Football: Midfield Maestros of the Big Six Clubs

Goals win games but Harry Kane and Co cannot put them in the net without a steady supply of precision passing and pinpoint crossing.  Who are the men with the world at their feet in 2017-17, ruling the midfield in the coming Premier League season?

No nonsense

Talk of Chelsea’s midfield men always revolves around Eden Hazard but to work his magic he needs someone else to take the pressure off.  That man is N’Golo Kanté, who Chelsea bought a year ago for £32m from 2015-16 champions Leicester City.  He repaid that fee with interest, driving Chelsea to the Premier League title.  Kanté’s no-nonsense approach to breaking up opposition attacks and then feeding Hazard, Oscar and Co brought him both the PFA Player of the Year and the Football Writers Award.  If Kanté plays well, Chelsea thrive. Another good season from the Frenchman could see the title staying in West London.

Master of assists

Both Manchester clubs have star men in their midfield.  City has Kevin De Bruyne and will be hoping he can provide the ammunition for their multi-million pound strikeforce.   In a modern game of squad rotation, De Bruyne played 36 times for City last season, scoring six goals.  He topped the table for assists with 18 and he created no fewer than 24 clear chances.  He goes about his business with quiet effectiveness, distributing the ball with accuracy.  De Bruyne suffered slightly from Pep Guardiola’s tinkering, often being asked to play roles other than the playmaking position he prefers.  If the manager can keep De Bruyne happy, it will be an influential season for the Belgian.

Time to thrive

Across the city, Jose Mourinho has a big pool of mercurial talent, with Paul Pogba chief among them.  The Frenchman played more than 50 times in all competitions last season, as United took the back door route to the riches of the Champions League.  Pogba was quiet in terms of goals, scoring just five times in the Premier League, and his assist record of only four in his 30 league appearances will need to be bettered.  Mourinho paid huge money for Pogba and will be looking to the 24-year-old to step up this season.

Spurs aplenty

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has a settled squad, full of quality in midfield.  The Spurs boss prefers continuity in the centre of the park and Eric Dier, Mousa Dembélé, Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen and Victor Wanyama all played more than 30 league games last season.   Alli weighed in with 18 goals while Erikson provided 15 assists.  Alli, at just 21 years of age, is the rising superstar of English football and with a World Cup at the end of this season, it’s not just Spurs fans who will be hoping for another great campaign.

His biggest test

Across North London, Arsene Wenger is still hoping his squad will come through the transfer window unscathed.  Alexandre Lacazette is a fine player but he needs service from the midfield if he is to prosper.  One player who is often in the shadow of the more flamboyant stars at the Emirates is Aaron Ramsey.  He had a quiet season in 2016-17 with a solitary goal and just four assists in 23 appearances.   This will be his 10th season with Arsenal and the Welsh playmaker, now an established international, faces perhaps his biggest season.  Can he take some of the pressure off his manager by improving those statistics?

Doing it all

Liverpool is another club putting faith in a big-money forward.  Mohamed Salah has joined from Roma for £34m but for the Egyptian to make his mark Liverpool must hold onto Philippe Coutinho.   His 31 league appearances last season reaped 13 goals but he brings so much more to the game.   He tackles, blocks shots and passes the ball with accuracy.   As expected for a Brazilian, he is supremely comfortable on the ball and that creates so much more for the players around him.  If Jordan Henderson can bounce back after his injury woes last season, the Anglo-Brazilian combination in the heart of Liverpool’s midfield will flourish.

 

Elsewhere in the Premier League, Everton has brought in Dutchman Davy Klaasen, a classy playmaker.  Leicester City will hope that the permanent appointment of Craig Shakespeare will bring a return to form for Riyad Mahrez.  Player of the Year in its championship season, he was off the pace in the following campaign.  On the south coast, Southampton has yet another product of its incredible academy cementing his place in the middle of the field.  James Ward-Prowse starred for England U21s in the summer tournament and he will be looking to carry that form on from August.

 

The strikers get the headlines but the midfield maestros pull all the strings.

 

by Ian Hine

 

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