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The No. 8 shirt in football is often linked with world-class central midfielders. The likes of Gennaro Gattuso, Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard have worn the famous number and gone down in history as legends of the game.
None of the aforementioned names are active footballers anymore, but that doesn’t mean the legacy of the No. 8 has been vanquished. There are still a few footballers who are keeping the lineage of greatness alive.
Today, we will take a look at the five masters of the game, who are flying the No. 8 flag high and with pride.
Here are the top five No. 8s who produced memorable football in the 2021-22 season:
#5 Sandro Tonali - AC Milan
With a 3-0 win at Sassuolo, AC Milan finally confirmed the inevitable. Beating their arch-rivals Inter Milan to the punch, Milan won Serie A, ending their 11-year-long drought for the Italian league title.
Every single player played their part in making the dreams of millions of AC Milan fans come true. Midfielder Sandro Tonali was one such crucial cog of Stefano Pioli’s well-oiled machine.
At only 22-years-old, Tonali exhibited immense composure and quality while sitting at the base of the midfield. He stopped the opposition in their tracks, circulated possession with ease, and looked to get on the scoresheet whenever an opportunity presented itself.
Tonali played in 36 Serie A games for Milan, scoring five goals and providing two assists. He also played 44 key passes, intercepted 57 passes, won 37 tackles, blocked nine shots, and made 17 clearances.
#4 James Ward-Prowse - Southampton
Losing four of their last five Premier League matches, Southampton finished in 15th place in the 2021-22 Premier League campaign.
In all honesty, Southampton’s overall gameplay was not headturning. And had it not been for the brilliance of one James Ward-Prowse, very few would have remembered the season they had.
Ward-Prowse was easily the brightest part of the Saints' lackluster Premier League season. The midfielder scored goals, passed the ball around beautifully, and brought his teammates into the fold as well.
The Southampton star featured in 36 Premier League matches in the 2021-22 campaign, recording 10 goals and five assists. Four of his 10 goals came from direct free-kicks, making him the most efficient free-kick taker in England.
#3 Mateo Kovacic - Chelsea
With N’Golo Kante and Jorginho struggling to produce consistent performances, Mateo Kovacic popped up as Chelsea’s most important midfielder in 2021-22.
The Croatian used his excellent ball-shielding ability, passing range, and dribbling skills to trouble the opposition, penentraing dangerous areas time and again. He endured an Adductor problem, tested positive for COVID-19, and even had an ankle injury, but didn’t let the inconviences majorly affect his flow.
Kovacic took part in 44 games across competitions in 2021-22, with 25 of those matches coming in the Premier League.
In the top flight of English football, the Croat scored two goals and provided five assists.
The central midfielder also created eight big chances, played 12 accurate through balls, and made 111 recoveries.
#2 Toni Kroos - Real Madrid
In an era where most footballers prefer exuberance over efficiency, Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos is advocating simplicity with every single one of his passes.
The German does not score regularly, does not provide as many assists, and prefers to keep things simple. Kroos’s value does not lie in goals and assists. He is in charge of maintaining the fundamental welfare of the Whites. Whenever he is out of the Real Madrid team, Los Blancos struggle to impose authority in the middle of the pitch.
Carlo Ancelotti has often deployed Kroos in a deeper role this season, in a position where he is not necessarily at his best. But that has not stopped him from giving his all for the team.
Since the start of the 2021-22 season, Kroos has featured in 43 games for the Whites across competitions, recording two goals and three assists. In La Liga, he attained 91.9 percent passing accuracy, made 50 key passes, and played 208 progressive balls (via Fbref).
#1 Ilkay Gundogan - Manchester City
Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City are home to some of the best midfielders on the planet. Surviving and thriving at a club of City's stature is no joke, but Ilkay Gundogan, who happens to be Guardiola’s first City signing, has done so quite effortlessly.
Yes, he did not start as many matches as he would have liked, but he was far from an afterthought. Guardiola regularly uses him to exert control and turn the tide in his team’s favor.
Over the course of the 2021-22 season, Gundogan featured in 27 Premier League games for the Cityzens, pitching in with eight goals and four assists. He also took part in 16 games spread across the Champions League, the FA Cup, and the League Cup, pitching in with two goals and three assists (via Transfermarkt).
Gundogan produced quite a few impressive performances in the 2021-22 season, but his best came on the final matchday of the Premier League. With City trailing by two goals against Aston Villa, Guardiola introduced Gundogan into the match.
Eight minutes after coming on, he struck, cutting the deficit in half. Rodri equalized for City a couple of minutes later. Gundogan then struck again in the 81st minute to put the Citizens ahead, thus winning them the Premier League title.
Also Read: Ranking the 5 best No. 10s in football this season (2021-22)
