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Well, it has been a season like no other so far. The usual order has been disturbed in the Premier League and La Liga and we have unlikely league leaders. The Covid-19 break did upset the rhythm of most teams and it sent all our schedules for a toss.
Consequently, the 2020-21 season had to start shortly after the last one ended. As such, players had to cope with a very short season break. Several players contracted the virus too and had to go into recovery. Cristiano Ronaldo is still sidelined after testing positive for the virus.
As a result of all that has unfolded over the past several months, a lot of players have found it hard to hit the ground running in the new season. Here, we take a look at five top players who have underperformed so far this season.
#5 Roberto Firmino
The question that keeps popping up is whether or not Liverpool need an out-and-out striker. Mohamed Salah is as lethal as ever in front of goal and has been scoring some beauties this season. Sadio Mane does the same too.
While Mane and Salah have gone from strength to strength, it's hard to say the same about Roberto Firmino. The Brazilian has scored just two goals from his last 21 appearances.
Firmino's contribution on the goalscoring front has dwindled to a trickle and his role as a false nine or attacking midfielder has not been anything to write home about either so far this season.
While Firmino's importance in Jurgen Klopp's system has been extensively discussed, it's hard to see why Liverpool shouldn't be looking to sign a player who can do all of it, i.e, take the lead role in pressing, creating opportunities and scoring goals.
In six appearances so far, Firmino has scored just one goal and provided two assists. That's not good enough when you're playing for the Premier League champions.
#4 Paul Pogba
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer might not exactly look it with his baby face and that million dollar smile but you can bet your behind that the man hides an iron fist under his velvet glove. Paul Pogba has been world-class on one day and pedestrian in the next for way too long now.
Manchester United have been waiting to see Pogba consistently performing at the levels that he is capable of for ages. However, now that Bruno Fernandes has come in and the rest of Ole's midfield choices have levelled up, Pogba finds himself fighting for a place in the starting XI.
Natural ability and finesse doesn't count for much when you don't put the hard yards in. Pogba was abysmal in his first three outings of the Premier League season and was demoted to the bench. This possibly had a lot to do with his recovering from Covid.
Anyway, Pogba was demoted to the bench and has excelled as an impact substitute so far. He's yet to score or assist in the Premier League and it's about time that Pogba puts his foot down and show us if he can be a game changer over the course of the season.
#3 Arthur Melo
Arthur Melo's move to Juventus was ill-advised on all fronts. It definitely made sense in a financial sense for Barcelona but that's just about it. They packed off one of the best young players on their payroll to bring in another veteran, Miralem Pjanic, to an already ageing squad.
Arthur has struggled to settle down at Juventus so far and after falling out with Barcelona at the end of last season and being up to no good on the disciplinary front. He has started only two games for the Bianconeri so far and hasn't really impressed Andrea Pirlo.
Pirlo thinks that Arthur has too much of Barcelona in him in that he loves to keep playing short which is quite a departure from the plan that the manager has for Juventus. Pirlo criticized Arthur recently for not being in the best shape and choosing to play more horizontally than vertically.
Arthur was dubbed the next Xavi and we haven't seen a whole lot of evidence to back that up over the course of the past few months. He needs to get his act right as Pirlo already prefers Adrien Rabiot, Aaron Ramsey and Rodrigo Bentancur to him.
#2 Kevin de Bruyne
Has Kevin De Bruyne been poor this season? No. Has Kevin De Bruyne performed to the standards expected of him? Rarely. And therein, lies the problem. KDB is widely touted as the best midfielder in the game right now.
However, he hasn't exactly been at his imperious best so far and his dip in form have been quite telling for Manchester City who are languishing at 13th on the Premier League table after five games. They do have a game in hand.
Kevin De Bruyne is Manchester City's creator in chief and last season, he scored 13 goals and racked up 20 assists from 35 appearances in the Premier League. That's direct involvement in a goal almost every game.
However, De Bruyne has just scored one goal and provided one assist from four appearances so far. He has not exactly been poor but he has underperformed by his own standards. But given the quality he has, it won't stay that way for long.
#1 Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi has been off-colour so far and as such it's no surprise that Barcelona have struggled in the league this season. Messi and Ronaldo have consistently clocked absolutely ridiculous numbers that couldn't be matched by anyone other than the likes of Lewandowski on occasion.
After threatening to leave the club owing to differences with the board, it has looked like Messi's head is somewhere else. He underperformed in almost every game except the two Champions League matches against Ferencvaros and then Juventus.
Messi actually covered a lot of grass and put a shift in against Juventus and that was perhaps helped by the fact that Josep Maria Bartomeu and the rest of the board had tendered their resignations.
But as it stands, Lionel Messi has just a single goal across five appearances in the La Liga and is yet to provide an assist to his teammates.
