Kante, Kimmich, Fabinho: Who is the best defensive midfielder in the world? | OneFootball

N'Golo Kante was absolutely incredible in the Champions League final on Saturday evening.

The Frenchman was a constant thorn in Manchester City's side as Chelsea emerged 1-0 victors in Porto.

Kante is now being talked about as a contender for the Ballon d'Or and rightly so.

But how does he compare to the best defensive midfielders in the world?

90min.com gave themselves the task of answering that question back in March.

We've taken inspiration from their list and ranked the top 15 best defensive midfielders in the world on the back of Kante's heroic performance in Portugal.

15. Idrissa Gueye

14. Allan

13. Jorginho

12. Pierre Emile Hojbjerg

11. Mikel Merino

10. Fernandinho

9. Declan Rice

8. Sergio Busquets

7. Marcelo Brozovic

6. Rodri

5. Wilfred Ndidi

4. Fabinho

3. Casemiro

2. Joshua Kimmich

1. N'Golo Kante

There can be no question that Kante is the best defensive midfielder in the world.

The Frenchman must be an absolute nightmare to play against. Both Real Madrid and Man City have found him impossible to play against this season.

Kimmich has been incredible over the past few seasons but is just behind Kante.

The German midfielder is technically better than Kante and offers more going forward, but he is incomparable to the Chelsea star in the defensive side of the game.

Third and fourth are taken by two Brazilians: Casemiro and Fabinho.

Chelsea 1-0 Man City: Check out all the reaction to the Champions League final on The Football Terrace!

It's no coincidence that Liverpool's fortunate improved massively when Fabinho was moved back to defensive midfield from centre-back.

Ndidi rounds out the top five. The Nigerian is serious underrated and has been a huge reason for Leicester's success this campaign.

Busquets was once the best defensive midfielder in the world but, now 32, he is past his best.

Rice is rapidly emerging into one of the best players in his position. It's no surprise that David Moyes is so keen to keep him at West Ham.

Merino flopped at Newcastle but has bounced back superbly at Real Sociedad, while Hojbjerg was a bright spot in what was a terrible season for Tottenham.

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Which team won the first UCL title after the tournament was rebranded in 1992?

Barcelona AC Milan Marseille FC Porto