The role of the playmaker still lives

About the beautiful game / Alsy / 28 October 2008 / Leave a Comment

Xavi, Iniesta, Cambiasso, Pirlo and Fabregas are some of the finest exponents of the role of the playmaker in modern football but what attributes do they possess that got them the job in the first place, asks Alister Morgan.

After Liverpool dismantled Chelsea's 86-match unbeaten home streak former Chelsea favourite Glenn Hoddle sat among the talking heads on Sky Sports. I wondered if he might have been able, in his prime, to influence proceedings where Deco had clearly failed. Playmakers of Hoddle's class remain a rarity in the Premiership especially when there's so little time to manoeuvre amidst the blood and thunder of English football.

Elsewhere playmakers flourish and European football has a long tradition of midfield maestros conducting affairs. Juninho at Lyon, Guti at Madrid and AC Milan's Andrea Pirlo all fit the bill as does Inter Milan's Esteban Cambiasso. This breed usually plays centre-midfield and possess an ability to collect the ball from defenders and deliver killer passes to strikers. He's invariably the teams' best and most creative passer and players like Paul Scholes can often dictate the tempo of a game and switch points of attack when necessary. Flawless technique is a must alongside an ability to find space when none seems available - this is one major difference between playmakers in Europe and the Premiership.

The European game is slower than the English. This gives European players much more time on the ball, especially in their own half of the field. Only when approaching the midfield area is the ball pressured giving European playmakers more time and touches from which to initiate attacks. In the Premiership things are slightly different. For years Deco controlled the play at Porto and Barcelona and his efforts to date for Chelsea seem just as effective but against a well-drilled Liverpool side he was denied time and space in all key areas of the pitch. The end result was an ineffective display from top midfielders like Deco, Mikel and Frank Lampard.

If the Premiership represents the toughest landscape for playmakers perhaps it's little surprise that English teams have dominated the Champions League in recent years. Does this imply that the key position of playmaker is becoming obsolete and ineffective? I think not. Perhaps a sea of change is occurring in modern football instead? The influx of foreign talent (coaches and players) has finally fused skill and technique to the combative athleticism that dominated English football and something interesting is happening - the evolution of the playmaker for modern times.

Some new exponents of this craft (both at home and abroad) retain the technique and creativity of traditional playmakers but can also perform amidst the fast-paced style made famous in the Premiership. Curiously, the small but distinct group of players leading the charge all seem to hail from Spain. We saw plenty of technique and talent from the Spain national team on their way to winning the European Championships and now players like Cesc Fabregas, Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Xabi Alonso represent a bright new breed of playmaker. All have superb technique, can pass with either foot and dictate play from midfield. There's no blinding pace to speak of but speed of thought enables them to play and perform under pressure.

Individual styles may vary but they all have the ability to play against high-tempo defences and operate in congested areas. Twinned together, Barcelona's Xavi and Iniesta seem to grow in influence every time I watch them. Goalscorers like Fernando Torres and David Villa may grab more headlines but I'd back one of these playmakers to lead their respective teams to the Champions League final in Rome next year.

Chelsea are favourites at [5.8] but I'm unconvinced while Drogba and Essien continue to miss so many important games. Barcelona can be backed at [7.2] which is a great price for an experienced and large squad while Arsenal's young guns are [12.0]. Liverpool are criminally underrated at [13.0] to win when considering recent history in this competition. Either way I expect the new breed of Spanish playmakers to continue to delight - it is called the beautiful game after all.