Ranking five most underrated wingers of the 21st century
Wingers have always been some of the most skillful players in football. The beautiful game has evolved a lot in recent years but having a reliable winger in their ranks is still a sure-shot way of finding the back of the net week in and week out.
A couple of decades ago, they were only required to hug the sidelines, make timely runs and put in a cross for the central strikers. Defending wasn't part of their on-field duties.
Premier League
Pedro remains the only player to have won:
✅ Premier League
✅ Champions League
✅ Europa League
✅ World Cup
✅ Euros
Not even N'Golo Kante could do it! 😱 https://t.co/v1bsV7sOGl
Wingers can score and assist with ease
The strikers end up scoring a lot of goals and creative midfielders pick up most of the assists.
But the wingers are the actual masters of the final third. Players like Arjen Robben epitomized the role of wingers in the modern game. Cutting inside with pace and having a go at the goal or drawing markers towards them and setting up their strikers.
With so many top-class wingers plying their trades in the world at any given moment, some players' contributions will likely go unnoticed. On that note, here we take a look at the five underrated wingers of the 21st century.
#5 Lukas Podolski
Lukas Podolski shot to fame with Koln when he led his side to the 2. Bundesliga title, scoring 24 goals in the 2004-05 campaign. He then joined Bayern Munich but struggled to establish himself at the club.
He impressed at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, scoring three goals and winning the Best Young Player award at the tournament. He possessed a quick turn of pace and was able to unleash powerful shots from his left foot after cutting inside from the flanks.
He is Germany's third-highest goal-scorer in international competitions and now plays in the Polish top-flight with Gornik Zabre.
#4 Dirk Kuyt
Dirk Kuyt was not a traditional winger, starting out as a striker in his career. The Dutch international shifted to the right wing under Rafa Benitez at Liverpool in 2008.
He was not the quickest player on the pitch and neither did he stand out with his one-on-one skills but had a brilliant footballing mind. Much like Thomas Muller, he popped up in the right place at the right time.
from 1 yard
Dirk Kuyt is the only Liverpool player to score a Premier League hat-trick against Man Utd.
⚽️ from 1 yard
⚽️ from 4 yards
⚽️ from 2 yards https://t.co/Aldj3cOINz
He was deployed in a similar role with the Netherlands national team and helped them to second-place and third-place finishes in the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cups respectively.