The playmaker has assumed almost mythical status over the years; They are the creative fulcrum of the team; the tactical conduit through which play is orchestrated. It’s often associated with the number 10; originally the inside left who later dropped behind the centre forward to dictate play. Some of the greatest players in history have worn that number including Ferenc Puskas, Pele, Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi.
Bobby Moore: The Defender Who Saw the Future
West Ham have certainly taken their fair share over the years. If Bobby Moore had been born 50 years later, he would almost certainly have been a defensive playmaker. He got two assists in the 1966 World Cup Final and regularly took up advanced positions with Jack Charlton providing cover.
Countless eulogies have been written about Bobby Moore; the supreme defender and peerless captain. A legendary reader of the game with a forensic ability to take the ball from a player with the slightest touch. But what about Mooro’s creative talents as he carried the ball out of defence looking for that killer pass? He began as a left half but evolved into a quasi-midfielder. In the modern game he would surely have been deployed in a more advanced position.
Film of Moore in action shows his creativity and positional awareness. In the first game after the World Cup win West Ham played Chelsea. Moore can be seen gesticulating furiously to his team mates. He was pleading for help; looking for players to attack space and give him options. The Hammers lost 2-1 that day so I can only imagine those pleas fell on deaf ears.
The European Cup Winners Cup Final against TSV Munich provided further illustration of Moore’s playmaking genius. In the course of 90 minutes, he made 61 passes with a completion rate of 95%. These were often defence splitting passes that created genuine goalscoring opportunities. He made nine interceptions and seven tackles, a quiet game by his standards. Mooro put in four crosses and assisted Alan Sealey’s second goal. Tellingly he was caught offside on one occasion: a rare occurrence for a defender to be in such an advanced position. These figures belong to a midfielder not a defender. Today it’s natural for defenders to play the ball out from the back, but only proves that he was way ahead of his time.
Many believe that Moore couldn’t have lived with the pace of the modern game. But he had compensating skills that made such a defect largely irrelevant. As Terry Venables observed ‘the first 20 yards are in your head’. Playmakers have no need of pace because of their ability to think ahead. Bobby Moore should therefore be regarded as West Ham’s first real playmaker.
Sir Trevor Brooking: A Torch is Lit
Trevor Brooking made his first team debut in August 1967 against Burnley. Victor Railton of the London Evening News had predicted Brooking’s arrival in first team football. ‘West Ham may introduce 18-year-old Trevor Brooking to First Division football at Turf Moor. Despite a £130,000 outlay on three new defenders, the Hammers have only one win from three games and may turn to local boy Brooking to liven their attack. Fast and powerful, Brooking is a current England youth international with outstanding ability’.
Fast and powerful aren’t adjectives one would necessarily associate with him although Railton was right about outstanding ability. It was a satisfactory debut as the Hammers got a 3-3 draw that day. For the next three seasons he appeared sporadically making 88 appearances and scoring 21 goals. But was often deployed as a striker and felt like the proverbial square peg as he explained in his autobiography. ‘I knew I would never be another Geoff Hurst. I was not sharp enough to be a striker. I preferred to take defenders on face-to-face and not have to play with my back to goal’.
By the turn of the 70s Brooking’s burgeoning career had reached an impasse. In February 1971 he lost his place after a home defeat against Derby. With the exception of one substitute appearance he didn’t play for the rest of the season. Ron Greenwood thought he lacked aggression and drifted out of games too easily. Languishing in the reserves, Brooking seriously considered giving up the game altogether.
However, a defensive crisis restored him to his preferred position in midfield. Tommy Taylor, ostensibly a centre half occupied Brooking’s position in midfield. However, the centre back pairing of Bobby Moore and Alan Stephenson wasn’t working. Taylor was moved into defence alongside Moore and Brooking took up the position that made him famous. The crisis was over and a torch had been lit. Brooking’s career flourished as he made his full England debut against Portugal in April 1974 and became the quintessential creative midfielder.
Brooking had a graceful almost languid style as he drifted effortlessly across the pitch. He could beat players by simply dropping a shoulder and executing an inch perfect pass to feet. There was the unerring ability to let the ball run across his body, giving him time and space to plan the next move. Crucially for a playmaker, he understood the importance of a pass and devoted an entire chapter to it in his autobiography.
Aside from his outstanding ability, Brooking had the perfect temperament and rarely reacted to the heavy challenges that came his way. In 635 league and cup games he picked up just one booking; although did play in a more permissive era when referees applied common sense to the game’s physical elements. The boy from Barking could do no wrong as he won Hammer of the Year a record five times. A loyal one club man who stayed with the club even after they were relegated.
However, Brooking’s international career felt strangely unfulfilled. He only really nailed down a regular place when Ron Greenwood took over as national manager. Accusations of an ‘old pals act’ were soon buried as Brooking formed a lethal partnership with Kevin Keegan. In the final World Cup qualifier for the 1978 Finals, England had already been eliminated. But Brooking assisted a goal for Keegan that summed up his artistry. Playing Italy at Wembley, he glided down the right. Briefly glancing up he spotted Keegan making a run. He struck a beautifully flighted cross that curled firmly onto Keegan’s head. It was almost balletic in execution and precision.
Although he won 47 caps over eight years only 43 minutes were spent during the World Cup finals. Grappling with injuries, Brooking appeared as a substitute against Spain in 1982. But missed out on the World Cup Finals of 1974 and 1978 when he reached his peak. England’s failure to qualify denied Brooking true recognition on the world stage. But for West Ham and England he was the finest of playmakers.
Alan Dickens: The “New Trevor Brooking”
In the 1982/83 season Trevor Brooking only played one game as a niggling groin injury kept him on the sidelines. Paul Allen filled the gap in a team that now included Belgian international Francois Van der Elst. Meanwhile 17-year-old Alan Dickens made his debut in December 1982 against Notts County. It was a dream debut as he scored in a 2-1 victory. Already an England Youth international, he played in the team that defeated Spurs in the 1981 FA Youth Cup Final. He later wrestled the number 10 shirt from Paul Allen and scored six goals in 15 appearances.
The following season Brooking returned for one last hurrah before retirement. Dickens was restricted to just 12 appearances and only played when the master was injured. The one exception was in the home game against Southampton in February 1984. A tactical tweak meant they both started and it wasn’t long before the inevitable mantle made an appearance. The ‘new Trevor Brooking’ was a terrible millstone to hang around anyone’s neck but the comparison wasn’t entirely misplaced. He was an excellent passer and read the game well. There was also the same calm self-assurance that characterised his predecessor.
But there was no hint of sorcerer and apprentice as he explained in an interview for the club’s official programme. ‘I never spoke to Trevor about football at all. I was a young apprentice while Trevor was here so never spoke to him about football. I don’t know why, but he never said to me do this or do that. I think you were in awe of the first team players, you were brought up that way. We knocked on the dressing room door and asked if we could pick up the kit, and being a fan they were my idols – not just Trevor but the likes of Billy Bonds too’.
The 1984/85 season proved to be something of a learning curve for Dickens. He made 31 appearances as the Hammers scraped their way to 16th place in the first division. Dickens also won his only England U21 cap coming on as a substitute against Finland. The 1985/86 season was a landmark as West Ham secured their highest ever placing in the top tier. He thrived in midfield as the creative force that fed Tony Cottee and Frank McAvennie upfront.
However, it proved to be the highlight of Dickens’ career at West Ham. They slid to 15th and 16th place in the seasons that followed. His own nadir arrived in 1988/89 when the club were relegated. Many wondered why he later transferred to Chelsea. Dickens is similarly wistful about the move: ‘I look back and ask myself the same question. The main reason was that John Lyall got the sack, and there was a whisper that Lou Macari was going to be the manager and things were going to change. I was 24, had been brought up in West Ham, my Mum was round the corner and perhaps I should have stayed’. Nevertheless Alan Dickens had made his mark and found a unique place in club folklore.
Joe Cole: The Precocious Talent
Joe Cole first landed on the radar as a precocious 17-year-old who played in the 1999 FA Youth Cup Final. Alongside Michael Carrick he masterminded a 9-0 aggregate victory over Coventry City. Blessed with a low centre of gravity, close control and awesome dribbling skills the comparisons came thick and fast. Some excitable observers whispered Diego Maradona while the more circumspect likened him to Paul Gascoigne.
Cole was a magnificent prospect who played with intelligence and maturity beyond his years. Fans tempered hope with reality as it only seemed a matter of time before he moved on. For the next four years he was a regular starter and played in 150 league and cup games. During this time, Cole won eight England U21 caps and made his senior debut in 2001 against Mexico.
Cole was developing into the archetypal playmaker but relegation in 2003 was the big persuader. Chelsea secured his services for £6.6 million in August 2003. Joe Cole enjoyed a long career and won every honour the domestic game could offer. He played in the World Cup Finals and was rightly recognised as a member of England’s Golden Generation. There was absolutely no doubting his quality as a footballer. Manchester United were prepared to pay £10 million for him when he was sixteen; and Pele later said he had the skills of a Brazilian. Rare praise indeed but the feeling persists that he never quite fulfilled his early potential. But he remains a West Ham product who did more than good.
The Enigma of Dimitri Payet
There was a shrug of the shoulders when Dimitri Payet signed for West Ham in July 2015. He was a midfielder and full French international but otherwise something of an enigma. Payet went on to have a most spectacular first season in claret and blue. He had the classic attributes of a playmaker and was also a skilled dead ball specialist. Payet scored nine goals and registered 12 assists as he guided the Hammers to 8th place in the Premier League. The fans adored him and was predictably voted Hammer of the Year in 2016.
During the summer Payet returned to France for the European Championship finals. He came back distracted and agitating for a transfer. In January 2017 Slaven Bilic announced that Payet no longer wanted to play for the club. He was subsequently transferred back to Marseille for a fee of £25 million. The whole affair had left a bad taste in the mouth, especially when he accepted a £1 million ‘loyalty’ bonus after the Euros. Perhaps the only consolation is that Payet’s best ever season was spent at West Ham.
Global Vision: Lanzini and Paquetá
In recent years, clubs have increasingly resorted to a global network of scouts to hunt down new talent. West Ham have been similarly active with a conveyor belt of players who are often just passing through. But there are pleasant exceptions particularly where midfielders are concerned. In July 2015, Manuel Lanzini was signed on a season long loan from Al Jazira. This slightly built Argentinian was an attacking midfielder who cut his teeth with River Plate. Lanzini quickly endeared himself to the fans with his pace, vision and dribbling ability. The club quickly signed him on a permanent deal. For all his qualities Lanzini was plagued by injuries, and missed most of the 2018/19 season with a cruciate ligament injury. Nevertheless his influence with the ball at his feet was unquestionable.
Lucas Paqueta was already a full international when he arrived in August 2022. The 24-year-old from Rio de Janeiro looked like the real deal. He had the attributes and flamboyance expected of a Brazilian number 10. Paqueta was instrumental in the Hammers’ Europa Conference League victory in 2023, and assisted Jarrod Bowen’s winner in the final. He looked set to sign for Manchester City in the close season when startling news broke allegedly connecting Paqueta to a spot betting operation.
The fans didn’t know whether to laugh or cry; the transfer had fallen through but he was now playing under a cloud. Under current circumstances West Ham lack a recognised striker, so Paqueta has no one to pick out. It’s a bit like having a Rolls Royce but not being able to drive it.
Defining the ‘West Ham Way’
The ‘West Ham Way’ is an overused phrase but demonstrates the commitment to play with flair and creativity. The playmaker is central to this ethos as they provide a focal point when defence turns to attack. They are the players who see an opening and fashion a pass that takes out the defence or beats an offside trap. Such is a playmaker’s influence the opposition will aim to neutralise them – and leave space that can be exploited. They can be exciting, frustrating and deeply unpredictable but can also turn a game in the blink of an eye.
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