Following a week in which:
- The world mourned the loss of the greatest footballer of all time.
We at 90min, with a little help from quotes from the best films of 2003, rank the 15 best teams in Europe:
15. Southampton (-)
"So, how'd you do?"
"Did alright." (Elephant)
Southampton live to fight another week in the Definitive European Power Rankings due to their 'alright' result against Wolves.
Cool.
Moving on.
14. Juventus (Re-Entry)
"The documents never lie." (Memories of Murder)
Cristiano Ronaldo's 2020:
Games: 35.
Goals: 36.
Juventus may have struggled to play remotely entertaining football while Cristiano Ronaldo has been at the club, but bah gawd does CR7 still get his numbers.
The numbers don't lie - Ronaldo is still world class.
13. Union Berlin (New Entry)
"A dream, sure." (Mystic River)
In just their second season ever in the top flight, Union Berlin are currently enjoying a seven game unbeaten run, a three game win streak, and are sitting just two points adrift of the UEFA Champions League semi finalists RB Leipzig in fourth place.
Living the dream.
12. AS Roma (New Entry)
"Just keep swimming." (Finding Nemo)
A video of a Sky Sports News ticker showing just how many Man Utd 'bust' signings scored in Serie A last weekend, for many, simply showed just how messed up that football club are.
But what it is also showed was the revival of some genuinely brilliant footballers this season. One such footballer is Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who has quietly turned a corner this season at AS Roma - propelling into a title race and the Europa League round of 32 with goals and assists galore.
Keep up the good work buddy.
11. Rangers (Up 2)
"If they had told me it was going to be 15 years, would it have been easier to endure." (Oldboy)
If you had told Rangers fans nine and a half years ago that:
- Their club would fold.
- Their club would be relegated to the lowest tier of Scottish football.
- They'd have to watch their Old Firm rivals win nine consecutive league titles.
BUT caveated all of that with 'you're going to win the league in 2021 and stop Celtic from bagging 10 in a row', then all that suffering would have been easier to endure.
10. Bayer Leverkusen (New Entry)
"Did you ever think about how one little choice could change a whole life?" (Mystic River)
This season, Bayer Leverkusen has decided to make one little choice:
To stop being such complete and utter losers.
By doing so they're really turned a corner and are now enjoying a five game win streak and being one point off top spot in the Bundesliga. Nice one.
9. Sassuolo (Re-Entry)
"The more you know who you are, and what you want, the less you let things upset you." (Lost in Translation)
Remember how fun Atalanta were last season?
'Yes.'
Well that's how fun Sassuolo are this season.
And even though they're league form may dip in the very near future (probably this weekend as Francesco Caputo is out for the game against Inter) it won't upset their fans too much as no matter what - even when they're losing - they'll still be trying to play football in the most entertaining way possible.
8. Atletico Madrid (Re-Entry)
"We have unfinished business." (Kill Bill: Volume One)
For just how great a job Diego Simeone has done at Atletico Madrid, one La Liga title doesn't really seem like just rewards.
So this season, Atleti are trying to sort that out.
They're going for that coveted second league title under Simeone, and with Barcelona being pretty, you know, sh*t, and Real Madrid being pretty, you know, sh*t, they may just get it.
7. Chelsea (Up 4)
"I might never have liked you. Point in fact, I despised you. But that shouldn't suggest that I don't respect you." (Kill Bill: Volume One)
Are Chelsea fundamentally one of the most unlikeable football clubs in England?
Yes, yes they are.
But are they also currently one of the best football teams in England?
Yes, yes they are.
No one likes them, and they don't care.
6. Borussia Dortmund (-)
"Black Mamba. I should have been motherf**king Black Mamba." (Kill Bill: Volume One)
Erling Haaland is the footballing equivalent to peak Kobe Bryant.
He can score from anywhere and he does.
ALL. OF. THE. TIME.
5. Real Sociedad (Down 1)
“Certainty of death. Small chance of success. What are we waiting for?” (Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King)
Certainty of dropping down the table?
Small chance of winning the league?
Yes to both, but their goddamn fun to watch so let's just enjoy it while it lasts Sociedad fans.
4. Liverpool (Down 1)
"I only beat you up because I care about you." (Memories of Murder)
It feels like the footballing gods have beaten up Liverpool's squad with injuries because they want to make the Premier League title race a bit more interesting this season.
It has worked to an extent, but Liverpool proved in their win over Leicester City that they are still the best team in England.
3. AC Milan (Up 2)
"I hope that you've had enough to drink. It's going to take courage." (Lost in Translation)
There's a lot of pretty great footballers under contract at AC Milan right now - Ismaël Bennacer, Simon Kjaer, Theo Hernandez to name a few.
However, we'd be remiss in saying that Milan's title charge hasn't basically been totally down to the form for one big old man called Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Now that said big man is injured for about a month, I Rossoneri's Scudetto credentials are set to really tested.
2. Bayern Munich (Down 1)
"For relaxing times, make it Santori time." (Lost in Translation)
It must be so bloody easy being a Bayern Munich fan.
Your team are better than every other football team, your star striker is better than every other football player, and you always have nice kits.
For relaxing times, be a Bayern fan.
1. Tottenham Hotspur (Up 6)
"Erasing my memory and telling me to find the truth was cowardly. I won. So die like you promised." (Oldboy)
Ball-playing defenders are dead. Long live defenders who can actually defend.
After years of English journalists, who worship the ground that Pep Guardiola walks on, calling Jose Mourinho a 'has-been tactical dinosaur who makes embarrassing Paddy Power ads' (I may have added the last bit), Mourinho has finally, unequivocally, proved them all wrong.
He won, by proving that pragmatic management, and setting up a team to win a game of football rather than play football 'the right way' (whatever that means), is actually not a bad idea.
Who'd have thought it?
Source: 90min
