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As we approach the halfway mark of what has been an amazing season so far, it is time to rewind and look at the best performers across Europe’s top leagues.We have seen some top class performances from some of our usual suspects and we have seen some unexpected displays from players like Jamie Vardy and Odion Ighalo. We also have players like Angel Di Maria and Javier Hernandez returning to their best form during the ongoing season. But are their performances good enough to warrant a place in the Top 10?It is extremely difficult to pick a Top 10 with so many players doing so well for their clubs in different leagues, but at the end of the day someone or the other has to be left out. Will Lionel Messi who missed two months of action due to an injury and Cristiano Ronaldo who has been a shadow of his former self make the cut? Read on.Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and they do not necessarily represent the views of Sportskeeda.
#10 Samir Handanovic (Internazionale)
Going into the New Year, Inter Milan are top of the Serie A table and it is a welcome sight after seeing Juventus dominate the league in recent years.
The former Champions League winners are top of the table thanks to their rock solid defence. Inter have conceded the least number of goals in the division this season with just 11 conceded from 17 games. This brilliant defensive display is not just down to their defenders, but also because of their inform keeper Samir Handanovic.
The Slovenian has the highest number of clean-sheets in the league with 11 to his name and has saved 67 of the 73 shots on target he has faced. This gives him a save percentage of 84.9, which is the highest in the league. Only two goal keepers have saved more shots than Handanovic in the league so far, but both of them have faced over 90 shots on target.
Handanovic has played a great role in organising the Inter defence and has made some amazing saves to help his team out. His stunning quadruple save in Inter’s win over Roma and his match winning save to stop Mattia Destro in the dying minutes of the game against Bologna are some of the highlights of his season so far.
Honourable Mention: Anthony Lopes (Olympique Lyon)
#9 Thiago Silva (PSG)
While his teammates Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Angel Di Maria have hogged most of the headlines this season with their huge tally of goals and assists, Thiago Silva has once again gone about his duties at the back impeccably.
The former Brazilian captain has been an ever-present member of the PSG back four this season and has been vital in maintaining the league’s best defensive record. The defending French champions have conceded just nine goals at the halfway stage of the league season and Silva’s role in this is huge.
Silva makes 2.95 interceptions per game, 4.65 clearances per game, makes 1.37 tackles per game wins 71.2 % of his aerial duels and 68 % of his total duels.
PSG already have a 19 point lead at the top of the table over second placed Monaco. They are certain to win the league under these circumstances and thus this could be their best chance to realise their Champions League dreams. For that Silva has to be at his very best against some of the best attacking teams of Europe.
Honourable Mention: Jerome Boateng (Bayern Munich)
#8 Diego Godin (Atletico Madrid)
Real Madrid and Barcelona have led the La Liga table at different points of the season, but slowly and steadily Atletico Madrid are once again climbing up the table in a bid to once again spoil the party of the two Spanish giants.
Atletico are currently second in the table behind Barcelona on goal difference and their great form this season has been due to their brilliant defensive displays. The side from the Spanish capital has conceded just eight goals in 16 league games this season and the only constant figure in that defence is Diego Godin.
Godin is the only Atletico Madrid player to play every minute of every league game and Champions League game this season. In these 22 games combined his side has conceded just 11 goals.
The Uruguayan’s defensive statistics for the season are just mind-blowing. In the league he makes 3.44 interceptions per game, 5.56 clearances per game, makes 1.56 tackles per game and has won every duel he has been involved in so far!
Godin will have to continue being the defensive stalwart he is at the moment if Atletico hope to win the league title again.
Honourable Mention: Serge Aurier (PSG)
#7 Jack Butland (Stoke City)
Stoke City got off to a sluggish start this season, but they have now changed gears and gone on to defeat Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea at home without conceding a goal.
Arnautovic, Shaqiri and Bojan have made the headlines with their attacking skills, but the star performer for the Potters has been their keeper Jack Butland.
Butland had to wait for a long period to be Stoke City’s number one goal keeper because of Asmir Begovic, but now he is proving to be a more than capable replacement for the Bosnian.
The Englishman has been the best keeper in the league without a hint of doubt and has turned up in big games to see his team out with some scintillating saves.
The 22 year old has the most number of clean-sheets in the league this season along with Petr Cech and Heurelho Gomes. However, this doesn’t do justice to the effort he has put in, as Stoke had a very poor start to the season with just three points after their first six games.
Butland has made a league highest 73 saves this season and it is three more the number of saves made by Costel Pantilimon in second place. He has also made 59 catches this season to help Stoke deal with the aerial threat of their opposition.
Honourable Mention: Timo Horn (FC Koln)
#6 Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
Very few players can match the goal scoring feats of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski is trying hard to win the golden boot for the ongoing season.
The Polish striker is arguably enjoying the best season of his career so far and made headlines by scoring five goals in the space of nine minutes against Wolfsburg after coming on as a halftime substitute.
Lewandowski has scored 25 goals in as many games this season and also has two assists to his name. He is currently the second highest goal scorer in the Bundesliga with 15 goals and also the second highest goal scorer in the ongoing UEFA Champions League with 7 goals.
In addition to his single handed demolition of Wolfsburg, he also played a huge role in some of Bayern’s big games this season. He scored a brace against his former club Borussia Dortmund and one against Arsenal in the Champions League.
In addition to his form at the club level, Lewandowski has done exceptionally well for his country and was the top scorer of the UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying phase.
Honourable Mentions: Jamie Vardy (Leicester City) and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (PSG)
#5 Douglas Costa (Bayern Munich)
After Bayern Munich sold their young prodigy Xherdan Shaqiri, they needed someone else to replace him and slowly step into the shoes of ageing wingers Robben and Ribery. So when Bayern signed Douglas Costa from Shakhtar Donetsk for a hefty fee, it was met with mixed responses.
The Brazilian walked into the Bayern starting XI ahead of Mario Gotze and that speaks volumes about his abilities. His performance for Bayern has been so good that he is arguably the best summer signing of 2015.
Costa has hit the ground running with his blistering pace, his nifty footwork and his bagful of tricks. He has seamlessly slotted into the left wing position after playing predominantly as a right winger for Shakhtar.
Costa has racked up five goals and nine assists in 23 games across all competitions this season. He has seven assists to his name in the league and that’s the third highest in the league and he only needs one more to draw level with Mkhitaryan and Raffael at the top.
Honourable Mentions: Angel Di Maria (PSG) and Raffael (Borussia Monchengladbach)
#4 Neymar (Barcelona)
Neymar is one of the nominees for the 2015 FIFA Ballon d’Or. The Brazilian played a huge role in the second half of last season to help Barcelona win the treble and he carried that form into the current season as well.
The Brazilian has scored 16 goals and provided 12 assists in the 20 games he has played across all competitions this season. In the league, he has scored 14 goals and is the joint second highest goal scorer in the league along with Cristiano Ronaldo. He only needs one more goal to catch up to his teammate Suarez who leads the chart. Along with Gareth Bale, Neymar is the joint highest assists provider in the league with seven to his name.
The 23-year-old has missed a handful of games this season due to injuries and his participation in the Copa America, but even then his contributions for his club are simply marvelous.
Considering Neymar’s age and his vast improvement, he could easily outperform his colleagues Messi and Suarez this season.
Honourable Mentions: Romelu Lukaku (Everton) and Gonzalo Higuain (Napoli)
#3 Mesut Ozil (Arsenal)
During his first two seasons in the Premier League Mesut Ozil had to live with the burden of his price tag and was often unfairly called lazy and a flop. However, Ozil has dispelled any lingering doubts about his class this season with an amazing series of displays for the Gunners.
Ozil’s performance as a central attacking midfielder should be the tutorial for any player learning to operate in that role. His vision is exquisite and the way he picks out players with such ease is simply mind-blowing.
The German is currently the leading assist provider not just in the Premier League, but also in Europe. He has 16 assists to his name after 19 league games and Angel Di Maria with 9 assists in the French Ligue 1 is his closest competitor.
Ozil assisted in seven consecutive games this season and thus set a new record. He now needs to provide five more assists in the second half of the season to break Thierry Henry’s all time record for most assists in a league season.
In addition to his contribution with assists, Ozil has also scored three league goals and two Champions League goals this season.
Honourable Mentions: Henrikh Mkhitaryan (Borussia Dortmund) and Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
#2 Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City)
When Eden Hazard won the PFA Player of the Year award last season he scored 14 goals and provided 9 assists. After reaching the halfway stage of the current Premier League season, Riyad Mahrez has 13 goals and 7 assists to his name. If his current form continues into the second half then there won’t be any doubt about the player of this season.
Mahrez has been instrumental in Leicester’s surprising rise to the top of the Premier League table. His pace on the break, his dribbling abilities and his work-rate have made him one of the most admired and coveted players in the league at the moment.
He is currently the fourth highest goal scorer in the league and needs just two goals to catch up to the leading goal scorers. The three players who have more goals than him are all strikers while Mahrez is a winger. The Algerian also has the joint third highest number of assists in the league with seven to his name - only Mesut Ozil and Kevin De Bruyne have more assists than him.
Honourable Mentions: Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich) and Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
#1 Luis Suarez (Barcelona)
Luis Suarez is just getting better and better with each passing season and it wouldn’t be wrong to say that he has outperformed his teammates Neymar and Messi.
The Uruguayan has scored 29 goals in as many games across all competitions and also has seven assists to his name. He is currently the highest scorer in La Liga with 15 goals and has one more than Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar. Suarez is also the fourth highest goal scorer after the group stage of the UEFA Champions League with five goals in as many games.
The 28 year old made his FIFA Club World Cup debut in December and is now the joint all-time leading goal scorer in the tournament after scoring five goals in just two games.
It’s not just the sheer volume of the goals scored that makes Suarez one of the best performers in Europe this season, it’s also because of his performance in the big games.
Suarez scored the winner for Barcelona against Athletico Bilbao in their opening La Liga game; he scored in an away game against AS Roma in the Champions League and followed it up with a brace against the same opponents in the return leg. His best performance of the season though came in the El Clasico and his brace helped Barcelona win 4-0 at the Bernabau.
Honourable Mentions: Pierre Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund) and Javier Hernandez (Bayer Leverkusen)
