Top 10 Midfield Partnerships

Midfield partnerships have been around for a long time and they still are today even as the game has evolved over the years.

To be a good midfield partnership, you need to know and have a good understanding with your partner and trust each other.

Most partnerships are made up of one player who can sit deep to provide protection for the defence whilst the other pushes up the pitch to support the attack.

There are also partnerships where both players work together both as a defensive pairing or an attacking pairing depending on what formation a team plays whether that be a 4-4-3, which requires two no.8's, or a 4-2-3-1, which requires two sitting midfielders.

But in both formations, one may play deeper whilst the other has the freedom to push up and express themselves higher up the pitch.

The modern era has seen many iconic midfield partnerships over the years including the ones in the list.

And speaking of the list, here it is:

Xavi and Andres Iniesta

Toni Kroos and Luka Modric

Paul Scholes and Roy Keane

Rodri and Kevin De Bruyne

Kaka and Gennaro Gattuso

Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick

Steven Gerrard and Xabi Alonso

Andrea Pirlo and Paul Pogba

Frank Lampard and Michael Essien

Bastian Schweinsteiger and Toni Kroos

10. Steven Gerrard and Xabi Alonso

Gerrard and Alonso had to be in at no.10 because they didn't win as much as the other duos in the list.

They were still a brilliant duo during their five seasons together at Liverpool with Alonso sitting deep and acting as the deep lying playmaker and Gerrard being the one who would push up due to the incredible energy he had.

They were both two of Liverpool's most important players under Rafa Benitez as they played a key role in the reds winning the Champions League and FA Cup in 2005 and 2006 respectively, and also when the reds finished second to Man United in the Premier League in 2009.

9. Andrea Pirlo and Paul Pogba

Pirlo and Pogba had three seasons together and Juventus where they won the Serie A title in every season and the Coppa Italia in 2015.

Pirlo would be the one that acted as the deep lying playmaker and having him in that role gave Pogba the freedom to express himself.

Pogba was at his best when he had a defensive midfielder next to or alongside him as it allowed him to show off his abilities knowing that there was someone behind him to do the defensive work.

He didn't always have that freedom at Man United and especially when Mourinho was manager as he had to do more defensive work which restricted him from showing off his attacking abilities.

But he definitely had it with both Juve and France and it was with both teams where we saw the best of him as he was given the freedom to express himself by having a defensive midfielder alongside him.

Pirlo was a good partner for him at Juve as he was someone who he learned a lot off as he was a young player when they played together and his game improved the more they played together.

Their midfield partnership was key to the success they achieved at Juve.

8. Bastian Schweinsteiger and Toni Kroos

Schweinsteiger and Kroos played together for both Bayern Munich and Germany and they had a very good partnership during their time together with both teams.

They won everything on offer at Bayern including three Bundesliga titles, three German Cups and the Champions League in 2013 before going on to win the 2014 World Cup with Germany.

Schweinsteiger would be the one that played deeper whilst Kroos was the more advanced player. But they both grew into good all-round midfielders excelling both in a midfield three for Bayern, and a two with Germany.

7. Frank Lampard and Michael Essien

Lampard and Essien won everything on offer during their time together at Chelsea including two Premier League titles, four FA Cups and the Champions League in 2012.

Both players were traditionally no.8's or box-to-box midfielders, but Essien was the one who would player deeper because he was the all-action midfielder who got back to make key tackles whilst Lampard was the one who would push up and break into the box to score goals.

Their partnership was instrumental to the success they achieved during their seven and a half seasons together at Chelsea.

6. Kaka and Genaro Gattuso

Kaka and Gattuso spent six seasons together at AC Milan where they won almost everything on offer including the Serie A title in 2004 and the Champions League in 2007.

Gattuso was the player that sat deep due to his tenacity and physicality and him being that deep lying player gave Kaka the freedom to express himself higher up the pitch.

Their partnership was instrumental during their time together at Milan and especially during their Serie A and Champions League title winning campaigns in 2005 and 2007 respectively.

5. Rodri and Kevin De Bruyne

Rodri and De Bruyne won everything on offer during their six seasons together at Man City including four straight Premier League titles and a treble which included the Champions League.

Rodri was the player that sat deep in dictating play in midfield and him doing that job gave De Bruyne the licence to push up and control the game.

Their midfield partnership was vital to every success they achieved together at City and especially during the treble winning season.

4. Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick

Scholes and Carrick had seven successful seasons together at Man United winning five Premier League titles, two League Cups and the Champions League in 2008.

Carrick was the one that would sit deep and control the flow of the game and him doing that gave Scholes the freedom to express himself and show off his abilities.

They both complemented each other very well as they were both brilliant passers of the ball which in some way made them the perfect pairing.

Their partnership throughout their time at United played a key role in every success they achieved together.

3. Paul Scholes and Roy Keane

Scholes' partnership with Roy Keane just pips his partnership with Carrick because they played together longer and won more together.

I see them both as box-to-box midfielders as they both like to get around the pitch, but Keane was the one who would play deeper because of his tenacity and tackling abilities whilst Scholes would play higher up the pitch.

They played together for 12 seasons at Man United winning six Premier League titles and the Champions League in 1999 as part of the treble they won they year.

Their partnership played an instrumental in the success they achieved together at Man United and had this been a Premier League related top 10, they would probably be at no.1 because for me they're the greatest midfield partnership in Premier League history.

2. Toni Kroos and Luka Modric

Kroos and Modric had a successful 10 seasons together at Real Madrid where they won everything on offer including four La Liga titles, five Champions League's and the Copa del Rey in 2023.

Both players played higher up the pitch as they were both no.8's, but Kroos was the one who took up the deeper positions as he was an excellent passer who could dictate play whereas Modric was the better runner with the ball.

Their partnership on the pitch played a huge role in the success they achieved together at Real Madrid with Kroos providing the vision and Modric providing the magic and creativity.

I wish their last game together was the Champions League final in 2024 but it wasn't as Modric replaced Kroos later in the game. It would've been brilliant and a fitting end to their partnership had they been on the pitch together in that game.

1. Xavi and Andres Iniesta

There was only going to be one winner of this top 10 and it had to be Xavi and Iniesta because of how good a duo they were over so many years.

They ran the show from midfield many times throughout their time together for both Barcelona and Spain as they both dominated club and international football respectively.

Both players were brilliant passers of the ball due to the incredible vision they had and were key to how the Barca and Spain teams they played in played because of their passing abilities.

Xavi was the one who would play deeper as he was arguably the better passer of the ball whereas Iniesta was the one who would play higher up because of how good a carrier of the ball he was.

Their partnership was instrumental to the success they achieved for both Barca and Spain and I don't think we're going to see another iconic duo like them.

MY TOP 10:

1. Xavi and Andres Iniesta

2. Toni Kroos and Luka Modric

3. Paul Scholes and Roy Keane

4. Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick

5. Rodri and Kevin De Bruyne

6. Kaka and Gennaro Gattuso

7. Frank Lampard and Michael Essien

8. Bastian Schweinsteiger and Toni Kroos

9. Andrea Pirlo and Paul Pogba

10. Steven Gerrard and Xabi Alonso