European Club Power Rankings After October 27-30 Matches
Last week delivered a double slate of domestic football across Europe; Serie A snuck in a midweek round, while England, Germany and Spain engaged in cup competition before all four resumed league duties.
It means there's plenty to consider when constructing the latest edition of the European Club Rankings...as there's double the chance to impress and move up but, similarly, double the chance to mess up.
The rankings are a season-long measurement of clubs. Just like last term, they track teams throughout 2017/18, taking into account results from all competitions.
Sides that have lost the fewest games naturally rank higher—though the strength of opposition met in a loss is considered—and both Champions League form and presence are used as tiebreakers for those with similar records. Those who gather big wins against strong opposition get a natural boost.
20. Monaco (Stay)
Monaco's 2-0 win over Bordeaux keeps them in our top 20. With no Radamel Falcao available, they turned to Balde Keita up top, and he scored one of two second-half goals to secure the points.
19. Lyon (Stay)
Lyon games nowadays are just an excuse to watch a bit more of Nabil Fekir, an exquisite player in brilliant form. He scored both of Les Dogues' goals in their victory over Metz on Sunday, taking his personal Ligue 1 tally to nine goals and four assists in just 900 minutes this season.
18. RB Leipzig (-5)
Perhaps after a week that includes two losses you'd expect RB Leipzig to tumble helplessly down the rankings, but we've tempered their fall just a little on account of who those two losses came against.
Playing Bayern Munich twice in a week isn't nice, and it's even harder when you have a man sent off in both matches.
17. Borussia Dortmund (-2)
It's fair to say that whirlwind, excellent start of Dortmund's has dissipated. They've returned to earth and found the level somewhat expected of them at the beginning of the season.
16. Arsenal (+2)
Arsenal smoothed over two scares this week to produce two wins. Both Norwich City (in the cup) and Swansea City (in the league) took leads at The Emirates Stadium last week, but the Gunners fought back to win both games 2-1.
15. Atletico Madrid (+1)
Atletico Madrid still only have one loss to their name this season, but the problem is the number of draws they've procured (eight) is now far outweighing the number of wins (five). What is going on? Where has that grinding, winning mentality gone?
They move up in fortuitous circumstances. Had Leipzig and Dortmund not collapsed this week, they'd be moving the opposite direction.
14. AS Roma (+3)
What Roma serve up is not always pretty to watch, but it is effective. Eusebio Di Francesco has led the Giallorossi to three consecutive 1-0 victories, ensuring they're flying just a little below Italy's top order but remain within touching distance (with a game in hand).
13. Valencia (+1)
Valencia collected two more victories last week, making it seven on the spin in all competitions. They've developed such a reputation as an exciting, attacking side, people are left disappointed when Los Che only score two in a game.
12. Chelsea (Stay)
Chelsea boss Antonio Conte will have been pleased to see Eden Hazard provide a decisive moment in a Premier League match on Saturday. He's been a little off the boil on UK soil, but now, perhaps, he starts to roll. A severe test at the Stadio Olimpico against Roma awaits next.
11. Tottenham Hotspur (-5)
Spurs were last week's big risers, but they've turned a position of strength into one of serious weakness in a week Mauricio Pochettino will be eager to forget.
First, they threw a two-goal lead away at home against West Ham United, conceding three and removing themselves from the Carabao Cup. Then they huffed and puffed to no avail at Old Trafford, falling prey to one defensive lapse and losing a second straight game.
It knocks them out of the top 10 with immediate effect.
10. Juventus (+1)
Juve boss Max Allegri's never been shy about rotating his squad when multiple games present themselves within a week, and he took the chance to chop and change here.
The midweek win over SPAL saw the likes of Douglas Costa, Federico Bernardeschi and Rodrigo Bentancur play and impress, then they took a back seat as the more regular cast beat Milan at the San Siro.
9. Inter Milan (+1)
Almost all of Inter's wins feel a bit sneaky. They struggle to put together 90-minute displays of error-free football and, to be frank, tend to bail themselves out with moments of quality quite often.
But football is a results business, and while it might not be too pretty, Inter are getting it done. They're still unbeaten and still ahead of Juventus in the table, with wins against Roma and Milan in the bank already.
8. Manchester United (+1)
Two wins; two clean sheets. Manager Jose Mourinho will always be happy with that haul, but when that includes progression in the cup and a key victory over a league rival, he'll be doubly so.
The Red Devils went back to the three-man defence against Tottenham on Saturday, and it worked a charm, though they were spared a contest against Harry Kane due to injury. Phil Jones is having himself a season in that defensive line.
7. Real Madrid (-3)
Real Madrid are in trouble. They sustained just their second loss of the season at the weekend to Girona, but mix that in with all the draws they've produced, too, and they now sit eight points off Barcelona and top spot.
Despite the season being just 11 games old, that's practically irreparable damage done.
It's not as if they've been unfortunate on the path to this point either. Home fixtures have been a struggle, and the 2-1 defeat at the Estadi Montilivi on Sunday could and should have been by more.
6. Bayern Munich (+2)
Jupp Heynckes hasn't needed long to restore Bayern Munich's reputation and confidence.
Since he took charge, they've won all five of their games and are yet to concede in the Bundesliga. They've just come through a testing week, playing RB Leipzig twice in a mere matter of days, and winning both encounters to move top of the league and progress in the cup.
They have enjoyed a helping hand on this run—in three of Heynckes' five games, the opposition have had a man sent off—but the Allianz Arena looks a happy place again, and that should scare Europe's top teams.
5. Lazio (+2)
Lazio have held a high ranking for weeks because they've been in scintillating form, yet there still appear to be some doubters of their ability out there. So let's lay it all out:
- They've played 14 games this season, winning 12, drawing one and losing one.
- They've played Juventus twice this season; they've won both encounters.
- They've won the only piece of Italian silverware possible to this point: the Supercoppa.
- Their current win streak in all competitions stands at eight.
- Their prima punta Ciro Immobile (14) is top of the Serie A scoring charts.
4. Napoli (+1)
Napoli head into yet another Champions League matchday as Serie A leaders. They won both their matches last week, netting six goals between the two fixtures, with one in particular by Dries Mertens spreading like wildfire on Twitter for all the right reasons.
Maurizio Sarri flexed his squad's muscles a little over the course of the two contests, rotating two from each of his midfield and defensive lines. That he has full trust in Amadou Diawara to do Jorginho's job, and can flick between Piotr Zielinski and Allan at will, is so helpful when trying to keep things fresh.
3. Paris Saint-Germain (Stay)
PSG were forced to put one tentative step into a Neymar-less world this weekend, as they took on OGC Nice without him due to suspension.
That they beat a strong side comfortably, by three goals to nil, only serves to highlight how stacked they are in terms of personnel. Edinson Cavani stepped up with a brace, Julian Draxler pulled the strings from midfield, and Angel Di Maria grabbed two assists.
2. Barcelona (Stay)
It was a touch alarming to see Barcelona line up in a 4-4-2 formation against Athletic Bilbao, but the simple fact of the matter was it was an effective move.
Whether it's something that will stick around is unclear, but getting Lionel Messi as close to goal as often as possible is more important than ever given Luis Suarez has essentially forgotten how to play football.
A 2-0 win over a tough side (plus two shots against the woodwork) indicate it might have felt a little strange, but that doesn't matter.
1. Manchester City (Stay)
We moved Manchester City top of the European Club Rankings last week, and they've repaid us with two wins...but neither felt comfortable.
The Citizens could easily be out of the Carabao Cup right now, thanking reserve goalkeeper Claudio Bravo deeply for a heroic, game-saving performance against Wolverhampton Wanderers in midweek, and then back in the Midlands on Saturday, they didn't have it all their own way against West Bromwich Albion.
If their level is starting to slip, Napoli will show us exactly how far this week.
All statistics via WhoScored.com
from Bleacher Report - Front Page http://ift.tt/2zm2bIw
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