Best defensive/central midfielders in the Bundesliga of 2026 so far

Every six months, German football publication Kicker publishes its ranking of the best players in the Bundesliga, as well as the top German players competing abroad, with the selections divided by position and further categorised by performance level.

Assessing performances from the second half of the 2025/26 season, the magazine has now released the second part of its summer rankings. The rankings for defensive/central midfielders can be found below.

World Class

None. 

International Class

1. Joshua Kimmich, FC Bayern 

2. Kaishu Sano, Mainz

3. Johan Manzambi, Freiburg (now at Aston Villa)

National Class 

4. Felix Nmecha, Borussia Dortmund 

5. Tom Bischof, FC Bayern 

6. Leon Avdullahu, TSG Hoffenheim 

7. Angelo Stiller, VfB Stuttgart 

8. Leon Goretzka, FC Bayern (now a free agent)

9. Aleix Garcia, Bayer Leverkusen 

10. Marcel Sabitzer, Borussia Dortmund 

11. Wouter Burger, TSG Hoffenheim 

12. Xaver Schlager, RB Leipzig (now at Bournemouth)

13. Albert Sambi Lokonga, Hamburger SV

14. Jens Stage, Werder Bremen 

15. Nicolas Seiwald, RB Leipzig 

16. Aleksandar Pavlovic, FC Bayern