Rafael van der Vaart is the odd one out because he is the only Dutch player in this group of midfielders, while Xavi Hernandez and Xabi Alonso are Spanish, and Michael Carrick is English. The other three players (Xavi, Carrick, Alonso) were all central midfielders known for their passing range and long careers at top clubs, whereas van der Vaart was more of an attacking midfielder/playmaker with a different playing style.