Xavi Hernandez, the heartbeat of the two greatest soccer teams in the world right now, one of whom is also a contender for the greatest team ever – Barcelona and the Spanish national team.

At age 31, he will certainly never win the Balon d’Or (golden ball), the award which is no generally recognized as the award for the player executing the best soccer over the past year. Not gonna happen.

But he is also recognized as having been worthy and as having provided the skills and moves that made the genius of those two teams possible, as well as the genius of the player who has won the award three years running (Lionel Messi).

A few years after he retires, no one will really remember him.

Why? Because his style is both understated and inimitable.

Understated in that, unlike players like Zinedine Zidane and Diego Maradona, he never drove mediocre teams to glory through sheer force of will and genius.

Inimitable not just in terms of talent, but in terms of style, and this is the crux of the matter.

You have to build your team around a player like Xavi. He played for Barcelona for a decade before ever being seen as the talent he is. Sure, people knew he was good, but good at what? He doesn’t score goals or provide bucketloads of assists. He doesn’t dominate the midfield with key interceptions and crunching tackles that stop the opposing team from scoring. What he does is maintain possession and keep the team ticking away like clockwork.

And that’s great. That’s amazing. But… you also need to put at least two, and probably three or four players in the team who will do all those things he doesn’t do.

You need tacklers, but he simply isn’t going to do that for you. And you need a bunch of people to score goals and make direct assists because he won’t do those very often either. All of sudden, you’ve dedicated a huge portion of your team to making room for a player who neither scores, creates, nor defends.

He will be forgotten because his work cannot be captured in highlight reels and because, when he retires, you will almost never see teams utilize a player like him again nor make space for a role like his again.

I wish he’d won the Balon d’Or in 2010, when Spain won the World Cup or in 2008 when they won the Euro. But he didn’t and now he won’t ever win it and in ten years he’ll be little more than a tiny footnote, despite once having been (in truth) the greatest player in the world.

AC Milan is still a leading contender to win the Italian Serie A, but we’re starting the limitations of this squad, namely a lack of creativity linking midfield and attack.

The team still plays the classic diamond preferred by former coach Carlo Ancelotti, a formation with a deep lying midfielder at the base of the diamond, two ‘shuttlers’ on either side who actually play fairly narrowly (practically the only width in this formation comes from the fullbacks), and a trequartista – creative attacking central midfielder – at the tip of the diamong.

Kevin Prince Boateng is not a true #10, but he was given that role last season for very good reasons, but things have changed dramatically since then. Boateng is a hard running, powerful midfielder with a dangerous shot and underrated technical abilities. When he was assigned to play at the tip of the diamond, the team’s midfield was talented, but old. The three midfielders playing behind were generally a combination of Clarence Seedorf (35 at the time), Massimo Ambrosini (34), Andrea Pirlo (32), Gennaro Gattuso (33), and Mark Van Bommel (33). All good players, but sadly lacking the legs they used to have.

Boateng provided the youth, the drive, the running, persistence that none of them could. Rather than linking midfield and attack with craft and guile, he used what you might call youthful exuberance.

With so many slow players in the midfield, it was critical that Boateng be given that central role so that attacking movements could flow through him.

But now, with additions like Alberto Aquilani and Alberto Nocerino, the AC Milan midfield is much younger and more energetic, so Boateng isn’t needed to compensate.

Because he is not terribly creative, the wily striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic is having to try and generate some creativity himself, which is all well and good but now the team’s target man striker is hanging out in midfield and not in the penalty box.

Boateng was never intended to be a long term solution as a trequartista. His best role is as one of the ‘shuttlers’ where is constant running will connect base and tip of the diamond and provide some hustle in the battle to control the center of the park. But until the team finds itself a proper #10, Ibrahimovic will continue to drop further from the goal mouth in order to generate offense and their current #10 will still find himself running at the opposition defenders without a good idea of how to create space and opportunity for his teammates.

Paul Scholes came out of retirement at age 37 to rescue Manchester United in the FA Cup match against noveau riche arch rivals, Manchester City.

I’m not entirely sure what I think about that. He’s still got the talent, particularly in the league, against low and mid-table teams, and United could use some extra bodies with the injury problems they’ve had.

If there is one aspect I can appreciate, is that his comeback can put to rest the idea that the team needs to recruit a cultured, creative, passer in the January transfer window.

That might have been true if Darren Fletcher were healthy and fit or his Phil Jones were a success in midfield (not only is not a top class midfielder, the injury to Nemanja Vidic almost certainly means he will be badly needed in his natural position as centreback). Or perhaps even if Anderson could string together a series of performances featuring him fully fit and on song.

But none of these things have happened.

So… with Scholes back, they have their passer. The creative fulcrum who can link the midfield and the attack and can pick the lock of opposing defenses.

No, they just need someone to break up opposing attacks and buzz about, keeping opponents off balance and making occasional drives towards the opposition goal to keep folks on their toes.

It does mean that one time target Javi Martinez will not be considered in the January transfer window. He’s a much more stationary midfielder, like Scholes, only playing in a deeper, more defensive minded position and also, unlike Scholes, able to tackle without earning an instant red card.

Hopefully, they’ll be looking at a more bustling style of player. Sami Khedira would be perfect, if Real Madrid would sell him, but that other out of favor Real Madrid player, Lassana ‘Lass’ Diarra is more likely, if also less talented. But really, anyone to provide cover for a defense shorn of its captain and best player (the aforementioned Vidic) and to provide some energy and hard running to Scholes patient passing.

Manchester United need a top class defensive midfielder more than ever now.

Darren Fletcher is out indefinitely with a ulcerative colitis. He has struggled with his health for a while, and this has been revealed as having been the aforementioned colitis.

When healthy, he is a dynamic, defensive midfielder. He is a decent passer of the ball, not great, but good enough to keep things fluid and rhythmic; but mainly, he is a fantastic ‘hassler.’ He could motor around the field all day long, chasing after and hassling opposing attackers and breaking up their rhythm and intercept attacks. When Man U was in possession, he could break forward to provide support in the attack.

Right now, Carrick is the only defensive minded central midfielder they have. Anderson is rarely fit and was always better suited as an attacking midfielder.

If they want to purchase a defensive midfielder with strong vision and the ability to pick out a great pass, that’s great. But right now, their priority isn’t a ‘passer’ but a ‘destroyer.’ Especially with the team’s captain and best central defender, Nemanja Vidic, out for the season, the team desperately needs someone in midfield who can provide cover for young defenders like Phil Jones and Chris Smalling (and older, slowing ones like Rio Ferdinand). And this person needs to be ready to lead now. Not a player for the future, but a player for the first game in January.

Daniele De Rossi, Lassana Diarra, Sami Khedira, Yann M’vila… whoever. Just get him.

Obviously, the gigantic football club, Manchester United, is paying exactly no attention to what an out of shape desk jockey in America thinks, says, or writes.

But they are, apparently, looking for a defensive midfielder to reinforce their midfield in January – something I said they desperately needed.

Rumor has it that they are looking at Atletico Bilbao’s Javi Martinez and Real Madrid’s Sami Khedira as options. Neither a pure destroyers, but both primarily look to dominate and screen the area in front of the defense.

Martinez is big guy (over six feet tall) and has the qualities of deep lying playmaker or regista to complement his ability to break up attacks and intercept passes. He’ll keep the team ‘ticking’ from the midfield, as well provide protection for the defense. He will also cost a lot money.

Khedira will cost about 40% less to buy out his contract, but doesn’t provide the same playmaking ability, however, he has a non-stop motor and can surge into the penalty box to support the attack, as well break up opposition attacks from deep.

If they can pry him away, Martinez is probably the better option. A healthy Darren Fletcher provides similar qualities to Khedira (arguably, Anderson does, too, though Anderson has more offensive upside than either and provides less defensive cover than either). Also, Khedira is (I believe) ‘cup tied’ in the Champion’s League. Which means that because he has played for another team in that club tournament, I suspect he would be barred from helping Manchester United in that tournament.

They received wisdom is that, with his retirement, Manchester United needs to find a long term replacement with midfielder Paul Scholes.

There’s little doubt that Paul Scholes was the best passer of the ball that England has produced in the last twenty years (you could make an argument for Paul Gasgoigne, but he self destructed too much). And no that he’s gone, the team needs replace. And yes, it would be nice. The manage, Sir Alex Ferguson (SAF) likes to play with a central midfield pairing of sometimes described as a passer and runner. In other words, a player whose job it is to maintain possession, pick out the occasional spectacular pass, and also make the decisions that shape how a particular attack or counterattack will develop. A sort of midfield general. The runner is the water carrier, in this scenario, with the passer staying pretty close to the center circle and the runner both chasing after opponents and also running forward to provide and outlet for the passer.

Barcelona do this. Xavi Hernandez is the passer and Andres Iniesta is the runner. But behind them is Sergio Busquets, the destroyer (actually, he’s not a classic destroyer, delivering crunching tackles, but his job is to screen the defense and use his positioning from a deeper position than Xavi and Iniesta to intercept opposition passes and generally break up opposition attacks).

SAF doesn’t have any midfielder behind his duo.

In his defense, he does take his central pairing with more defensive duties than Xavi and Iniesta are given. And he usually plays a 4-4-2, but with striker Wayne Rooney dropping deep into the midfield to help add a third body to the ‘passer and runner’ pairing.

But looking at recent games, it’s simply not enough.

Manchester United don’t necessarily need more creativity. Rooney is very creative in his free role as an attacker, roaming wherever he sees space to pick holes in the opposition. Their wing players are loaded with attacking talent. Antonio Valencia, despite being from Ecuador, is a classic English style winger, using pace and direct running to get down the right side and place accurate crosses into the box and cutting inside and taking shots just often enough to keep defenders honest. Ashley Young provides a similar role on the other side, but with more variety and greater goal scoring threat. And Nani, who can play on either wing, is the kind of unpredictable (and admittedly erratic) and hugely talented player that defenders hate because you can never be sure what he’ll do.

In the center of midfield, they have a clever passer in the still inexperienced Tom Cleverely (who may grow into the next Scholes); possession oriented, deep lying playmaker in Michael Carrick; they have forward driving, box to box midfielder in Anderson (whose creativity in underestimated); and they have the grit, energy of Darren Fletcher, who will harry the opposition attackers for the full ninety minutes.

What they don’t have and who they have never replaced is the great Roy Keane. He was a devastating tackler (sometimes too devastating; a lot of red cards in that career), but also a smart, tactical player who understood the best way to interrupt opposing attackers goes beyond just hassling the guy with the ball.

Too many teams are ripping through Manchester United’s midfield and getting into goal scoring positions. They’ve given up more shots from distance than any other team in England’s top flight – which suggests that no one is properly screening that no man’s land between the center of the field and the defense.

With so much attacking creativity in the wide positions and in Wayne Rooney, what the team needs is a platform to let those players focus on using that creativity, knowing that someone back there is covering for them.

They need to play a holder and runner. A holder, as in a holding midfielder to halt opposition attacks through a combination of possession (the opposition can’t attack if they don’t have the ball), but also interception (positioning) and tackling. A runner who will help out with the tackling and harrying, but who will also burst forward into the opposition box and lend a hand in the attack.

If they want a plain old destroyer, Lassana Diarra at Real Madrid could well be available. Lass, as he’s called, has experience in England and would provide a steady base for the rest of the team to build from. For a little more culture, another Real Madrid player, the Argentine Fernando Gago could be had. He’s less of a hard man and more of a tactical player, but that’s not a bad thing. Both would resolve Manchester United’s needs and both a quality players who are surplus to requirements at Real Madrid.

For more money, someone like Yann M’Vila at the French club Rennes could be had. He’s young, devastating in the tackle, but also with a great tactical mind and good passing skills. Expensive, but well worth it.

But for heaven’s sake, when the transfer window opens in January, pick up someone. Even if it’s an older player, intended just to fill a need for six months or so until a long term replacement can be found in the off season.

Take a look at this video of Pele’s top twenty goals.

What stands out? Is that Samba magic, like Ronaldinho juggling the ball and teasing the defenders. Not really. His runs from the halfway line down to the goal, dancing effortlessly pass opposing defenders like he was Mikhail Barishnikov? Not so much. What about devastating speed? Not that either.

These things happened, but it’s not what stands out.

You could even argue that Pele was very different from the Platonic ideal of the Brazilian footballer.

Firstly, he was known at his peak as the best header of the ball alive and thrived off his teammates launching balls into the air in front of the goal, rather than them delicately slipping past defenders to feed him the ball.

Part and parcel of that was that he was a power player. He does jink past defenders in tight areas, but his moves are efficient rather than flashy. No step-overs for him. When a defender does get on him he uses his physical strength to hold them off and stay on his feet. Most importantly, he goes direct for goal.

You could say he’s a classic poacher, haunting the eighteen yard box for a ball to latch on to. When he finds such a ball, he was absolutely clinical with the finish. Which is also why he also put away a lot of rebounds, because he always stayed as close as he could to the goal.

Even his long distance strikes are poacher’s goals. What do I mean? That he’s not taking speculative shots. He sees that a opposing defender is screening him from the goalie, so that the goalie won’t be able to clearly see him take the shot. He also sees the open space in the goal. He’s not trying for the spectacular, he’s just always looking for the smallest opening to strike.

Time for a little soccer digression. The season in Europe has started again and players union strikes in Italy and Spain appear to have been averted.

I root for my home teams – which means I root for DC United in MLS. I don’t have a ‘home’ team in the European leagues, but I do have my preferences.

Inter Milan is not one of them (if you’re curious, I tend to root for Juventus and AS Roma). But I am finding it sad how, since Jose Mourinho left his position there to manage Real Madrid, they keep on hiring new managers who move quickly to mess up a system that was previously working.

Under Mourinho, they played a 4-2-1-3. The ‘1’ was their playmaker and offensive engine, Wesley Sneijder.

When you play with three forwards up front, two of them play as wingers, staying wide and attacking either cutting towards the middle from wide positions or by playing the ball to the central striker from out wide. Mourinho used to strikers who were used to playing centrally in those winger positions, rather than true wide players. This could have been a disaster, but what he did was take away the traditional defensive responsibilities of a winger. Instead of asking them to track back a help out in defense, he tasked them with defending from the front by staying close to the opposition fullbacks, preventing them from joining the attack and keeping Inter’s defensive players from getting overwhelmed by numbers.

After he left, new coach Rafa Benitez immediately demanded that his two wide forwards track back to defend and also made Sneijder play a deeper role.

The result was not only three players playing roles they were ill-suited to play, but their striker left isolated, because the wingers were too far away because they were asked to run back and defend and because the playmaker was pushed back from his place as the link between the midfield and the attack.

So, they stunk.

Rafa was dumped and they started playing formations that, while less tactically innovative than Mourinho’s, kept folks in their comfort zone.

So, now they have brought in Gasperini who likes to play 3-4-3, completely upsetting the balance that been grudgingly achieved as the Rafa disaster.

Their defenders are too slow to play in a three man back lines, the wingbacks (the two outside players in the ‘4’ – you could also call them outside midfielders) are too old manage the physical demands of covering almost the entire sideline alone.

Oh, and there is no room for their offensive engine, Sneijder in this formation, unless he plays centrally, in the ‘4,’ in which case he is asked to defend too much (which his not suited to do, which means his partner in the middle winds up having to do it all, leaving the midfield easy for the opposition to overrun). He can also play wide in the ‘3’ but that is also a complete waste of his talents.

Mourinho had his favored formations, yes. But he also recognized that you must build a game plan based on the players you have and their talents. You can stretch them, adjusting their roles and making them try new things, but you can’t make them do things that they are either totally unsuited to do or that make no use of their true talents. Which is exactly what is happening now.

Fine. Go ahead and screw this up, Inter. I’m rooting for someone else anyway.