Football is built around the best central midfielders. You know how the old cliches go: centre-forwards who win you games and defences win you leagues… yet there is no denying the impact of the men in the middle of the park.
There are all kinds of different central midfielders, from box-to-box midfielders to deep-lying playmakers. In an area of increased physicality and more football than ever, however, the competition to be the best has never been this strong.
With some of the best clubs in the world stockpiling the best midfielders, we're in an intriguing era for this particular role on the field.
How our experts decided the best central midfielders in the world
We asked our football experts at FourFourTwo to come up with a list of the best 10 central midfielders in the world, considering all roles in the centre of the park.
We were looking primarily for no.8s rather than more attacking or defensive players, with no.6s and no.10s fitting into our lists of the best defensive midfielders in the world and the best attacking midfielders in the world, respectively.
We asked for our expert panel to consider general ability and current form as the biggest criteria, with recent historical performance over the last couple of years a factor, too. 20 midfielders were nominated, overall – and are given an honourable mention below – with three qualifying for our list of the best DMs.
Along with ranking of midfielders, we have compilations of the best goalkeepers in the world, while also covering defence (right-backs, centre-backs and left-backs) and attack (right-wingers, left-wingers and strikers) – while our list of the best players in the world right now rounds up the planet's elite, regardless of position.
Honourable mentions
Honourable mentions
The full list
10. Fabian Ruiz
Age: 28
Club: Paris Saint-Germain
Nationality: Spain
The former Real Betis youngster looks to have hit his peak years and followed up a league and cup double with Paris Saint-Germain last season by helping Spain win Euro 2024, where the midfielder was named in the team of the tournament.
Versatile enough to play across a host of midfield roles, Ruiz’s passing, dribbling and reading of the game is what separates him from the crowd and enables him to set the tone and tempo of the biggest of games.
9. Warren Zaire-Emery
Age: 18
Club: Paris Saint-Germain
Nationality: France
The French prodigy still doesn’t leave his teens until March 2026, but he already has more than 100 appearances under his belt for Paris Saint-Germain and is now a regular in the senior France squad.
It’s no stretch to say that the midfielder is being eyed as the centrepiece for club and country for years to come and the teenager has already shown that he has the composure and playmaking abilities of a player beyond his years. Should he deliver on the considerable hype around him, he will be one of his generation’s best.
8. Declan Rice
Age: 26
Club: Arsenal
Nationality: England
Rice is the bar-setter for his team-mates in terms of his work ethic, his will to drive forward, track back and put in the hard yards.
Declan Rice may have been signed to be a no.6 – but he’s just too dynamic to use there. The England man offers brilliance box-to-box as a ball-winner and counter-presser, and it’s telling that Arsenal are yet to lose a ‘Big Six’ clash since he joined.
On top of that, his mental profile is worth nine figures alone: he’s the bar-setter for his Gunners team-mates in terms of his work ethic, his will to drive forward, track back and put in the hard yards. His passing is cruelly underrated – as referenced in his assist for Ethan Nwaneri against Manchester City – and he’s now a dedicated corner master for Mikel Arteta, too. He might only be the eighth-best central midfielder on the planet, according to us, but he’s one of the most well-rounded footballers on around.
7. Bernardo Silva
Age: 30
Club: Manchester City
Nationality: Portugal
While football is often a battle of hard work and talent – and assembling a squad takes a little of both – Bernardo Silva is any manager's dream. An ability on the ball almost bestowed upon him by a higher power, yet the will to run, to drive and to battle with the best of them.
Bernardo may be Manchester City's most important player: when he performs, everything runs smoothly. He's been a right-winger, a central midfielder in a double-pivot and even trusted at left-back. Though things haven't been so rosy at the Etihad lately, he's still the boss's favourite, we'd wager.
6. Alexis Mac Allister
Age: 26
Club: Liverpool
Nationality: Argentina
With his hybrid name, a mix of Scotland and Argentina, Alexis Mac Allister is suitably hard-working and creative, a mix of industry and guile. The Liverpool midfielder has established himself as a key player at Anfield, first under Jurgen Klopp and now Arne Slot.
Mac Allister has also shone internationally, winning the 2022 World Cup with Argentina. An excellent passer with an impressive ability to read the game and an eye for goal, it’s no surprise that he has become a world-class midfielder over the last few years.
5. Gavi
Age: 20
Club: Barcelona
Nationality: Spain
The 20-year-old spent the first few months of the 2024/25 season working his way back to fitness from the cruciate ligament tear that denied him a place in Spain’s Euro 2024 squad, but it’s clear that the La Masia product will be a key part of Hansi Flick’s project in Catalonia.
Often compared to Xavi and Andres Iniesta when he worked his into the Barca first-team, Gavi’s ability with the ball and his intelligence out of possession make him one of the best young talents in the world.
4. Bruno Guimaraes
Age: 27
Club: Newcastle United
Nationality: Brazil
As well as being able to grab a game by the scruff of the neck, Bruno has the vision, passing range and ability on the ball that you’d expect.
It’s easy to see why the St James’ Park faithful have fallen so hard for the Rio de Janeiro native, as he has given the crowd the passion, aggression and performances they yearn for since his 2022 switch from Lyon, defining this first chapter of club’s PIF era.
As well as being able to grab a game by the scruff of the neck, Newcastle’s fourth-most expensive man ever has the vision, passing range and ability on the ball that you’d expect from a Brazilian international and is a key part of the Magpies’ push to return to the Champions League.
3. Nicolo Barella
Age: 28
Club: Inter Milan
Nationality: Italy
The Sardinian-born Barella is the beating heart of Simone Inzaghi’s Inter Milan side for half a decade now, during which time he has firmly established himself as one of Serie and the Azzurri’s best midfielders.
Equally adept at breaking up play and setting attacks in motion, when Barella is at his best, he is a relentless driving force that can take over a game, even at the highest level and is currently relishing Inter’s scrap with a resurgent Napoli at the top of the Serie A.
2. Federico Valverde
Age: 26
Club: Real Madrid
Nationality: Uruguay
While Real Madrid's superstar project stuttered at the start of the season, you can still set your watch by Fede Valverde. The Uruguayan is the heartbeat of any team he plays in, with infectious running power and a boundless engine – but he's far more than that, too.
Valverde is careful on the ball, clever in the positions he takes up and in Dani Carvajal's absence, Carlo Ancelotti has even turned to him to fill in at right-back. Few footballers are as trusted or as adored.
1. Pedri
Age: 22
Club: Barcelona
Nationality: Spain
Pedri's control and work in the pockets is sumptuous to watch and yet he never wastes a single touch.
Injuries threatened to derail the development of a talent who even as a teenager, was utterly undroppable for club and country. It’s not just Barcelona supporters but neutrals who can thank their lucky stars that Pedri made it through those knocks to blossom into the best midfielder on Earth.
He’s still just 22 but the Spaniard is head-and-shoulders above anyone. His control and work in the pockets is sumptuous to watch and yet he never wastes a single touch: his passing range and vision is elite and his ball-carrying can unlock defences, too. Off the ball, Pedri is diligent and disciplined: he’s a major reason for the revival of Barça under Hansi Flick and he will go down as one of the best to ever play for the club if he keeps this level up.
