European Club Rankings: Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Roma on the Up
It was a weekend in which big games were played out across Europe. Arsenal met Manchester United in a match that reshaped the race for the Premier League top four; Borussia Dortmund met TSG Hoffenheim in a direct tussle for third in the Bundesliga; and AS Roma travelled to AC Milan for a Sunday night blockbuster in Serie A.
The rankings are season-long in their measurement of clubs. Previous editions only took recent form into account (spanning four to six weeks), but this version tracks teams throughout 2016-17.
Teams that have lost the fewest games in all competitions naturally rank higher, and Champions League form and presence is used as a tiebreaker for those with similar records.
25-21
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25. Atalanta (-1)
Atalanta have lost a little steam of late, drawing four of their last six Serie A games, the latest of which came against Udinese on Sunday. Still, with Milan losing, the points gap between the two teams extends from five to six. That's European football all but guaranteed for the Bergamo side next season.
24. TSG Hoffenheim (-2)
Hoffenheim offered Borussia Dortmund a huge advantage in the race for automatic Champions League football next season, falling 2-1 to them on Saturday and slipping to fourth in the process.
23. FC Porto (-3)
FC Porto have drawn several key games down the stretch, and finally, on Saturday, it cost them. While Benfica have generally reciprocated with a draw themselves, keeping title dreams alive, the Eagles won on Sunday to effectively end the race.
22. OGC Nice (-1)
A loss to Marseille at the Stade Velodrome officially ended Nice's approximate one per cent chance of winning the Ligue 1 title this season. Third is where they'll finish, but they'll be proud of that.
21. Arsenal (+2)
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger finally recorded his first competitive victory over Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho, and although it was against a somewhat weakened team, it'll taste sweet nonetheless.
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20. Ajax (New!)
Watching Ajax blow the doors off Lyon last Wednesday was an exhilarating experience. They play sumptuous football, trusting young players to perform on the big stage, and it's likely to result in a Europa League final come the end of the month.
19. Liverpool (-1)
"The pitch was really dry," manager Jurgen Klopp said after Liverpool's 0-0 stalemate with Southampton on Sunday. As excuses go, that's not a convincing one.
18. Manchester City (+1)
Manchester City recorded their biggest Premier League victory under Pep Guardiola on Saturday, smashing Crystal Palace 5-0. Finally, it all comes together in one 90-minute window for the Spaniard.
17. Manchester United (Stay)
Manchester United took command of their Europa League tie with Celta Vigo on Thursday, winning 1-0 in Spain, but they lost 2-0 at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday to weaken their league position.
16. Sevilla (-2)
A 1-1 draw with Real Sociedad, in conjunction with Villarreal's loss to Barcelona, essentially secured fourth place in La Liga for Los Rojiblancos. If they have to find a new manager this summer, they can at least offer Champions League football as a bargaining chip.
15-11
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15. Lazio (Stay)
Lazio hit 70 points for the Serie A season in style. They put seven past Sampdoria, with man-of-the-moment Balde Keita netting in just the second minute to signal an onslaught of epic proportions.
14. AS Roma (+2)
Had it not been for Gianluigi Donnarumma, Roma might well have put eight past Milan at the weekend. The 4-1 victory was inclusive of some scintillating stuff from Luciano Spalletti's charges.
13. RB Leipzig (Stay)
RB Leipzig officially confirmed automatic Champions League football for next season with a 4-1 victory over Hertha Berlin. Timo Werner is now just one goal away from the vaunted 20 mark for the season.
12. Tottenham Hotspur (-1)
It all went wrong for Tottenham Hotspur on Friday night. A disgraceful performance all but ended their slim Premier League title hopes, with myriad problems at the root of a 1-0 loss to West Ham United.
11. Benfica (+1)
Benfica's 1-0 win away to Rio Ave all but sealed yet another Primeira Liga title. With Porto drawing the day before, the three-point haul extended the gap to five (with two to play).
10. Napoli
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Last Week: 10th
Movement: None
This weekend, yet another video of Napoli's sensational footballing style went viral on social media. It's arguably the most impressive yet, as it showcases how to escape pressure deep in your own territory in the most eye-popping of fashions.
In the game the clip is from, a 3-1 victory over Cagliari, midfielder Jorginho completed an astonishing 181 passes. How often do you see numbers like that?
The Partenopei play the most aesthetically pleasing football in Europe, if not the world. As a result, manager Maurizio Sarri's stock is on a rapid rise that could easily pave the way for links to titanic clubs this summer.
9. Paris Saint-Germain
5 of 13
Last Week: 9th
Movement: None
Paris Saint-Germain's victory against Bastia on Saturday was not without controversy: Marco Verratti netted while the opposing goalkeeper, Jean-Louis Leca, stood to the side of his net, tending to the seemingly injured Blaise Matuidi.
It sparked a fire in proceedings to say the least, with the game unfolding into a series of dramatic events. Edinson Cavani was at the heart of it, netting two, seeing two more ruled out and missing a penalty—all in a 30-minute spell.
8. Borussia Dortmund
6 of 13
Last Week: 8th
Movement: None
One of the biggest games of the European football weekend took place at Signal Iduna Park, where Borussia Dortmund beat Hoffenheim to leapfrog them into third place in the Bundesliga.
Marco Reus built on an impressive April by starting May with a goal, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang made it two late on.
Andrej Kramaric's free-kick ended up a mere consolation as BVB took a big step towards automatic qualification for Champions League football next season.
7. Atletico Madrid
7 of 13
Last Week: 6th
Movement: -1
Atletico Madrid's dismal performance at the Santiago Bernabeu last week was the worst showing the team have produced in a big game under Diego Simeone. It was, in every single way, so incredibly unlike the Atleti we've come to know and appreciate.
Defensively, they collapsed in on themselves after about five minutes, and the 3-0 scoreline ended up flattering them. A comeback for the ages is required if they're to turn this around now.
Saturday saw them squeak past Eibar 1-0, all but sealing third place and therefore Champions League football for next season. But with this team seemingly coming to the end of its cycle and Antoine Griezmann perhaps leaving, have Los Colchoneros blown their last chance to achieve European glory for a long while?
6. Bayern Munich
8 of 13
Last Week: 7th
Movement: +1
Anyone who thinks all is well again at Bayern Munich is mistaken.
They may have secured the Bundesliga title with a thumping win over Wolfsburg last week, but they had to scrape their latest victory—1-0 at home to SV Darmstadt 98—from the bottom of a barrel.
Reserve goalkeeper Tom Starke was the hero, saving a penalty to ensure the league's bottom-placed club didn't grab a surprise point.
Carlo Ancelotti took advantage of the pressure-free environment to give Renato Sanches another go in midfield, and he did at least play better than in his last start against Hoffenheim.
5. Chelsea
9 of 13
Last Week: 5th
Movement: None
Chelsea play on Monday evening against Middlesbrough. If they win, they'll pull seven points clear at the top with just three games to go. Ready the champagne.
4. Monaco
10 of 13
Last Week: 3rd
Movement: -1
If AS Monaco qualify for the Champions League final in Cardiff, it'll be because they've staged one of the most unlikely, heroic comebacks in the history of the competition.
A two-goal deficit is hardly the biggest history has seen, but few have had to try to solve the problem that is how to crack this Juventus defence. The Bianconeri are yet to concede in the knockout stages (after five games), and they have not conceded from open play in their entire European campaign.
Things are at least ticking over nicely on domestic turf, though: A 3-0 win on Saturday means they can wrap up the Ligue 1 title before the final day if they continue as they are.
3. Barcelona
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Last Week: 4th
Movement: +1
Barcelona are doing everything they can to make life difficult for Real Madrid in the closing stages of the season.
Refusing to let up and winning consistently in La Liga forces their rivals to pay full attention to domestic and European matters. Zinedine Zidane may have been hoping for a favour this weekend from Villarreal, but Lionel Messi and Co. put them to bed with relative ease.
There are three games left in Luis Enrique's career as Barcelona manager; win them all, and he could achieve a domestic double.
2. Juventus
12 of 13
Last Week: 2nd
Movement: None
Juventus took a commanding lead in their Champions League semi-final last week, beating Monaco 2-0 in the principality to all but end the tie as a contest.
Once again it was not a perfect display—Gianluigi Buffon was put to work, just as he was against Barcelona in the quarter-final—but Gonzalo Higuain stepped forward and scored twice, silencing some of his doubters in the process.
Saturday saw them only manage a draw at home in the Turin derby, but Massimiliano Allegri's wholesale squad rotation (eight changes to the starting XI) in sight of bigger things is a major contribution to that.
1. Real Madrid
13 of 13
Last Week: 1st
Movement: None
There have been times this season where a No. 1 has been tough to choose. Often there's been little to split between, say Real Madrid and Juventus, or perhaps Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.
This week, though, there can be no doubt over who deserves the throne: Los Blancos' superb run has continued, and in the last seven days have beaten Atletico Madrid 3-0 in the Champions League and Granada 4-0 in La Liga.
It's the former result that raised eyebrows across Europe, as their performance was arguably the best they've produced under Zinedine Zidane.
They've all but secured qualification to the final, and no matter who they play, they'll be expected to become the first team to retain the trophy (in its current format).
All statistics via WhoScored.com
