Masters of rhythm

There is a rare type of midfielder who doesn’t just play the game but sets its pace. These players are the heartbeat of their teams, deciding when to quicken the tempo or ease into a spell of patient control. With precise passing and remarkable vision, they shape matches from deep or central roles, commanding the flow like conductors of an orchestra. This is our pick of the 25 finest midfield pace-setters.

25. Pedri

The 22-year-old Barcelona midfielder represents the new generation of tempo controllers, moulded in the image of Xavi and Iniesta. Despite his tender age, Pedri has already claimed a European Championship with Spain and established himself as the heartbeat of both club and country. His ability to receive the ball in tight spaces and immediately set the pace of play has drawn comparisons to the Camp Nou legends who came before him.

23. Joshua Kimmich

Bayern Munich's versatile midfielder has evolved into one of Europe's premier tempo-setters, combining the positional discipline of Philipp Lahm with the passing range of Xabi Alonso. Kimmich has been instrumental in Bayern's recent Bundesliga dominance; his ability to switch between patient build-up play and incisive forward passes makes him the perfect modern controller.

22. Marco Verratti

Now spending his twilight years in Qatar, the diminutive Italian midfielder built his reputation on his exceptional press resistance and ability to maintain tempo in the tightest of spaces. Verratti's quick feet and even quicker mind allowed him to escape pressure situations and immediately slow things down or launch rapid counter-attacks. His performances for Italy during their Euro 2020 triumph demonstrated his mastery of controlling games against the world's best.

21. İlkay Gündoğan

Gündoğan has flourished under Pep Guardiola's tutelage at Manchester City, adapting his tempo-setting abilities to become one of the Premier League's most intelligent controllers. His versatility allows him to dictate play from various positions according to tactical demands, whether dropping deep to orchestrate build-up or advancing to provide the final pass in attacking sequences.

20. Cesc Fàbregas

The Spaniard possessed a rare gift for knowing exactly when to accelerate or decelerate play, making him one of the most tactically astute tempo-setters of his generation. Fàbregas won the World Cup and European Championship with Spain, while his club career saw him excel at Arsenal, Barcelona and Chelsea through his ability to switch seamlessly between patient possession play and devastating through balls.

19. Gianni Rivera

AC Milan's golden boy of the 1960s and 70s was the epitome of Italian elegance and tactical sophistication, setting the tempo for both club and country during football's most romantic era. Rivera won the Ballon d'Or in 1969 and guided Italy to European Championship glory in 1968, using his sublime technical ability to dictate when Milan and the Azzurri would press forward or consolidate possession. His partnership with Sandro Mazzola for Italy became legendary, with the two players alternating to control different phases of matches.

18. Jorginho

Though often criticised following his move from Napoli to Chelsea in 2018, the Italian has more than stepped up, becoming synonymous with positional play and short passing sequences. He served as the metronome for both Chelsea's Champions League triumph and Italy's European Championship victories in 2021. His mastery of controlling tempo through quick, precise distribution from deep positions, paired with his ability to receive the ball under pressure and immediately set his team's rhythm, has made him indispensable to coaches who favour possession-based football.

17. Lothar Matthäus

The German legend's incredible versatility allowed him to dictate matches from multiple positions. Matthäus captained West Germany to World Cup glory in 1990 and won the Ballon d'Or the same year thanks to his unique ability to switch between defensive solidity and attacking thrust. His capacity to read the game and adjust tempo accordingly made him one of the most complete midfielders in football history.

15. Michael Carrick

Carrick was perhaps the most underrated tempo-setter of his generation, quietly controlling matches while more glamorous teammates grabbed the headlines. Carrick won five Premier League titles and the Champions League with Manchester United, and whether building patiently from the back or launching swift counter-attacks, he served as the calm presence who dictated when the team would press high or sit deep.

14. Johan Neeskens

Neeskens was instrumental to the revolutionary Total Football philosophy that captivated the world in the 1970s. Neeskens reached two World Cup finals with the Netherlands and won three European Cups with Ajax, using his tireless work rate and tactical brain to orchestrate the fluid movement that defined Dutch football. His ability to control tempo while constantly interchanging positions made him the perfect embodiment of Total Football's attacking principles.

13. Rodri

The 2024 Ballon d'Or winner has set the new benchmark for a holding midfielder in the modern game. Rodri was key to City's treble-winning campaign in 2023 and has become indispensable to both club and country, boasting exceptional press resistance to maintain possession under intense pressure, plus the ability to constantly scan for the next phase of play. The ideal controller for Pep Guardiola's possession-heavy system.

12. Xabi Alonso

Xabi Alonso was the pulse of every team he represented, capable of dictating from deep. Alonso won the Champions League with Liverpool and Real Madrid, plus the World Cup and two European Championships with Spain, using his metronomic distribution to set the rhythm for some of football's greatest teams. His ability to switch play with pinpoint long passes or maintain possession with short, sharp exchanges made him one of the most complete tempo-setters in the game's history.

11. David Silva

Unlikely many other players on this list, 'El Mago' (the Magician) controlled games from the final third with unrivalled timing and spatial awareness throughout his decade-long spell in English football. Silva won four Premier League titles with Manchester City and was instrumental in Spain's golden generation, claiming the World Cup in 2010 and European Championships in 2008 and 2012. His decisiveness allowed him to immediately dictate whether City would build patiently or strike with devastating pace, making him the perfect conductor for their possession-based approach.

10. Thiago Alcântara

Though injuries ultimately got the better of him, when fit, Thiago's technical genius and intuitive sense of rhythm made him one of the most aesthetically pleasing tempo-setters of his generation. Thiago won the Champions League with Bayern Munich and Barcelona, plus the European Championship with Spain in 2012, using his exceptional first touch and often spectacular passing to control matches with an almost musical quality. Finding space in crowded areas, he was a joy to watch for purists of the game.

9. Fernando Redondo

Throughout the nineties, Redondo epitomised stylish control at Real Madrid, combining rare poise with exceptional technical ability (remember that assist at Old Trafford in 2000?). During his time at the Bernabéu, he won two Champions League titles and became renowned for his ability to dictate play with minimal fuss through elegant distribution, positional intelligence and composure under pressure.

8. Pep Guardiola

Before becoming football's most influential tactical mastermind, Guardiola was Barcelona's midfield conductor, laying the foundation for the possession-based philosophy he would later perfect as a coach. As a player, he won the European Cup with Barcelona in 1992 and served as captain during the club's resurgence in the early 1990s. Since then, his understanding of tempo has revolutionised modern football.

7. Paul Scholes

After initially operating as a more advanced midfielder, the Manchester United legend evolved into one of England's finest deep-lying playmakers, winning 11 Premier League titles and two Champions League trophies. His ability to switch between patient build-up play and devastating long-range distribution made him the perfect controller for United's counter-attacking philosophy under Sir Alex Ferguson.

5. Luka Modrić

Even into his twilight years, Modrić still combines intelligent tempo control with exceptional dribbling. One of the most complete controllers of the modern era, Modrić won the Ballon d'Or in 2018 after leading Croatia to the World Cup final, while his Real Madrid career has yielded six Champions League titles through his masterful orchestration of midfield play. His capacity to escape pressure through close control before immediately setting his team on their way has made him indispensable for over a decade.

4. Sergio Busquets

When at Barcelona, Busquets was peerless at pace-setting from deep, using brilliant one-touch play to maintain possession. He won nine La Liga titles and three Champions League trophies with Barcelona, plus the World Cup and European Championship with Spain, serving as the fulcrum for both teams' possession-based philosophies. Receiving the ball under intense pressure and immediately distributing with precision made him the perfect controller for tiki-taka football.

3. Andrea Pirlo

At his peak, Pirlo turned the deep-lying playmaker role into something approaching an art form, gliding across pitches with the composure of a man who had all the time in the world. Pirlo's World Cup triumph in 2006 and two Champions League victories with Milan were built on his ability to make the difficult look ridiculously simple, whether stroking a five-yard pass or launching a 40-yard diagonal with equal nonchalance. He didn't just control tempo—he owned it, making every match feel like it was being played at his personal speed setting.

2. Toni Kroos

Kroos spent a decade proving that the most devastating weapon in football might just be relentless precision rather than flashy skill. The German metronome's five Champions League titles and Germany's 2014 World Cup were orchestrated by a player who treated every pass like a chess move, always thinking three steps ahead of everyone else on the pitch. Even when the world's best players were charging at him at full tilt, Kroos made controlling tempo look like the most natural thing in the world.