Madrid midfielder who has had a stunning year is German playmaker Toni Kroos. Known for his passing accuracy, vision and ability to set up goals, Kroos has also shown his versatility this year playing across multiple positions in midfield such as a deep-lying playmaker, defensive midfielder and even a box-to-box midfielder.
Kroos has been consistent right throughout the year having been an ever present for Zidane’s all-conquering Real side and an integral member of Joachim Loew's German side which made it to the semi-finals of Euro 2016.
Joachim Low even chose Kroos ahead of Ozil in the FIFA Best Player vote and he described how impressed he was with Kroos in an earlier interview:
"How Toni distributes the ball, how he receives it, is very good. He's technically excellent, I'm extremely satisfied with the player."
Kroos like his club mate Modric played a crucial role in Real Madrid’s historic Champions League and Club World Cup triumph and is one of the most consistent midfielders in the world right now.
#5 Kevin De Bruyne (Reader's rank: 6 | Sportskeeda's rank: 4)
Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne has been one of the best and most consistent playmakers in world football this year. A key component of the Manchester City and Belgium national side, De Bruyne has impressed plenty of people with his skills, creativity and vision with many pundits even calling him one of the best players in the world.
Speaking to BT Sports earlier this year, Former Arsenal striker John Hartson felt that only Messi was better than the midfield maestro.
"I think De Bruyne at the moment is the second best player in the world behind Messi," he said.
"Tell me who's been playing better than him in world football at the moment.
"[Gareth] Bale's not. Suarez has been quiet recently. De Bruyne, just in behind Messi, is the best in the world right now."
Kevin De Bruyne is arguably the best player in this Manchester City squad and undoubtedly one of the best midfielders in the world at the moment.
#4 Riyad Mahrez (Reader's rank: 7 | Sportskeeda's rank: 3)
Premier League’s PFA Player of the Year and 7th in the Ballon d’Or voting list this year, Riyad Mahrez has had an absolutely sensational 12 months. Simply mesmerising with his feet, Mahrez created numerous chances, scored plenty of goals and often left defences flat-footed with his bag of tricks.
The main architect of Leicester’s fairytale Premier League triumph along with Kante and Vardy, Mahrez even won the BBC African Player of the year and is the talisman of the brave Foxes side who have made the Champions League round of 16 this year.
The Algerian winger has slightly faded away this season, but for his stupendous achievements in the first half of the season, Mahrez definitely deserves to be on the top 10 list.
Another player’s position where the in-house experts and you readers have disagreed slightly is Mahrez’s position. While we at SK gave him a high rank of 3 for his spectacular performances for Leicester in the first half of the year, the readers think other candidates have been worthy of more votes and have ranked him at 7, making his overall rank 4.
#3 Mesut Ozil (Reader's rank: 3 | Sportskeeda's rank: 6)
The Arsenal maestro was nothing short of brilliant last season, notching up assist after assist as Arsenal finished second in the Premier League. The German playmaker had 19 assists last season, falling one short of Thierry Henry’s all-time record of 20 assists in the Premier League.
Ozil also confirmed his status as the most creative player in Europe by creating a staggering 181 chances over the course of the season in all competitions, a record for any player.
The left-footed midfielder seemed to find the tiniest gaps with his incisive passing and now that he has added goals to his game, Ozil is considered to be one of the best players in the world at the moment.
Ozil together with Sanchez is the heart and soul of this Arsenal side and Wenger will be desperate to tie the talented duo to new long-term contracts at Arsenal.
#2 N’golo Kante (Reader's rank: 4 | Sportskeeda's rank: 1)
Leicester City captured everyone’s imagination with their stunning performances this season. While Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez ran away with all the plaudits, the importance of N’golo Kante in the central midfielder role cannot be underestimated.
Kante’s positional sense and awareness of the game is second to none and he heads the list for the most interceptions in the Premier League this year. Kante’s ability to regain possession in the centre of the park has been vital, while his willingness to storm forward with the ball at his feet has created many openings for Leicester City and now Chelsea this season.
In a recent interview with Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sera, Ranieri praised Kante’s energy, awareness and reading of the game.
“It will not surprise me the day he crosses the ball from the flank and gets into the penalty area to head it,” the Italian said.
“He is someone who knows where the ball will go, knows where the opposition will move, knows everything first.”
Kante has continued his excellent form at Chelsea this season and for his stupendous performances this year, Kante was ranked as the best midfileder of the year from our Sportskeeda’s football team. The readers however, ranked him 4 and for that, he is at the second position.
#1 Luka Modric (Reader's rank: 1 | Sportskeeda's rank: 2)
The winner of the SK Midfielder of the Year Award is....... LUKA MODRIC!
Real Madrid is a team full of superstars. The Ronaldos, Bales, Jameses and Iscos of the world will always have a place in the Real Madrid team. However, when they come across a team which has a well-drilled defence, they rely on their midfield maestro Luka Modric to break down the opposition.
Xabi Alonso was an expert in providing long passes and spraying the ball around while Angel Di Maria pulled the opposition players out of position through his direct running. Modric is a player who can do both and that is why he is absolutely integral to Real Madrid’s style of play.
The Croatian's ability to tackle in defence, secure the ball and then feed the forwards is simply stunning. His remarkable calm when carrying the ball converted what for other midfielders would be uncomfortable situations into attacking scenarios.
A crucial part of Real Madrid’s stunning Champions League triumph, Modric has been absolutely important for Real Madrid this season and there is a marked difference in how Los Blancos play with and without the Croatian playmaker.
Here are the poll results:
