The traditional Premier League top 6 have once again assembled some of the best midfields in Europe. The biggest midfield stars will again line up for the English Premier League clubs and showcase their talent.
Football matches are won and lost in the midfield area. You can compensate for poor defense and attack with a good midfield. Manchester United showed that last season when they didn’t have a productive forward line but secured Champions League football. Their local rivals Manchester City have won two Premier Leagues without a reliable center forward before buying Erling Haaland last season. So, how do the traditional Premier League top 6 shape up in midfield this time?
Arsenal
Arsenal are coming into this Premier League season with renewed optimism. They have just beaten Manchester City to win the FA Community Shield. After finishing runners-up last season, they have reinforced the squad with some key signings.
Declan Rice and Kai Havertz will headline the new arrivals regarding the midfield positions. Rice came for a club-record fee of £105m and will pair with Thomas Partey in the midfield areas. The Gunners ended the seven-year tenure of Granit Xhaka this summer as the Swiss moved to Bayer Leverkusen. Rice will take Xhaka’s role in the defensive midfield, allowing Partey to operate more as a box-to-box midfielder.
However, there are question marks on Kai Havertz’s position. The Germany International was used as a striker at Chelsea, and he has once again taken that role with the Gunners. Much was said that Havertz would be deployed as an attacking midfielder behind Gabriel Jesus. However, the Brazilian striker is now injured and will be sidelined for a lengthy period.
If Kai Havertz plays the striker role, club captain Martin Odegaard will play the attacking midfield role ahead of Partey and Rice. With the backups of Fabio Viera, Emile Smith-Rowe, and Jorginho, Arsenal are ready to go again in the Premier League.
Rating: 8/10
Chelsea
It almost felt like Chelsea had a 100-member squad going into this summer. With so many players returning from loan and further additions, the Blues had to eliminate many players this summer. With the arrival of Mauricio Pochettino, Chelsea will play in a three-man midfield next season.
The Blues have seen the departures of Mason Mount, Kai Havertz, Ruben Loftus Cheek, N’Golo Kante, Mateo Kovacic, Tiemoue Bakayoko, and Christian Pulisic. They have only signed Lesley Ugochukwu in terms of a midfield profile. Most of the talk this summer has been about the Blues’ pursuit of Brighton’s Moises Caicedo. If he comes to Stamford Bridge, he is expected to be bought for a three-figure mark, similar to how Arsenal signed Declan Rice.
Pochettino usually went with a three-man axis of Dele Alli, Moussa Dembele, and Eric Dier during his time at Tottenham Hotspur. At Chelsea (given he signs Caicedo), he is expected to line up with Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez, and Carney Chukwuemeka.
Fernandez showed last season that he could not play as a lone No.6. Hence, it is essential that Chelsea secure that most-important no.6 position for the World Cup winner to carry the ball forward.
Rating: 6/10
Liverpool
The Liverpool fans will see an entirely different midfield to what they saw in all the previous seasons under Jurgen Klopp. The Reds have arguably had the most significant transformation in midfield out of all the traditional top 6 Premier League clubs.
Liverpool have seen the departures of captain Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, James Milner, Naby Keita, and Alex Oxlade Chamberlain this summer. There were reports that Thiago Alcantara wanted to be on the exit list, but Klopp has decided to keep him. The German manager has been frustrated with Thiago’s lack of match fitness since moving from Bayern Munich in 2020.
Liverpool have seen the additions of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai this summer. As both midfielders will take the advanced areas, Klopp will try to identify a new No. 6 with Fabinho gone. However, problems within the Liverpool squad need fixing before their first Premier League game against Chelsea.
Rating: 6/10
Manchester City
Manchester City have replaced Ilkay Gundogan with Chelsea’s Mateo Kovacic. The Croatian midfielder started the Community Shield game against Arsenal alongside Rodri. However, the pair wasn’t able to dominate the Gunners completely.
Kovacic has been a top player for Croatia and Real Madrid. He has won four Champions League titles with Los Blancos and Chelsea. However, this is the first time he will be relied on as a first-team player in a long time. He would need to understand the void Gundogan has left.
The German midfielder was an all-in-one midfielder who could do both sides of the midfield role. He could join the attacks, like we saw in the FA Cup final, or he can support Rodri in the defensive areas, as we saw in the Champions League final.
With Riyad Mahrez gone, Bernardo Silva will likely be on the right wing. However, Pep Guardiola will probably sign a new winger to ensure that Silva can provide a healthy backup for Kevin de Bruyne. It shouldn’t be ignored that Guardiola still has Kalvin Phillips in the squad, who hardly featured in the last Premier League season after moving from Leeds United.
Rating: 9/10
Manchester United
Manchester United have bought Mason Mount from Chelsea and will likely bring Sofyan Amrabat from Fiorentina. Although the core of their midfield appears to be the same, there are slight tweaks reportedly made by Erik ten Hag for next season.
Bruno Fernandes is now the new club captain and will be the first-choice attacking midfielder. However, the Portuguese had Christian Eriksen and Casemiro behind him last season. Ten Hag has understood that Eriksen cannot be relied on for 38 Premier League games anymore due to his age.
Hence, we may see Eriksen and Mount swapping roles from time to time. If Amrabat arrives, he will either play as a backup for Casemiro or alongside the Brazilian midfielder. Their pair will likely be seen in the top Champions League games where the teams come after Manchester United.
Rating: 8/10
Tottenham Hotspur
Although the spotlight in Tottenham Hotspur is around Harry Kane, the Spurs midfield also has something to shout about. If the England captain stays in North London, he must ensure he has a healthy midfield to support in his last Tottenham Hotspur season.
Spurs have signed James Maddison for an undisclosed fee from Leicester City. He is undoubtedly going to play ahead of Yves Bissouma and Pierre Emile-Hojbjerg. After moving from Brighton last summer, Bissouma had a disappointing first Premier League season in North London. Still, he will look to answer his critics under the new management of Ange Postecoglou.
Rating: 7/10
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