Champions League Performance Insights: The role of the modern midfielder

The lexicon of football has evolved to the point that references to the work of a number six, eight or ten now roll off the tongue of even the most casual of fans. But what exactly does a six or eight or ten do? And given the fluidity of today's tactical schemes, can a player fill more than one of those roles at the same time?

In the following article, UEFA's game insights unit – working with UEFA technical observer Ole Gunnar Solskjær – will take the case of Benfica's Rafa Silva and Real Madrid's Aurélien Tchouaméni from last Wednesday's UEFA Champions League knockout phase play-off second leg and examine their roles in detail.

In the process, we will see how each player offers his own examples of four key functions – running, defending, passing and attacking – one as an attacking midfielder and the other as a deeper midfielder.

Runs and goals

One thing the pair had in common in last week's contest was that each man covered the most ground for his team, as displayed by the graphic above.

In the case of Rafa Silva, his 12.36km included plenty of proactive movements to link the play and run in behind, as is shown by the first clip of him scoring below. His clever runs in behind were a recurring feature of his display and befitting of a player in the No10 role.

As for Tchouaméni, operating as a No6, in clip two we see him first make an interception from Nicolás Otamendi's ball from the back and then step forward to connect with the cutback and score. As UEFA Technical Observer Ole Gunnar Solskjær noted, his timing is significant as he holds his position before advancing at the perfect moment. "It's very good timing," said Solskjær. "He wins the ball and arrives in that space, which is so difficult to defend if you don't have a midfielder staying with that run."

As Tchouaméni revealed afterwards, it was a goal that followed a conscious effort on his part to get forward more from midfield. "The coach asked me to push a bit higher and that would help me score goals," he explained.

Rafa Silva – roving as a ten

At 32, Rafa Silva is an experienced attacking midfielder who, in Madrid, filled the No10 position for Benfica. Solskjær, who worked with him at Beşiktaş, observed: "He's great when you give him space to turn in. Madrid pushed Raúl Asencio on to him at times but there were other times when he received the ball on his back foot and could drive. He also made some great runs in behind – the system suited him brilliantly."

There is an excellent illustration of this in clip one below, displaying his constant movement.

As the video also displays, Rafa Silva might well have left the Santiago Bernabéu with more than one goal given his two near-misses in the second half. He had four shots in total and, as manifested by the graphic below, no player matched his overall attacking output in last Wednesday's match.

Another aspect of his performance was his pressing work when Benfica were out of possession – another reason why he covered more ground than any other player in the game. In clip three, we see him and Vangelis Pavlidis working together to protect the middle and to press, his efforts concluding with a tackle as the sequence ends.

Aurélien Tchouaméni – shining as a six

"Aurélien often does the work that gets overlooked," said Madrid coach Álvaro Arbeloa, though not in this tie as he collected the Player of the Match award in both legs.

The video above starts with two examples of his work off the ball: first we see him protect his back four, then we see him stop a counterattack with an excellent tackle on Pavlidis.

Solskjær praised his defensive work, saying: "When Benfica put crosses in, he was really good at dropping in. There were a couple of times, at least, where he was in the box defending the crosses which is a great thing for them with his presence."

Finally, clip three highlights his ability on the ball, showing six passes from him in a short space of time. The quality and range of his passing stands out and so too his constant scanning. When the UEFA game insights unit put Vitinha under the microscope in December, Solskjær described the Paris Saint-Germain midfielder as "a player who is constantly scanning, which gives him a full picture of the pitch before the ball arrives". Tchouaméni is doing the same here.

Coaching reflection: Should I stay or should I go?

Amid the categorising of midfield and attacking players in set roles – as a six or eight or ten – there is still a need for players to break forward from the middle of the pitch and get into the final third to support attacks.

The example of Tchouaméni's goal, following that run from deep, is an example to young players about picking the right time to gamble and push forward.

According to Solskjær, the key thing in such a scenario, especially if it is the No6 advancing, is to make sure another team-mate is covering the space vacated.

He explained: "With Tchouaméni's role, he's there looking for any danger if his team lose the ball. So he has that role but, obviously, the coach has told him to go forward when possible and when he does this, the role of defending has to go to someone else – as observed on Wednesday night by players from several different positions.

"When I played at Manchester United, our central midfielders Roy Keane and Paul Scholes had a great understanding whereby one would sit in and the other goes. It was a case of 'You get in the box, I stay' or 'I get in the box, you stay'. That understanding is vital."

Ole Gunnar Solskjær was a renowned striker who won six Premier League titles at Manchester United, and scored the winner in the 1998/99 UEFA Champions League final. He steered Molde to two league titles in his native Norway then reached the 2020/21 UEFA Europa League final as United boss.