5 current footballers who have changed their position successfully
The number of years that go into the making of a professional footballer's career is immense. The number of hours put in on the training pitch to learn the nuances and finer details of the position that they play is an integral part of footballers' lives.
Given that, it is only natural that it is difficult for a footballer to change positions midway through their career.
In the past, a few have mastered a change in role. Bastian Schweinsteiger, for example, began as a flashy right-winger, before finally maturing into a deep-lying central midfielder for Bayern Munich and Germany.
The likes of Javier Mascherano, Steven Gerrard, and Vincent Kompany all made switches to their positions on the pitch to eventually become top-class players.
In this piece, we take a look at five currently active footballers who have made the switch in positions successfully.
#5 Alphonso Davies
Alphonso Davies smelled an opening at left-back at Bayern Munich, and under Hansi Flick in the 2019-20 season, he took that opportunity with both hands.
The young Canadian came to Bayern after having made his name as a left winger. However, opportunities were limited in a side that already had the likes of Serge Gnabry, Franck Ribery and Kingsley Coman.
Bayern were forced to make a move to shift David Alaba to centre-back, which is when they needed a left-back, with Lucas Hernandez and Niklas Sule both out injured at that time.
Under Flick, Davies has been given a simple ultimatum - to cause havoc in the opposition's defence with his pace.
Bayern's approach and their dominance of most games they play means that Davies anyway takes up the positions of a left winger, despite playing at left-back.
As it turned out, the Canadian was an integral part of the treble-winning Bayern Munich side last season.
While plenty was spoken of his attacking abilities, including a sensational assist in Bayern's 8-2 thumping of Barcelona last season, his recovery pace also means that he is a defensive asset for a team that plays with a high defensive line.
#4 David Alaba
Alaba has always been known as a versatile player. For a few years now, he has played as a left-back for Bayern Munich, while also playing in central midfield for the Austrian national team.
However, an injury crisis at Bayern Munich last season meant that Alaba had to further adapt to a new position. He did so with ease, when Hansi Flick paired him with Jerome Boateng at the heart of the Bayern Munich defence.
Alaba is tall enough, reads the game well, and is comfortable with the ball at his feet. So, on face value, it is easy to say that the Austrian does possess the qualities required to really make a name for himself in the centre-back position.
Immediately, he made himself a fixture in that role, with the likes of Sule now having returned from their injuries.
Again, with the high line that Bayern always employ, Alaba's pace is a serious asset, when he recovers and comes back to win balls that are played in behind the defence.