Top 10 centre-attacking midfielders of all time

Top 10 centre-attacking midfielders of all time
Top 10 centre-attacking midfielders of all time

#9 Thomas Muller

Thomas Muller won the Golden Boot at the 2010 FIFA World Cup at the age of 20
Thomas Muller won the Golden Boot at the 2010 FIFA World Cup at the age of 20

Thomas Muller is arguably one of the most underrated players of his generation. Muller has spent 12 seasons at Bayern Munich, during which he has helped the club win two trebles, nine Bundesligas, six DFB Pokals, and five DFL Supercups.

The German scored 23 goals in the 2012–13 season as Bayern won a historic treble; the league title, cup, and Champions League. He broke the Bundesliga record for assists by providing 21 in a season at the age of 31.

Muller is also a World Cup Golden Boot winner and played an integral role in leading Germany to their 2014 World Cup triumph, in which he won the Silver Ball.

The inclusion of Thomas Muller may come as a surprise to most, but his longevity and consistency for Bayern Munich and the German national side, which has coincided with the continuous success of both teams, must not be forgotten.


#8 Kaka

Kaka is one of the most gifted footballers of all time
Kaka is one of the most gifted footballers of all time

Kaka is widely regarded as one of the best players of his generation. The Brazilian is one of eight players to have won the FIFA World Cup, the UEFA Champions League and the Ballon d'Or.

In his six-year stint at AC Milan, Kaká lead Milan to a runners up finish in the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final, as he finished the season as the top assist provider of the tournament and won the UEFA Club Midfielder of the Year award.

Kaka then led Milan to win the 2007 UEFA Champions League Final and was the tournament's top goal scorer. His outstanding performances that year performances saw him win the FIFA World Player of the Year, the 2007 Ballon d'Or and the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year.

Kaka's career fizzled out after his big-money transfer to Real Madrid in 2009 due to a series of recurring injuries, but the Brazilian dominated world football for the best part of three years before the emergence of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. His contributions to AC Milan and the Brazilian national team will always be remembered.


#7 Rivaldo

Rivaldo was a key player for Barcelona back in the day
Rivaldo was a key player for Barcelona back in the day

Rivaldo played majority of his career as a central attacking midfielder or as a second striker. The Brazilian won several trophies with the Catalan club and scored 130 goals for Barcelona.

Rivaldo's three goals against Valencia in June 2001 helped Barcelona qualify for the Champions League. His last goal on the night was a last-minute 20-yard bicycle kick winner, which is often regarded as one of the finest goals of all time to complete a hat-trick.

Rivaldo won the Ballon d'Or in 1999 and was named FIFA World Player of the Year. In 2004, he was named by Pelé in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players.

The Brazilian had a brilliant career for his country and finished as his the Selecao's seventh-highest goal-scorer with 35 goals. Rivaldo lead his country to the 1998 World Cup finals, 1999 Copa America triumph where he was award the best player of the tournament award, and the 2002 World Cup triumph where he formed a formidable front trio with Ronaldo and Ronaldinho.


#6 Francesco Totti

Francesco Totti is hailed as the King of Rome
Francesco Totti is hailed as the King of Rome

Francesco Totti is the embodiment of a 'one-club man". The Italian spent his astonishing 25-year career at Roma where he won a Serie A title, two Coppa Italia titles, and two Italian Super Cups. Totti was a creative playmaker who was known for his vision, skill, and goal-scoring prowess.

He is the second-highest scorer of all time in Italian league history with 250 goals and is the sixth-highest scoring Italian in all competitions with 316 goals. Totti is also a FIFA World Cup winner and UEFA Euro with Italy and was also selected in the All-Star team for both tournaments.

Totti won a record eleven Oscar del Calcio awards from the Italian Footballers' Association: five Serie A Italian Footballer of the Year awards, two Serie A Footballer of the Year awards, two Serie A Goal of the Year awards, one Serie A Goalscorer of the Year award, and one Serie A Young Footballer of the Year award.

The legendary attacker also won the 2007 European Golden Shoe and the 2010 Golden Foot. Totti was named in the FIFA 100, a list of the world's greatest living players as selected by Pelé, in 2004.


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