Luis Enrique surprised everyone with a series of tactical tweaks in Paris Saint-Germain's clash against Nice last month. He pushed left‑back Nuno Mendes up to the left wing, shifted centre‑back Lucas Beraldo into a midfield role, and positioned left winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia as a striker. Those adjustments helped PSG cruise to a 4‑0 victory, with Mendes delivering a standout performance in his new position while Nice struggled to cope with the fluidity of their opponent. "We let them play too freely," Nice coach Claude Puel admitted after the game.
When reporters asked whether he would employ more "unexpected solutions" in the upcoming match against Toulouse, Enrique offered a glimpse into his broader tactical philosophy and the way elite football is evolving. "Of course," he replied. "It's my dream to have twenty players who can fill any outfield role. Nuno Mendes as a full‑back, as a winger, as a No 9, as a midfielder – everyone except the goalkeeper.
Imagine the opposition manager seeing that line‑up and thinking, 'He plays everywhere!' It’s a dream, I know it’s hard, but I’ll try." The following week, PSG dismantled Liverpool over two legs in the Champions League quarter‑finals. Although Mendes and Kvaratskhelia returned to their natural positions, the team’s performance still reflected the same positional interchangeability. Defenders drifted into midfield, midfielders swapped flanks, and the front three rotated constantly.
Ousmane Dembélé, nominally the No 9, scored twice in the second leg while constantly moving across the line, creating space for himself and dragging Liverpool defenders out of position. The graphic of the line‑up showed Kvaratskhelia on one side and Desire Doué on the other, but all three could operate anywhere across the attacking line. Their touch maps for the season underline the unpredictability that makes PSG so difficult to mark.
This same fluidity is evident in the side they now face in the Champions League semi‑finals – Vincent Kompany’s Bayern Munich – which, like Enrique’s side, draws heavily from the principles of Total Football, allowing players to rotate rather than stick to rigid roles. "Harry Kane doesn’t just wait in the box," Bayern’s sporting director Max Eberl explained in February. "Michael Olise and Luis Diaz don’t simply hug the touchline. Joshua Kimmich alternates between right‑back and defensive midfield.
Football today is about creativity – how do we exploit spaces, how do we react to the opponent’s shape? The classic 4‑2‑3‑1 or 4‑4‑2 is becoming obsolete.
On TV you might see a formation at kickoff, but during the game the defensive midfielder drifts wide, centre‑backs make central runs, full‑backs cut inside – it’s a living, breathing system." Eberl believes that pure specialists – players who can only perform one function – will become rarer as the sport grows more dynamic. A prime example of Bayern’s adaptable talent is Konrad Laimer. Signed from RB Leipzig as a midfielder, Laimer has already proven himself at both right‑back and left‑back. His ability to switch positions within a match makes him an invaluable asset.
"Konny started as a No 10 at Red Bull Salzburg, then became a No 8 at Leipzig. He arrived at Bayern as a midfielder, but now he plays as a full‑back in the way Vinny envisions a full‑back," Eberl added.
Laimer’s modest profile belies his importance, and similar versatility can be found throughout Europe’s elite clubs. At Liverpool, Dominik Szoboszlai can operate anywhere in midfield, drop into right‑back, or even push up the front line. Manchester City, after saying goodbye to Bernardo Silva, have added Nico O'Reilly, a midfielder who can also cover at full‑back. Arsenal boast Declan Rice, comfortable as a defensive midfielder, a box‑to‑box No 8, or even a centre‑back in emergencies, while his teammate Kai Havertz can slot into midfield, attack, or act as an adventurous left‑back under Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann.
Perhaps the most illustrative case is Real Madrid’s Federico Valverde. He can occupy any midfield role, patrol the right flank, or join the attack, adapting seamlessly to the manager’s needs. His teammate Trent Alexander‑Arnold praised him as "the most underrated player on the planet" after Valverde’s hat‑trick against Manchester City. "There is no flaw in him," Alexander‑Arnold said, and manager Álvaro Arbeloa agreed: "It doesn’t matter where you put him." Luis Enrique himself embodies this philosophy.
As a player, he featured in every outfield position except centre‑back during spells at Sporting Gijón, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and the Spanish national team. Javier Zanetti offers another iconic example. Primarily a right‑back for Inter and Argentina, Zanetti also excelled at left‑back, as a holding midfielder and even as a centre‑back, covering all four roles in Inter’s 2009/10 Champions League triumph under José Mourinho.
"Versatility is crucial because it lets you play wherever the team needs you most," Zanetti, now Inter’s vice‑president, told Sky Sports. "It earns the trust of teammates and the manager, knowing you can be relied upon in different positions. Players today should develop that flexibility." The push for adaptable players is not only stylistic; practical considerations also drive it. Modern football calendars are congested, injuries are common, and squads must be able to cope with limited resources.
Former Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez summed it up in 2024: "If one player can cover three positions, you don’t need three separate signings – it saves money." Adapting to new roles is easier for some athletes, but Zanetti insists versatility is not purely innate. "I worked hard," he explained.
"Whenever I was asked to play a different position, I focused, absorbed the coach’s instructions, and applied them. Tactical intelligence is vital, but I built it over my career. My attributes allowed managers to trust me in various roles." Not everyone agrees that the fluidity displayed by PSG or Bayern signals the future of football. Some pundits argue that the rise of direct play and set‑piece reliance suggests a regression to simpler tactics.
Nevertheless, many clubs are investing in developing home‑grown talent capable of multiple roles. Dan Micciche, a youth‑development specialist who has worked with Everton, Arsenal, Tottenham and England and now heads the academy at Al‑Ahli in Saudi Arabia, explains how he structures training. "Exposing players to different positions is about the outcomes they gain," he told Sky Sports.
"It depends on individual development plans. For instance, at Spurs we once played a midfielder at centre‑back against tall strikers to improve his aerial ability because we knew the opponent would be direct." Micciche believes versatility can be taught through session design that forces players into varied positions and by adopting a Total‑Football‑inspired playing style that values shape over fixed roles. He likens it to a volleyball approach where players rotate constantly, especially after substitutions, gaining experience across the pitch. The benefits are substantial for both individuals and clubs, though the approach requires a long‑term mindset.
"Most coaches shy away because it can affect immediate results – they want to win now," Micciche admits. Yet the payoff includes longer careers and greater squad depth. Harry Kane, for example, has increasingly dropped into midfield to influence play before arriving late in the box, while Cristiano Ronaldo, at 41, transitioned from a winger to a pure striker, still scoring regularly.
Zanetti offers another illustration: as his pace waned in the later stages of a three‑decade career, he shifted to a deeper midfield role at Inter, extending his playing days until the age of 41. "That was important," he said, "staying fit and adapting allowed me to play that long." Luis Enrique’s quest for "twenty players who can play everywhere" may still be a dream, but the successes of PSG and Bayern Munich demonstrate that versatility is becoming a cornerstone of modern football strategy.
As clubs continue to value adaptable talent, the ability to perform in multiple positions is likely to become a defining attribute of the sport’s next generation.