Central midfielders are the connecting cog of the team, the creators who split defenses with their vision and passing. Every successful team across the years has had a recognizable character in the midfield, and the current reigning European Champions are no different. There have been some legendary players to put on the red shirt, and here we take a look at some of those.
Liverpool FC’s 4 Best Central Midfielders Ever
#4: Jan Molby
Signed from Ajax in the summer of 1984, Jan Molby initially started out filling the defensive midfielder role. The next season, however, the Great Dane was in a more central attacking role, often playing behind Ian Rush as a shadow striker. He scored 21 goals that season, including a man-of-the-match performance against Everton in the FA Cup final. The Reds won the FA Cup and the league double that season, and Jan Molby was a crucial figure in the team-sheets chugging along to achieve that.
Oftentimes criticized by his managers for his weight, the Danish international nevertheless made up for his slowness with his pinpoint passing ability and his occasional long-range efforts that ended in a goal. An exceptional penalty taker, he rarely missed the back of the net from the spot, slotting in 42 out of 45 penalties throughout his career.
After his phenomenal season in 1985, Molby fell out of favor subsequently due to a leg injury compounded by personal problems. He was on the brink of being released from the club, but the manager showed faith in him and slowly after being on the fringes for four years he again became a part of the regular lineup by 1990-91 season. He won the FA Cup for the second time in 1992, along with the 2 league titles earned during the 1985-86 and 1989-90 campaign.
Recurring injuries and his lack of fitness saw him going back to the fringes again, and after 292 appearances for the club spanning 12 years, he was sold to Swansea City. “Big Jan”, known for his distinct scouse accent as well, is nevertheless an endeared figure at Anfield.
STATS:
COMPETITION | APPEARANCES | GOALS |
League | 218 | 44 |
FA Cup | 28 | 4 |
League Cup | 28 | 9 |
Europe | 7 | 1 |
Other | 11 | 3 |
Total | 292 | 61 |
#3: Graeme Souness
Signed on from Middlesborough for a fee of 352,000 pounds, the Reds set a club record to obtain the services of the fiery Scot in 1978. Signed to replace the aging Ian Callaghan, his first goal in a Red shirt was against bitter rivals Manchester United, unleashing a cracker from 30 yards away. He won the European Cup just four months into his arrival, assisting Kenny Dalglish in the game’s only goal which Liverpool won against Club Brugge.
He was the driving force in the midfield, the crucial cog in the trophy-laden Liverpool machine that kept chugging on and on. Winning back to back titles in 1979 and 1980. When the team was going through a rough patch in the season of 1981, the manager Bob Paisley decided Souness was fit to lead the team back to the top and that is exactly what the temperamental Scot did, winning the European Cup for the club for the fourth time in 1982. He remains one of five Liverpool captains to lift the European trophy.
Notching 55 goals for the club in 359 appearances, the midfielder won 12 trophies in just 7 years for the club, including five league titles and three European Cups. He departed shortly after winning the European Trophy in 1982 however, hoping to test his chances in Italy with Sampdoria.
He returned to the club a decade later, this time as a manager. However, that stint would turn out to be less successful for him, with the team winning just the FA Cup in 1992. His controversial interview with The Sun during the third anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster did not go down well with the Anfield faithfuls with many shunning him from the list of club legends, but no one can deny he remains one of the best and most successful midfielders of all time in the club history.
STATS:
COMPETITION | APPEARANCES | GOALS |
League | 247 | 38 |
FA Cup | 24 | 2 |
League Cup | 45 | 9 |
Europe | 38 | 6 |
Other | 5 | 0 |
Total | 359 | 55 |
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#2: Ian Callaghan
The name Ian Callaghan is easily recognizable to any Red fan, the midfield maestro holding the record for most number of appearances – 857, over a career that spanned 18 years with the Reds. A local lad, Ian Callaghan had made a name for himself while rising through the youth ranks, with club legends such as Billy Liddell tipping him to lead Liverpool one day.
He made his debut against Bristol City in 1960 as an eighteen year old, earning a standing ovation from the stadium for his performances in a 4-0 win. When Liverpool finally got promoted to the first division in 1962, he became the face of Liverpool’s midfield, providing sublime passes and assisting the strikers up front. His blistering pace with the ball allowed him to draw the fullbacks out that opened up channels for him to pass. He assisted the winning goal that earned Liverpool their first FA Cup in 1965.
He would go on making that central midfielder role his own over to the next decade as well, winning virtually every title possible as a player for the club during his time. A true gentleman of the game, Ian Callaghan was booked only ONCE in his 857 appearances, that too in his penultimate game for the Reds in March 1978. He won 13 accolades for the club, including both the Second and First Division league titles and 2 European Cups. Individually, he was awarded the Footballer of The Year in 1974 for his contributions that season.
At the age of 36, the legendary Scouser decided to call the curtains to his Liverpool career after nearly 20 years at the club, and he moved to Fort Lauderdale in 1978 after his contract expired.
STATS:
COMPETITION | APPEARANCES | GOALS |
League | 640 | 49 |
FA Cup | 79 | 2 |
League Cup | 42 | 7 |
Europe | 89 | 10 |
Other | 7 | 0 |
Total | 857 | 68 |
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#1: Steven Gerrard
Topping the list, it comes as no surprise that Steven Gerrard remains the most influential and greatest midfielder of all time for Liverpool. Another local lad rising up through the Liverpool youth academy, Gerrard would devote his entire career to the Reds, playing 710 games in a career spanning 17 years. The talismanic midfielder was also the most lethal, notching in 186 goals, a club record for a midfielder.
A technically gifted versatile box to box midfielder, his ability to score crucial goals when the team needed him earned him the captain’s armband in 2003. After winning the treble of The UEFA Cup, the FA Cup and the League Cup in 2001, he would go on to inspire the team to victory in a comeback against AC Milan in 2005, earning Liverpool’s fifth Champions League.
A highly influential figure during the Benitez era, Gerrard had a few offers from big clubs and was on the verge of joining Chelsea but ultimately his love for the club convinced him to stay and provide leadership to the ailing team. He peaked during the latter stages of the 2000s, making sure the team featured regularly in European competitions and was phenomenal in the 2009 campaign in which Liverpool came close to winning the Premier League for the first time.
Heartbreak would follow a second time too, with Liverpool narrowly missing out on the Premier League again in 2013-14. Two years later, Stevie G would hang his boots, retiring as the greatest midfielder in the annals of Anfield’s history.
STATS:
COMPETITION | APPEARANCES | GOALS |
League | 504 | 120 |
FA Cup | 42 | 15 |
League Cup | 30 | 9 |
Europe | 130 | 41 |
Other | 4 | 1 |
Total | 710 | 186 |
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
Here are some honorable mentions as Liverpool’s best central midfielders of all time –
- Xabi Alonso
- Peter Thompson
- Terry McDermott
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