Impact XVI

#3 Xabi Alonso

Group : B Team : Spain

Name : Xabi Alonso ( Real Madrid )

Few in world football today, can emulate his positional play and ability to control the game from a deep midfield position. I would rate only Andrea Pirlo in the same category. Spain’s 2010 campaign bleated the cacophony of tiki-taka and thankfully for the supporters, the team delivered after years of underachievement.

While Xavi and Iniesta have been credited for the campaign and Spain’s recent dominance, I think the heartbeat of Spain is Xabi Alonso. I rate Busquets highly too and consider him essential for the team’s chances. But when Sergio is building up the possession play for his Barca teammates, it is Alonso who’s patrolling the back four and cutting out any potential counter attack attempts. I have been a big fan of Alonso since his Sociedad days. He is a laid back midfielder who rarely gets dispossessed. For all the greats, I’ve had the privilege to watch, his range of passing can only be matched or surpassed by Pirlo and Scholes.

There is nothing dramatic about his game but the beauty lies in his quick distribution and precise inch-perfect cross-field passes. He offers an alternate option to the way Spain usually plays. If need be, Del Bosque would definitely give Alonso the license to go for his defense-splitting passes for Costa to run after. In the modern game where midfielders typically have destructive power and insatiable work-rate, Alonso’s calmness and footballing intelligence sets him apart. He definitely needs to be on top of his game for Spain to recreate the 2010 magic.