Where does Real Madrid’s midfield rank among the best in the world in 2022?
Having a crisp functioning midfield is a must for any football team, it is the part of the pitch where most of the action happens. Moreover, a more dominant play in midfield often means that a team can dictate play and control the games’ momentum. While a few years back having four to five quality midfield options would have been a luxury, Real Madrid has shown the way in modern team building by creating a midfield trio for the ages in under 80 million euros.
Contrastingly, teams like PSG have taken advantage of the Financial Fair Play policy of the UEFA to play among free transfers and have acquired stars in their midfield.
No matter how their functionality is, the midfield is getting the due attention it should in the transfer policies of clubs. In these days of heightened importance, which clubs do you think have the best midfield in the world?
I list my top five, here.
5. Inter Milan
The Nerazzurri are enjoying a fine season and are on course to continue defending their Serie A title, they sit on top of the charts with 53 points from 22 games. They sit comfortably with a game in hand and four points clear of second-placed Napoli and third-placed Milan. While their forwards have been in great scoring form, it is really the Nerazzurri midfield that has helped Inter pop up this season.
The new signing Hakan Calhanoglu, who joined from arch-rivals Milan has been a great move and could in fact be counted among the most successful signings of the season in entire Europe. Both he and the attacking midfielder, Nicolo Barella has formed a visible partnership. They are the duo the club depends on in terms of creative inspiration.
They are the top two players for the Nerazzurri this season, per WhoScored. They account for eight goals and 14 assists among themselves. To balance the attacking nature of these two central midfield players, Marcelo Brozovic has been in tremendous defensive form. On the bench, there are attractive options like Matias Vecino, Arturo Vidal, and Robin Gosens to name a few.
Inter boss, Simone Inzaghi has mostly employed a three-man midfield with transitioning wing-backs which make the midfield arrangement a complex five-piece unit. So far it has worked brilliantly for the Italian club but has fallen short against tougher opposition viz. Real Madrid.