SPORTbible rank the top 10 Premier League midfielders of all time

The Premier League has had a great many brilliant central midfielders and SPORTbible have ranked the best of the best in the past 30 years.

Over the years, the debate about the best midfielders have come down to three names, Paul Scholes, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard.

However, part of their brilliance comes down to pure longevity, an attribute that no doubt has some kudos to their position on any list but it shouldn't come down simply to that.

The trio make up part of this list, but even from a generation they'd be considered to be part of, there are at least two players better than them.

So if it's not the three men involved in the longest running debate in English football, who does top our list of the Premier League's best midfielders?

10. N'Golo Kante - Leicester/Chelsea, 2015-present day:

Kante is the modern version of a defensive midfielder, and he has so much more to his game than just covering the entirety of the pitch, the trait he is most famed for. Helping Leicester City win the league is no mean feat and he then took the step up to Chelsea to help them win the title too.

9. David Silva - Manchester City, 2010-2020:

There's a group of modern City greats who had as much impact on their success as anyone, and Silva is certainly amongst them. One of the classiest operators.that the league has seen. A four time league champion and a World Cup winner.

8. Frank Lampard - West Ham United/Chelsea/Manchester City, 1995-2015:

Is now the perfect time to put Lampard this low on a list, with his legacy at Stamford Bridge dwindling during his second spell as a manager? The club's all time top goalscorer, what a player. This seems low, but those ahead of him were also special. Few can touch his ability to be in the right place and score a goal.

7. Steven Gerrard - Liverpool, 1998-2015:

The talisman for Liverpool for many years, still shining even when the team were nowhere near his best. Captain fantastic and a brilliant all round game, there's very little he couldn't do. Maybe his lack of a Premier League medal and my bias is what leaves him in sixth.

6. Paul Scholes - Manchester United, 1993-2011/2012-13:

Coming out of retirement and becoming an integral part of a Premier League winning team is pretty special. Scholes passing range was unmatched and he was at the centre of the most successful team in the league's history. I'll always have him above his two English peers. I'm biased but I'm writing the piece so tough.

5. Cesc Fabregas - Arsenal/Chelsea, 2003-2011/2014-2019:

The central midfielder with the most assists in the Premier League era. Fabregas was a young player who dazzled in an Arsenal side that didn't win much, just the FA Cup, before his move back to Barcelona. On return to England with Chelsea he was even better, more well rounded and experienced. Ended up with two league titles.

4. Patrick Vieira - Arsenal/Manchester City, 1996-2005/2010-2011:

At times Vieira has been considered a defensive midfield wrecking ball, but the tall Frenchman was so much more than that for the Gunners. An important member of the Invincibles team and part of the epic battles that the Gunners had with Manchester United, no rivalry has been as intense or tasty since. An all round game that could go head-to-head with anyone.

3. Roy Keane - Nottingham Forest/Manchester United, 1992-2005:

The other half of the best midfield rivalry in the modern game. Keane, even more so than Vieira, is only considered as a midfield hardman these days. The Irishman would be considered a box-to-box midfielder these days and he had absolutely all of the tools. A true captain in every sense of the word, and again my bias is doing some of the lifting here, but sod you.

2. Yaya Toure - Manchester City, 2010-2018:

Like Silva, Toure is as important a figure to City's rise as anyone else. His 20 goals in one season might be the best single season by a midfielder in the past 30 years in England's top tier. The Ivorian could play in a number of roles in the middle of the park and was best marauding through the middle of the pitch. Even had a hell of a free kick.

De Bruyne gets the number one spot on our list. Image: Alamy

1. Kevin De Bruyne - Chelsea/Manchester City, 2012-2014/2015-present day:

This isn't just based on Wednesday night, but recency bias might come into it a little bit. De Bruyne is just on another level right now. He can burst through defences with his running or play the most perfect pass. He's been helped this season by having Erling Haaland ahead of him but he can create things from nothing. Consistently brilliant for the past eight years for City and arguably the best in the world right now.

Topics: Football, Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Kevin De Bruyne, Yaya Toure, Roy Keane, Paul Scholes, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, Cesc Fabregas, Patrick Vieira, NGolo Kante, David Silva

Ryan Sidle

Ryan is a journalist for SPORTbible with over eight years of experience. Passionate about all sports, he mainly covers football and F1 - Daniel Ricciardo once spent an entire interview referring to him as 'Ryan Gosling,' still his proudest moment.

@Sidler28