Midfielders

On this page, we're going to take a look at different types of midfielders and the language that is used to describe them.

• A holding midfielder - a holding midfielder is sometimes also known as a defensive midfielder. It's the holding midfielder's job to protect the defence. The holding midfielder doesn't attack very often and is very important when the team doesn't have the ball. The holding midfielder will often be the player who wins the ball back and then passes it to more creative teammates. N'golo Kante did a great job as a holding midfielder for Leicester City to help them win the Premier League title.
• A creative midfielder - a creative midfielder is a player who usually plays in an attacking midfield position or on the wings (the sides of the pitch). A creative midfielder is someone who has the ability to play a fantastic pass and create a lot of chances for teammates. Creative midfielders are known for a great range of passing, a good first touch and good awareness of what is happening around them. Arsenal's Mesut Ozil (pictured) and West Ham's Dimitri Payet are good examples of creative midfielders.

• A box-to-box midfielder - A box-to-box midfielder is a player who plays in the middle of the pitch but is good at both defending and attacking. A box-to-box midfielder can often be seen in both penalty boxes. Maybe heading a corner away from danger or scoring a goal at the other end of the pitch. Box-to-box midfielders are known for a high work rate and good stamina levels. They need to work hard. Manchester Utd's Bastian Schweinsteiger is a good example and Chelsea's Frank Lampard was one of the best ever box-to-box midfielders seen in the Premier League.
• A goalscoring midfielder - This is a midfielder who scores a lot of goals. They often run late into the penalty box when defenders are marking strikers to score their goals or they may make a long run to get on the end of a through ball from a defender. They need to have good timing and make runs at the right moment. A good example of a goalscoring midfielder was Liverpool's Steven Gerrard.
• A midfield general - Every team needs a leader on the pitch and the midfield general is usually the leader. He's not always the captain but he's very vocal and can be seen shouting at his teammates to encourage them to play better. They show great determination and always give 100% to the team. Good examples of midfield generals were Patrick Viera at Arsenal and Roy Keane at Manchester Utd.

​​What types of midfielder were these three Premier League stars?

Think about vocabulary

Now you've looked at five different types of midfielder, look at the definitions again. Do you understand the words in red? Look at the sentences around each word to help you understand. It can also help to use your knowledge of football. Think about the type of midfielder and what he does on the pitch. Does this also help your understanding?

Have a look at the activity below and check your understanding of different types of midfielder and the words that are used to describe them.