Top 5 defenders with the most assists in Europe's top-5 leagues

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Real Madrid v Club Brugge KV: Group A - UEFA Champions League
Real Madrid v Club Brugge KV: Group A - UEFA Champions League

#3 Roberto Carlo - 55 assists

Roberto Carlos
Roberto Carlos

Roberto Carlos is one of the game's most distinguished left-backs. In a glittering career that spanned more than two decades, the Brazilian, who started out as a striker, shone for a bevvy of clubs in various countries, most notably doing so for European heavyweights Inter Milan and Real Madrid.

The 47-year-old Brazilian could dribble at pace and produce teasing inch-perfect crosses for his attacking colleagues to capitalise on.

Carlos, who was especially renowned for his surging runs down the left side of the pitch and set-piece prowess, is often regarded as one of the finest attacking left-backs to have graced the game.

During a glorious 11-year stint at Real Madrid, Carlos scored 70 goals and made 88 assists - 53 of them in the Liga. Such was his importance to the side that he played at least 31 league games in all but one of his 11 seasons at the club.

Carlos scored a Liga goal in each of his 11 seasons at Real Madrid and produced an assist in all but two seasons. At the peak of his powers in the early 2000s, the left-back scored five goals and provided at least 10 assists apiece in Real Madrid's victorious La Liga campaigns in 2000 and 2002.

#2 Marcelo - 68 assists

Marcelo
Marcelo

The arrival of Marcelo Vieira, more commonly known by his first name Marcelo, at Real Madrid in the summer of 2006 coincided with the decline of Roberto Carlos who played less than 30 La Liga games for the only time that season during his 11-year long career.

Widely recognised as the long-term successor of his illustrious compatriot in Real Madrid's left-back role, Marcelo initially started out as a winger where he impressed with both his attacking and defensive attributes. Under Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho, Marcelo started playing in his preferred position of left-back and hasn't looked back since.

Marcelo has scored a Liga goal or an assist in all but two of 14 seasons at the club as Real Madrid have immensely benefitted from the player's versatility and prowess on the ball.

The 32-year-old's speed, agility, crossing and scoring prowess made him an almost indispensable component of Real Madrid's counterattacks, especially when a certain Cristiano Ronaldo used to feature for the club.

Marcelo provided as many as 25 assists to the Real Madrid all-time top goal-scorer, which is an impressive tally because the Brazilian mostly started in a deep-lying role. The Brazilian's brilliant overlapping runs down the left-flank with Ronaldo often yielded rich dividends for the club as the duo developed an almost telepathic understanding with each other.

After his move to Juventus, Ronaldo acknowledged Marcelo's attributes and said that he could be a valuable addition to the side.

"Marcelo is strong. We open the doors to good players, and Marcelo is one of them."

#1 Dani Alves - 100 assists

Dani Alves
Dani Alves

Dani Alves, one of the finest right-backs to have graced the game, has played in top-5 league clubs in three different countries - Spain, Italy and France. But it was at Barcelona where the marauding right-back enjoyed his most prolific spell in club football.

Alves has made exactly 100 assists in league football for a top-5 league club, doing so 83 times in the La Liga (with Sevilla and Barcelona), thrice in Serie A (with Juventus) and 14 times in Ligue 1 (Paris St. Germain).

The Brazilian made 67 Liga assists in Barcelona colours, with a certain Lionel Messi (26) being the biggest beneficiary. In fact, it was the most Liga assists made to the diminutive Argentinian by any player before Luiz Suarez surpassed Alves' tally in 2018.

Making brilliant overlapping runs with Messi down the right-flank, Alves' pin-point crosses unerringly found the Barcelona captain who would breach the tighest gaps in opposition defences.

After a hugely successful eight-season stint with the La Liga giants where he won two continental trebles, Alves went to play for Juventus and Paris St. Germain but largely struggled to replicate his exploits at Barcelona.

Messi has warmly spoken about his 'strong' relationship, with Alves both on and off the field:

"We've spent many years together, both on and off the field. Day-to-day, we've got a very strong relationship, which is also of a great help on the field -- it means we understand each other's games very well."

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