Christmas State of Play: How Major World Football Leagues Look at Winter Break
The Premier League might still be going strong, but elsewhere in Europe, the top leagues have shut down for their annual winter break.
With La Liga, Serie A and the Bundesliga, among others, having played their final matches of 2014 this past weekend, it provides us with the opportune moment to take a look at some tell-tale stats, how each of the divisions have played out so far and what the big storylines are to watch.
Stats via WhoScored.com unless otherwise noted.
La Liga
1 of 5
Fewest defeats: Real Madrid and Barcelona, two each
Fewest wins: Cordoba, one
Highest scorers: Real Madrid, 55 goals
Worst defence: Elche, 32 conceded
Unexpected achievers: Eibar, ninth
Underperformers: Real Sociedad, 14th
Quirky stats
Cristiano Ronaldo's 25 league goals are more than 14 La Liga teams have scored so far. Malaga have had six red cards shown this season—no other club has more than four. Eighteen of Atletico Madrid's 31 goals have come from set pieces.
Real Madrid's 22-game winning streak includes 12 in La Liga, giving them a one-point lead and a game in hand at the break.
The four-team struggle for fourth place is one of the most intriguing battles of the league: Valencia and Malaga are more cautious and defensive-minded at times, while Sevilla play on the counter and Villarreal go for the offensive, technical approach.
Standout youngsters this season include Moi Gomez (Villarreal), Eric Bailly (Espanyol), Jose Gaya (Valencia), Unai Lopez (Athletic), Sergi Darder (Malaga) and Luciano Vietto (Villarreal).
Bundesliga
2 of 5
Fewest defeats: Bayern Munich, undefeated
Fewest wins: Freiburg, two wins
Highest scorers: Bayern Munich, 41 goals
Worst defence: Werder Bremen, 39 conceded
Unexpected achievers: Augsburg, sixth
Underperformers: Borussia Dortmund, 17th
Quirky stats
Dortmund have the second-highest average possession, the third-highest shots per game average, the fourth-best pass accuracy and the joint-lowest points tally. Bayern Munich are the only German side to win less than 20 aerial duels per game; Hannover average more than 37.
The biggest storyline in Germany is undoubtedly the demise of Borussia Dortmund; they would have been bottom at the halfway point if Freiburg had not blown a 2-0 lead in the last seven minutes on Sunday.
Karim Bellarabi (Bayer Leverkusen), Joselu (Hannover) and Alexander Meier (E. Frankfurt) are a handful of those to impress in the top flight, while the likes of Mario Gotze, Xabi Alonso and Arjen Robben have been outstanding at times for leaders Bayern Munich.
Serie A
3 of 5
Fewest defeats: Juventus and Sampdoria, one each
Fewest wins: Cesena, one win
Highest scorers: Juventus, 34 goals
Worst defence: Parma, 36 conceded
Unexpected achievers: Genoa, sixth
Underperformers: Inter Milan, 11th
Quirky stats
Thirty-seven-year-old Antonio Di Natale has scored 40 per cent of Udinese's Serie A goals this season. Four players have been sent off twice this season: Daniele Bonera (ACM), Facundo Roncaglia (GEN), Felipe (PAR) and Rafa Marquez (VER). AC Milan average 72 long balls per match—the highest in the league.
Juventus and Roma are making Serie A a two-horse race again this season. The Milan clubs have swapped demises somewhat; Inter are floundering in midtable as AC were last season, while under Pippo Inzaghi, Milan are challenging just outside European spots, a la Inter last year.
Jose Callejon's scoring start to the season hasn't lasted, but Paulo Dybala and Manolo Gabbiadini are impressing with their form and relative consistency.
Ligue 1
4 of 5
Fewest defeats: Paris Saint-Germain, one defeat
Fewest wins: Caen, three wins
Highest scorers: Lyon, 40 goals
Worst defence: Evian and Caen, 32 conceded
Unexpected achievers: Marseille, first
Underperformers: Lille, 13th
Quirky stats
Even without his penalties, Alexandre Lacazette would still be Ligue 1's clear top scorer (17 total, three penalties). Pierre-Andre Gignac scored 10 in his first 10 games and then just two in his last nine. Monaco, Lorient and Metz have all had two players booked for diving—only Chelsea from Europe's top five leagues have more.
PSG were hampered by a slow start to the season and Zlatan Ibrahimovic's injury—but have also only won one of their last four. Marcelo Bielsa's Marseille have led Ligue 1 for most of this season and have a two-point lead over Lyon at the halfway point.
Monaco, last season's runners-up, are up to fifth after a four-game winning run. By contrast, Lille were top-three last season but have spent most of this campaign in the bottom seven or eight.
Other Major Leagues
5 of 5
Most wins: PSV, 14 wins from 17 (Dutch Eredivisie); Zenit Saint Petersburg, 13 from 17 (Russian Premier League); Benfica, 12 from 14 (Portuguese Primeira Liga).
Fewest wins: Dordrecht, one win from 17 (Dutch Eredivisie); Rostov, two from 17 (Russian Premier League); Gil Vicente, yet to win from 14 (Portuguese Primeira Liga).
In the Dutch Eredivisie, PSV, Ajax and Feyenoord make up the expected top three, but the former have opened up a four-point gap now—and Feyenoord are eight points behind Ajax. Arkadiusz Milik, on loan at Ajax from Bayer Leverkusen, has made a big impact, as has the more established Memphis Depay and the returned-to-homeland Luuk de Jong, both at PSV.
PEC Zwolle have challenged near the top for longer than expected this season, but two defeats in five have seen them drop to fourth lately. Michiel Kramer is top scorer with 11—his first season scoring double figures in the top league.
Over in the Russian Premier League, Zenit still hold the top spot, but CSKA and Dinamo Moscow have both been in good form of late; the latter are unbeaten in eight in all competitions, including a 1-0 win over CSKA in November. Krasnodar have fallen out of the top two after a heavy defeat to Zenit before the break, with Andre Villas-Boas' men now having a seven-point lead at the top. The joint-top scorers are Brazilian forward Hulk, of Zenit, and CSKA's offensive midfielder Bibras Natkho, with eight each.
The Portuguese Primeira Liga looks like belonging to Benfica once more this season; they beat Porto 2-0 away from home two weeks before the break and now have a six-point gap between themselves and their rivals. Sporting Lisbon have struggled for consistent wins and sit in fifth at the break, despite only losing once this season. Vitoria Guimaraes are the surprise side in fourth, outside a Champions League place only on goal difference.
