La Liga Player Rankings: Big Drop for Neymar, Suarez Stays Top, Koke, Saul Surge
Jornada 26 saw some big results in both halves of the table, with the relegation battle shaping up as one or two teams look to pull away from the strugglers. At the other end, Atletico Madrid's win in El Derbi Madrileno against Real means the title looks like a two-horse race in the final months of the season.
As usual, we have analysed each game to update our player rankings; the rankings are based on players' last six games and are continually updated throughout the season, with slightly more emphasis placed on their most recent outing.
Only Liga performances are counted, and typically, one-week wonders do not find their way in—instead, see our Team of the Week for the top performers over a single weekend.
We look beyond the statistical measures and into the performance, reviewing tape to gauge impact. It's not just goals, assists and heroic clearances that impress; it's about how a player contributes to the tactical plan at hand and what impact he has over the entire 90-minute period.
On a final note, these are the rankings for the weekend fixtures only, not Jornada 27, which takes place midweek across Tuesday to Thursday.
Mentions
1 of 21
Nobody exits our top 20 this week, so no new faces for the first time in a while.
Still on the watchlist
Gerard Pique, FCB
Jozabed, RAY
Borja Baston, EIB
Filipe Luis, ATM
Dani Carvajal, RMA
Charly Musonda, BET
Raul Albentosa, MGA
Asier Illarramendi, RSO
Bruno Soriano, VIL
20. Charles, MGA
2 of 21
No change
Charles put in another hard-working performance without reward at the weekend, helping Malaga to a 1-1 draw at Real Sociedad.
His movement off the ball and running in the channels makes him a nightmare for defenders to tie down to one area of the pitch and mark, but he also lacks support from the second line of attack too often to really open up defences on his own.
It's just one goal in his last six Liga games now for Charles, but he brings a lot more to the team than just goals.
19. Andres Iniesta, FCB
3 of 21
Down 1
Andres Iniesta was left on the bench for Barcelona's match against Sevilla, only coming on for the last 25 minutes with his side already 2-1 ahead.
He didn't make a huge amount of impact, but he used the ball reasonably well, moving possession along and ensuring his team kept control of the game.
18. Iago Aspas, CEL
4 of 21
Down 1
Iago Aspas again played from the right side for Celta Vigo as they beat Getafe 1-0 to pick up a second consecutive victory.
For once he wasn't overly involved in Celta's build-up play in key areas, as they funnelled much of their attacking emphasis through the centre. Later, he switched to centre-forward when Nolito's entrance as a substitute prompted a reshuffle, but his sights of goal were limited.
Aspas was subbed late on.
17. Sergio Busquets, FCB
5 of 21
Up 2
Sergio Busquets made our Team of the Week for his display against Sevilla.
The holding midfielder was kept busy by constant counter-attacks from the away team in the second half, while Sevilla actually controlled the game for spells in the first 45 minutes and Busquets was forced into a number of interceptions as he protected the back line.
After the break, his calmness and vision in possession was more evident as Barcelona pushed forward and kept Sevilla pinned back.
16. Karim Benzema, RMA
6 of 21
Down 3
Saturday wasn't the happiest of days for anyone connected with Real Madrid, as they lost 1-0 to Atletico Madrid in the derby.
Karim Benzema started up front but was replaced by Borja Mayoral at half-time.
His runs behind the defence while he was on the pitch were sporadic at best and ineffective too often, with Real playing slowly and in front of the back four. Benzema had little impact—like most of his team-mates.
15. Lucas Perez, DEP
7 of 21
Down 4
A sharp drop for Lucas Perez in the rankings, who was a willing runner for Deportivo La Coruna but has fallen well short of form in these last few weeks—like his team overall. Another nondescript performance will see him out of the top 20 next time out.
The 1-0 defeat to Granada highlighted Depor's fall from grace over the last few months, and a poor run of form sees them down to 10th in La Liga.
Lucas managed to get a number of snap-shots away but clear chances were few and far between, and his radar was off target, too—he rarely tested the goalkeeper and now has two goals in his last 850 minutes of Liga football.
14. Alphonse Areola, VIL
8 of 21
Up 2
Another game, another clean sheet for Alphonse Areola.
It's probable there aren't too many players out on loan around Europe's top leagues this season who have benefited as much and grown as much as a player as the Paris Saint-Germain stopper has at Villarreal.
He wasn't tested too much by Levante's powder-puff attack, and a routine 3-0 win was reward for the Yellow Submarine, who were far better. Areola has now kept seven clean sheets in his last eight Liga fixtures, representing excellent consistency.
13. Cristiano Ronaldo, RMA
9 of 21
Up 2
Cristiano Ronaldo might have missed two great chances to give his side a point or more against Atletico Madrid, but our rankings are worth more than just goalscoring stats—he was comfortably the most dangerous Real Madrid player on the pitch, one of the few who fought and lead the way forward. Taken in context, his overall display was actually reasonably good.
He rises in our rankings, then, while Benzema and Lucas drop, but it will be of little consolation given the defeat has all but ended Real's title hopes.
Ronaldo was clearly displeased by the team's performance, and they need greater consistency quickly.
12. Ignacio Camacho, MGA
10 of 21
Down 2
Ignacio Camacho was suspended for Malaga at the weekend.
11. Koke, ATM
11 of 21
Up 3
Koke's upturn in form in 2016 continued with a hard-working and pivotal display for Atletico in El Derbi.
Playing from the left of the narrow four-man midfield, Koke was always quick to close down Real's central players in possession, make challenges to force them backward or cover in front of his full-back when required.
On the ball, he was as good as anyone else on the pitch, contributing to Atletico's more attack-minded second-half display with his channel running and set-piece delivery.
10. Neymar, FCB
12 of 21
Down 6
Neymar has been among the top performers in La Liga for the season overall, but he has hit a few speed bumps in his individual form in recent weeks. A largely non-existent showing against Sevilla sees him take a sharp drop down the rankings.
Despite seeing plenty of the ball, Neymar didn't really create too many openings for himself with dribbles into crowds of players, a lack of end product in his passing from good positions at times and no real threat inside the penalty box, except for one or two shots.
He'll no doubt return to top form soon, but this is well below what he is capable of.
9. Lionel Messi, FCB
13 of 21
No change
Messi leapfrogs one or two players, including Neymar, but he doesn't actually move positions because of others' recent form and accumulated score.
At the weekend, his own performance was largely good, providing more movement off the ball and attempts to open up Sevilla's back line than we have seen from him in recent matches.
His free-kick strike was simply sublime, and Messi was also involved in the build-up to the winning goal for Barcelona.
8. Jose Gimenez, ATM
14 of 21
Up 4
The performance of the weekend came from Jose Gimenez. He's been an outstanding defender all season long for Atletico Madrid, and he'd likely be on our podium places, perhaps even top, if it wasn't for occasionally missing a game.
Gimenez was rotated twice in January and missed a game recently through suspension, all of which contribute along the way to his rolling six-game assessment.
At the weekend, though, he was at his very best, reading the game absolutely perfectly to cover in behind when needed, being aggressive and direct at other times to simply make challenges or clearances and keeping his concentration throughout to help preserve the clean sheet.
7. Mateo Musacchio, VIL
15 of 21
Up 1
A small rise for Mateo Musacchio, who returned from injury this weekend to do the job he needed to do before being rested early.
The Argentinian played the first 45 minutes as Villarreal comfortably swept aside Levante 3-0 and, in truth, had very little to do.
He was composed, did the few things he needed to do and, most importantly, showed he was back to fitness.
6. Victor Ruiz, VIL
16 of 21
Up 1
Victor Ruiz put in a similar performance to Musacchio, with the exception of playing the second half instead of the first—it was he who replaced the Argentinian.
With a build-up of UEFA Europa League games, manager Marcelino is clearly trying to balance the minutes of his squad on the pitch, with fourth place looking assured in La Liga.
Ruiz's game was straight-forward as Villarreal controlled possession, and he had to do very little to help with the clean sheet.
5. Luka Modric, RMA
17 of 21
Down 2
Last time out, Luka Modric played extremely well as Real Madrid, in general, did not; this time, Real Madrid didn't play too well, and Modric was included in that group.
He was far too easily moved off the ball and kept out of the game by Atletico's hard-working midfield quartet, couldn't find space between the lines to either receive possession or play clever passes and was rarely a direct threat on goal from inside the final third.
Modric has been one of Real's top performers over the course of the season, but it didn't happen for him on this big occasion.
4. Diego Godin, ATM
18 of 21
Up 1
Gimenez might have been the star at the back for Atletico, but Diego Godin wasn't too far behind.
The Uruguayan was exceptional with his willingness to stay tight to Benzema in the first half, often following him into midfield to make a quick challenge and trusting those behind him to fill the gaps.
He misjudged things aerially once or twice, but by and large, it was a physically dominant and technically impressive performance again.
3. Saul Niguez, ATM
19 of 21
Up 3
Back onto the podium positions is Saul Niguez, Atletico's midfield all-rounder who has been superb over the last three months.
His capacity to contribute in equal measure to both the defensive and offensive phases of play make him a perfect fit for the team's style and requirements, and he absolutely bossed Real Madrid's attempts to create danger down their own inside left channel.
Like Koke on the opposite side, Saul worked back in front of his full-back, surged forward to create danger and almost scored a second goal himself.
2. Jan Oblak, ATM
20 of 21
No change
Another game, another clean sheet! Jan Oblak has 18 shutouts from his 27 matches in La Liga, a phenomenal rate that he contributes to every bit as much as his defenders in front of him.
The weekend saw a relatively incident-free match for Oblak, who made routine saves from Cristiano Ronaldo and saw one effort from the same opponent fly past the far post. But aside from actual interventions on shots, he was fast off his line, claimed crosses and set pieces well and his distribution was excellent.
Oblak now has an average rate of conceding once every 220 minutes of league play.
1. Luis Suarez, FCB
21 of 21
No change
It wasn't a standout performance from Luis Suarez against Sevilla, but it was enough of an effective one to keep him top of our player rankings from Spain's top flight.
The Barcelona No. 9 was unlucky not to score on at least one occasion, striking the woodwork, while he also set up the winning goal with a surge inside the penalty box and smart lay-off for Gerard Pique.
Hard work comes as standard, as does his clever movement and first touch, and Suarez continues to help Barcelona stay top of the table.
