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Midfielders are the heart and soul of any football team. While strikers usually steal the limelight as they're the ones associated with the glamorous side of football like scoring goals, midfielders are just as important.
They are the ones tasked with helping their team assert themselves in center of the pitch. Midfield battles often dictate which team dominates a game. Navigating tight spaces, winning the ball back and orchestrating play requires players to be technically proficient and also intelligent from a tactical standpoint.
Without further ado, let's take a look at the seven best midfielders of 2022.
#7 Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (Serbia/Lazio)
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic continues to dominate Serie A with Lazio despite being continually linked with a high-profile move away from Italy. Milinkovic-Savic is a physically imposing midfielder who can make marauding runs, create chances for his teammates and find the back of the net on a regular basis.
The 27-year-old has been on fire in the 2022-23 season, scoring five goals and providing seven assists in 20 appearances in all competitions so far for Lazio. He's put up great numbers in almost every single season in recent times and was one of their best players last term as well.
Savic also played a critical role in Serbia's World Cup qualification campaign and is currently in his prime.
#6 Rodri (Spain/Manchester City)
Manchester City midfield lynchpin Rodri is one of the most underrated footballers of his generation. The Spanish midfielder does the work of two men in Manchester City's midfield by virtue of his exceptional game-reading ability. His tactical intelligence and awareness are elite as well.
Due to Spain's incredible wealth in the midfield department, Rodri has been sparingly used in the middle of the park. But with Sergio Busquets announcing his retirement from international football, it's time for Spain to finally give Rodri the prominence he deserves.
He was a vital cog in the Manchester City side that won the Premier League title in the 2021-22 season. In addition to being excellent at the base of midfield, Rodri showcased his ability to arrive late in the attacking third to score some important goals for his side.
In the 2021-22 Premier League season, he scored seven goals and provided two assists in 33 appearances.
#5 Casemiro (Brazil/Manchester United)
Casemiro has proven beyond reasonable doubt in 2022 that there's plenty more to his game than just belligerence. The Brazilian midfield destroyer played a key role in Real Madrid winning the Champions League title in the 2021-22 season.
His decision to join Manchester United in the summer was reflective of his desire to seek out new challenges and continue to test himself at the highest level. Casemiro is already being viewed as one of United's best signings in recent years and he has improved the Red Devils' midfield massively since his arrival.
Casemiro was also one of Brazil's best players at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. At the age of 30, the five-time Champions League winner is finally getting the world to acknowledge the fact that he is one of the best midfielders of the modern era.
#4 Federico Valverde (Uruguay/Real Madrid)
Over the past year or so, Federico Valverde has burgeoned into one of the most versatile and dynamic midfielders on the planet. Valverde is slowly becoming one of Real Madrid's most important players and his ability to slot into a multitude of positions across the pitch makes him one of Europe's most coveted young players.
The 24-year-old has been in sublime form for Real Madrid in the 2022-23 season. He has become a reliable goalscoring outlet this term and has scored some absolute worldies for Los Blancos.
In 20 appearances in all competitions for Real Madrid so far this season, Valverde has scored eight goals and provided four assists.
#3 Luka Modric (Croatia/Real Madrid)
Luka Modric's inspired form took Croatia to the semi-finals of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The Real Madrid veteran was in exceptional form in the knockout stages of the 2021-22 Champions League as well.
He won the fifth Champions League title of his career last term, and despite being 37, he continues to be one of the best midfielders in the world. The diminutive Croat's timelessness was one of the major talking points of the 2022 FIFA World Cup as well.
He motored through the midfield realms tirelessly for Croatia, playing 656 minutes out of a possible 690 for them in Qatar. Modric's passing range is unmatched and his vision and game intelligence are simply legendary. It wouldn't surprise us if he keeps going on like this for a couple more years.
#2 Joshua Kimmich (Germany/Bayern Munich)
Joshua Kimmich is the best deep-lying playmaker in the game right now. Not only is he exceptional at orchestrating play from deep, but he is also excellent as a midfield destroyer capable of turning over possession at will.
The Germany international is also one of the most versatile footballers on the planet. He can play at right-back, centre-back, defensive midfield and central midfield. Kimmich excels at spraying precise long passes into the paths of his forwards and can also chip in with goals thanks to his keen eye for goal.
Kimmich has been one of Bayern Munich's most important players for several seasons now and will stay that way for a while. The 27-year-old midfielder has already scored three goals and provided six assists in 23 appearances in all competitions for the Bavarians so far this term.
#1 Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium/Manchester City)
Kevin De Bruyne is quite simply the best midfielder of his generation. The Belgium international is a force to be reckoned with in the middle of the park. He uses a combination of speed, technical prowess and immaculate tactical intelligence to affect almost every single game he plays.
Now that Manchester City have blessed him with Erling Haaland, a striker who will bury most of the chances he creates, De Bruyne's numbers are going through the roof. In 19 appearances in all competitions for City so far this season, De Bruyne has scored three goals and provided a whopping 13 assists.
The attacking midfielder's goalscoring exploits were crucial to Pep Guardiola's side's triumphant 2021-22 Premier League campaign. The 31-year-old scored 19 goals and provided 14 assists in 45 appearances in all competitions for Manchester City last term.
