Top 5 assist providers in Europe so far this season

We have approached the midpoint of the 2018/2019 European season and unlike the English leagues who are still open for business during this festive periods, most of their counterparts on the continent have already taken well-deserved breaks ahead of Christmas and the New Year.

The league races in most countries are still wide open, with LaLiga, the Bundesliga and the Premier League in particular still open to a number of teams, although the Serie A and Ligue 1 are all but foregone conclusions owing to the virtually impossible to close gap held by Juventus and PSG atop their respective standings.

While goals are generally celebrated due to their status as match winners, a lot of consideration and acclaim has to also go to the assist providers, as most times without them goals cannot be scored and they undoubtedly make the job of strikers much easier. In this piece, we take a look at the top five assists providers across Europe's top five leagues.

#5 Ryan Fraser (Bournemouth) - 8 assists

The 24-year-old has been at Bournemouth since 2013, playing a key role in their promotion to the Championship in his first season.

He gained worldwide fame following his performance in December 2015 when he came off the bench at half-time to inspire a 4-3 come-from-behind victory over Liverpool, winning a penalty, scoring the second and providing the assist for the third goal.

So far this season, he has been one of the breakout stars of the Premier League, forming a devastating partnership with Callum Wilson as Bournemouth under Eddie Howe as The Cherries have earned widespread acclaim for their enthralling style of football.

Bournemouth currently lie 8th on the Premier League table and Ryan Fraser has contributed with eight assists, the last of which came over the weekend when he came off the bench to provide the cross from which David Brooks got his second goal in a 2-0 win for Bournemouth which ended their three-game losing run in all competitions.

#4 Suso (AC Milan) - 8 assists

Suso broke through the Liverpool ranks as a youngster but failed to make any meaningful impact on the first team of The Reds, before departing Anfield for Milan in 2015 as a Liverpool flop.

He posted mixed performances in his early Milan career, undergoing a loan transfer to Genoa less than a year after arriving, but he returned to the Rossoneri at the start of the 2016/2017 season with new coach Vicenzo Montella giving him a new lease of Life. Suso repaid his coach's faith by scoring 7 goals and nine assists.

Since then, the 24-year-old has grown from strength to strength, with his performances earning him a call-up to the Spanish national team and he has become an established member of Gattuso's squad as Milan attempt to begin their rebuilding towards becoming a major force in Italy and Europe once more.

So far this season, Suso is currently the highest assist provider in the Italian top flight with eight assists from 17 Serie A matches to help Milan lie 5th on the table as they chase down Champions League football.

#3 Sebastian Haller (Eintracht Frankfurt) - 8 assists

The 24-year-old Sebastian Haller has been an instrumental part of Frankfurt's successes, playing a role as the club won the DFB Pokal in his debut campaign with the club last season.

So far this season, he has scored nine goals in 13 Bundesliga matches (which is the exact amount he scored in 31 matches last term), while also contributing eight assists (double his figures from last season) from 17 Bundesliga matches to sit top of the assists charts in Germany and help Frankfurt lie 6th on the Bundesliga table.

He has represented France across all youth levels but is yet to make his senior bow, but at this rate, it would be hard to imagine Didier Deschamps overlooking him for too long, while he is also on the radar of a host of top European clubs who are monitoring his progress in Germany closely.

#2 Eden Hazard (Chelsea) - 9 assists

Regularly rated as one of the best players in the world and a potential heir to the throne currently occupied by Ronaldo and Messi, a constant criticism of Eden Hazard has been his unproductivity and inconsistency in front of goal, as Hazard's numbers in the opposition box paled in comparison to other wide players like Bale, Sanchez, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.

Hazard seems to have heeded the advice and taken his game a notch higher, starring in a leading role as he skippered his country to third place at the World Cup in Russia for which he won the Silver Ball at the tournament, he has started this season for Chelsea like a house on fire, relishing the extra freedom afforded him by Sarri.

The Belgian currently has eight goals and nine assists from just 17 Premier League matches this season and has already installed himself as one of the forerunners for the 2019 Ballon d'Or owing to his splendid performances.

#1 Lionel Messi (Barcelona) - 10 assists

Was anyone reading this piece realistically expecting any other player to top this list? Lionel Messi has long since established himself as not only arguably the greatest goalscorer and player of all time but also as the most creative player in the history of the beautiful game.

Earlier in the month, the 31-year-old received his award for his record-breaking 5th European Golden Boot and is already among leads the way in the race for next year's edition to send his statement of intent to reclaim his pride of place as the best player in the world.

Despite suffering a shoulder injury earlier in the season, Messi returned sooner than expected to lead Barcelona's charge on all three fronts and is currently top of LaLiga's scorers and assists chart, and with La Pulga Atomica in this form, it is hard to see anyone stopping Barcelona.

Edited by Vikshith R