onizukaeikichi wrote:cool hand luke, i think sissoko and gerrard > alonso in terms of defending
xabi has the upper hand in passing > sissoko
a bit over in terms of accurancy of gerrard
As a defensive mid-fielder, I think that it is actually more important to be able to read the game, rather then be a better tackler. Sissoko is told to put a foot in everything, if he can reach it then get to it. Alonso's job is more specialised, he has to bide his time, read what is going on and then weigh up wheather he should go in or not.
This is why I think that Sissoko will never be used as a defensive midfielder, because giving him the burden of leaving his back 4 exposed would undermine workrate. If you have someone with a workrate like his then dont put him in situations where he has to worry about those kinds of things. Its the same reason why Garcia's trickery is better suited to the second striker role rather then right wing (as its further away from the defence).
Alonso is the best defensive midfielder in the premiership IMO. What is the point of defending well and winning the ball just to put your wingers/strikers pressure by poor passing. You need someone who will read the game, know where the other team's weaknesses are and try to exploit them with deadly passes. This might mean the over the top, long balls to Bellamy, Pennant, Gonzalez and Crouch or the short balls to Sissoko and Gerrard. This is a position whereby you dont necessarily get the glory of the other players but you tend to dictate what goes on, and how your team's tactics work.
This is a thinking man's position, and that is why its Alonso's