In addition to proven goalscorers, every team requires players with vision and technical proficiency who can create chances for them.
Players who possess the ability to predict what is going to happen on the pitch in an instant and manipulate proceedings to their own benefit using their technical ability are of utmost importance.
Such players will keep scanning their surroundings to look for teammates that are making runs and opponents who are straying out of position. They also know when to drop a shoulder to send a defender the wrong way before playing a pass to release one of their teammates into space.
Simply put, by vision, we essentially mean the game-reading ability of a player when their team is in possession of the ball. Without further ado, let's take a look at five players who have the best vision in world football right now.
#5 Thiago Alcantara (Spain/Liverpool)
If not for his niggling injury problems, Thiago Alcantara could have become an all-time great. He is a deep-lying playmaker whose passing ability and vision have helped his teams dominate midfield battles over the last decade.
Thiago played a pivotal role in Bayern Munich winning the sextuple in the 2019-20 season. The Spain international orchestrates play for both club and country from midfield and what sets him apart is the quickness of his decision-making.
Thiago does it by virtue of his unreal vision. He maps out his environment by constantly scanning for movement all around him and complements it with his technical ability to manipulate play.
#4 Joshua Kimmich (Germany/Bayern Munich)
Joshua Kimmich is one of the most versatile footballers on the planet. Not only can he play anywhere in midfield but he can also do an equally effective job as a right-back. Kimmich is arguably the best deep-lying playmaker in the game right now.
He is an excellent passer of the ball and loves to feed balls into his attackers by tracking their runs. Kimmich is excellent at playing line-breaking passes and creates more chances from defensive midfield than most of his world-class peers.
He has become one of Bayern Munich's most prized assets in recent years and is expected to play a huge role for Germany at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
#3 Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium/Manchester City)
Kevin De Bruyne is arguably the best attacking midfielder in the game right now. The Belgium international is a visionary on the football pitch and he also possesses the technical ability to match his game reading ability.
De Bruyne has shown that he can pick passes that are inconceivable to most of his peers. He can predict the runs of his teammates to near perfection and that has made him one of the best assist providers of the modern era.
De Bruyne has provided 213 assists in 546 appearances in his senior club career. He is currently in fine form and was the recipient of the 'Premier League Player of the Season' award twice in the last three campaigns.
#2 Lionel Messi (Argentina/Paris Saint-Germain)
Lionel Messi is arguably the greatest footballer of all-time. The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner has done things on the football pitch that others can only dream of. He has also struck up wonderful on-field partnerships with a number of his teammates throughout his career.
Messi has been able to do this by virtue of his superior understanding of the game. He has mastered the art of watching and recognizing the patterns of his teammate's movements and that of his opponents.
This enables him to upend entire defenses with a single pass and the fact that he is the greatest assist provider in the history of the game speaks volumes of his ability. In 823 appearances across all competitions in his club career, Messi has registered 326 assists.
#1 Neymar Jr. (Brazil/Paris Saint-Germain)
Neymar Jr. has managed to make almost every single attacker who has played alongside him look good. This is, in no short part, thanks to his incredible vision on the football pitch.
His ability to visually co-ordinate with his teammates is second to none and he has proven the same during his stint with Barcelona and now at Paris Saint-Germain. The Brazilian is a street-smart footballer who is adept at predicting what the opposition players are looking to do.
He then throws a spanner in their works by virtue of his exquisite dribbling and passing ability. It's a joy to watch Neymar create chances for his teammates on the football pitch. In 475 appearances across all competitions in his senior club career, Neymar has provided 179 assists.