There’s magic in the number 10. It’s the most coveted number to wear on your back, and perhaps the most beautiful position to play on the field.
10’s are the true creators. The artists, whose attacking abilities are so great that standard defensive responsibilities simply don’t apply to them.
Over the years, this complete commitment to attack from the top of midfield gave us some brilliant players like Diego Maradona, Zinedine Zidane, and Dennis Bergkamp. More modern nominations would include the likes of Mesut Özil, Isco, and James Rodríguez.
No matter the era or the league, there have always been “quarterbacks” who pull strings for the best teams with the grace and flair that made us love this game in the first place.
That is…until recently.
The Decline of the Traditional No. 10 and Its Impact on Modern Football
The past decade or so has seen a significant departure from the traditional number 10 as we know it across the top leagues in Europe – a tragic consequence of modern tactics.
For this, you can thank the rise of the 4-3-3 formation among top teams, which allows no room for a natural number 10, along with increasingly popular counter-pressing strategies requiring an intense defensive work rate from all forward players.
Now, at the very highest levels of the game, it’s very rare for attacking midfielders to be given the same positional freedom and defensive hall pass as yesteryear’s counterparts.
Does this result in better-drilled, more balanced teams at the pinnacle of the game? Sure. But in doing so, it strips away the very position that birthed some of the game’s greatest icons.
Fans, including myself, want to see players express themselves – to watch them try things that others would be afraid to attempt – to do everything in their power to create a goal, even if those actions can open up their own side to conceding one.
Creation, risk, instinct, and technique intertwined at the feet of the only player on the field with the ability to justify such a responsibility. That’s what the people want to see.
MLS Keeps the Traditional No. 10 Role Alive and Thriving
Thankfully, there’s still one league in this footballing world where the classic number 10 role continues to thrive: Major League Soccer.
Last year alone, the likes of Luciano Acosta, Riqui Puig, and Evander dominated the league from the half-space, pulling strings for teammates while creating goals for themselves.
Incredibly, those three players alone had combined 90-goal involvements in MLS play last season and did so with the flair you’d expect from players of their calibre.
If you haven’t yet seen a highlight tape of Acosta’s mazy dribbles, Puig’s insane passes, or Evander’s long-range blasts, I’m afraid you’re missing out.
It doesn’t stop with those three characters in MLS either. The star number 10 is a trend you’ll find commonly throughout the league’s 30 teams, with players like Santiago Rodriguez, Hany Mukhtar, Djordje Mihailovic, and Albert Rusnák all providing attacking threats from the middle of the park last season.
It’s also not a new trend, with players like Sebastian Giovinco, Maxi Moralez, Miguel Almiron, Sacha Kljestan, and Diego Valeri all popping to mind as true MLS greats from the 10 role in recent years.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: The Death of the Number 10 Position in Modern Football
The Beckham Rule
But, with the rest of the footballing world moving away from the number 10, why have so many MLS sides decided to embrace this role in their tactical setups?
Fittingly, the primary driver of this could be “The Beckham Rule” itself.
The Designated Player Rule, founded by the arrival of David Beckham to LA Galaxy back in 2007, allows MLS sides to sign three players for any salary they’d like without that wage counting against the club’s salary cap.
So, while the rest of the squad has to be meticulously constructed to fall in line with the league’s strict financial regulations, DP’s can just be chucked in for whatever wages the ownership can afford.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, many sides opt to use one of these coveted slots on an attacking midfielder, as they can create chances, score goals, and make the players around them better.
Since these players are often a cut above their non-DP counterparts technically, they can get away with far less defensive responsibility than they’d otherwise require if they were playing for a top side in Europe.
The result is a crop of wildly talented midfielders across the league, whose core responsibility for their side is to attack.
And, since their offensive talents are so great, coaches often prefer these players to expend the majority of their energy in attack, leaving traditional defensive responsibility as an afterthought.
How MLS’s Lack of Relegation Shapes Its Tactical Approach
Separately, there’s also the notable lack of relegation in MLS, which while scrutinized from a sporting merit perspective, has interesting effects on the tactical approaches of weaker teams.
Throughout the majority of the footballing world, the looming threat of relegation demands a pragmatic approach from bottom-half sides, who often opt to shut up shop to avoid conceding goals at all costs.
Everyone wants to play expansive, beautiful soccer, but not so much so that they’re willing to risk relegation to achieve it. This is what gives us Sean Dyche ball.
But, in a league without relegation, you’ll find even the bottom dwellers of MLS trying to play with philosophy in mind. Teams can take an idealized approach to their tactical setup, no matter how naive it may be.
So, while most of Europe’s remaining number 10s will be found at the top of the table, you can find these beautiful, attacking-minded creators just about anywhere in MLS.
Does this signal a gap in quality between the best in Europe and the best in MLS? Maybe, but that’s hardly breaking news.
At the end of the day, it shouldn’t be forgotten that soccer is a form of entertainment at its core, and there’s perhaps no archetype of player more exciting than a good old-fashioned number 10.
It’s just one of the many unique wrinkles that make MLS a special league in the global soccer landscape.
Love this