It’s not clear what will happen to the remaining games in each of Europe’s top five leagues at present, but this week, on the FotMob social media channels we decided to run through our best rated teams of the season – if the season was to stop here.
Taking the list of best average ratings for each division, we then broke those down by position to put together select teams in a basic 4-3-3 formation.
๐ซ๐ท Our Ligue 1 side is heavily influenced by the form of perennial champions, Paris Saint-Germain – with 5 of their stars top rated in their typical role.
Neymar scores higher than anyone else, as of now in the league and actually only misses out on the top average in any of Europe’s top divisions by 0.01 – according to our stats!
Stade de Reims, this season’s surprise package are also well represented with goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic in particular standing out. He has kept 12 clean sheets from 27 games and saved 4 of the 5 penalties that he’s faced.
๐ฎ๐น In Italy, our best XI is probably the most diverse of any of the sides that our analysis has produced, with players from six different teams featuring.
Lazio, second to Juventus in the Serie A table come out well – earning four slots whereas Juve only boast Wojciech Szczฤsny and of course, Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Portuguese legend has had another superb season, even notching a goal in 11 straight league games between December and February. That has been enough to see him earn an average of 8.23.
๐ฉ๐ช The current top three in the Bundesliga provide the entirety of our best rated team for the division – with Bayern Mรผnchen’s Robert Lewandowski the only player anywhere to score an average in the 8s.
His 8.13 marks him out as the best out-and-out centre-forward in Europe, but we felt we couldn’t ignore the form of Timo Werner so we’ve shifted the RB Leipzig man to the left in order to accommodate his overall rating of 7.75!
Leipzig do well out of this team, taking five positions to Bayern’s four. Breakthrough Canadian teenager, Alphonso Davies rates highest amongst the defenders at 7.32, but who knows whether the marauding left-back will eventually end up playing further forward on a permanent basis.
๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ Thanks to Liverpool’s imperious form in the Premier League, our team for England’s top flight is somewhat skewed. In fact, Liverpool take all 5 of our defensive positions and the entire front-line!
Kevin De Bruyne though, does outscore everybody else to break up the monotony! His performances in Manchester City’s midfield have seen him reach an average score of 7.93.
๐ช๐ธ Last, but not least our team for Spain’s LaLiga contains our best rated player across all five sides we’ve put together here, with Lionel Messi outscoring his former teammate, Neymar by 8.41 to 8.40.
That’s close by anyone’s standards! You can read more about Messi’s season of dominance in a special article we wrote, by clicking here.
Elsewhere, and despite being second in the table, Real Madrid rack up five of the eleven places in our team, with captain, Sergio Ramos joined by three of his colleagues in a Madrid-heavy defence.
If you fancy a deep dive into any of the countless statistics we cover on various league around the world, simply search by country, select a league profile and swipe right to the stats tab.
For more of this kind of thing, make sure you give us a follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
While Messi and Ronaldo have dominated the conversation since Ronaldinho won the Ballon d’Or in 2005, no one has entertained us quite like the Brazilian did at his peak.
Here’s every goal he scored for the Blaugrana, enjoy.
For more of this kind of thing, make sure you give us a follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
With so much football around the world lost to the effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we thought we’d provide a short guide not only to the games still going ahead, but also recommending a few things to watch, read and listen to over the weekend.
๐บ What to watch
FIFA have uploaded full match footage of every World Cup dating back to 1982. It’s all in a playlist on YouTube for you to dive in.
COPA90’s Derby Days is exactly the escapism we need right now. If you haven’t seen it yet, their episode on Seville is must-watch stuff.
โ Test your knowledge
We made a tough Premier League Grab Bag quiz for you to take on, as well as a medium-level quiz on the 2019-20 season.
๐ฆ๐บ Australia battles on.
To the best of our knowledge, there will still be football played in Australia over the coming days, albeit with all games behind closed doors.
In the W-League, we have the Grand Final as the season’s two best women’s teams go head-to-head for the title. Melbourne City will start as favourites having finished 12 points clear of their opponents, Sydney FC in the regular season.
The roles are completely reversed in the men’s game, where it’s Sydney FC with the double digit lead over their Big Blue rivals from Melbourne.
With some sides having as few as five regular season games left, the fight to finish in the top six and qualify for the A-League finals is heating up.
The most important fixture this week though is more a matter of local pride, as a resurgent Western Sydney Wanderers battle it out against the league leaders in the Sydney Derby.
Since sacking former Germany international, Markus Babbel in January, the Wanderers have only lost once and just last month, a late goal from their captain won the previous edition of the derby.
๐ Something to read
Our friends at MUNDIAL just released a new issue of their magazine featuring 186 things to look forward to in football. Previously, they visited Naples to explore the city’s ongoing love affair with Maradona. It’s one of our favourite pieces of football writing ever. Read it here.
STADIO wrote about what we’ll miss once Messi is gone from the game. Read it here.
These Football Times wrote about what Finland can learn from Iceland’s success at the Euros. Read it here.
๐ง๐พ The Belarusian Premier League, everyone’s new favourite.
The Republic of Belarus, the landlocked nation in Eastern Europe began its 2020 league season on Thursday and there will be games played across the weekend.
Last year, Dynamo Brest won their first ever title and in the process, ended 13 years of dominance by BATE Borisov. Any aspirations to re-capture their title were dealt an early blow when the Champions or Europa League regulars were beaten by the Belarusian State University side in the season opener.
The hype video did not work.
We’ll be looking forward to seeing how Dynamo Brest fare in their first game, when they host newly promoted Smolevichy on Saturday.
A couple of FotMob staffers will also have an eye on the other games after they picked out Isloch and Rukh Brest in the competition we are running to help celebrate the league over on Twitter.
๐ง Something to listen to
The documentary podcast series GIANT, produced by MUNDIAL, has six episodes waiting for you on Spotify.
We suggest starting with the story behind the group of fans who founded AFC Wimbledon and brought them back up the football pyramid. Listen here.
If you want to follow any of the games mentioned above, click on the relevant link and tap the bell icon to receive all the key match updates.
Or join us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to discuss all the important football going on this weekend!
2019 started badly for Flamengo, one of Brazil’s biggest and most celebrated sides. In February, a fire in the living quarters at their training ground killed ten teenage academy players – a tragedy that left the whole club reeling.
For newly elected club president, Rodolfo Landim, it was a devastating way to begin his new term in office, but under his guidance and thanks to some aggressive recruitment both on and off the field, Flamengo not only bounced back – but provided a lasting tribute to those who lost their lives.
The club splashed the cash ahead of the 2019 Serie A season, paying the largest ever domestic transfer fee for Giorgian De Arrascaeta before securing the services of strikers Bruno Henrique and perhaps crucially – the loan signing of Gabriel Barbosa.
A teenage wonderkid at Santos, hence the nickname, Gabigol – Barbosa had moved to Europe early and failed to make an impact at Inter Milan or following a further switch to Benfica. He moved to Flamengo, mojo restored after a transformative 2018 back in Brazil with Santos.
The final part of the jigsaw came when Landim replaced his first managerial appointment with Jorge Jesus – the Portuguese coach who had spent virtually his whole career hoovering up trophies at home with the likes of Benfica and Sporting.
He brought some experience with him, even tempting the likes of Rafinha and Filipe Luรญs back to Brazil after spending years of their careers in European football.
Within months, Jesus had breathed new life in to the club and they were playing some of the most attacking football that Flamengo’s huge fanbase had seen in years.
This team had a sense of fun about them and it helped too, that Gabigol was banging them in as the wins just kept on coming.
And not just at home. In the Copa Libertadores, South America’s equivalent to the Champions League, Flamengo reached a first final in nearly 40 years despite being drawn against Brazilian rivals at both the Quarter-Final and Semi-Final stage.
In the Final – the first ever Libertadores showpiece to be played over one leg, on neutral ground they would have to face the reigning champions, River Plate.
In perhaps their most frustrating performance of the season, Flamengo failed to get going against their Argentine opponents. The weight of the occasion seeming to affect Gabigol, their much hyped star more than anyone.
Then, after 89 minutes of having next to no impact on the game he pounced, overpowering River’s tiring backline to score not one but twice, either side of the 90 minute mark.
He would also get booked for taking his shirt off after scoring the winner, and receive a straight red card for dissent all before the game ended! But the damage was done and Flamengo had their first continental title since 1981.
As if that crazy, crazy game wasn’t enough for one weekend, Flamengo’s return to Rio the next day not only saw massive street parties, but also confirmation, thanks to results elsewhere that they had sealed the Brasileiro title.
South America’s most celebrated cup competition – the Copa Libertadores, won for the first time in a generation AND their first domestic title for a decade. Not bad for one weekend’s work.
By the end of the campaign, Flamengo’s total dominance of Serie A was complete – they finished 16 points clear of their nearest rivals and out scored everyone by over 20 goals. With Gabigol ending the season with 25 goals in the league alone.
Shortly after all the excitement died down back home, the newly crowned South American champions were on the way to the middle east in order to compete in FIFA’s Club World Cup.
And only an extra-time goal in the final, scored by compatriot, Roberto Firmino saw them narrowly defeated by Liverpool – a side with a budget 10 times their own.
The Flamengo juggernaut seems to have kept on trucking in the early months of this year – ahead of the main Brazilian league restart, which would ordinarily fall in April.
They won the Brazilian Supercopa, the regional Taรงa Guanabara AND the Recopa Sudamericana all in the space of ONE trophy laden-week!
The last of those titles came in what is the continental Super Cup where despite a surprise draw away at Ecuadorian side, Independiente del Valle, they recovered to romp home back in Rio.
Despite the vast majority of Brazilian football having now been put on hold, there was some further good news for the club this week. After reports that Jesus, their inspirational manager had fallen ill due to the COVID-19 virus, his tests did in fact come back negative.
That leaves one of Flamengo’s most celebrated, and most meme-able of coaches free to continue building on the back of a pretty amazing first year in the job!
For more of this kind of thing, make sure you give us a follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
With so much football around the world lost to the effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we thought we’d provide a short guide not only to the games still going ahead, but also recommending a few things to watch, read and listen to over the weekend.
๐บ What to watch
FIFA have uploaded full match footage of every World Cup dating back to 1982. It’s all in a playlist on YouTube for you to dive in.
COPA90’s Derby Days is exactly the escapism we need right now. If you haven’t seen it yet, their episode on Seville is must-watch stuff.
โ Test your knowledge
We made a tough Premier League Grab Bag quiz for you to take on, as well as a medium-level quiz on the 2019-20 season.
๐ฆ๐บ Australia battles on.
To the best of our knowledge, there will still be football played in Australia over the coming days, albeit with all games behind closed doors.
In the W-League, we have the Grand Final as the season’s two best women’s teams go head-to-head for the title. Melbourne City will start as favourites having finished 12 points clear of their opponents, Sydney FC in the regular season.
The roles are completely reversed in the men’s game, where it’s Sydney FC with the double digit lead over their Big Blue rivals from Melbourne.
With some sides having as few as five regular season games left, the fight to finish in the top six and qualify for the A-League finals is heating up.
The most important fixture this week though is more a matter of local pride, as a resurgent Western Sydney Wanderers battle it out against the league leaders in the Sydney Derby.
Since sacking former Germany international, Markus Babbel in January, the Wanderers have only lost once and just last month, a late goal from their captain won the previous edition of the derby.
๐ Something to read
Our friends at MUNDIAL just released a new issue of their magazine featuring 186 things to look forward to in football. Previously, they visited Naples to explore the city’s ongoing love affair with Maradona. It’s one of our favourite pieces of football writing ever. Read it here.
STADIO wrote about what we’ll miss once Messi is gone from the game. Read it here.
These Football Times wrote about what Finland can learn from Iceland’s success at the Euros. Read it here.
๐ง๐พ The Belarusian Premier League, everyone’s new favourite.
The Republic of Belarus, the landlocked nation in Eastern Europe began its 2020 league season on Thursday and there will be games played across the weekend.
Last year, Dynamo Brest won their first ever title and in the process, ended 13 years of dominance by BATE Borisov. Any aspirations to re-capture their title were dealt an early blow when the Champions or Europa League regulars were beaten by the Belarusian State University side in the season opener.
The hype video did not work.
We’ll be looking forward to seeing how Dynamo Brest fare in their first game, when they host newly promoted Smolevichy on Saturday.
A couple of FotMob staffers will also have an eye on the other games after they picked out Isloch and Rukh Brest in the competition we are running to help celebrate the league over on Twitter.
๐ง Something to listen to
The documentary podcast series GIANT, produced by MUNDIAL, has six episodes waiting for you on Spotify.
We suggest starting with the story behind the group of fans who founded AFC Wimbledon and brought them back up the football pyramid. Listen here.
If you want to follow any of the games mentioned above, click on the relevant link and tap the bell icon to receive all the key match updates.
Or join us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to discuss all the important football going on this weekend!
For a tougher quiz, try this one!
To dive into more stats, head over to the EPL league page in the app.
If you’d like to see more quizzes from us, send us a note on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.
To dive into more stats, head over to the EPL league page in the app.
One of our favourite ways to kill time in the app is our Player vs. Player comparison tool.
Just head to a player profile, click on the avatar in the top right, select any other player in the world and build up a picture of their form.
Whenever we check in on Serie A this season, two names have dominated the leader boards run for our individual player stats, Lazio’s Ciro Immobile and the Juventus superstar, Cristiano Ronaldo.
For two forwards, who for all intents and purposes play differing roles for their sides – their stats, as both the main threat and the talisman of their respective teams are fairly consistent.
Immobile has played more games, and scored more goals but if we look at the average minutes played per goal – Ronaldo isn’t far behind that gold standard, goal-a-game ratio.
And if we break that down further – Ronaldo has actually taken more shots than Immobile, despite spending fewer minutes on the pitch.
The accuracy of those attempts is where we can start to foresee some differences, with Ronaldo playing a less central role in Juve’s typical formation so it’s perhaps surprising that he comes out so close to Immobile’s 60%.
When we break things down a little further we can see more similarities. Both players for instance, have scored the overwhelming majority of their goals inside the 18-yard box and with their favoured right foot.
Ronaldo’s complete lack of successful long-range efforts would reflect a season in which his usual magical touch at dead ball situations has seemed to leave him.
One thing that will probably never change though, however long Ronaldo remains at the very top of the game, is his willingness to shoot.
He leads the way in terms of shots directly on goal per match, but if you look at this stat slightly differently – Immobile actually scores his goals with a greater efficiency.
For his overall contribution to Juventus matches, we have awarded Ronaldo a higher average rating across the season. Meaning that the combination of all the live statistics we gather together shows him to have a greater impact on proceedings for his side.
So where does all that leave us, at this strange limbo stage in Italian football where the very region worst hit by the spread of the coronavirus pandemic is home to so many of the top teams?
Immobile and Ronaldo are clearly the best players of the 2019/20 Serie A season to date, and with their sides separated by just a point in the league table and under normal circumstances – we all would have wanted to see how that played out.
For you own deep dive in to our Serie A stats, or those for any league – just search for a league and from the profile, swipe right for the stats tab.
For more of this kind of thing, make sure you give us a follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.