Thiago the most over-rated player in Europe? Hamann is talking nonsense

FT Desk

• Updated: 1 Jun 2022 18:24 BST
• 3 min read

Didi Hamann has once again dismissed Thiago Alcantara's credentials as a top-class European midfielder, but he could hardly be more wrong.

Granted, Thiago didn't have his best game in a Liverpool jersey against Real Madrid in the Champions League final in Paris last Saturday.

Real completed nearly 100 more passes in beating the Reds 1-0 at the Stade de France, and Thiago was hooked in the 77th minute with opposite number Toni Kroos beginning to dictate play in central midfield.

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Former Liverpool midfielder Hamann highlighted Thiago's performance in his Sky Germany column after the game.

What did Hamann say about Thiago?

"In my opinion, the Reds need to modernise the team a bit, especially in midfield," he wrote. "I don't understand the hype about Thiago. For me he is one of the most overrated players in European football.

"When things are going well and you have a lot of possession, he's a good player, but when push comes to shove you don't see him. If you need someone who sets the tone, then he doesn't do it."

Hamann may feel well-placed to judge a midfield performance - he won the Champions League with Liverpool in 2005 and was a World Cup runner-up with Germany in 2002 – and he is fondly remembered by Liverpool fans as Mr. Consistent, but his analysis here is harsh.

The game may have evolved significantly across their two eras, but Hamann's job in the Liverpool midfield and Thiago's would stand in stark contrast anyway – the former anchoring things while the likes of Steven Gerrard took games by the scruff of the neck; the latter having Fabinho alongside him to fulfil a similar role to Hamann's.

But one poor performance does not a great player unmake, and even if Thiago was not signed for his defensive diligence, he was still in the 90th percentile among midfielders for tackles made across the Premier League and Champions League this season.

And for a diminutive 5'9" player who weighs 11 stone, two aerial challenges won per game is not to be sniffed at.

But that isn't even Thiago's role in the Liverpool team, and for what he does to well, he is undoubtedly one of the world's best.

Thiago was in the 99th percentile for progressive passes last season, averaging 10 per game, and the 98th for progressive carries.

He also often plays the pass before the assist, so his stats don't show up as readily as players who hoover up the goals and assists – or indeed those whose primary task is to put their foot in.

But if Thiago can't dictate play more often than not, then who on Earth can?