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In the 21st century, the style of football has been revolutionized in Spain. After Pep Guardiola was appointed at the helm of Barcelona in the summer of 2008, he began to introduce a brand of football that would go on to define an era in the Spanish La Liga as well as the national team.
The likes of Andres Iniesta, Xavi, Sergio Busquets, and Lionel Messi all want on to achieve superstar status under their new manager and the Spanish La Liga developed a knack of producing technically gifted players in abundance.
Guardiola's philosophy extended way beyond his Barcelona side, as the Spanish national team began to reap the rewards of his tiki-taka, winning back-to-back European Championships either side of a World Cup.
From Real Madrid to Barcelona, Spanish football has produced some of the most gifted playmakers of our generation and the trend seems to be continuing, with the likes of Santi Cazorla, Isco and Pablo Sarabia impressing in recent seasons.
The assists charts for the La Liga also features defenders regularly, full-backs in particular. That said, let's look at 5 players who could top the list for assists in the forthcoming season.
#1 Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi unsurprisingly tops the list. The Argentinian is a front-runner for the Ballon d'Or and had an unbelievable league season, even by his lofty standards.
Although Barcelona were knocked out in rather sensational circumstances against Liverpool in the Champions League semi-final and Valencia got the better of them in the final of the Copa del Rey, Messi's impact this season can't be overstated as he went on to produce one his greatest ever seasons.
The Argentinian maestro topped the charts for goals and assist last season, registering an astonishing tally of 36 goals and 13 assists as he spearheaded Barcelona to the league title.
Messi is nailed on to build on his exploits from last season and the greatest player to ever grace the game is both the best goalscorer as well as the best playmaker in the league currently.
#2 - Eden Hazard
Eden Hazard realized a life-long dream of his this summer. After months of speculation, the Belgian superstar sealed a sensational switch to Real Madrid to play under his sporting idol, Zinedine Zidane.
Having burst on to the scene at Lille, Hazard made a name for himself in France as one of the most exciting young players in world football and multiple clubs from across the globe came calling.
Although Manchester United were believed to be front-runners, Chelsea won the race for his signature after winning the Champions League under Roberto Di Matteo. It is in England that Hazard's reputation of being one of the best players in the world was established, as he went on to win multiple personal accolades on his way to winning six major trophies with Chelsea.
Hazard also won the much-coveted PFA Players' Player of the Year award for his exploits in the 2014/15 season as Chelsea went on to win the title with Jose Mourinho at the helm.
The Belgian was a fan favorite at the club and is widely regarded as one of their best players in the modern era, but he never hid his admiration for Real Madrid and Zinedine Zidane in particular.
After the legendary Frenchman returned to his beloved club for his second stint as manager, he wasted no time in bringing the Belgian talisman to the club.
Hazard was arguably one of the best attackers in the Premier League last season - his tally of 21 goals and 17 assists in all competitions spearheaded Chelsea to a third-place finish and Europa League glory.
Under Maurizio Sarri, he played some of the best football of his career in a free-flowing attacking side as he devastated teams with his close control and trickery.
Although Hazard is not known for his goal-scoring prowess, his creativity and ability to bring his teammates into the game is among the best in the world, making him one of the leading candidates for being crowned assist king.
The 28-year-old is set to play a key role as Real Madrid's talisman this season as they look to topple Barcelona at the La Liga summit.
#3 - Jordi Alba
In recent seasons. Jordi Alba has become one of Barcelona's main attacking outlets from the left flank. The Spanish left-back has established himself as an undisputed starter and has developed a telepathic understanding with Lionel Messi, making him a vital cog of Ernesto Valverde's system.
Alba is arguably the best left-back in world football currently and contributes significantly to both phases of play, making him a terrific modern-day full-back.
The Spaniard registered 9 assists last season, finishing fifth in the assists chart and his contribution in the final third came to be crucial as Barcelona sealed yet another league title.
Since joining from Valencia seven years ago, Alba has gone on to become a mainstay for Barcelona and has also made the left-back spot his own for the national team, playing a key role as Spain went on to win the European Championships in 2012.
The 30-year-old has amassed 67 caps for Spain, scoring 8 goals and despite his age, he's showed no signs of slowing down and looks set to carry on many years to come.
The €14 million fee to acquire his services in the summer of 2012 looks like a massive bargain, as the Spaniard has been a reliable performer for the Catalan giants since his arrival.
Jordi Alba's bombing runs up and down the pitch make him extremely hard to defend against and he does so while also being solid defensively.
Since Neymar's departure, Alba has said that he's been awarded more freedom to play his role and in many ways, the Brazilian's departure has worked to the Spaniard's advantage.
With Neymar occupying the left-flank, a lot of aspects of Alba's natural game were inhibited, but the Spaniard realized his full potential after Neymar's move to Paris Saint Germain.
With Lionel Messi in the form of his life and Antoine Griezmann finally sealing his dream move to the Catalan giants, Alba could thrive with better players in the final third and is more than likely to replicate his attacking numbers for the forthcoming season.
#4 - Antoine Griezmann
Antoine Griezmann's move to Barcelona was the worst kept secret of the summer. After weeks of speculation and a fair share of controversy, the World Cup winner swapped Madrid for Catalonia this summer for a reported fee of €120 million.
The reigning La Liga champions had agreed personal terms with Griezmann as early as March, and Barcelona waited for this release clause amount to drop to €120 million, before proceeding to trigger it officially, which led to Atletico Madrid releasing a strongly-worded statement on their website expressing their displeasure.
In a sensational turn of events, the Rojiblancos have opened legal proceedings with the Catalan club and claimed to have evidence of Barcelona's wrongdoings.
Griezmann had his heart set on a move to Barcelona for over a year, and although he rejected their advances in favor of a stay in the Spanish capital, his dream move became a reality this summer.
On the pitch, Griezmann is set to add some much-needed quality and creativity as Barcelona look to put their disappointment in Europe behind them and look to win club football's biggest trophy next summer.
Griezmann has been one of the most consistent performers in the league since he moved to Atletico Madrid from Real Sociedad and played a key role, as the Madrid club won the Europa League in 2018.
The Frenchman brings with him goals and assists in abundance and contributes to both phases of play, as he works tirelessly for his team off the ball.
His addition will come as a massive boost for Barcelona as they look to ease the goal-scoring burden on Lionel Messi.
Griezmann did not have the best season by his lofty standard in 2018/19 but ended the season with 15 goals and 8 assists in the league, a respectable tally.
#5 - Santi Cazorla
Santi Cazorla, despite all his ability and accomplishments over the years, has to go down as one of the most unfortunate players in the modern era.
The Spaniard is blessed with technical ability in abundance and has had the pleasure of representing top clubs in Europe's top-five league.
After making a name for himself in Villareal, the Spaniard spent two seasons at Malaga before Arsene Wenger came calling. The legendary Frenchman was intent on adding Cazorla to his squad as Arsenal had domestic glory in sight.
Cazorla joined Arsenal in the summer of 2012 and went on to establish himself as a firm fan-favorite, winning the FA Cup twice.
With world-class technical ability coupled with an incredible passing range, Cazorla made the central midfield spot his own and his ability to strike the ball with both feet saw him gain widespread praise.
The Spaniard was unfortunately hampered with injury problems towards the latter part of his tenure at Arsenal and spent a large spell on the sidelines.
After injuring his Achilles tendon in 2016, the standard operating procedure did not prove successful as Cazorla was sidelined once again and this went on to become a regular occurrence.
Eight subsequent operations followed with little success and although doctors advised Cazorla against returning to top-flight football, he sensationally returned to full fitness for Arsenal.
The North-London club reluctantly let their little magician leave to Villareal and since his return to his homeland, Cazorla has rejuvenated himself and started enjoying his football once again.
He registered 10 assists for Villareal last season and his strong performances ensured that he became a fan-favorite once again in his second stint at the club, and the Spaniard looks set to carry on from where he left off last season.
