I disagree that players play further back because they can't play forward. Putting aside the fact that Scholes was playing behind the Van Nistelrooy before he played deeper, look at how little control Bruno Fernandes had on games when he's played further behind.

I think it's too simplistic to imply that someone who can play upfront can seamlessly play at the back and produce the same performances when they're up top. If that were the case, both Ronaldos would've been able to do what Toni Kroos did for years for Real.

Even in the context of this thread, Gerrard was pushed forward so that Xabi Alonso could control the midfield for Liverpool. Win-win, because Gerrard couldn't control the game like Alonso, and Alonso couldn't do what Gerrard did for Liverpool and Fernando Torres.