Barcelona, PSG or Real? The best clubs of Europe in 2015-16
The Express Tribune enlists clubs with best offence, defence and midfield
PHOTOS: AFP
Following the conclusion of league football in Europe, The Express Tribune takes a look at the clubs who have impressed us the most with their performances this season.
The task to rank a club based on their overall performance is truly impossible for more than one reason, we have thereby decided to rank the clubs according to the following categories: the most lethal in front of goal, the best defence and masters of midfield (purely based on statistics)
Most lethal in front of goal
1. Barcelona: Having the best forward line in the world at the moment, Barcelona, propelled by their daunting trio of Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi and Neymar, lead the goalscoring charts in Europe.
Out of the 173 goals scored by the Catalans, a whopping 131 have been scored by the front-three with Suarez finding the net 59 times this season, which includes the scintillating hat-trick against Granada which secured Barcelona’s 24th La Liga title, to finish as La Liga’s top-scorer — the first time since 2009 that a player apart from Cristiano Ronaldo or Messi has achieved such a feat.
While the Catalans may have been denied the opportunity to vie for an unprecedented ‘double treble’ by Atletico Madrid in the Champions League quarter-finals, they still proved they have the best attacking machinery in all of Europe.
2. Paris Saint-Germain: The French outfit, whose attack is led by the formidable Zlatan Ibrahimovic, found the net 102 times during their record-breaking 96-point run in Ligue 1 this season and are second on the list of the most goals scored in Europe with 141 goals across all competitions.
Ibrahimovic, in his last season with the Parisian outfit, broke the record of scoring the most goals in one season by any PSG player by slotting 38 times, twice more than second-placed Edison Cavani, and proved to the world that he has plenty more to offer despite nearing his 35th birthday.
While the lack of competition within the French league may have aided the French giants in their exploits, it, in no way, undermines their achievement.
3. Real Madrid: While Real may have lost the La Liga title race by a whisker, they made up for it by lifting an unprecedented 11th European crown after defeating Atletico Madrid on penalties in Milan.
Los Blancos, who have found the net 138 times this season, have been highly productive in front of goal, especially since the legendary Zinedine Zidane took over in January this year and are third on our list of most lethal in front of goal.
Not only have Real found a new rhythm under the former World Cup winner, they have also managed to hammer oppositions in the process.
The 8-0 thrashing they inflicted on the hapless Malmo in December, despite it being under former manager Rafa Benitez, went down in history as the joint-biggest margin of victory in Europe, while their composed performance in the Champions League final against Atleti was in sharp contrast to the haphazard 4-0 loss to Barcelona early in the season, showing the remarkable progress made under the Frenchman.
Ronaldo leads Real’s goalscoring charts with 51 goals followed by Karim Benzema (28), Gareth Bale (19) and James Rodriguez (8), while Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo, Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Casemiro, among others, pitched in as well to highlight Real’s all-round goalscoring threat.
The best defence
1. Atletico Madrid: Diego Simeone’s men are establishing a name for themselves for having the most robust defence in the business and the statistics this year do not state otherwise.
Having let in only 31 goals all season, which include conceding only 18 in the league and eight in the Champions League, the Madrid outfit certainly deserve to be on top of this list.
Their impressive displays against Barcelona and Bayern Munich in the Champions League, where they managed to tame two of the best attacking line-ups in the world, were more than exemplary, and the fact that they almost pipped Barcelona to the La Liga crown is proof of their well-organised, well-drilled back four.
They may have suffered heartbreak at the hands of Real yet again, having lost to Los Blancos in the Champions League final two years ago and this year as well, and do not have a trophy to provide tangible evidence for their efforts, nonetheless, it can be safely said that they have been the hardest nut to crack in Europe this season.
2. Paris Saint-Germain: Laurent Blanc’s men are second in our list of the best defence in Europe this season. Their impressive run all year round was not just limited to domestic competitions. When pitted against the best clubs in Europe, they also impressed beyond measure.
They managed to keep five clean sheets during the group stages of the Champions League and only conceded just one goal, that too to Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu. And while they conceded six goals in the knockout stages when pitted against Chelsea and Manchester City, their overall display against one of the most lethal attacks in the world was praiseworthy.
3. Bayern Munich: While Pep Guardiola’s Bayern may be renowned for their silky attacking style of play, their defensive record this season has put them third on this list.
Manuel Neuer just let 31 goals past him, while the 17 Bayern conceded in the league are the least number of goals conceded by any team in the top five European leagues, namely England, Spain, Germany, France and Italy.
The Bavarian’s intensive pressing and domination on the ball does not allow teams to really settle, with most of their opponents spending the majority of their time trying to get the ball back — Bayern enjoy the best possession record in Europe with an average of 62%.
While it is true that they are the worst team in Europe’s top five leagues when it comes to the number of defensive actions made — interceptions, clearances, blocked shots (primarily because of lack of competition in Germany) — it does not reflect badly on them.
Masters of midfield
1. Bayern Munich: Enjoying the best average possession (62%) in Europe, Bayern are simply the kings of midfield. Their 87% passing accuracy and 28,768 successful passes make them one of the most frustrating teams to play against and their ability on the ball makes them one of the most dominant team in Europe at the moment.
2. Paris Saint-Germain: With the most number of successful passes with an impeccable accuracy of 89% — yes, better than Barcelona’s — PSG are second in our list of the best midfield in Europe.
Calm, composed and effective, PSG players in the middle of the park have carried out their tasks as diligently as possible. The fact that they have completed more passes than both Barcelona and Bayern Munich shows the Parisian outfit is a force to be reckoned with in midfield.
3. Barcelona: When Xavi’s influence at the heart of Barcelona’s midfield started fading, many thought that the era of Barcelona’s domination is nearing its end.
However, under manager Luis Enrique, the Catalans have found a new rhythm and despite now having a more direct style of play, the club has managed to keep their domination in midfield intact.
While it is true that Ivan Rakitic is no Xavi, he certainly adds a different dimension to Barcelona’s play. And couple that with the fact that much of Barca’s play now takes place in the final third, the midfielders of the Catalan club, uncharacteristically, have taken a back seat and are enjoying the show as the front three rip apart defences.
The task to rank a club based on their overall performance is truly impossible for more than one reason, we have thereby decided to rank the clubs according to the following categories: the most lethal in front of goal, the best defence and masters of midfield (purely based on statistics)
Most lethal in front of goal
1. Barcelona: Having the best forward line in the world at the moment, Barcelona, propelled by their daunting trio of Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi and Neymar, lead the goalscoring charts in Europe.
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Out of the 173 goals scored by the Catalans, a whopping 131 have been scored by the front-three with Suarez finding the net 59 times this season, which includes the scintillating hat-trick against Granada which secured Barcelona’s 24th La Liga title, to finish as La Liga’s top-scorer — the first time since 2009 that a player apart from Cristiano Ronaldo or Messi has achieved such a feat.
While the Catalans may have been denied the opportunity to vie for an unprecedented ‘double treble’ by Atletico Madrid in the Champions League quarter-finals, they still proved they have the best attacking machinery in all of Europe.
2. Paris Saint-Germain: The French outfit, whose attack is led by the formidable Zlatan Ibrahimovic, found the net 102 times during their record-breaking 96-point run in Ligue 1 this season and are second on the list of the most goals scored in Europe with 141 goals across all competitions.
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Ibrahimovic, in his last season with the Parisian outfit, broke the record of scoring the most goals in one season by any PSG player by slotting 38 times, twice more than second-placed Edison Cavani, and proved to the world that he has plenty more to offer despite nearing his 35th birthday.
While the lack of competition within the French league may have aided the French giants in their exploits, it, in no way, undermines their achievement.
3. Real Madrid: While Real may have lost the La Liga title race by a whisker, they made up for it by lifting an unprecedented 11th European crown after defeating Atletico Madrid on penalties in Milan.
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Los Blancos, who have found the net 138 times this season, have been highly productive in front of goal, especially since the legendary Zinedine Zidane took over in January this year and are third on our list of most lethal in front of goal.
Not only have Real found a new rhythm under the former World Cup winner, they have also managed to hammer oppositions in the process.
The 8-0 thrashing they inflicted on the hapless Malmo in December, despite it being under former manager Rafa Benitez, went down in history as the joint-biggest margin of victory in Europe, while their composed performance in the Champions League final against Atleti was in sharp contrast to the haphazard 4-0 loss to Barcelona early in the season, showing the remarkable progress made under the Frenchman.
Ronaldo leads Real’s goalscoring charts with 51 goals followed by Karim Benzema (28), Gareth Bale (19) and James Rodriguez (8), while Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo, Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Casemiro, among others, pitched in as well to highlight Real’s all-round goalscoring threat.
The best defence
1. Atletico Madrid: Diego Simeone’s men are establishing a name for themselves for having the most robust defence in the business and the statistics this year do not state otherwise.
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Having let in only 31 goals all season, which include conceding only 18 in the league and eight in the Champions League, the Madrid outfit certainly deserve to be on top of this list.
Their impressive displays against Barcelona and Bayern Munich in the Champions League, where they managed to tame two of the best attacking line-ups in the world, were more than exemplary, and the fact that they almost pipped Barcelona to the La Liga crown is proof of their well-organised, well-drilled back four.
They may have suffered heartbreak at the hands of Real yet again, having lost to Los Blancos in the Champions League final two years ago and this year as well, and do not have a trophy to provide tangible evidence for their efforts, nonetheless, it can be safely said that they have been the hardest nut to crack in Europe this season.
2. Paris Saint-Germain: Laurent Blanc’s men are second in our list of the best defence in Europe this season. Their impressive run all year round was not just limited to domestic competitions. When pitted against the best clubs in Europe, they also impressed beyond measure.
They managed to keep five clean sheets during the group stages of the Champions League and only conceded just one goal, that too to Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu. And while they conceded six goals in the knockout stages when pitted against Chelsea and Manchester City, their overall display against one of the most lethal attacks in the world was praiseworthy.
3. Bayern Munich: While Pep Guardiola’s Bayern may be renowned for their silky attacking style of play, their defensive record this season has put them third on this list.
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Manuel Neuer just let 31 goals past him, while the 17 Bayern conceded in the league are the least number of goals conceded by any team in the top five European leagues, namely England, Spain, Germany, France and Italy.
The Bavarian’s intensive pressing and domination on the ball does not allow teams to really settle, with most of their opponents spending the majority of their time trying to get the ball back — Bayern enjoy the best possession record in Europe with an average of 62%.
While it is true that they are the worst team in Europe’s top five leagues when it comes to the number of defensive actions made — interceptions, clearances, blocked shots (primarily because of lack of competition in Germany) — it does not reflect badly on them.
Masters of midfield
1. Bayern Munich: Enjoying the best average possession (62%) in Europe, Bayern are simply the kings of midfield. Their 87% passing accuracy and 28,768 successful passes make them one of the most frustrating teams to play against and their ability on the ball makes them one of the most dominant team in Europe at the moment.
2. Paris Saint-Germain: With the most number of successful passes with an impeccable accuracy of 89% — yes, better than Barcelona’s — PSG are second in our list of the best midfield in Europe.
Calm, composed and effective, PSG players in the middle of the park have carried out their tasks as diligently as possible. The fact that they have completed more passes than both Barcelona and Bayern Munich shows the Parisian outfit is a force to be reckoned with in midfield.
3. Barcelona: When Xavi’s influence at the heart of Barcelona’s midfield started fading, many thought that the era of Barcelona’s domination is nearing its end.
However, under manager Luis Enrique, the Catalans have found a new rhythm and despite now having a more direct style of play, the club has managed to keep their domination in midfield intact.
While it is true that Ivan Rakitic is no Xavi, he certainly adds a different dimension to Barcelona’s play. And couple that with the fact that much of Barca’s play now takes place in the final third, the midfielders of the Catalan club, uncharacteristically, have taken a back seat and are enjoying the show as the front three rip apart defences.