#46 Koke
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With the exception of the UEFA Champions League, Koke has won every possible title available to him while at Atletico Madrid and shows technical ability matched by very few.
Many have heralded Koke as the ‘new Xavi’, a sentiment bolstered by the rumours linking him with a move to the Camp Nou. However, his former Atletico team-mate Mario Suarez went one further in an interview recently, suggesting that, "compared to Xavi – saving the different eras – Koke seems much more complete. He can play out wide, in the middle, [and] as a playmaker."
It’s difficult to disagree with the statement from Suarez; last season alone Koke created a total of 77 chances and, despite being slightly more attacking-focused, still made an admirable 49 interceptions. Koke ranks particularly highly for his versatility, potential and recent form, while the Spaniard is also a dead-eye from set-pieces.
The 24-year-old extends on the perished tiki-taka style of football championed by the Spaniards in recent history, able to maintain high pass completion rates in-game, but creating chances and tracking back to do the tricky business in the process.
Koke’s football intelligence is reminiscent of the silky Spanish team that triumphed at the 2010 World Cup, sandwiched between back-to-back Euro wins for the nation. While Simeone has instilled Atletico with desirous defensive discipline, unseen elsewhere in the footballing world, and while it seems impossible to recall a time they didn’t have a world-class forward in their ranks, Koke has remained the bedrock of the honourable overachievers, and this should not be forgotten.
