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There is an increasing trend of clubs all across Europe adopting an attacking style of play, which has seen the stock of speedy wingers and versatile attackers go through the roof. Even defenders nowadays are expected to contribute towards goals, with full-backs being given the freedom to move into advanced positions on the flanks.
As a result, the central defenders have to do most of the heavy lifting in the defence. But that does not mean that the only job centre-backs do is to sit back and defend; managers today also entrust them with the responsibility of launching the ball forward, almost like a quarterback.
Though the 2019-20 season was disrupted due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, there have been players who continued their fantastic form either side of the break and ended their season on a high.
On that note, we take a look at the ten defenders in European football leagues who impressed the most this season.
Ten best defenders in European football leagues this season
#10: Ricardo Pereira - Leicester City
Leicester City's transfer policy since their 2015-16 Premier League triumph has been questionable as their new additions failed to add value to the squad. So when the club spent £22 million to bring in defender Ricardo Pereira to The King Power Stadium in the summer of 2018, eyebrows were raised.
However, the former Porto star emerged as a key member of the squad in his very first season at the club and impressed one and all with his athleticism, work-rate and offensive threat. The defender ended up winning both his team's Player of the Season and Players’ Player of the Season for the 2018-19 campaign.
This season, Pereira started off brilliantly at right-back, forming a great partnership with left-back Ben Chilwell who also had an amazing campaign. He improved his goal tally from last season, scoring three goals as well as providing two assists. Before his unfortunate anterior cruciate ligament injury, he boasted some of the league's best defensive stats.
Pereira led not only in the Premier League but across all European leagues in tackles (68) and duels (256) won. His tally of 119 tackles is only bettered by Wilfred Ndidi (124) and Aaron Wan-Bissaka (125).
#9: Alphonso Davies - Bayern Munich
Alphonso Davies emerged as one of the most promising full-backs in the world this season with his standout performances for Bayern Munich.
At just 19 years of age, the defender can still improve the defensive side of his game to become a complete full-back in the coming years.
Davies completed 83 take-ons in the 2019-20 Bundesliga season, which was more than by any other player. Moreover, he registered the top speed of the campaign (36.51 km/h).
He is in the running for the coveted Golden Boy award, after having already won the Bundesliga Rookie of the Season award where he beat Erling Halaand to the honour.
Also See: 5 best centre-backs in the Premier League this season (2019/20)
#8: James Tarkowski - Burnley
Burnley's goalkeeper Nick Pope currently leads the Premier League in clean sheets, managing 15 shutouts in 37 games. Though he deserves all the credit for the same, if not for James Tarkowski's no-nonsense defending in front of him, Pope would've had his hands full this season.
Tarkowski leads the league in clearances (200) as well as headed clearances (111). He also has one of the best aerial duel success rate (73%) in the league while winning the most aerial duels (192) this season.
Tarkowski is second only to Tyrone Mings in blocks for the season, with his tally of 46 just one short of the Aston Villa defender's.
#7: Achraf Hakimi - Borussia Dortmund
Achraf Hakimi saw an incredible improvement in his second season on loan at Borussia Dortmund, as he ended up with ten assists and five goals in 33 appearances for the German club.
His goal contribution was only bettered by Thorgan Hazard, Marco Reus and Jadon Sancho for Die Borussen.
Achraf was utilised in a variety of positions by Lucien Favre throughout the season, and though he was effective in whatever role the manager entrusted him to play, he proved his mettle as a wing-back on the right-hand side of the pitch.
The only weakness in the Morocco international's game seems to be in one-on-one situations during defending.
If the opponents catch him on his unfavourable side, he is easily beaten on the flanks. But that's not going to be a problem for him as it is expected that he will play ahead of a three-man defence at Inter Milan where his main role will be in creating chances from wide positions.
#6: Jesus Navas - Sevilla
Yes, you read that right, Jesus Navas, once a feared winger for Spain and Manchester City, in 2019-20 emerged as one of the best full-backs in Europe with Sevilla.
The shift in the player's role started gradually under Pep Guardiola at the Etihad Stadium. But Navas thinks that the years of covering for Dani Alves at Sevilla between 2002 and 2008 helped him adjust to his new role at the Spanish club.
Despite being confined to a defensive role, Navas attempted 232 crosses and sent in 55 into the penalty area in the La Liga this season. He was a key player as Los Palanganas finished fourth in the league and secured a Champions League spot.
#5: Gerard Pique - Barcelona
Gerard Pique gave everything he had for Barcelona this season and continued to be a leader for them through a disastrous season.
Individually he was excellent, featuring in the upper echelons of the defensive metrics at the end of the season. Pique ranked second for aerial duels won (129) while he was second for headed clearances (90) and fourth for possession won (220).
Barcelona played a possession-based game during the season, and surprisingly Pique saw a lot of that possession as he ended up with the most successful passes for a defender in the Spanish top-flight. His tally of 2681 is only bettered by Virgil Van Dijk across Europe's top leagues.
At 33, Pique might not have the same agility as he used to have earlier and also does not offer an aerial threat from set-pieces, but he obliged with his duties as a centre-back for the Catalan giants.
His poor disciplinary record, with 15 yellow cards - the most in the league - blighted an otherwise decent season for the former Spain international.
Also Read: Top 5 left-backs in the Premier League this season.
#4: Trent Alexander-Arnold - Liverpool
The growth of Trent Alexander-Arnold under Jurgen Klopp has been phenomenal. He has quickly established himself as one of the world's best full-backs and is posting incredible stats for a defender not seen since the peak of Dani Alves at Sevilla and Barcelona.
Obviously, as a defender, his primary responsibility is to save goals from going in rather than scoring or assisting them. He is yet to reach his peak physical condition and thus is weak in aerial duels and one-on-one battles, but he makes up for that with his pace and dribbling skills.
Alexander-Arnold makes 1.6 tackles a game on average while he only makes one interception per game. But when these statistics are taken in consideration with the amount of work he does to get the ball into the final third, it is hard not be impressed by the 21-year-old.
#3: Raphael Varane - Real Madrid
Raphael Varane has been performing at the top level for a long now that it is impossible to imagine a Real Madrid side without him. He has formed one of the best centre-back pairings with Sergio Ramos and was part of the Madrid defence that only conceded 25 goals during the Merengues' victorious campaign.
Varane's contribution to the side is often overlooked, but that is as a result of the French defender's reserved character. He is physically strong, dominant in the air, fast on his feet and shows a burst of acceleration that allows him to make recoveries from dangerous positions.
Apart from the physical attributes that make him perfectly suited for the role, Varane has a great analytical mind that allows him to read the game with ease.
Tackling opposition players is a part of his job description, and thanks to his great technical ability he can do so with ease while rarely committing a foul. This season too, he was very clinical as he only picked up two yellow cards in the La Liga.
#2: Sergio Ramos - Real Madrid
Sergio Ramos valiantly led Real Madrid to their 34th La Liga title through his leadership, commanding defensive displays and even with goals if necessary.
His fierce competitive spirit has very often seen him earning red cards. But Ramos helped the club overcome a one-point deficit with Barcelona after the league restarted and helped Madrid end the season on an 11-game unbeaten streak, winning ten of those games.
Ramos' goalscoring exploits made headlines in the past two months as he ended up scoring a total of 11 goals during the 2019-20 campaign, which was only exceeded by striker Karim Benzema. Though six of them were from the spot, Ramos converted each and every one of his spot-kicks, which is not an easy task.
In 2019-20, Ramos became the only defender to score more than ten goals in a La Liga season since the turn of the century.
Despite his immense contributions in the final third, he remained solid at the back, winning three aerial duels on average every game while making three clearances per game and maintaining a 91% passing accuracy.
Also See: 10 most prolific goal-scoring defenders of all-time.
#1: Virgil Van Dijk - Liverpool
At this point it might seem cliche to state that Virgil Van Dijk is the best defender in the world, but he's just that good and currently in his prime. He helped Liverpool have the best defensive record in the Premier League as he played every single minute during their title-winning campaign.
Van Dijk completed more passes than any other player in the league. With 3148 passes as of 25 July, he leads that stat category across Europe by a good margin.
The Dutchman wins as many as five aerial duels every game and makes 4.4 clearances on average. He is a calm and commanding leader of the Reds' defensive line who leads by example.
Varane makes the most of his imposing physical presence, pace and technical ability to beat top strikers like Sergio Aguero, Harry Kane and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
After winning the Premier League this season and having already won the Champions League last season, Van Dijk is well on his way to becoming a Liverpool and Premier League legend.
Also see: Liverpool win Premier League: Dynamic at the back, deadly in attack - the Opta data behind historic Reds team.
