The 100 Greatest Defensive Midfielders of All Time

Discussion in 'The Beautiful Game' started by comme, Apr 12, 2010.

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  1. comme

    comme Moderator
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    Feb 21, 2003
    #1 comme, Apr 12, 2010
    For some time now, I’ve been working on some lists of the greatest ever players in each position. Some of you might have seen my own thread on the greatest players in English league history

    www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=620289

    or the thread that inspired it by Gregoriak of their German equivalents

    https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=420539

    Basically over the coming months I will reveal the 100 best players (in my opinion) in each position, who have ever graced the game. These will be the finest footballers to kick a ball since the codification of the game in 1863.

    Let me start by outlining some of the criteria that I have applied:

    1. Peak performance. How good were they at their very best.
    2. Longevity and consistency. How long did they perform well for.
    3. Achievements. Where did they get to in the game, how much did they win and what style did they do it in.

    Furthermore I have excluded all players aged below 28 today, as I do not feel they have a sufficient "body of work" on which to be judged. All eligible current players have probably been judged slightly more harshy than they might be as it is difficult to fully evaluate a career until it is over.

    These criteria naturally favour some of the players from the bigger nations and bigger clubs. I’m afraid that is largely unavoidable. But if you disagree with any of my selections then please let me know. That is what these threads are for.

    This is just a bit of fun and I've tried to include players across all eras. I'm not pretending it is in any way definitive, but it's there for some debate and hopefully a few people (including myself) can learn a bit more about some forgotten greats.

    I’d like to thank some of the members of the BigSoccer history group for their input on this as well.

    Please do not post your thoughts in this thread. I will set up a designated discussion thread for these threads. I will delete any posts in this thread.

    Please though do contribute. I am really going to try to get this forum back on track, but I will need the input of many members of this board. If you have any feedback or questions about this then please put them in the discussion thread.

    https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showt...7#post19314177

    To help people understand the positions of the players I have created this thread on the history of tactics as well as providing definitions of each position to make it easier.

    https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1269077

    Enjoy!
     
  2. comme

    comme Moderator
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    Feb 21, 2003
    #2 comme, Apr 12, 2010
    As this is probably the most complicated position I have dealt with so far I just wanted to state again some of the types of players that will be featured in this list. Not all are classic defensive midfielders, so please understand that I have had to draw the line somewhere between the types.

    Midfielders

    Half-back: Generic term to cover all of the midfield line under the pyramid and WM formations. This terminology continued into the sixties, well beyond the use of the formations that went with it.

    Centre-half: Although the term has now been bastardised to mean a central defender, it originally meant the central player in the half-back line. They acted as the key link between the defence and attack, and as such played an instrumental playmaking role. (No contemporary example)

    Right or left-half: In the pyramid the lateral members of the half-back line, who would be charged with marking the opposing wingers as well as providing a link to the attack. Under the WM these were generic terms to refer to central midfielders. (No contemporary example)

    Central midfielder: Generic term to cover all central midfielders. In these lists a term to cover an all round midfielder who has elements of each of the other central midfield positions. (Example: Michael Ballack)

    Anchor: A defensive minded midfielder who often sits deep and looks to break up the opponents’ play. Likely to act as a holding midfielder and look to incept passes, and cut off passing lines. (Example: Claude Makelele)

    Destroyer: A defensive midfielder who plays at a high tempo and actively seeks to break up play by hunting down opponents and making tackles. They are likely to have limited attacking responsibilities and will normally look for more talented players once they have won the ball. (Example: Gennaro Gattuso)

    Box to box midfielder: A midfielder who covers the length of the pitch and is as likely to be found in the opposing box as his own. They require great energy and stamina to cover every blade of grass (Example: Michael Essien)

    Deep lying playmaker: A withdrawn midfielder who sits in a deep position to dictate the play. They will commonly pick up the ball from the defence and distribute it with long raking passes. (Example: Andrea Pirlo)
     
  3. comme

    comme Moderator
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    #3 comme, Apr 12, 2010
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    #6 comme, Apr 12, 2010
    97. Jorge Burruchaga

    [​IMG]

    Central midfielder, attacking midfielder
    Argentina
    9/10/1962
    59 caps (13 goals)
    Clubs: Arsenal de Sarandi, Independiente, Nantes, Valenciennes, Independiente

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jorge_Burruchaga
     
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    #7 comme, Apr 12, 2010
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    #11 comme, Apr 12, 2010
    92. Phillip Cocu

    [​IMG]

    Central midfielder, utility player
    Holland
    29/10/1970
    101 caps (10 goals)
    Clubs: AZ Alkmaar, Vitesse Arnhem, PSV Eindhoven, Barcelona, PSV Eindhoven, Al-Jazira

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phillip_Cocu
     
  12. comme

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    #12 comme, Apr 12, 2010
  13. comme

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  15. comme

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    #15 comme, Apr 13, 2010
    88. Paul Ince

    [​IMG]

    Anchor, destroyer
    England
    21/10/1967
    53 caps (2 goals)
    Clubs: West Ham United, Manchester United, Internazionale, Liverpool, Middlesbrough, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Swindon Town, Macclesfield Town

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Ince
     
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  17. comme

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    #20 comme, Apr 13, 2010
    83. Rafael Martin Vasquez

    [​IMG]

    Central midfielder, left midfielder, playmaker
    Spain
    25/9/1965
    38 caps (1 goal)
    Clubs: Real Madrid, Torino, Marseille, Real Madrid, Deportivo La Coruña, Club Celaya, Karlsruhe

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rafael_Martín_Vázquez
     
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