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Football is not just about physicality. The game requires more brain than brawn and that is a fact. Intense physical battles have always a feature of the game but it's not just the physically dominant that have prevailed. Intelligent players can entirely circumvent such situations by their quick thinking.
Football players being intelligent off the field is no new thing. Football intelligence is a different thing altogether. Most of the celebrated footballers of all time have been incredibly sharp, whether it be popping up at the right place at the right time or bypassing defences with their judicious passing and running.
Let's take a look at the most intelligent football players at the moment.
#5 Angel Di Maria
Paris Saint-Germain has one of the best attacking units in the world. On their day, they are unstoppable and behind the likes of Mbappe and Neymar operates their chief architect Angel Di Maria. The former Real Madrid and Manchester United man can upend entire defences thanks to his smart thinking in addition to his obvious craftsmanship on the ball.
Di Maria has an array of skills on him, whether it be backheels, outside-of-the-boot passes and great footwork. This enables him to do things on the field most players can't. He can pick out a pass at will and is a great reader of the game. Di Maria, in his worst season at Manchester United, still clocked 12 assists.
That typifies his excellence. Even in a team where he was being played out of position and lacked much support, he still created chances at an impressive rate. Di Maria's numbers over the years are a testament to his intelligence and ability. He has 12 goals and 18 assists across all competitions this season for PSG.
#4 Frenkie De Jong
Frenkie De Jong is the archetypal smart footballer. Teams that play expansive football rely greatly on their defensive midfielder. He is the one who has to carry the ball around in narrow channels, assessing the options around, choosing the right one and executing it.
Frenkie De Jong does all of this and he is now rightly considered as a successor to the likes of Busquets and Xavi. Not only does De Jong go about his work neatly, he does that at a high tempo. He displays the cognitive qualities that are a feature of the best to have ever played the game and that's why Barcelona broke the bank and signed him from Ajax.
De Jong has great potential and by the time he reaches his peak years, he could very well be a world beater and that will be, in no small part, thanks to his footballing intelligence.
#3 Bruno Fernandes
Manchester United have been reckless with their spending in the transfer window. But as of late, they've been changing it around and Bruno Fernandes' signing is the best example of this. The Portuguese has put the Red Devils into top gear and after years of being devoid of creativity in midfield, United have no shortage of it now.
Fernandes is always looking to pass the ball forward. He is a very quick passer and often lets the ball out of his feet and onto the path of an oncoming attacker before the defenders can blink. He has an incredible passing range and his lovely little dinked balls into the box are a treat to watch.
Fernandes is also one of the best penalty takers in the business. He switches up his style often and almost always gets the better of the goalkeeper. The Manchester United man has not missed a penalty in his last 4 seasons. Fernandes' footballing intelligence has already drawn comparison to Paul Scholes'.
Francesco Guidolin, Bruno’s manager at Udinese, once remarked,
“When I speak about Bruno Fernandes, what comes to mind is the intelligence of the boy. He was, above all, very clever — both as a player and as a person.”
#2 Roberto Firmino
Roberto Firmino's detractors will pull up his poor goalscoring record at Anfield this season and his relatively lower output in a frontline that has Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah to argue that he is perhaps overrated. But if you've watched Liverpool play, then you'd know that Firmino is one of the most vital cogs in Klopp's system.
A number 9 like no other, Firmino is one of the main reasons behind Salah's and Mane's prolific streak. The Brazilian has excellent technique, his no-look passes and flicks helping Liverpool leave Premier League defenders flat footed and clutching at thin air.
Firmino drops deep and draws defenders on to him thereby freeing up space for the rest of his teammates and also has the ability to catch up with them by the time they make it to the final third. His dummies and little feints are all calculated and it's fair to say that he is one of the most intelligent footballers on the planet.
#1 Thomas Muller
Thomas Muller does not stand out on the football pitch in the ordinary sense. But don't mistake his apparent anonymity for lack of ability. Thomas Muller has been one of the best forwards in the game for several years now.
The German is neither physically dominant nor does he pack a lot of flair. But he does a bit of everything. He has always been a great poacher and has built his career out of being at the right place at the right time.
Thomas Muller's passing and movement are textbook material. He is virtually impossible to mark, loves to run off the last defender's shoulder and is always popping up in pockets of space to link up with his teammates.
Muller is also an excellent reader of the game and he often ends up anticipating balls into the box better than anyone else on the pitch. That is definitely one of the reasons why he has scored so many goals in his career.
Players who can match Muller's intelligence on the field are hard to come by and that's the reason why he will always be regarded as one of the best footballers of his generation.
