21.   Bovelander is relishing his move to a midfield role after spending most of his career in the rearguard of the Dutch team.

22.   Veteran Ronnie Whelan was surprisingly retained in a midfield anchor role in preference to the younger figures of Jason McAteer and Alan McLoughlin in that area.

23.   Whittingham was part-exchanged for Ian Taylor who will make his Villa debut in his preferred central midfield role at Arsenal.

24.   Mauro Silva was possibly the man of the match for Brazil in his defensive midfield role against Russia.

25.   Platt, playing in his favourite attacking midfield role, was outstanding.

26.   The central midfielder plays a creative midfield role, which Edstrom said was a must to counter the Brazilians.