La Liga · 2026/27 · after matchday 12

The best defensive midfielders in La Liga so far this season

As of 8 November 2026, The Prism ranks Rodri (FC Barcelona) as the best defensive midfielder in La Liga, with a standing of 80 out of 100, ahead of Federico Redondo and Morten Hjulmand.

21 ranked378+ league minutes6 measuresUpdated 8 November 2026How we rank

RodriFC Barcelona · 30 · Spain#1

80standing, 1st of 21

Best at pass completion, 94%, 1st of 21

Federico RedondoElche · 23 · Argentina#2

77standing, 2nd of 21

Best at pass completion, 93%, 4th of 21

Morten HjulmandAtlético de Madrid · 27 · Denmark#3

70standing, 3rd of 21

Best at duels won, 71%, 1st of 21

The top 10

Open a row for all 6 measures and where he sits among the 21.

RodriFC Barcelona · 30 · Spain 801st of 21 Pass completion 94%1stAccurate passes 105.881stLong-ball accuracy 85%1st

Tackles and interceptions per 904.13 10th of 21

Pass completion94% 1st of 21

Accurate passes per 90105.88 1st of 21

Duels won67% 4th of 21

Times dispossessed per 900.13 4th fewest of 21

Long-ball accuracy85% 1st of 21

Each dot is one of the 21 defensive midfielders; further right is better. The dashed line is the middle of the group.Rodri's page

Federico RedondoElche · 23 · Argentina 772nd of 21 Pass completion 93%4thDispossessed 0.145th fewestLong-ball accuracy 68%5th

Tackles and interceptions per 904.42 7th of 21

Pass completion93% 4th of 21

Accurate passes per 9054.11 6th of 21

Duels won61% 6th of 21

Times dispossessed per 900.14 5th fewest of 21

Long-ball accuracy68% 5th of 21

Each dot is one of the 21 defensive midfielders; further right is better. The dashed line is the middle of the group.Federico Redondo's page

Morten HjulmandAtlético de Madrid · 27 · Denmark 703rd of 21 Duels won 71%1stAccurate passes 58.354thPass completion 91%5th

Tackles and interceptions per 904.06 11th of 21

Pass completion91% 5th of 21

Accurate passes per 9058.35 4th of 21

Duels won71% 1st of 21

Times dispossessed per 900.29 7th fewest of 21

Long-ball accuracy68% 5th of 21

Each dot is one of the 21 defensive midfielders; further right is better. The dashed line is the middle of the group.Morten Hjulmand's page

Jon GorrotxategiReal Sociedad · 24 · Spain 694th of 21 Tackles + int. 5.332ndAccurate passes 65.332ndDuels won 68%3rd

Tackles and interceptions per 905.33 2nd of 21

Pass completion90% 6th of 21

Accurate passes per 9065.33 2nd of 21

Duels won68% 3rd of 21

Times dispossessed per 900.89 18th fewest of 21

Long-ball accuracy62% 11th of 21

Each dot is one of the 21 defensive midfielders; further right is better. The dashed line is the middle of the group.Jon Gorrotxategi's page

Aurélien TchouaméniReal Madrid · 26 · France 685th of 21 Pass completion 94%2ndLong-ball accuracy 74%2ndTackles + int. 4.445th

Tackles and interceptions per 904.44 5th of 21

Pass completion94% 2nd of 21

Accurate passes per 9047.44 8th of 21

Duels won55% 10th of 21

Times dispossessed per 900.43 10th fewest of 21

Long-ball accuracy74% 2nd of 21

Each dot is one of the 21 defensive midfielders; further right is better. The dashed line is the middle of the group.Aurélien Tchouaméni's page

Marc RocaReal Betis · 29 · Spain 666th of 21 Pass completion 94%3rdAccurate passes 59.383rdLong-ball accuracy 72%3rd

Tackles and interceptions per 903.48 12th of 21

Pass completion94% 3rd of 21

Accurate passes per 9059.38 3rd of 21

Duels won53% 11th of 21

Times dispossessed per 900.58 13th fewest of 21

Long-ball accuracy72% 3rd of 21

Each dot is one of the 21 defensive midfielders; further right is better. The dashed line is the middle of the group.Marc Roca's page

Marc BernalFC Barcelona · 19 · Spain 607th of 21 Dispossessed 0.00fewestTackles + int. 4.813rdAccurate passes 58.195th

Tackles and interceptions per 904.81 3rd of 21

Pass completion89% 8th of 21

Accurate passes per 9058.19 5th of 21

Duels won62% 5th of 21

Times dispossessed per 900.00 fewest of 21

Long-ball accuracy62% 12th of 21

Each dot is one of the 21 defensive midfielders; further right is better. The dashed line is the middle of the group.Marc Bernal's page

Lorenzo AmatucciDeportivo A Coruña · 22 · Italy 608th of 21 Pass completion 89%7thAccurate passes 48.127thLong-ball accuracy 67%7th

Tackles and interceptions per 904.31 8th of 21

Pass completion89% 7th of 21

Accurate passes per 9048.12 7th of 21

Duels won51% 12th of 21

Times dispossessed per 900.75 16th fewest of 21

Long-ball accuracy67% 7th of 21

Each dot is one of the 21 defensive midfielders; further right is better. The dashed line is the middle of the group.Lorenzo Amatucci's page

Guido RodríguezValencia · 32 · Argentina 569th of 21 Tackles + int. 5.391stDuels won 58%7thAccurate passes 41.7612th

Tackles and interceptions per 905.39 1st of 21

Pass completion84% 16th of 21

Accurate passes per 9041.76 12th of 21

Duels won58% 7th of 21

Times dispossessed per 901.22 20th fewest of 21

Long-ball accuracy57% 13th of 21

Each dot is one of the 21 defensive midfielders; further right is better. The dashed line is the middle of the group.Guido Rodríguez's page

Facundo BernalReal Betis · 23 · Uruguay 5310th of 21 Dispossessed 0.00fewestDuels won 68%2ndTackles + int. 4.426th

Tackles and interceptions per 904.42 6th of 21

Pass completion86% 13th of 21

Accurate passes per 9042.12 11th of 21

Duels won68% 2nd of 21

Times dispossessed per 900.00 fewest of 21

Long-ball accuracy47% 18th of 21

Each dot is one of the 21 defensive midfielders; further right is better. The dashed line is the middle of the group.Facundo Bernal's page

Each figure with his place among the 21 defensive midfielders. Fewest is best for times dispossessed per 90.
Player	Standing	Tackles + int.	Pass completion	Accurate passes	Duels won	Dispossessed	Long-ball accuracy
1Rodri	80	4.1310th	94%1st	105.881st	67%4th	0.134th fewest	85%1st
2Federico Redondo	77	4.427th	93%4th	54.116th	61%6th	0.145th fewest	68%5th
3Morten Hjulmand	70	4.0611th	91%5th	58.354th	71%1st	0.297th fewest	68%5th
4Jon Gorrotxategi	69	5.332nd	90%6th	65.332nd	68%3rd	0.8918th fewest	62%11th
5Aurélien Tchouaméni	68	4.445th	94%2nd	47.448th	55%10th	0.4310th fewest	74%2nd
6Marc Roca	66	3.4812th	94%3rd	59.383rd	53%11th	0.5813th fewest	72%3rd
7Marc Bernal	60	4.813rd	89%8th	58.195th	62%5th	0.00fewest	62%12th
8Lorenzo Amatucci	60	4.318th	89%7th	48.127th	51%12th	0.7516th fewest	67%7th
9Guido Rodríguez	56	5.391st	84%16th	41.7612th	58%7th	1.2220th fewest	57%13th
10Facundo Bernal	53	4.426th	86%13th	42.1211th	68%2nd	0.00fewest	47%18th

11 more defensive midfielders are ranked in The Prism

See every one, filter by age, foot and height, and open any player's full profile.

See all 21 in The Prism

Where all 21 sit

Every defensive midfielder in La Liga with 378 minutes or more, on The Prism standing. Blue is this ranking's top 10; the other 11 are named in The Prism.

Since last season

The same players' standings last season, among their league's defensive midfielders then.

↓ Aurélien Tchouaméni93 last season, 68 now

↑ Marc Roca44 last season, 66 now

↑ Jon Gorrotxategi56 last season, 69 now

↓ Marc Bernal72 last season, 60 now

How this ranking is made

Defensive midfielders in La Liga 2026/27 with at least 378 league minutes, ranked on tackles and interceptions per 90, pass completion, accurate passes per 90, duels won, times dispossessed per 90 and long-ball accuracy. Each measure is a percentile against every defensive midfielder in the league with the same minutes. 12 matchdays have been played, so the minutes bar is 378. It rises as the season goes on, until it reaches 450, about five full matches.

What each measure counts for, out of 100:

Tackles and interceptions per 9025Pass completion20Accurate passes per 9020Duels won15Times dispossessed per 9010Long-ball accuracy10

How The Prism ranks players, in full

More rankings

Centre backs Full backs Central midfielders Attacking midfielders Wingers Strikers Defensive midfielders, under 23 FC Barcelona young players Elche young players Atlético de Madrid young players Real Sociedad young players Real Madrid young players Real Betis young players Deportivo A Coruña young players Valencia young players

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