Ranking the Top 25 European Clubs After Weekend of January 3-4
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.
Right before the Serie A slate resumes, we take stock of the top clubs. English teams have been very busy, the Germans are still on a break and the Spanish and French are back in action.
Disagree with our order? Join the conversation in the comments below!
The previous edition can be seen here.
On the Radar
1 of 26
Dropping Out
None! For the first time in a while, no club drops out of the ranking.
On the Radar
Tottenham Hotspur: Can feel very unlucky not to be in, but no club deserved to drop.
Saint-Etienne
Liverpool
Still Missing
Borussia Dortmund
25. Villarreal
2 of 26
Last Week: 23
Differential: -2
Villarreal dropped a clanger this weekend. After taking a two-goal lead early against basement-dwellers Elche, they allowed the relegation candidates to fight back and claim a priceless point.
Luciano Vietto and Denis Cheryshev played well again, but given rivals Valencia and Sevilla both won, this counts as a rough, damaging day.
24. Monaco
3 of 26
Last Week: 22
Differential: -2
Monaco defeated Nimes Olympique 2-0 in the Coupe de France, with the most important aspect of the result coming in the form of a clean sheet.
If they're to stage an upset and gatecrash the Ligue 1 top order, they'll need to found their effort on defensive solidity given that their attacking assets have been stripped.
Les Monegasques move down only because of two huge wins from direct competitors around them in the ranking.
23. Southampton
4 of 26
Last Week: 25
Differential: +2
Southampton's 2-0 victory over Arsenal was mightily impressive for a number of reasons, chief of which was the fact they won without key men Morgan Schneiderlin and Nathaniel Clyne. Even with Maya Yoshida in defence, the Gunners couldn't find a way through.
Ronald Koeman's men have consolidated in fourth place.
22. Valencia
5 of 26
Last Week: 24
Differential: +2
Valencia produced the result of the weekend, beating Real Madrid 2-1 thanks to a gritty, determined performance. Nicolas Otamendi, in particular, had another stunning day.
The three points allowed Los Che to close the gap to the top after Barcelona lost too. Enzo Perez also made an encouraging debut. Now that Valencia aren't threatened by bankruptcy at every turn, they're starting to present a real challenge to the established top order.
21. Ajax
6 of 26
Last Week: 21
Differential: -
Ajax are on a short winter break and will resume service on January 16 versus Groningen.
20. PSV Eindhoven
7 of 26
Last Week: 20
Differential: -
PSV Eindhoven are on a short winter break and will resume service on January 17 versus Vitesse.
19. Sevilla
8 of 26
Last Week: 19
Differential: -
Nico Pareja had himself one hell of a day on Saturday, scoring the only goal as Sevilla beat Celta Vigo and defending stoutly to preserve a clean sheet.
Los Rojiblancos have proved themselves unlikely to sustain a Liga title challenge given the shaky nature of some displays, but they are nevertheless within touching distance as it stands.
18. Bayer Leverkusen
9 of 26
Last Week: 18
Differential: -
Bayer Leverkusen are frozen in 18th place during their winter break.
17. Napoli
10 of 26
Last Week: 17
Differential: -
Napoli have had a busy start to the transfer window, securing Ivan Strinic and Manolo Gabbiadini, per The Siren's Song, and have set their sights on Aston Villa's Ron Vlaar, per Il Mattino (h/t Eurosport).
With Faouzi Ghoulam off to the Africa Cup of Nations, the Strinic signing is especially prudent.
16. Olympique Lyonnais
11 of 26
Last Week: 16
Differential: -
Lyon progressed to the next round of the Coupe de France this weekend, beating RC Lens 3-2 at the Stade de l'Epopee.
Nabil Fekir and Alexandre Lacazette both found the scoresheet, obviously, as both re-enforced their high standing in B/R's 100 to watch in 2015.
15. Arsenal
12 of 26
Last Week: 11
Differential: -5
Arsenal's topsy-turvy season continued as they lost ground on the Premier League top four again, losing to Southampton on New Year's Day, 2-0.
It was one of the Gunners' worst performances this season despite the Saints missing Morgan Schneiderlin and Nathaniel Clyne, and the tepid 2-0 win over Hull City this weekend doesn't quite make up for it.
14. Manchester United
13 of 26
Last Week: 15
Differential: +1
Manchester United endured a frustrating Christmas and New Year period, drawing too many games and struggling to overcome Yeovil in the FA Cup.
The team are now feeling renewed expectancy and pressure to perform given their strong start, but they are welcoming in injured victims, and it was fantastic to see Angel Di Maria back this weekend.
13. Marseille
14 of 26
Last Week: 13
Differential: -
Marseille suffered the ignominy of losing to Grenoble Foot 38 in the Coupe de France on Sunday, beginning 2015 on a raw note.
A 3-3 draw over 120 minutes with a team that were declared bankrupt and relegated to the fifth French division in 2011 is not good. Losing on penalties afterward is even worse.
12. Paris Saint-Germain
15 of 26
Last Week: 14
Differential: +2
Montpellier held out for as long as possible on what Zlatan Ibrahimovic described (in so many words) as a subpar pitch, but they eventually yielded three goals to exit the Coupe de France.
Clement Chantome, Ibra and lastly Lucas Moura did the damage, setting Paris Saint-Germain on the front foot despite missing two key players for arriving back to squad duty late. We're looking at you, Edinson Cavani.
11. FC Porto
16 of 26
Last Week: 12
Differential: +1
FC Porto laid out their intent to catch Benfica and haul in the Liga Sagres title on their return to the pitch, smashing Gil Vicente 5-1 away from home.
Casemiro, Jackson Martinez, Oliver Torres, Yacine Brahimi and Bruno Martins Indi all found the back of the net as Julen Lopetegui's men ran rampant.
10. Wolfsburg
17 of 26
Last Week: 10
Differential: -
Wolfsburg are frozen in 10th place during their winter break.
9. Benfica
18 of 26
Last Week: 9
Differential: -
The best way to recover from the loss of Enzo Perez? The doctors often suggest a 3-0 away victory. That's exactly what Benfica achieved, beating Penafiel after a late flurry of goals.
The Portuguese outfit welcomed Anderson Talisca back to the scoresheet and saw Jonas' good form continue into 2015.
8. Roma
19 of 26
Last Week: 8
Differential: -
Per Metro, Petr Cech has been given permission to speak to Roma as he seeks first-team football. Kevin Strootman is now back up to fitness and looks to be ticking over, giving Rudi Garcia his brilliant midfield in full once again.
7. Juventus
20 of 26
Last Week: 7
Differential: -
This, for many, is where Internazionale's season starts under Roberto Mancini, and Juventus will be looking to play spoiler.
They begin 2015 with a game against the Nerazzurri, but it's hardly been slow in the transfer gossip column in the meantime.
6. Chelsea
21 of 26
Last Week: 4
Differential: -2
Chelsea drop out of the top five in our rankings for the first time in a long time, and they're no longer the top-ranked English club.
They've failed to win in their last two league games, conceded five in one sitting against London rivals Tottenham Hotspur on New Year's Day, and a 3-0 win over Watford in the FA Cup can't save them from sliding.
5. Barcelona
22 of 26
Last Week: 3
Differential: -1
The David Moyes effect.
Shots: Real Sociedad 6-17 Barcelona
Possession: Real Sociedad 30 percent-70 percent Barcelona
Score: Real Sociedad 1-0 Barcelona
The fallout? Andoni Zubizarreta and Carles Puyol leave their posts at Barcelona, per ESPN, and the club fail to take advantage of Real Madrid's stunning loss to Valencia.
4. Manchester City
23 of 26
Last Week: 6
Differential: +2
Manchester City narrowly avoided a major "Cupset" this weekend, coming from behind to beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium.
James Milner arose the hero, as he so often has in recent weeks, while Manuel Pellegrini toiled on with so many injuries to his forward line.
3. Atletico Madrid
24 of 26
Last Week: 4
Differential: +1
Atletico Madrid's restart to La Liga life was business as usual; perhaps the only surprising part is that Levante managed a goal.
Antoine Griezmann shone again, and now with the addition of Fernando Torres, Mario Mandzukic can have a little rest—he's played a lot of football.
2. Bayern Munich
25 of 26
Last Week: 2
Differential: -
Bayern Munich are frozen in second place during their winter break.
1. Real Madrid
26 of 26
Last Week: 1
Differential: -
Real Madrid's absurd winning streak screeches to a halt in spectacular style, giving up a lead at Mestalla and losing 2-1 to title pretenders (contenders?) Valencia.
Cristiano Ronaldo's early penalty gave Carlo Ancelotti's men the perfect return to Liga life, but a number of poor individual showings, including Gareth Bale's, conspired to aid a comeback victory for the home side.
Los Blancos are so lucky that Bayern Munich (frozen) are on a winter break and Barcelona also slipped up. They retain top spot.
