Claim: Zinedine Zidane played a sport that required the cooperation of several other people.

A midfielder is an association football position . Midfielders are generally positioned on the field between their team 's defenders and forwards . Some midfielders play a disciplined defensive role , breaking up attacks , and are otherwise known as defensive midfielders . Others blur the boundaries , being more mobile and efficient in passing : they are commonly referred to as deep-lying midfielders , play-makers , box-to-box , or holding midfielders . The number of midfielders on a team and their assigned roles depends on the team 's formation ; the collective group of these players on the field is sometimes referred to as the midfield .   Most managers assign at least one midfielder to disrupt the opposing team 's attacks , while others may be tasked with creating goals , or have equal responsibilities between attack and defence . Midfielders are the players who typically travel the greatest distance during a match . Because midfielders arguably have the most possession during a game they are among the fittest players on the pitch .