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The Greatest Box-to-box Midfielders of All Time
Shirt number: 6 or 8; also known as: 'carilleros'

This is a useful, versatile member of the team. The box-to-box midfielder can both win the ball and carry the attack forward. Able to tackle and pass effectively, they  can run all day and stamina is their most important asset. As their name suggests this allows them to shuttle back and forward, covering a lot of ground and acting almost as two players in one. They are the closest thing to the 'complete midfielder'. This player can act as a driving force for all of the team and the box-to-box midefielder is usually invloved in the heart of the action. They make good captains. Their most telling contribution is often their running off the ball  arriving late in the box at the end of a well timed run to strike the ball and hit the back of the net. Their versatility means that this player can also be deployed as either a defensive midfielder or an attacking midfielder and they often excel in these positions too (for example Gerrard for Liverpool in 2008/09 (AM) or Ballack for Chelsea in 2009/10 (DM)).

The origin of this player is probably the attacking centre-half in the 2-3-5 formation. Since then the popularity of this player has varied according to prevailing tactics of the time. The W-M system divided the midfield into defensive and attacking players, which didn't really suit this flexible role. The modern version of the box-box midfielder  came of age with the advent of the 4-4-2 system developed by Alf Ramsey in which midfielders became all purpose players that had to both defend and attack (i.e. Peters and Ball). From then onwards the box-to-box midfielder remained an important tradition of the English game (maybe too important when it comes to international football). The total football of Holland and the system of Sacchi's Milan also valued the multi-purpose midfielder (i.e. Ancelotti and Neeskens). Today, with the advent of 4-2-3-1 maybe the box-to-box midfielder is starting to be phased out again. Although it has been used recently, such as Mourinho's first Chelsea side which employed 4-3-3 with two box-to-box midfielders either side of a holding player.


For an interesting article on this subject see here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2009/apr/22/where-have-box-to-box-midfielders-gone - al
though it now seems rather premature.

Picture
Duncan Edwards

Faustos dos Santos  Bra  1930s

Obdulio Varela 
Uru  1950-54

Ernst Ocwirk  Aus  1950s

Gerhard Hanappi  Aus  1950s


Duncan Edwards  Eng  1956-58

Igor Netto USSR  1958-62

Masopust  Cze  1953-66

Jose Martinez Pirri Spa  1960s/70s

Alan Ball  Eng  1960s/70s

Martin Peters  Eng  1966-74

Johann Neeskens 
Hol  1970s

 

Picture
Matthaus
Sammy McIlroy  NI  1970s

Billy Bremner 
Sco  1970s

Colin Bell  Eng  1970s

Americo Gallego  Arg  1975-82

Ossie Ardiles  Arg  1978-82

Bryan Robson  Eng  1980s

Jean Tigana  Fra  1980s

Carlo Ancelotti  Ita  1980s

David Platt  Eng  1989-96

Lothar Matthaus Ger  1986-2000

 

Picture
Gerrard
Stefan Effenberg  Ger  1990s

Paul Scholes  Eng  1990s/00/10s


Clarence Seedorf  Neths  1990s/00s

Edgar Davids  Neths  1990s/00s

Torsten Frings Ger 
2000s 

Steven Gerrard  Eng  2000s

Frank Lampard  Eng 
2000s 

Michael Ballack  Ger  2000s

Bastian Schweinsteiger  Ger  2000s/10s

​

Yaya Toure  Iv Co 2000s/10s
                        
Vidal  Chile 2010s
                        
Pogba  Fra 2010s

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