One of the strongest part of England national football time is its midfield line. This team has a lot of great midfielders who play in different era. Indeed, those midfielders have very big roles in bringing England to win a lot of international matches.
Who is the best English midfielder of all time? To answer this question, let us read a brief profile of fifteen players in this article. I hope this article can help you determine which player deserves the title as the greatest English midfielder in the history of football.
15. Paul Ince
Paul Ince is one of the best defensive midfielders ever to play for England. He played as a professional footballer from 1986 to 2007. In addition playing for the two big clubs in the Premier League, Manchester United and Liverpool, Ince also had a career outside the UK with Inter Milan from 1995-1997. This player was also known as an aggressive, strong, and tireless midfielder.
14. Glenn Hoddle
Glenn Hoddle is a former football player who underwent a successful career as a coach after his retirement as a footballer. While still actively playing, he was known as a visionary midfielder who has accurate passing ability and good at taking set-pieces. Together with England national team, Hoddle played in 53 matches and scored eight goals. His best achievement at club level is winning the French league title in the 1987-1988 season with AS Monaco.
13. Steve McManaman
McManaman is a retired winger who spent his career as a professional player to play for three great clubs, Liverpool, Real Madrid, and Manchester City. When he was not injured, this player always shows very stunning performance. McManaman is known as a midfielder with high running speed, accurate passes, and he also scored a lot of goals. With Real Madrid, Macca won two La Liga titles and two Champions League trophies.
12. Michael Carrick
Michael Carrick is a defensive midfielder who enjoys quite a resounding success since joining Manchester United in 2006. He was transferred from Tottenham Hotspur, and to this day he is still regarded as one of the most important player in the Red Devils midfield. In Manchester United, Carrick won five Premier League titles and a Champions League trophy. However, Carrick rarely gets the chance to play for England national team, as the coach tends to put him as a substitute for Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, or Gareth Barry.
11. David Platt
David Platt is a former midfielder who will always be remembered for a beautiful goal that he scored in the match against Belgium in the World Cup 1990. Since that match, Platt showed a fairly consistent performance with the English national team. Throughout his career, he played 62 times and scored 27 goals for the Three Lions. This player also played in three different Serie A clubs: Sampdoria, Bari, and Juventus.
10. John Barnes
John Barnes is a retired winger who was famous for his high running speed. Together with Kenny Dalglish, this player helped Liverpool win many prestigious titles, among them are two Premier League titles and two FA Cup trophies. Barnes played for the Reds for ten years, from 1987 to 1997. In England, he played 79 times and scored 11 goals. After his retirement, Barnes coached Jamaican national team from 2008 to 2009.
9. Bryan Robson
Bryan Robson is one of the legendary players of Manchester United. He played for the Red Devils for 13 years, from 1981 to 1994. Until today, Robson also still holds the record as the longest-serving captain of Manchester United. In England, Robson played 90 times and scored 26 goals. After his retirement, he was awarded the OBE knighthood from the British Royal Empire.
8. Alan Ball
Alan Ball is regarded as Everton's best player of all time. He had a very important role in helping England to be the winner of World Cup 1966. Together with Geoff Hurst, Alan Ball was the star of the tournament's final match against West Germany which was won by England by a score of 4-2. Throughout his career, Ball played 72 times and scored eight goals for England national team. After his retirement, he became a coach for various teams in Premier League such as Southampton, Manchester City, and Portsmouth.
7. Paul Gascoigne
Paul Gascoigne is one of the most creative central midfielder ever played for England's national team. Not only in England, Gascoigne also played for different clubs in various countries, such as Italy, Scotland, China, and the United States. This player showed his prowess in the World Cup 1990 and Euro 1996, where he helped England team reach the semi-finals stage. Unfortunately, Gascoigne couldn't maintain his performance on the pitch because he was involved a lot of cases including alcohol addiction.
6. Paul Scholes
Scholes was part of Manchester United's golden generation that won numerous titles in the Premier League and in European competitions. This player spent 19 years of his professional career as a Manchester United player. Scholes' loyalty was not in vain because he won numerous prestigious titles with the club, among them are 11 English league titles and two Champions League trophies. With England, Scholes played in 66 matches and scored 14 goals.
5. Steven Gerrard
Gerrard is a very versatile midfielder. This player's original position is a central midfielder, but he can also play as a winger, wingback, or even a second striker. Gerrard's one of the most feared weapons his great shooting power that often leads to goals. Until today, Gerrard scored 21 goals in 108 appearances for England. He also became part of the golden generation that helped Liverpool win the Champions League in the 2004-2005 season.
4. Frank Lampard
Chelsea and England national team are very fortunate to have Frank Lampard because this player is not only capable of playing as a playmaker, but also becomes the team's primary goal machine. Although he plays as a midfielder, Lampard is very prolific in scoring. Until now, he still holds the record as Chelsea's top scorer of all time, with a record of total 209 goals.
3. Stanley Matthews
Although not winning many trophies with his club, Stanley Matthews was always touted as a footballer with the best individual skills of all time. Playing as a right midfielder, Matthews showed almost perfect dribbling skills, even his dribbling is considered better than Pele, Maradona, or Cruyff. He is able to dribble the ball at very high-speed, passing three to four opposing players, and swindles the goalkeeper to score great goals. With England national team, Matthews played in 54 matches and scored 11 goals.
2. David Beckham
David Beckham is not only a great footballer, but also one of the biggest sports icons in the history of human. This player went through glorious times when playing for Manchester United from 1993 to 2003 year. Together with Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Roy Keane; Beckham led Manchester United to be the most successful club in the history of English Premier League. Throughout his career, Beckham scored 97 goals in 523 appearances. Most of his goals were scored from beautiful free-kicks situations. One of the most memorable Beckham's free kick goal is the one that he scored against Greece in 2001.
1. Bobby Charlton
Considering the team achievements as well as the individual skills, it seems appropriate to nominate Bobby Charlton to be given an award of the best English midfielder of all time. The attacking midfielder played very crucial role for England national team when they won the World Cup 1966. Not only that, until now Charlton also still holds a record as England national team's top goal scorer of all time. At club level, Charlton won three Premier League titles with Manchester United.
