10 GREATEST ENGLISH MIDFIELDERS IN FOOTBALL HISTORY [RANKED]

Defining what makes a "midfielder" these days is no easy task. The dissipation of fixed positions and increased prominence of 'roles' or 'functions' mean those deployed in the middle of the park are tasked with an array of duties - from attacking to defending, and everything in between.

Nevertheless, they remain the cornerstone of any elite side, just as they have done throughout history. After all, the saying goes that games are won in midfield. And, fortunately for England, they have been blessed with some incredible all-rounders down the years to help the Three Lions take to the international stage with an amplified weight of expectation.

Trusted with the role of being a team's nucleus, the midfielder comes in all different shapes, sizes, strengths, and weaknesses. And GIVEMESPORT has tried its hand at ranking the very best England have produced, using some ranking factors to aid the somewhat thankless process.

Ranking factors

• International achievements (honours, appearances, goals, assists, etc)
• Club achievements (honours, appearances, goals, assists, etc)
• Individual awards
• Legacy within football

Ray Wilkins

Career Span: 1973 - 1997

Ray Wilkins starred for Chelsea, Manchester United, AC Milan and Rangers during a career which yielded FA Cup and Scottish top-flight glory. With a journeyman career even Nicolas Anelka would have been proud of, the deep-lying playmaker also featured for PSG, Crystal Palace, Millwall, and Hibernian.

Widely considered one of the beautiful game's most courteous men, Wilkins was a key player for England for much of the 80s, featuring in the 1982 and 1986 World Cups and earning 84 caps in all.

Glenn Hoddle

Career Span: 1975 - 1995

An inspiration to Tottenham's successive FA Cup victories at the beginning of the 80s - before he took his considerable talent abroad to help Monaco to the French title amid the exodus of English talent at the turn of the decade - Glenn Hoddle's creative instinct led to a glittering career, although a fleeting singing vocation could have hampered such high point when he released 'Diamond Lights' with compatriot Chris Waddle in 1987.

Just about everything went in the 80s, so perhaps it wasn't too wild of an idea for the pair to have a crack at pop stardom. Think Tears for Fears meets maverick footballers with dodgy haircuts and zero stage presence, and you get their 'interesting' record. Reflecting on the blurred lines between a potential appearance on Top of the Pops and a successful football career, however, the duo prospered when they chose to stick to what they knew, and Hoddle is the only entry in this list to have also managed the Three Lions. Nevertheless, he remains one of those binding stars who was never appreciated at international level, despite being such a wonderful talent.

Chris Waddle

Career Span: 1978 - 2002

Foreign territory is something rarely conquered by Britain's homegrown footballers. Many who move abroad fail to live up to expectations. However, that notion is something of a two-sided coin. On one side, you have the Jonathan Woodgate and Stan Collymore catastrophes at Real Madrid and Real Oviedo. But on the other, you have a charmed circle of supreme British exports that features the recent rise of Jude Bellingham, along with David Platt, Kevin Keegan, and one Chris Waddle.

The Englishman - known for his evocative mullet off the pitch, and showreel-worthy elegance on it - played the best part of three years of his career as a Marseille Galactico, winning the French title in each. Seemingly cut from a different cloth from his compatriots at the time, Waddle was a mesmerising footballer who had the elementary traits to bewilder defenders and incessantly reward his brilliance with goals and assists to show for it.

A star of England’s uplifting Italia ’90 campaign, Waddle returned home in 1992, joining Sheffield Wednesday and scooping the prestigious FWA (Football Writers’ Association) Footballer of the Year Award in the inaugural Premier League season.

Bryan Robson

Career Span: 1975 - 1997

Famously nicknamed 'Captain Marvel' for his valorous performances, Bryan Robson wore the armband for both Manchester United and England, captaining his country on 65 occasions. Additionally, he remains the Red Devils' longest-serving captain, marshalling the club to their first two Premier League titles, alongside being cardinal to a further three FA Cups, one League Cup, and a European Cup Winners' Cup.

Robson represented England on 90 occasions between 1980 and 1991, making him, at the time, the fifth-most capped Three Lions player. Meanwhile, his goalscoring tally of 26 placed him eighth on the list at the time, with only Bobby Moore, Billy Wright, and Harry Kane captaining the island nation's men's team on more occasions.

David Beckham

Career Span: 1992 - 2013

Since 1996, nobody has assisted more goals for England than the nation's most iconic sporting celebrity, David Beckham. His startling 42 assists in 115 Three Lions caps puts the former Manchester United and Real Madrid superstar in a bracket of his own, with Steven Gerrard's tally of 24 being the closest to rivalling him.

A 1998/99 treble winner with the Red Devils, Beckham’s career was full of classic moments – including his lob from the halfway line against Wimbledon in 1996, which made him a household name, and 'that' stoppage-time free-kick against Greece to send England to the 2002 World Cup. In essence, his style off the pitch translated onto it, and he's head and shoulders above other English midfielders with his creative output.

Paul Scholes

Career Span: 1993 - 2013

A one-club luminary at Manchester United, making the best part of 700 appearances before retiring in 2011 – and going over that mark after briefly returning to football the following year upon Sir Alex Ferguson's demands – Paul Scholes was up there with the best midfielders in the world for much of his career.

Everything he touched was magic, and the Salford-born playmaker attracted particular attention when his exploits on the continental stage helped the Red Devils achieve a historic treble in the 1998/99 campaign. His England career entailed 66 caps - but he would have had far more if not for favoured contemporaries Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard.

Frank Lampard

Career Span: 1995 - 2016

Frank Lampard is Chelsea's all-time leading scorer, with his knack for unleashing rockets into the top corner a hallmark of his high-octane playing style during his club's finest period. 211 goals in 638 appearances for the Blues is accompanied by his record for most goals from a midfielder in Premier League history - 177 - to prove just how deadly he was from the edge of the area.

Lampard won three Premier League titles, the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Europa League, four FA Cups, and two League Cups. In 2005, he was named FWA Footballer of the Year, and finished runner-up for both the Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year. The powerful midfielder is also one of seven Englishmen to surpass 100 caps for his country.

Paul Gascoigne

Career Span: 1985 - 2004

Phil Foden tried - and many others did, too - but nobody will ever be quite like Paul 'Gazza' Gascoigne – in style of play or haircut. One of England's finest footballers ever, the 1990/91 FA Cup winner with Tottenham is also regarded as one of the most naturally gifted talents in the industry, with his remarkable playmaking rubber-stamping him as a true English icon.

Gascoigne was immensely popular during his playing career, with television broadcaster Terry Wogan calling him "probably the most popular man in Britain today" in September 1990, and public interest in and adoration for him came to be known as "Gazzamania". For the Three Lions, he was the crux of their Italia 90 scathe with success, and his seminal volley at the home-hosted Euro 96 against Scotland (complete with the famous dentist’s chair celebration) embedded his position in England's football folklore.

Steven Gerrard

Career Span: 1998 - 2016

A midfield conductor who dragged his beloved Liverpool through the infamous 2005 Champions League and 2006 FA Cup finals - with the latter later coined the 'Gerrard Final' after his wonder strike whilst injured led to victory against West Ham - Steven Gerrard personified the storied Anfield European Nights with his heroic one-man wrecking machine performances as he often got stuck in with all aspects of the game to ensure the Reds stayed on their perch at pivotal flashpoints during their 30-year league title hiatus.

Without getting too involved with the Scholes, Lampard, Gerrard debate, it was the latter who was the more complete footballer, with his role in attack and defence meaning he was preferred over the others by his international managers. Bringing his A-game to the world stage, 'Captain Fantastic' racked up 114 England caps, skippered the Three Lions 38 times and played in six of the seven major tournaments for which they qualified between 2000 and 2014.

Bobby Charlton

Career Span: 1956 - 1980

The late Sir Bobby Charlton has a strong argument for being England's best player ever. Whether deployed in midfield or attack, the Manchester United legend was the backbone of many magical team performances. After surviving the horror of the Munich air disaster in 1958, he went on to forge a legendary, trophy-laden career, scoring 198 goals in 606 topflight league games alone.

His honours included the Golden Ball for player of the tournament in England’s 1966 World Cup victory, the European Cup, and the Football League First Division three times. Charlton also became the second Englishman (after Stanley Matthews) to win the Ballon d'Or - doing so in 1966, before finishing as runner-up in 1967 and 1968.

It's a shame that he played in an era where a television wasn't a centrepiece in every household living room. But when Bobby Charlton died in October 2023, the outpouring of grief from throughout the football community said it all about just how closely the nation held him to their hearts.

All statistics via Transfermarkt (as of 22/04/24).

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