True attacking midfielders are a rare breed at the elite level.
As the game’s tactical trends have evolved, the traditional No. 10 role has slowly started to disappear (defensive midfield string pullers and central midfield maestros have come to the fore)—but that doesn’t mean playmakers are obsolete. Teams still crave those gifted midfielders who can unlock defences, deliver set-piece magic and fire in spectacular goals from range.
And when you find a truly top-tier attacking midfielder, you hold on tight. Their unique blend of vision, technique and flair makes them nearly irreplaceable—one of the reasons they fetch such astronomical fees in the transfer market.
With that in mind, here’s Sports Illustrated’s ranking of the 25 best attacking midfielders on the planet right now.
25. Charles De Ketelaere
Charles De Ketelaere’s stock was at an all-time low when he arrived at Atalanta in 2023, fresh off a torrid season with AC Milan in which he managed just one goal contribution in 32 Serie A appearances.
To revive his faltering career, he was sent to Gian Piero Gasperini’s now-legendary career rehab clinic in Bergamo—the same one that had rejuvenated the likes of Ademola Lookman, Ederson, Davide Zappacosta, Cristian Romero and Marten de Roon, among others.
Almost immediately, Gasperini worked his magic. De Ketelaere reminded everyone why he was once hailed as Belgium’s next great hope after Eden Hazard. Standing at 6’4″ but operating with the elegance of a classic No.10, he dazzled in his debut campaign, scoring 14 league goals and providing 11 assists—all while playing a central role in Atalanta’s historic Europa League triumph.
In 2024/25, he was just as influential, recording 13 goals and 13 assists and once again tormenting defenders with his silky footwork, clever movement, and outstanding football IQ—especially his off-ball positioning, which those who really watch the game will tell you, is elite.
24. Xavi Simons
Once hailed as a teenage prodigy at Barcelona and later Paris Saint-Germain, Xavi Simons seemed destined for stardom—but oddly, never got the chance to prove it at either club. That all changed when he joined PSV Eindhoven in 2022—and did he take his chance.
Simons made the Eredivisie look effortless. With elegant playmaking, relentless energy and a sharp eye for goal (he scored 22 times across the season), he was named the division’s Player of the Year and quickly prompted PSG to trigger his buy-back clause.
But once again, an opportunity never truly came. Instead of integrating him into the squad, PSG sent him out on loan to RB Leipzig—a decision that has since backfired spectacularly.
Now a permanent Leipzig player, Simons has flourished, lighting up the Bundesliga week after week as one of its most electric attacking forces. What makes his rise even more impressive is that he’s doing it without playing for one of Germany’s dominant clubs—yet he’s still standing out among the league’s very best.
Simons continues to defy expectations, and it feels inevitable that, sooner or later, he’ll land at an elite club that finally gives him the platform he deserves.
23. Pedro Goncalves
Mention Sporting CP’s standout player over the past few years and most will say Viktor Gyökeres. Few, if any, will mention Pedro Gonçalves. But they should.
Sometimes a No. 10, sometimes a winger (but even then he mostly drifts infield because of wing-backs being deployed behind him), Gonçalves has been Sporting’s creative metronome since 2020, often the architect behind Gyökeres’ goals—and Paulinho’s before him—while consistently being a major goal threat himself.
Up until the end of the 2024/25 season, despite missing a significant chunk through injury, Gonçalves had scored 87 goals and provided 57 assists for the club—remarkable numbers by any standard. That kind of output from a non-striker is rare, and yet, he’s still often overlooked.
Perhaps it’s because he plays for Sporting, away from the major media spotlight. Perhaps it’s his quiet persona, or the lingering label of a Premier League misfire from his brief, uneventful time at Wolves. But whatever the reason, it doesn’t change the fact: Pedro Gonçalves has been one of Europe’s most consistently effective attacking midfielders for half a decade—and deserves to be recognised as such.
22. Giorgian de Arrascaeta
Giorgian de Arrascaeta may be the wrong side of 30 but has arguably never reached a higher level. The prolific scorer and creator for Flamengo was hailed by former Argentina international Diego Latorre as “the best player on the continent” after leading the Brazilian giants to the 2025 Copa Libertadores title—the third continental crown of his career.
Despite never having left South America, his Flamengo boss Filipe Luís—who won the top flight of England and Spain during more than a decade in Europe—is confident that his wily schemer could still cut it anywhere on the continent.
“The whole world knows and sees that he could perfectly be in Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atlético, Chelsea ... he is high above many’s standard,” Luís once gushed. “He makes the difference.”
21. Lennart Karl
Bayern Munich’s plundering of the Bundesliga’s best talents is not restricted to senior players. Lennart Karl was whisked away from Eintracht Frankfurt’s academy as a 14-year-old and rapidly adapted to Bayern’s first team during the 2025–26 campaign.
A goal against Club Brugge saw the precocious teen become the club’s youngest ever Champions League scorer, intensifying comparisons with the likes of Martin Ødegaard, Michael Olise and Arjen Robben.
Karl, despite his tender years, has a very mature response to all the hype. “I’m aware of it, of course, but I don’t let it influence me,” he shrugged at the height of the hype. “What counts is what happens on the pitch and not what's posted on some Instagram page.”
20. Antoine Griezmann
Antoine Griezmann isn’t just a brilliant forward—he’s a brilliant footballer. In fact, he may well be one of the finest of his generation, and perhaps even among the all-time greats.
Tactically intelligent, positionally versatile, and technically gifted, Griezmann has shown his class everywhere from central midfield at the 2022 World Cup to the frontline for Atlético Madrid.
Since returning to the Spanish capital after a tough stint at Barcelona, he’s only elevated his game—aging like fine wine in the heart of La Liga. Few can match his blend of longevity, intelligence, and sheer ability.
19. Morgan Gibbs-White
England is absolutely bursting with attacking midfield talent right now, and Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White rightfully sits high in that pantheon.
If Morgan Rogers is the bulldozing battering ram, Phil Foden the mercurial genius and Eberechi Eze the silky smooth operator, then Gibbs-White is the perfect fusion of all those qualities—showcasing sharp technical skill, imposing physicality, intelligent tactical awareness and relentless work rate.
But where he truly pulls ahead is in his razor-sharp instincts and an unshakable drive to push play forward at lightning speed. While others hesitate or slow the rhythm, Gibbs-White is already a step ahead—each first touch precise, every move calculated, leaving defenders chasing shadows with clever feints, explosive bursts, and razor-edged decision-making. He’s quick of mind and fleet of foot in equal measure.
What sets him apart even more? He doesn’t crave the spotlight; he lets his performances do the talking, making the right calls time and time again—and yet, somehow, he always ends up front and centre.
18. Eberechi Eze
There are few players in world football more entertaining to watch right now than Eberechi Eze.
A bit like Cole Palmer, but with a touch more elegance, the England international glides through defences with a grace that borders on surreal. He drifts past players and into space so effortlessly it often looks like he’s not trying—or that they aren’t. Of course, neither is true. He’s just that good. There’s something almost Berbatov-esque about him—the way the ball seems magnetised to his feet, every movement smooth and deliberate.
And when it comes to scoring, few attacking midfielders are as consistently effective. Eze is a dead-ball specialist and a master of disguise in open play—slotting the ball into corners while sending goalkeepers the wrong way with a drop of the shoulder or a glance of the eyes.
For too long, Eze flew under the radar—largely because he plied his trade at Crystal Palace. But after guiding the club to a historic FA Cup win in 2024/25—scoring the winning goal against Manchester City in the final—he finally got the recognition he deserved by securing a big move to Arsenal.
Eze is quickly proving he’s ready for the biggest stages, the question is whether that stage is ready for him.
17. Christoph Baumgartner
When RB Leipzig lost Xavi Simons and Benjamin Šeško in the same summer of 2025, there were major concerns about how they would be able to replace the attacking thrust of their creator-in-chief and first-choice striker. Enter: Christoph Baumgartner.
The all-action Austrian has blossomed into a potent two-way threat for the unloved Bundesliga outfit, catching the eye for his work across all facets of the club. “He’s an incredibly important player for us and organizes a lot, both on and off the pitch,” RB Leipzig’s Ole Werner beamed.
16. Nico Paz
Every Argentine No. 10 with even a whisper of talent has been prematurely compared to Lionel Messi over the past decade. However, Como manager Cesc Fàbregas is talking from a position of rare authority after having the pleasure of playing alongside the legendary forward at Barcelona when mentioning Paz in the same breathe as his compatriot.
After a stellar debut campaign in Serie A which saw newly promoted Como climb to a scarcely believable 10th, Paz’s beguiling blend of grace and guile has attracted newfound attention from the division’s defenders. Fàbregas likened this special treatment to the approach team’s have taken against Messi for years.
“If you ask me, when every team played against Barcelona, surely they didn’t want Messi to touch the ball,” the Spanish coach mused. “This is a positive thing for Nico... This tells me now that they look at you differently. They want to compete against you in a different way.”
Given Paz’s continued influence over every attacking sequence Como construct, this approach isn’t working.
15. Kevin De Bruyne
Injuries may have taken their toll and the legs may not move like they used to, but let’s make one thing clear: there is still no midfielder—attacking, defensive, or central—who can pass a ball quite like Kevin De Bruyne.
Short, medium, long; outside or inside of the foot; on the ground or through the air; threaded between the lines or lofted over the top—De Bruyne can do it all. And not just do it, but execute it with near-flawless precision: perfect weight, perfect spin, perfect speed. A striker’s dream, in every sense.
It’s true that the physical demands of the Premier League may have become too much, which is why his move to Napoli made so much sense. In the slower rhythm of Serie A, De Bruyne can sit deeper, conserve energy and continue to orchestrate games like few ever have—spraying passes the league might not be ready for.
14. Arda Guler
Arda Güler's first two years at Real Madrid were anything but smooth. The Turkish youngster arrived with enormous expectations—and quickly became an unfair target for criticism from both the Spanish media and sections of the Bernabéu crowd, despite barely getting a proper chance to show what he could do.
Injuries disrupted much of his 2023–24 campaign, and when he did return to fitness, opportunities were limited under the now-departed Carlo Ancelotti. Often deployed out wide to fill gaps, Güler still produced moments of pure class—even though many would argue his best performances, and his natural fit, come when operating centrally, where he can fully pick apart defences.
With velvet dribbling, razor-sharp passing and a thunderous right foot, the talent is obvious. There’s a reason he was once dubbed “the Turkish Messi.” Now, all he needs is consistent minutes—and the platform to truly take off.
13. Phil Foden
Talent-wise, Phil Foden is brilliant. We know it, you know it and Pep Guardiola certainly knows it. He’s a supremely gifted player—capable of weaving through tight spaces, taking sublime first touches, reading the game effortlessly and smashing in top-corner screamers like it’s nothing.
So why isn’t he higher on this list?
Consistency. Or, unfortunately, a lack of it. Named the 2023/24 Premier League Player of the Season—and deservedly so—Foden wasn’t able to come anywhere close to that level as Manchester City meekly surrendered the title to Liverpool. There were injuries, there were other off-field issues, but it was still a great surprise to see Foden’s level dip so drastically. He often goes missing for long stretches for England, too.
When it all clicks, Foden is breathtaking, perhaps unplayable. Let’s just hope we, and Manchester City, see that version of him more often.
12. Morgan Rogers
Morgan Rogers is a bit of an anomaly on this list—save for maybe Jude Bellingham. He’s not your typical diminutive, fleet-footed attacking midfielder. Far from it. Rogers is more of a one-man wrecking ball.
While others glide through midfield, Rogers bulldozes his way forward, aggressively driving through challenges as defenders bounce off him like pinballs. He brings power and purpose in abundance—an attacking midfielder built more like a forward, with the mentality of a freight train.
But don’t mistake that physicality for a lack of finesse. Rogers has the technical quality to match, often pulling off clever flicks, nutmegs and backheels to create opportunities in tight spaces. He’s more than capable of finding the net himself, too, with a strong shot and intelligent movement into the box.
His biggest weakness? His passing range and final-third decision-making—though the latter is rapidly improving with each game. Given his age, physical tools and upward trajectory at Aston Villa, it’s hard not to be excited about what comes next.
11. Dani Olmo
Born in Spain, shaped in Croatia with Dinamo Zagreb, first showcased in Germany with RB Leipzig, and now back home in Catalonia with Barcelona—Dani Olmo’s footballing journey is anything but conventional, and it’s exactly that path that’s made him such a uniquely gifted star.
Olmo plays with the poise and elegance you’d expect from a La Masia graduate, yet blends it seamlessly with the tactical discipline of a Croatian midfielder—think Modrić or Rakitić—and the relentless work rate often found in the Bundesliga. He’s not physically dominant, but he rarely needs to be; his intelligence, movement and sheer determination do all the heavy lifting.
A central figure in Barça’s treble-winning 2024/25 season, Olmo thrives on the biggest stages. But what truly sets him apart is his ability to conjure brilliance out of nowhere. No space in the box? No problem—he’ll glide into a gap that didn’t exist a second ago. No clear option ahead? He’ll create one with a slick turn or bend a world-class strike into the top corner from 20 yards out.
He’s not just a cog in a well-oiled machine—he’s a match-winner, a game-changer.
10. Martin Odegaard
Martin Ødegaard is blessed with a velvet left foot and a rare, almost instinctive feel for the game. He understands space and timing like few others, capable of executing nearly every pass in the playmaker’s arsenal. In terms of pure vision and technical elegance, he’s comfortably among the best in the world.
But Ødegaard brings more than just craft—he brings leadership. Handed the Arsenal captaincy ahead of the 2022–23 season and already the skipper of Norway, he’s the heartbeat of both club and country. When things click, they often click through him.
Where the Norwegian falters, though, is in consistency. The 2024–25 campaign was a frustrating one—both personally and for Arsenal as a whole. For Ødegaard to be truly considered among the elite of the elite, he needs to produce at the highest level year after year, and, crucially, lead his side to silverware. That’s the weight of the armband.
The talent is unquestionable. But until he matches it with sustained impact and trophies, the conversation around Ødegaard will always carry a hint of “what if.”
9. Rayan Cherki
Call us daft for ranking a player who only recently received an international call-up and a newly minted move to Manchester City as one of the best attacking midfielders in the world—but watch Rayan Cherki for five minutes, and you’ll get it.
The former Lyon prodigy, now donning sky blue, is special. With the ball at his feet, Cherki is pure magic. He glides, twists, flicks and nutmegs with the confidence of someone who grew up knowing the game bends to his rhythm. There’s more than a touch of Riyad Mahrez in his style, the way he keeps the ball glued to his boots and slaloms through defenders with outrageous ease.
And this isn’t just showboating. Cherki delivers. His whipped crosses, laser-guided passes and vicious left-footed strikes are backed by genuine vision and intelligence. He’s unpredictable, ambidextrous, and utterly fearless—everything you don’t want to see running at you in the final third.
Former Arsenal man Ainsley Maitland-Niles—who’s shared a pitch with the likes of Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka, Mesut Özil, Serge Gnabry, and Martin Ødegaard—once called Cherki the “best natural talent” he’s ever seen.
And honestly? We see it too.
8. Bernardo Silva
Bernardo Silva’s versatility and established quality mean he’s comfortable playing across midfield and attack for Manchester City and Portugal.
Whether operating through the middle or out wide, Silva has the ability to deliver consistently high performances even when those around him are faltering—a testament to his temperament and composure in pressure cooker situations.
Pep Guardiola has often turned to Silva for support when the chips have been down at the Etihad, relying on his ingenuity, flair and overall brilliance on the ball.
A tidy operator who rarely concedes possession, he’s capable of slicing a defence apart with a perfectly weighted through ball or can drain an opponents energy by stroking it around in midfield with effortless ease.
7. Cole Palmer
Cole Palmer was nothing short of a revelation after swapping Manchester City for Chelsea at the start of the 2023–24 season. In his debut Premier League campaign at Stamford Bridge, he racked up a staggering 33 goal contributions—scoring and assisting with ease—while routinely leaving defenders twisted in knots.
He played with the carefree flair of a schoolboy untouched by pressure, constantly attempting (and often pulling off) the outrageous. That freedom, that fearlessness, made him one of the most entertaining players to watch in world football.
While he started the 2024–25 season brightly, the second half saw a noticeable dip. The weight of expectation seemed to drag him down, compounded by a lack of consistent quality around him in the final third.
But that issue appears to have been addressed. With Noni Madueke off to Arsenal, Joao Pedro arriving from Brighton and Enzo Fernández pushed higher up the pitch, Palmer now has a more cohesive support cast. And at the Club World Cup, he looked reborn.
His performance in the final against the reigning Champions League winners was the stuff of legend—two stunning goals, a sublime assist for Pedro, and a masterclass in making elite defenders and midfielders look utterly ordinary. Like schoolboys, in fact—but not in the charming way.
At his unleashed, uninhibited best, Cole Palmer is simply unstoppable.
6. Florian Wirtz
Florian Wirtz shattered the British transfer record when he joined reigning Premier League champions Liverpool in 2025—and the Reds didn’t just sign any old player; they landed a complete attacking midfielder.
The German playmaker was a central figure in Xabi Alonso’s title-winning Bayer Leverkusen side in 2023–24, impressing both fans and opponents with his technical skill, sharp vision and composure in the final third. Named Bundesliga Player of the Season, Wirtz was more than just a creator—he controlled the rhythm of games with a maturity beyond his years and a touch of flair that made him stand out.
Even as Leverkusen’s momentum slowed the following year, Wirtz kept flying. Despite his modest stature, he towered over the most of the league in terms of quality, racking up over 30 goal contributions and delivering highlight-reel moments almost weekly.
The Premier League is yet to witness the best of Wirtz as he adapts to a new team, country and league, but as countless figures from the world of soccer have stressed, it’s just a matter of time before his talent shines through.
5. Jamal Musiala
On paper, Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz seem remarkably alike—both are highly decorated German internationals and gifted attacking midfielders capable of unlocking defenses with flashes of brilliance.
But look a little closer, and subtle differences begin to emerge. And it’s those differences that, in our eyes at least, give Musiala just the slightest edge over his compatriot.
For starters, while Musiala might not quite match Wirtz’s pure playmaking precision, he’s a far superior dribbler. His long, fluid strides and close control allow him to glide past defenders in almost any situation—at full speed, in tight spaces, with seemingly no room to manoeuvre. In and around the box, he finds gaps that simply shouldn’t exist—his movement and balance so uncanny, you could imagine even Lionel Messi raising an eyebrow.
Secondly, the Bayern Munich star is more direct when it comes to attacking goal himself. He’s the type of player who, when options are limited, takes matters into his own hands—whether it’s weaving through traffic with a mazy run or curling a strike into the top corner out of nowhere.
Wirtz might be the more complete all-rounder, but Musiala’s final-third brilliance feels truly generational, and that’s what gives him the edge.
4. Fermin Lopez
In a Barcelona midfield stacked with young talent like Gavi and Pedri, Fermín López stands out—not because he’s better, but because he’s different.
While Pedri and Gavi tend to dictate the tempo from deeper areas with calm control and surgical passing, López is a high-energy, all-action force who presses relentlessly from the front, disrupts opposition buildup and plays with fearless intent. Whether it’s firing off a shot from distance or threading an unexpected pass, he’s always looking to make something happen.
Where many La Masia graduates pride themselves on precision and caution, López embraces risk. He makes the occasional mistake, but he causes constant problems—and more often than not, if he loses the ball, he wins it back seconds later.
That unpredictability is perhaps why he wasn’t initially trusted with consistent starts, but Fermín has proven his quality to Hansi Flick during injury absences for his teammates and arguably ranks above them in the pecking order.
3. Jude Bellingham
You know you’ve reached the very top of your craft when critics repeatedly focus on the need to “calm down” and “tone it back" on the pitch. What they fail to realise is that edge goes a long way to determining the player Jude Bellingham is today.
His fire, his so-called arrogance? It’s not a problem. It’s the engine that drives him. It’s what separates him from the rest. That fearless swagger isn’t a flaw—it’s the fuel that’s powering the best attacking midfielder on the planet right now.
Sure, he barks at teammates. He gets under opponents’ skin. He stirs the pot. But dig beneath the tabloid noise and you’ll find a player who plays every minute like it’s life or death. He chases everything, fights for every inch, and demands more—from himself, from everyone around him.
And crucially, he’s got the talent to back up the attitude. Whether he’s marauding through midfield, heading in last-gasp winners or pulling off the kind of audacious overheads most players wouldn’t dare attempt—Bellingham delivers.
He’s a born winner. That fire isn’t something to extinguish— it’s something to throw fuel on.
2. Bruno Fernandes
Manchester United have endured a wild ride since 2020—finishing as high as second in the Premier League and as low as 15th, winning both the FA Cup and EFL Cup, then crashing back down to trophyless campaigns.
Behind the chaos—boardroom drama, waves of poor signings, and a carousel of underwhelming managers—one constant has remained: Bruno Fernandes.
When United are ticking, Fernandes is the engine. He’s relentlessly creative, scores with a frequency that defies expectations for a midfielder and regularly delivers thunderous volleys and jaw-dropping strikes from distance. He sets the tempo and raises the ceiling of the entire team.
And when things aren’t going well—which has been often—he adapts. He digs in. He becomes more than a playmaker, embracing the graft: chasing down lost causes, pressing relentlessly, throwing himself into the ugly side of the game. (Though, understandably, he can’t do it all every week – it’s an exhausting burden to carry.)
In a team that’s often looked like it’s accepted mediocrity, Fernandes plays with the fire of someone who simply refuses to. His passion burns through every match, and his desire to lift United back to where they once stood is palpable.
Put simply, without Fernandes in the 2024–25 season, United may well have been relegated. That alone is a testament to just how good he truly is.
1. Dominik Szoboszlai
Dominik Szoboszlai’s ball-striking alone is enough to turn heads—thunderous free-kicks, pinpoint long-range passes and rockets from outside the box. He could easily make a living as a highlight-reel specialist.
But the Liverpool star is far more than a showreel.
Graceful on the ball yet tenacious off it, Szoboszlai combines flair with bite in a way few modern playmakers do. His vision, composure and technique make him a constant creative threat, and he’s quietly racked up assists wherever he’s played—a testament to his consistency and football intelligence.
In his second season at Anfield, Szoboszlai enjoyed a breakout campaign in 2024–25, racking up eight goals and nine assists across all competitions. He saved his best for last, pulling the strings in Liverpool’s title-clinching 5–1 demolition of Tottenham, where he set up goals for both Mohamed Salah and Luis Díaz.
While the entire team has fallen off a cliff in the 2025–26 campaign, Szoboszlai has risen above the rubble, cementing his status as the club’s main man. Even a player with the swollen sense of self-importance as Salah, has been forced to accept that Liverpool’s ambitions for collective glory lie solely on the broad shoulders of Szoboszlai.
READ MORE ON THE BEST 25 PLAYERS FOR EVERY POSITION IN WORLD SOCCER
- The 25 Best Goalkeepers in World Soccer—Ranked
- The 25 Best Right Backs in World Soccer—Ranked
- The 25 Best Centre Backs in World Soccer—Ranked
- The 25 Best Left Backs in World Soccer—Ranked
- The 25 Best Defensive Midfielders in World Soccer—Ranked
- The 25 Best Central Midfielders in World Soccer—Ranked
- The 25 Best Right Wingers in World Soccer—Ranked
- The 25 Best Left Wingers in World Soccer—Ranked
- The 25 Best Strikers in World Soccer—Ranked
This article was originally published on www.si.com as The 25 Best Attacking Midfielders in World Soccer—Ranked.
