Power Ranking the Top 25 European Clubs After Weekend of December 27-28
Welcome to the latest edition of our European club rankings. We rank the top teams on the continent based on seasonal form and squad strength.
English clubs played two games in 48 hours each as the hectic festive period entertained millions across the world, but the German clubs are busy relaxing as they sign off for a winter break.
Disagree with our order? Join the conversation in the comments below!
Important Note on Winter Breaks
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On Sunday, December 21, Freiburg and Hannover kicked the last Bundesliga ball for over a month. The German top division resumes play right at the end of January, and all of the teams will have a winter break.
It makes the power rankings, which are, of course, form rankings, tough to gauge when a side ducks out. It was either a case of holding their positions or removing them (like we did with Zenit St. Petersburg, who take about 80 days off), and we've opted for the former.
Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen and Wolfsburg's positions are frozen in our rankings for a month. They will not budge, up or down, until they resume play.
Dropping out
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Dropping Out
West Ham: Is it us? The minute we brought them in, they lost two in a row. They were tough games, to be fair.
On the Radar
Saint-Etienne: They cannot move into the top 25 without playing, so they are still limited to the radar.
Liverpool: The Reds have regained form and are now a consideration—should they continue in such a manner, that is.
Tottenham Hotspur: They're pretty lucky to have 31 points at this stage, but recently, they've been improving in obvious ways.
Still Missing
Borussia Dortmund: They've signed Kevin Kampl. Maybe that will help?
25. Southampton
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Last Week: New!
Differential: New!
Southampton's horror streak is over, and after securing six points from tussles with Everton and Crystal Palace (away), they capped 2014 with a draw against Chelsea.
OK, so they were pretty lucky to share the spoils with the Blues. Matt Targett tripped Cesc Fabregas in the area, and the referee, quizzically, did not give anything; but a point is a point, and it's arguable the Saints deserved more from those losses sustained earlier in November and December.
24. Valencia
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Last Week: 24
Differential: -
Further to the Bundesliga winter break notice, Spain's football is on hold until January 3. Valencia fans have had something to celebrate, though. Per Goal.com, Enzo Perez became their latest purchase for a cool €25 million.
23. Villarreal
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Last Week: 23
Differential: -
Villarreal spend their mini-break reflecting on five consecutive wins—a feat which lifted them into our top 25 this past week. With Luciano Vietto and Denis Cheryshev rolling, they'll be eager to hit the pitch in 2015.
22. Monaco
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Last Week: 13
Differential: -
Monaco will reopen their Ligue 1 season early in January in a prime-time slot, facing Bordeaux on Sunday, January 4 at 8 p.m. GMT. They'll still be riding the high of somehow qualifying for the Champions League's latter stages.
21. Ajax
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Last Week: 21
Differential: -
Ajax rounded out 2014 with a victory over Excelsior Rotterdam, and they will open the Eredivisie proceedings for 2015 on January 16 vs. Groningen.
20. PSV Eindhoven
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Last Week: 20
Differential: -
PSV Eindhoven's 5-0 victory over Go Ahead Eagles took their goal difference for the season to an incredible plus-34 and their points tally to 43. They've dropped just nine possible points from 17 games.
19. Sevilla
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Last Week: 19
Differential: -
It's really tight in the upper-middle section of La Liga, with Sevilla sat on 30 points alongside Villarreal and Malaga. It gives Los Rojiblancos no room for error, but after a bright start, the lack of Ivan Rakitic has hindered them in games that they expect to win.
18. Bayer Leverkusen
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Last Week: 18
Differential: -
Frozen for duration of winter break
Per Goal.com, Leverkusen chiefs have used the break to extend Karim Bellarabi's contract—a wise move.
17. Napoli
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Last Week: 17
Differential: -
Napoli are out of action until Tuesday, January 6, when they take on Cesena, but they've been busy in the transfer market, bolstering their squad. Per ANSA and Gianluca Di Marzio (via Football Italia), Ivan Strinic has passed a medical. Ezequiel Lavezzi is being touted for a return, too, per Italian newspaper Tuttosport (via Football Italia).
16. Olympique Lyonnais
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Last Week: 16
Differential: -
Lyon will be hoping to assert their dominance from the off at the beginning of 2015 as they take on a struggling Toulouse side. A win would make it five on the trot—the perfect message to send to Marseille manager Marcelo Bielsa.
15. Manchester United
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Last Week: 15
Differential: -
Manchester United will still be wondering how they didn't score against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, and the answer why, no matter which way you spin it, is certain to be Hugo Lloris-related.
Louis van Gaal moaned about the built-up fixture list at Christmas in the Premier League post-match, telling BBC Sport that the second half was a "struggle for life" and "not football."
While he may have a point (about the congestion), it's not like he wasn't warned.
14. Paris Saint-Germain
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Last Week: 14
Differential: -
Paris Saint-Germain ended 2014 in regrettable fashion, losing to Barcelona in the Champions League and dropping points to Guingamp and Montpellier.
Manager Laurent Blanc has a lot to do ahead of the Ligue 1 restart, when PSG face Bastia.
13. Marseille
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Last Week: 13
Differential: -
This small break for French clubs is usually most useful for the strugglers who need to recalibrate, but Marseille players will be grateful for it despite being top of the league.
Bielsa's methods are tough, and the squad will be jaded despite playing just half of a season due to his high-octane football.
12. FC Porto
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Last Week: 11
Differential: -1
FC Porto know their mission for the second half of the Liga Sagres season: overhaul a six-point deficit between themselves and Benfica. Seeing the Eagles lose their star player will be a big boost.
The Dragons return to cup action Tuesday night against Rio Ave.
11. Arsenal
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Last Week: 12
Differential: +1
Arsenal won a huge game this weekend, defeating Champions League challengers West Ham 2-1 at Upton Park. It's the sort of fixture the Gunners typically struggle in, but Santi Cazorla led them to a much-needed victory.
Iffy season or not, Arsenal head into 2015 in fifth place and level on points with fourth (Southampton). With their best clearly yet to come and players returning from injury, manager Arsene Wenger may just pull out something special.
10. Wolfsburg
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Last Week: 10
Differential: -
Frozen for duration of winter break
Manager Dieter Hecking has just over a month to prepare for the second half of a great season and check in on how good new signing Zhang Xizhe is.
9. Benfica
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Last Week: 9
Differential: -
Losing Perez is a bitter blow for Benfica, and per Portuguese newspaper Record (via Jamie Kemp of Inside Spanish Football), Nicolas Gaitan could follow. Manager Jorge Jesus has one hell of a job keeping this title tilt on track.
The Eagles resume action on Tuesday evening in the cup vs. Nacional.
8. Roma
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Last Week: 8
Differential: -
The only thing bothering Roma right now is the price of acquiring Radja Nainggolan on a permanent basis from Cagliari. Per Tuttosport (via Football Italia), the fee for his "other" 50 percent is spiralling after some wicked showings.
Roma play Udinese on January 6 at 11:30 a.m. GMT.
7. Juventus
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Last Week: 7
Differential: -
Juventus open their 2015 calendar to find a glamorous tie with Internazionale to kick off the year. They'll tussle with Roberto Mancini's men on January 6.
6. Manchester City
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Last Week: 5
Differential: -1
Manchester City were in cruise control, up 2-0, against Burnley on Sunday, but suddenly, the unthinkable occurred. A 2-2 draw against Sean Dyche's men is a disaster.
Perhaps they hit new levels of complacency? Perhaps the Clarets simply earned those points by not giving up, as so many do at the Etihad Stadium, particularly when they're two goals down.
Either way, it's a shame for manager Manuel Pellegrini—particularly after watching Chelsea drop points to Southampton.
5. Atletico Madrid
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Last Week: 6
Differential: +1
Atletico Madrid have been busy off the field, securing the services of Fernando Torres to help beef up their attack in 2015. Los Colchoneros' best player, Koke, has warned the Spaniard is an unstoppable goalscoring force that will help his team retain the Liga title, per the Mail Online's Stuart Fraser.
4. Chelsea
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Last Week: 3
Differential: -1
Chelsea huffed and puffed for 90 minutes on Sunday, but they failed to score enough goals to defeat a well-organised, rigid Southampton defensive line.
Eden Hazard's mesmeric goal earned a point, but Toby Alderweireld slammed the door shut in the second half, and the Blues will see this one as two points dropped.
3. Barcelona
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Last Week: 4
Differential: +1
We are all eagerly looking forward to a match we thought we'd never see: David Moyes (Real Sociedad) vs. Barcelona on Sunday, January 4.
"CAS upholds Fifa's two transfer window ban against Barcelona. Can't sign anyone until January 2016
— Kieran Canning (@KieranCanning) December 30, 2014"
2. Bayern Munich
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Last Week: 2
Differential: -
Frozen for duration of winter break
Bayern Munich's players are off relaxing, but we're willing to bet manager Pep Guardiola is spending days in the film room searching for Real Madrid's weaknesses.
1. Real Madrid
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Last Week: 1
Differential: -
The possible scenarios for Real Madrid losing the top spot this past week without playing were failing to win the Club World Cup (which they didn't) or Chelsea beating Southampton about 10-0 (they actually drew).
Los Blancos resume action on Sunday, January 4 against Valencia.
