La Liga Player Rankings: Messi and Neymar Star Showings Force Changes at the Top
As we move into the final 10 games of the season in La Liga, every point and big performance can count for plenty at both ends of the table, and several impressive individuals displays from Jornada 29 have led to changes in our latest player rankings.
As usual, we have analysed each game over the weekend 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.
Mentions
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Villarreal's Mateo Musacchio was absent from the squad again this weekend and drops from our 20 as a result. Likewise, the absence from the team of Lucas Perez means the Deportivo La Coruna striker departs. The third and final name to leave the 20 is Malaga's striker Charles.
On the verge of our 20
Juanfran, ATM
Keylor Navas, RMA
Iker Muniain, ATH
Still on the watch list
Asier Illarramendi, RSO
Bruno Soriano, VIL
Inigo Lekue, ATH
Antonio Adan, BET
Alfred N'Diaye, BET
Jordi Alba, FCB
Gabi, ATM
20. Willian Jose, LPA
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New entry
Las Palmas haven't had many players in our rankings this season as they have been inconsistent and struggling at the foot of the table for most of the campaign, but the past month or so has seen a huge turnaround.
Striker Willian Jose has been one of those benefiting most from a more aggressive and direct nature of the team, and he has netted three in his last five games, including one at the weekend in the 2-1 defeat to Real Madrid.
The Brazilian forward's non-stop running, good movement in behind and sure first touch all contributed to ensure he gave the opposition defence a tough game.
19. Charly Musonda, BET
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No change
No movement for Charly Musonda, but despite being on the losing side this weekend, he can take solace from being one of Real Betis' better performers as they lost 3-1 at Athletic Club Bilbao.
The winger operated from the left this time and was Betis' best outlet, never afraid to run at the defence whenever in possession, even when he was starting from deep inside his own half.
Musonda showed good vision to switch play to the far flank a number of times, an indication of his capacity to play centrally in future.
His good start to life in La Liga continues.
18. Raul Albentosa, MGA
4 of 21
New entry
Malaga returned to winning ways at the weekend as they claimed a 1-0 victory over Sporting Gijon on Friday night, with Raul Albentosa back to his best in an imperious defensive display.
The centre-back has only been out of the top 20 for a handful of weeks and his consistency has returned of late, putting in a lot of work on the night to help ensure the clean sheet and a move into the top half for his team.
Albentosa was dominant aerially and stayed aggressive in the challenge throughout.
17. Sergio Busquets, FCB
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Down 2
Sergio Busquets missed Barcelona's win over Getafe at the weekend. Missing another game out of the next two will see him drop from the top 20, following a suspension a couple of weeks back.
16. Iago Aspas, CEL
6 of 21
Up 2
Celta Vigo got back to winning ways with a 1-0 victory over Real Sociedad, courtesy of a beautiful lobbed finish by Iago Aspas.
Quite aside from being the match-winner, Aspas' ability to cut in off the right flank and make diagonal runs behind La Real's defence made him a constant threat. He also managed to create several scoring chances for others by luring the defence out of shape and creating space.
Aspas later moved central and continued to be a problem that Real Sociedad couldn't really handle, and his 11th goal of the season keeps Celta in the hunt for a Europa League spot.
15. Ignacio Camacho, MGA
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Down 1
Like Busquets, Camacho faces moving out of the 20 entirely if he misses one of the next two games, after he missed this week's match through suspension.
14. Gerard Pique, FCB
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New entry
Rather high for a new face to break into the 20, but Gerard Pique benefits from some consistent displays of his own of late, combined with a couple of the lower-ranked players not featuring this week.
The Barcelona centre-back was instrumental in his side's ability to withstand Getafe's early threat in the Catalan club's win, before later showing the other side of his game as he moved into midfield with skill at times and also setting up Arda Turan to score.
Pique's great form is mirroring last season, when he finished the campaign on a real high.
13. Filipe Luis, ATM
9 of 21
Up 4
Filipe Luis put in another terrific display for Atletico Madrid at the weekend, and his form now is far superior to his first half of the campaign.
Diego Simeone and the rest of the management at the club must feel vindicated that their decision to sign him back—a year after selling him to Chelsea—is paying off, though it didn't always look like that would be the case earlier this season.
At the weekend, Luis was a key player as Atleti won 3-0 against Depor; he was an offensive outlet all game and provided plenty of service from the left side of the pitch.
12. Cristiano Ronaldo, RMA
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Down 2
Cristiano Ronaldo's inconsistencies this season have mirrored those of the Real Madrid team, and the win over Las Palmas probably goes down as a game where his own low-key display was as a result of those behind him offering no service or support.
Real were extremely poor in general, created little of note and won off two set pieces, though in open play it was certainly Ronaldo was the greatest, although sporadic, threat on goal.
A few times he was involved in altercations with the defence which left him frustrated, and it was the type of performance which sums up why Real won't win La Liga this season.
11. Victor Ruiz, VIL
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Down 3
Villarreal centre-back Victor Ruiz's form has dropped off alarmingly in the last few matches, and perhaps it's a sign that Marcelino's rotation of a previously settled team is starting to have an effect.
The Yellow Submarine lost 4-2 to Sevilla to open up the race for fourth place again, with Ruiz culpable for at least two.
He scored an own goal off a low cross and was terrorised by Kevin Gameiro throughout, while also losing an aerial battle for the first goal.
10. Alphonse Areola, VIL
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Up 2
He conceded four, so we couldn't exactly say Alphonse Areola had his best game of the season, but the truth is that Sevilla may well have had this match put to bed much earlier if not for the on-loan Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper.
Areola made two or three vital stops when the scores were level at 2-2 and was unlucky more than once later on.
There was nothing he could do about Yevhen Konoplyanka's marvellous strike, and he initially saved Gameiro's effort on the fourth goal...only for there to be no defence following up to challenge Jose Reyes, who had a tap-in.
Four conceded, but certainly no mark against Areola's season on this occasion.
9. Neymar, FCB
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Up 4
A big performance from Neymar this weekend helped Barcelona romp to a 6-0 win over Getafe, and the Brazilian was central to much of the Catalan club's best attacking moves.
He ended up with two goals to his name, but rather than appreciating him merely being on the scoresheet, it was Neymar's movement initially and then his finishing which really impressed—a confident first-time stroke at pace into the far corner was particularly noteworthy.
Dribbling at defenders is Neymar's chief trading tool, and he used it at will over the weekend. Fouling him relentlessly was the away team's only method of coping.
8. Luka Modric, RMA
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Down 1
Luka Modric was not, by a long shot, the worst Real Madrid player on the park against Las Palmas.
He worked reasonably hard at times—especially during the first half—and was always looking to counter-attack into space behind the midfield when Real won back possession in the middle third, largely freed of his defensive responsibilities thanks to the presence of Casemiro.
That said, he had minimal impact on Real's play with a lack of movement ahead of him, and he was missing from the last half-hour of the game when Las Palmas went all-out to get back into the game. He was subbed in the last minute.
7. Koke, ATM
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Up 2
A complete performance from Koke this weekend, and the Atletico Madrid midfielder is in his best run of form of the season. As that also applies to team-mate Gabi, it's not hard to see where the recent improvement in the final third for the team has come from.
Against Depor, Koke occupied both wide and central roles during the game, was fantastic with his movement behind the defence, played quick passes across the penalty area and could have been a goal threat himself had he been a little more selfish or aware.
He ended with an assist and was a key performer in the 3-0 win.
6. Luis Suarez, FCB
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Down 5
Luis Suarez didn't play at the weekend against Getafe. His large drop is partly due to two standard—rather than outstanding—displays beforehand, as well as several impressive performers immediately below him in the rankings.
5. Diego Godin, ATM
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Up 1
Diego Godin moves into the top five after another big defensive display for Atletico, with Deportivo simply having no answer to the tenacity and determination of the entire back line.
The Uruguayan was imperious in his aerial work and covering behind the full-backs on the rare occasions Depor managed to flood a few bodies forward. He was also a threat in the attacking half off set pieces.
A standard performance for Godin is one which is defensively perfect in almost every way, and that's what he produced against Depor.
4. Jan Oblak, ATM
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Down 2
There's no negative spin on Jan Oblak's performance from the same game—he made one big save and kept another clean sheet.
His handling was good off crosses and set pieces, and his distribution is an overlooked part of his game, being quick to release to put Atletico on the counter.
That said, it's hard to get a high rating every match when only called upon to intervene a few times and with his defence in truly outstanding form this time, it costs Oblak in our rolling six-game average, meaning he drops below those who impressed significantly.
3. Josema Gimenez, ATM
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Up 1
And one of those leapfrogging Oblak is his chief protector, Josema Gimenez. Along with Godin and Oblak, he makes up Atleti's magical defensive triangle—a troika of impassable wizards who blend timing and tenacity, determination and daring, consistency and composure.
Gimenez was his usual excellent self, diving into two challenges with perfect accuracy to stop dangerous-looking counters and moving the ball into midfield with great pace and drive on more than one occasion.
He's by far La Liga's most consistent young defender, and it speaks volumes of his ability that he has been part of the best defence in Europe.
2. Lionel Messi, FCB
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Up 3
Lionel Messi shoots into the podium spots for the first time in what feels like an age, after running riot against Getafe.
His dribbling in one-on-one situations, ability to open up space and diagonal passes made a mockery of any semblance of organisation in the Getafe defence.
The Barcelona No. 10 claimed three assists, but it could have been double that figure with a little more poise or luck from those on the receiving end of his through balls.
Messi also found the back of the net himself and even had time to add another missed penalty to his growing collection.
1. Saul Niguez, ATM
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Up 2
A new face at the top of our charts, with Saul Niguez of Atletico Madrid hammering home the point of his improvement, importance and irreplaceable nature in Los Rojiblancos' XI by moving to the No. 1 spot.
Saul was almost a mirror image of Koke against Depor; playing on the opposite side, moving into the middle and having a great impact in the penalty box.
Saul opened the scoring with a powerful and fearless header on the run and created plenty of openings for his team with his relentless searching passes and ability to beat defenders for pace and power.
Defensively he did a great job too, making one superb block on the line and winning back the ball in midfield countless times.
With Saul in top form, Koke and Gabi improving and Griezmann back in scoring form, it's no wonder Atletico have stayed in touch with Barcelona at the top—but it still hasn't been enough to overhaul the Catalan club as yet.
