Liverpool’s top 5 midfielders in the PL era

Midfielders are probably one of the most important elements of the game we call football and Liverpool has been quite lucky with the players they’ve bagged all these years. From Steven Gerrard to Jordan Henderson, each player has had to play an important part in the glorious story of the Reds. EssentiallySports brings you Liverpool’s top 5 midfielders in the PL era. Let’s go:

1. Steven Gerrard:

The heart and the soul of Liverpool, the prodigal son as he’s often called; Steven Gerrard is a Liverpool legend to say the least. His ability to constantly pull something great out of the bag with average players surrounding him is truly outstanding. Some will argue that the greatest ever Liverpool player is Kenny Dalgish, and if so, then certainly Steven Gerrard is the greatest ever Liverpool midfielder. Having made his first team debut in 1998, there was no turning back. Slowly but surely he made a name for himself in the business and emerged as one of the most important players for both his club and country. With 504 appearances for Liverpool and 120 goals, he has reshaped the club’s status and performance.

Signed by Rafa Benitez in the summer of 2004, Alonso remains one of the most admired players of Liverpool FC. The Spaniard played an integral role in managing the team’s midfield oozing nothing but classy performances fulfilling Liverpool’s desperate need of having a complete deep-lying playmaker. One of the most notable abilities of Alonso was his underrated defensive abilities and passing which made him an important player for the club. He played for the Merseyside club for 5 years with a total of 210 appearances and 19 goals, winning the 2005 Champion’s league where he scored in the final, FA Cup and the Super Cup.

Moving from Newcastle to Liverpool, no one thought it was the brightest of the ideas for the player or for the club but there’s a lot of fun in proving the critics wrong and oh, they proved them wrong, alright. The German did exceedingly well at the club with a brilliant understanding of the game as a defensive midfielder. It won’t be an understatement to say that Hamann was a kop favourite and definitely an unsung hero of the Istanbul affair. With Liverpool, he won the cup treble of 2000-01, the 2005 CL and the 2006 FA cup.

Mascherano was 23 when he joined the Reds and grew into a fine player while he was with them. As a defensive midfielder, he satisfies every need that the team has and stands in front of the opponent like a steel wall and destroys every challenge made on him. Argentinean football in its very essence is rough and aggressive and Mascherano defines it perfectly by putting the club’s need in front of everything else. One of the most important qualities that Javier Mascherano possesses is that of tackling which has been an essential part of the game since the very beginning and still, a lot of footballers don’t always get it right, but Mascherano mastered the art of tackling while with Liverpool and won them many games against big ticket teams. This does however mean that he is prone to more yellow and red cards. Mascherano played 139 games for Liverpool scoring on 2 occasions.

Following the departure of the club’s long running captain Steven Gerrard, Henderson was given the captain’s band with some big shoes to fill in. Henderson however has managed just fine till now showing impeccable leadership qualities with an improved game-play. Initially, his performance as a midfielder was full of mixed reviews, but of late he has enhanced his style of play and almost always adjusts to the manager’s approach which is a quality not every player can radiate. He has an excellent work rate which allows him to play as a box-to-box midfielder and suits him the best. His passing, attacking and defensive qualities have improved, too showing how integral he will be for the upcoming Liverpool seasons; having played 288 times for Liverpool with 27 goals, Henderson hopes to become one of the best Liverpool players in the coming generation.