So Who Is The New Makélélé?

By: Daryl | January 21st, 2009

Bad news for PSG’s Claude Makélélé recently, when he had his Porsche and his Mercedes stolen on Sunday night while playing in PSG’s 2-1 win over Sochaux.

I’m taking this as final and definitive proof that the now 35-year-old Makélélé isn’t quite the holding midfielder he once was. The old Makélélé would definitely have intercepted the thieves with a well timed block and then calmly distributed the two cars to one of his more creative teammates to drive away.

Which leads me to this question: Who is the new Makélélé?

There’ve been plenty of them in recent years, including Chelsea’s current choice for “the Makélélé role” John Mikel Obi. But you’d probably struggle to find a Chelsea fan willing to argue that Obi is really the new Mak.

It’s a spurious question, and I’m embarrassed that I even wrote that headline to be honest. No one’s ever really the new anyone. Not until genetic cloning is introduced to football (my proposal’s in Sepp Blatter’s inbox right now). So what I really mean is: Who is the best defensive midfielder in the world right now?

And I’m not talking about guys like Michael Carrick – guys who maybe play a bit deep, but aren’t tenacious tacklers the way Makélélé was/is. I’m talking proper defensive midfielders who were born to win the ball. Maybe someone like Lorik Cana? Mahamadou Diarra? Potential Man City signing Nigel De Jong? Lassana Diarra?

If you could choose any current defensive mid to sit in front of your back four and break up opposition attacks, who would it be?

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Guest

as you said there is no new makelele,but Gatusu and Frings are close
matt

bobby digital i think youre forgetting momo's form at liverpool...makalele was about guile as well not just crunching tackles...momo has way to much chicken with his head cut off/bull in a china shop to be maka. masch is good but really, he's not as slick. essien is the closest although he's more physical than maka so he does overpower alot whereas maka was more about using his body as a fulcrum against someone...essien does it but hes so much bigger than maka it just doesnt work the same way. he's the 2.0. i swear you guys would put him up there if he'd played this season too. i do have a mancrush on him as well so theres that.
ish

the DM role has been around for ages but maka made it his own. Deschamps and dunga might have been DM's but the level of quality that maka had made him a class apart
Ebrahim

Personally, I have always wondered how this position came to be labelled as the "Makelele role". Isn't it plain to see that it was Didier Deschamps or even Carlos Dunga that defined that role, and NOT makelele - let us credit the players that first brought the position into the limelight!
ish

maschareno is a great DM but his passing range and positioning is no where close to maka's he is closer to essien in that he can run and do stuff with the ball the maka couldnt do during his prime. The best young DM would have to be toulalan or maybe veloso but really the makalele role is dying out and many DM's are not closer to box to box CM's who play slightly deeper, de rossi, essien, diarra's, toure, muntari, flamini and sissoko all attack way higher into the box then maka ever did.
Mikel plays very similar to maka but doesnt have the same level of calmness or passing ability, that said compare him to last year and he has made great strides, maka style DM play is an old mans game since you need experience to really thrive.
dp

There really isn't a single player out there who's exactly like Makelele; Mascherano on his day, especially in the 2007 CL final, can come close (if a bit more frantic), but he's been in indifferent form all season as Alonso and various incarnations of Rafa's mindless tinkering along with injury have kept him from his best. I watched one of Lassana's last games for Pompy (I believe it was against West Ham, not sure) and I was astounded...he was everywhere, breaking up play, passing (occasionally wildly, but mostly on target) quickly, running like a lunatic across the field and pretty much kept West Ham from scoring on his own. He'll be Makelele soon, and he'll be better than the great man someday...impressive.
bobby_digital

Corbin knows whats up...

its definitely Momo Sissoko.... i feel this topic has been brought up before and back then i said Momo, and im sayin it again dammit... the best DCM on the planet right now..

he’s been a big part of juve’s success this season and outside of juve fans, very underated…even during his liverpool days he had flashes of pure brilliance. ball winning,tackling,dominant in the air… please look up the sissoko vs. ballack youtube clip, he made ballack look like a 11 year old girl...

the guy is a beast and has just enough crazy and recklessness in his game to disrupt the opposing teams creativity in midfield… he stifled real and ac milan this season....the way he goes into tackles with no concern over human life is out of this world… he’s a machine…
Aaron

Lorik Cana. in a few years, Toulalan.
ar126

Tugay. Hands down.
Ronald

Gonna have to go with Laurie and Mustafa and say Jeremy Toulalan. I've seen him play all the time, he is awesome. Maybe not the next Makelele ( then again, no one is really " The Next " anybody. Individuals are themselves and no one else ).
Ibracadabra

A Defensive Midfield Haiku for you.

De Jong Not Worth It,
No Goals, Assists, Or Bonus,
Just like Nicky Butt
Corbin

anyone whos a fan of serie A can't argue that sissoko tackles like none other
Muntari

Michael Essien no doubt. Not just the best DM, but the best midfielder in the world.
Mustafa

I definitely agree with Laurie.... Jeremy Toulalan is pure class, and he is most like makelele because he does his job so smoothly that you dont even notice he's out there... he makes a clean tackle followed by a short, crisp pass, and thats all you see, and he doesn't seem to be as reckless as Lorik Cana (judging from the youtube vid). Also, he has the "vowel-'l'-vowel-'l'-vowel" combination that Maka has in his name as well :p

also, I love Michael Essien as well (him and Fernando Torres are my two favorite players around now), but considering that you can play him anywhere on the pitch, he doesn't seen to fit in that purely-makelele role, because he's class everywhere on the field
Corey

All good suggestions, but most of these players have an ability to make more complex passing as well as score from time to time. Makelele really could not score, and his passing was very limited. If you want to look for the new Makelele, he needs to be a pure defensive monster with very little attributes in other areas. Mamadou Diarra fit the bill, but his interception abilities are not as highly defined. Lassana Diarra has the tenacity, but he has a decent passing range. Daniele De Rossi can move forward well and he also scores a bit too, so he is more of a box to box midfielder even though he plays as a DM. De Jong to me is interesting candidate, and its also obvious that his arrival will push Vincent Kompany back to his traditional center back role typically, although the two could play side by side again.
Colin

Hargreaves. He has a fantastic work rate, is a tough tackler, has the ability to take free kicks, and can play many positions.

The only thing he needs are two healthy knees.
Chris

By his price tag, I'd venture Nigel De Jong. . . :)
tom

amen* darn you offside for not allowing corrections :-P
tom

aemn to most of the above: yaya toure (this year absolutely), mascherano and di rossi for sure

sorry, just can not count obi mikel and def. not hargreeves in that class.
Wayne

I think it has to be Marcos Senna. The way he controlled the Spain midfield around in the Euros was astounding. His form over recent times for the Yellow Submarine has been awesome too.
gregorio

mascherano, senna -when in form, yaya toure
James

Essien!
Laurie

I love love Lorik Cana, just because he is so good at being bad. (Tell me attackers don't flinch and feel phantom pains in their ankles when they see him coming.) But the future new Makelele has to be Jérémy Toulalan. Give it a few years and you'll see.
matt

leaving out essien cause he's injured guys. he's more skilled than claude offensively but he's all about being the midfield bone cruncher then distributor. he's the best.
Marlon

Javier Mascherano
Hawk

I would say that
As a holding mid that knows how to tackle: Yaya Toure
As a creative deep playmaker/defence helper: Alonso
As a box to box DM/CM/AM: Daniele De Rossi
nobobomo

Ah, De Rossi! I knew I forgot someone.
nobobomo

Senna, Mascherano, Gattuso, Hargreaves, Cambiasso.