- DECO
Deco was a versatile, tactically intelligent and creative midfielder with excellent vision and technical ability. A generous and hard-working team-player, he was capable of playing in several midfield positions. Although he lacked pace as well as notable physical, defensive and athletic attributes, he possessed good stamina, as well as excellent ball control, dribbling skills, passing range and crossing ability, which allowed him to beat players, find space and create chances for teammates. His ball control, flexibility on the pitch and thinking through with ball was always magical.
Deco, won UEFA Club Footballer of the Year/UEFA Best Player in Europe award with two different clubs in which he won the best Midfielder in those two seasons : Porto and Barcelona.
- Xavier Hernández Creus (The Puppet Master)
Xavi is the beating heart of this Spanish team, the man dictating the tiki-taka pulse of pass after pass. He doesn’t score, doesn’t really tackle: he just passes and passes with a precision and wit unmatched by any of his peers.
Quoting him: “That’s what I do: look for spaces. All day. I’m always looking.” His “metronomic” ability to control some matches has earned him the sobriquet, “The Puppet Master”. Xavi’s creativity, range of passing, and unique set of skills have led many in the sport to regard him as one of the greatest passers and playmakers in history.
IFFHS World’s Best Playmaker award four times: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011.
Best UEFA Midfielder of the year in 2008 – 2009.
- Luka Modric (midfield magician)
Modric is the conductor, he controls the play. He knows when to run, and when to pass. He creates, and even though he may not apply the killer touch or the final ball, he often plays a part.
A diminutive midfielder. He is able to play with both feet and combines this with his swift, offensive positioning off the ball. When arrived at Real Madrid he was nicknamed by the Spanish media as El Pájaro (“the bird”), while in the dressing room was simply called “Lukita”.
He was influential in the real Madrid 3 times back-to-back UEFA Champoins League winner. No club has done that in the history of the competition since it was renamed in the early 90’s.
UEFA Midfielder of the Season: 2016–17, 2017–18,
IFFHS World’s Best Playmaker: 2018,
Gérard Houllier ( UEFA Technical Team) “Not only is he a very hard worker, he has a good brain and he provided some calmness and composure to the midfield. His passing was neat and his contribution was outstanding. He was not only winning the ball, he was passing well. He did not just work hard, he made the other people play well around him”.
- ANDREA PIRLO (“the Architect”, “the professor”, “Mozart”)
A highly technical and creative Playmaker. Pirlo is regarded as one of the best midfielders of all time by several pundits, managers and players for his outstanding vision, awareness, and football intelligence, as well as his movement, positional sense, inventive play, anticipation, ability to read the game. Although not gifted with pace, stamina, Pirlo was known for his composure in possession, and drew praise for his touch, technique, balance, elegance, close control, and dribbling ability.
Throughout his career, he was regarded as one of the best free-kick takers in the world, and drew praise from pundits for his versatility, and ability to both score and create chances from dead-ball situations
John Cryuff said: “ Pirlo can make his feet do whatever he wants. He’s a genius. ”
- PAUL SCHOLES (“ The Guy with Red hair in Red shirt”)
Scholes was highly regarded for his technical skills, and renowned for his accurate passing, intelligent movement and powerful shooting from long range. He possessed an extraordinary range of passing and frequently initiated dangerous attacking plays after winning back possession.
When International Milan wanted to sign him from Manchester United, He respond to them in a quite tone saying “ If you can buy Manchester United FC then you can buy me. “
Barcelona midfielder Xavi Hernandez (puppet master) said “ Scholes is the best player in his position in the past two decades, stating, “A role model. For me, and I really mean this, he’s the best central midfielder I’ve seen in the last 15, 20 years. If he’d been Spanish he might have been rated more highly. Players love him.”
Andrea Pirlo said (“the Architect”, “the professor”, “Mozart”) “The truly great English midfield player of the generation. Didn’t just play the game, he thought about the game. You could see every pass, every decision, was based on his intelligence and understanding” . if I could pick one that I never got the chance to play with, it would be Paul Scholes. One of the all-time greats. A genius on the field, but private – no circus around him off it. I have a lot of respect for him.”
- ANDRE INIESTA (The Intelligent )
Iniesta is a playmaker who relies on his technique, exceptionally precise, creative, and intelligent passing, intuition, and inventiveness to control the midfield, dictate the ebb and flow of play, and create chances for teammates. He is widely regarded by many in the sport as one of the most respected and best midfielders of all time, and as one of the greatest passers and playmakers in world football history.
He foot was inducted into The Golden Foot award by International football.
UEFA Best Player in Europe Award: 2012
IFFHS World’s Best Playmaker: 2012, 2013
Former Argentina playmaker Juan Román Riquelme on Iniesta
The one who plays this game the best is Iniesta: he knows exactly when to go forward and when to drop back. He picks the right moment to do everything: when to dribble, when to speed things up and when to slow things down. And I think that’s the only thing that can’t be taught or bought. Being aware of everything that’s happening out on the pitch – that’s something you’re either born with or you’re not.”
