In the wide history of football, fans of this sport had the pleasure of being able to witness the incredible skills of 10 midfielders who marked a before and after in the history of football.
These players took the wand of the expected to the next level by demonstrating a series of unique skills with the ball in the field of play that allowed them to become successful footballers.
The success they have achieved allowed them to remain in the memory of all fans of this sport and serve as an example for future generations who follow in the footsteps of these legends hoping to become what they were.
The 10 most important midfielders in the history of football are the following:
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Paul Scholes
This excellent midfielder born in England on November 16, 1974, is one of the great idols of Manchester United due to the immense contribution he made with his strategic game to the club.
Throughout his football career as a professional, he always stood firm at Manchester United where he debuted as a midfielder in 1993 and ended his career in 2013 while maintaining his excellent football level in all these years.
In this team, he was proud to reap an immense amount of titles in which he had vital importance within the team. Scholes won 11 England leagues, 3 England Cups, 2 UEFA Champions League and 2 club world championships.
A large number of decorations that add to his 66 matches in the England team where he scored 14 goals leads him to be one of the best midfielders in the history of football to his 44 years.
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Michel Platini
One of the best midfielders that gave us football was, without a doubt, the Frenchman Michel Platini who had his sports debut with AS Nancy in 1972 and ended his successful career at Juventus in Turin in 1987 planting a tear in the eyes of the fans.
Born on July 21 of 1955, this player went through 3 clubs in Europe where he taught football to all the fans of this sports demonstrating his tremendous skills as a midfielder at AS Nancy, Saint Etienne and the big Juventus of Italy.
Throughout so many years of career as an offensive midfielder, he played 400 games professionally and scored 207 goals which allowed him to win 4 leagues, the UEFA Champions League and the Intercontinental Cup in Juventus, among others, where he became the club’s eternal legend.
In the selection of France, he played 72 matches scoring 41 goals that gave the French team many joys and a strong teaching on how football should be played.
All this trajectory brought him extremely important individual awards, but his 3 ball d or stand out from the rest because they made him one of the best midfielders that football could have.
At 64, he continues working actively in the world of football as the UEFA president, which is one of the most important position that can be obtained politically in football.
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Andrés Iniesta
One of the greatest joys that world football had the luxury of witnessing is the excellent skills of the Spanish midfielder Andrés Iniesta who, with his 35 years, is still working as a professional footballer in Japan.
The date of the May 11 of 1984, its going to remain in the hearts of Spanish fans as it is the date on which the living legend, Iniesta, was born. With a wide football career, he made his debut in 2001 at FC Barcelona B where he played 3 seasons until his passage to Barca’s first team.
In 2002 he had his arrival at the historic Barcelona and since then he kept playing for the team until 2018 where he defended the team culé in 442 opportunities. All these matches are justified in the millimeter game that Iniesta has when passing the ball to his teammates and the unique quality it has to generate chances of attack.
Iniesta has earned an immense amount of awards in Barcelona where he was a fundamental part of the team in each trophy won, adding 9 leagues from Spain, 4 UEFA Champions League, 3 European Super Cups and 3 Club World Cups that led him to become one of the best Midfielders of the world.
All this success was not only formed in Barcelona, but also achieved success in the national team of Spain where he played 36 games and won the World Cup in 2010 as a key piece in the final where he scored a goal.
This extensive career left him with many individual awards standing out for having won the award for best midfielder in La Liga in 2009 and the Silver Ball in 2010 where everyone thought he would win the d‘or ball.
At present, Iniesta continues to taste fans with his skills playing in the Vissel Kobe of the Japan league where he is the undisputed best midfielder on his team.
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Roberto Baggio
The magical Italian midfielder born on February 18 of 1967 is one of the best midfielders in the world noted for his contribution in creating plays in the offensive for great European teams such as Vicenza Calcio, Florentine, Juventus, AC Milan, Bologna, Inter de Milan and Brescia Calcio.
His entire football career was developed in Italian football where he had his sports debut on November 16 of 1988 at Vicenza Calcio and, since then, he has played 490 games throughout his career scoring 220 goals.
These impressive numbers allowed him to win 2 Italian leagues, 1 Italian cup and 1 UEFA Champions League along with a large number of individual awards such as 1 ballon d ‘or ball among other important awards.
In his national team he also had the opportunity to show his skills by playing 56 games scoring 27 goals in several competitions among which the World Cup of the years 1990, 1994 and 1998 stand out.
At 52 he is already retired from the playing fields, he putted end of his sports career in 2004 playing for Brescia Calcio leaving an excellent memory of him to football fans.
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Luis Suarez
This midfielder is one of the most important in the history of Spain since he was the first Spanish footballer to win the Ballon d’Or in 1960 along with several silver balls and multiple championships in his teams among which 2 leagues stand out from Spain, 3 leagues from Italy, 2 intercontinental cups and 2 cups from Europe.
His extensive sports career began at Deportivo La Coruña in 1952 and continued his football career in major teams around the world such as Barcelona, Internazionale de Italy, and Sampdoria.
In these teams, he played 462 games scoring 116 goals leaving an excellent image of him in each team where he played. With his team, he also does justice to his great performance since he defended the Spanish team 32 times scoring 13 goals for his country.
This midfielder born on May 2, 1935, who is currently still alive with 84 years, left a very important memory in the history of football in Spain as he was the first player of this nationality who win the important ballon d’or award.
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Ronaldinho
This excellent offensive midfielder is considered by many to be one of the best footballers in history due to his unique ability with the ball. Ronaldinho was able to generate a huge amount of dribbling that fascinated the spectators.
Born on March 21, 1980, in Brazil, he is now retired at his 39 years after putting an end to his career in 2015 playing for Fluminense.
The Brazilian formed a long career in which he accumulated 442 games with 167 goals throughout a football career that was developed in Gremio, Paris Saint Germain, Barcelona, AC Milan, Flamengo, Atletico Mineiro, Queretaro, and Fluminense.
Brazilian soccer saw him debut in 1998 when he started taking his first steps for Gremio and since then he formed a collection of trophies that accumulate 3 leagues, 2 super cups, 1 UEFA Champions League and 1 liberating cup of America.
All this is complemented by his titles won in the Brazilian national team where he won several prizes, including 1 American Cup and 1 World Cup in 2002.
His excellent number of titles won allowed him to win 1 ballon d‘or, 1 gold boot, 1 FIFA World Player Award, among another long list of decorations that Ronaldinho received.
The Brazilian moved the football fans with his humility and strategic game that allowed all the teams in which he played to get lots of titles and unique memories that remain in the memory of all the fans.
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Zico
Another very important midfielder considered one of the best in the history of football is the Brazilian Zico who tasted football fans from the moment of his debut in Flamengo in 1971 until his retirement in 1994 playing for Kashima Antlers.
When talking about successful midfielders, this player should be named. Zico played for Flamengo, Udinese Calcio and Kashima Antlers, being in Flamengo where he developed much part of his career as a professional and due to the great contribution he made playing 335 matches scoring 192 goals he had the opportunity to win countless cups and championships highlighting his Copa Libertadores of America and Intercontinental in Flamengo in 1981.
Being a historical footballer for Brazil, this midfielder scored 30 goals in 43 games leaving March 3, of 1953 as an important date for Brazilian fans since it is Zico’s birthday.
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Xavi Hernández
There aren’t enough adjectives in the dictionary to define the excellent level of play that the Spanish Xavi presented in the field of play because of the midfielder’s ability was so great that it led him to form a broad trajectory at FC Barcelona, where he had previously played for his second team in which he debuted in 1997, to end his career in the Qatar football.
Throughout his successful career, the player born in 1980 gave to FC Barcelona a great number of titles in which, along with Iniesta, he had a fundamental importance within the team with he won 8 leagues in Spain, 4 UEFA Champions league and 2 Club World Cup among other important competitions.
All this success is completed with the World Cup won in the Spanish team in 2010 where he was a fundamental part of the team by forming a pair in the midfield with Iniesta and together they gave soccer lessons to the rest of the players.
Xavi was an example for all the players who play in the position of midfielders for their strategic and precise game which is still missed by fans on the field.
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Zinedine Zidane
The second place in this ranking is taken by the legendary French midfielder Zidane who at the age of 47 is still present in the football environment as the coach of Real Madrid, a team in which he played for many years.
The sporting career of this excellent midfielder started at the A.S Cannes Football where he took his first steps in professional football in 1989 and ended at Real Madrid in 2006.
He was one of the most successful midfielders in the history of this sport since he won a lot of professional titles, among which 3 leagues which 2 of them were won in Juventus and 1 in Real Madrid, 1 UEFA Champions League and 2 intercontinental cups in which Zidane had important participation to obtain them.
The one born in France on June 23, 1972, also had important participation within his national team where he won a World Cup in 1998 and the Eurocup in 2000 that gave to France one of his greatest football joys in the history of this sport.
All these titles allowed Zidane to be one of the best midfielders in the world being awarded great prizes such as 1 ballon d’Or and 3 awards for Best FIFA Player of the Year, among a long list of other important awards.
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Diego Armando Maradona
It is impossible to put together a ranking of the best midfielders in the history of football without first putting the Argentine Diego Maradona who is considered by many of the football fans as the best player in the history of this sport.
Maradona was born on October 30 of 1960, a date remembered by all Argentines, and today with his 60 years he is still actively participating in football as coach of Gimnasia y Esgrima de la Plata, a team that plays in the first division of Argentina.
With an extensive career record in which he leaved an unforgettable mark on all the spectators of this sport thanks to his unique and unrepeatable ability to convert goals and generate goal opportunities, he became a football legend worldwide.
He had a successful career in which he debuted in Argentinos Juniors in 1976 and ended his career in the team of Boca Juniors in 1997.
Throughout his career Maradona worked for important European teams such as Barcelona, Napoli and Seville, being in Napoli where he generated a greater impact among fans who were fascinated by the skills that this midfielder presented.
All the magic that this player performed on the field allowed him to win 3 leagues, 2 cups and 1 runner-up in the UEFA Champions League when he played for Napoli.
However, the greatest numbers of this player are in his national team, where he scored a before and after for Argentine fans who see Maradona as the last great player that his country had, in addition to Messi, since this legend won the World Cup in 1986 with the Argentine national team in which he scored the best goal in the history of the World Cups.
All this allowed him to win an immense amount of distinctions and awards individually among which one can notice the absence of the ballon d’Or which was not delivered to American football players which caused great controversy.
Although he did not win the Ballon d’Or, Maradona is for many the best midfielder in the history of football and, why not, the best player that the world had the pleasure of witnessing since with his unique mysticism he gave fans the possibility to shout 259 goals scored by him playing for clubs and 46 goals in the Argentine national team.
All these players are considered the best midfielders in the history of football and gave this sport many joys and moments that will remain in the hearts of fans of this sport.
Currently, there are new midfielders who are following in their footsteps and dream of becoming what these great players were in order to go down in history as the best midfielders in the world and be remembered for the whole story as these 10 great players.
