Joshua Kimmich #6

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It is a pity there are not two Joshua Kimmichs: one for central midfield, one for defence. Then the endless debate about which position he is more suited to could be avoided. For Bayern’s manager, Vincent Kompany, he is the first-choice No 6. Under Julian Nagelsmann he was first at right-back, then briefly returned to midfield, and now is meant to do everything at once as a defensive playmaker. In build-up play, he moves from right back into the centre, which can be risky if he loses the ball. Luckily enough, he does not lose the ball that often. Recently moved past Jürgen Kohler and into the top 10 of Germany players with most appearances. With Bayern he has won the Champions League and 10 Bundesliga titles, but nothing yet with the national team. After the group-stage exit in Qatar, he spoke with tears in his eyes of the most difficult day of his career: “I’m a bit afraid of falling into a hole.” He has certainly worked his way out of it and, as captain, main motivator and “shirt-tucked-in” advocate, enjoys great respect in Germany.

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