Top10 best soccer players in the world right now,
While there is no right answer, most of the players on this list were objectively the best players in the world last season. Due to constant fluctuations in form, as well as the fact that football stopped completely for a few months in the middle of the season, this list can be controversial in some ways. But what is a rating without controversy?
It is also important to preface this list with the fact that while most leagues have restarted after the enforced break, France’s Ligue 1 has not restarted. The placement of the two Ligue 1 players on this list is therefore somewhat subjective and arbitrary, and could have been quite different had the rest of the season been available to those players. Also, due to the stoppage of the game and the fact that there are many players who could be in the conversation for the best player in the world right now, the list naturally becomes more subjective towards the bottom. I’ve tried to take into account each player’s current form as well as their overall ability when fit, but there will always be an arbitrary nature to the rankings when so many players are playing so well. But without further ado, here are who I believe are the 10 best players in the world right now.
1. Lionel Messi
La Pulga Atómica (The Atomic Flea) has remained at the top of this list for over a decade and is still going strong at 33 years old. In fact, sensational stats and seasons have become second nature to him. goals so far and three games remaining. Along with those 22 goals, Messi has 20 assists in the league so far, surpassing his personal best of 18 in a season and a total of 42 assists in 30 league games. It’s the season of a lifetime for every player. It’s business as usual for Lionel Messi.
Messi has 27 goals and 24 assists in all competitions and hopes to lead Barcelona to their first Champions League title since winning the treble in 2014-15. Messi is also the last player to win the Ballon d’Or, narrowly beating Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk by seven points. Despite Barcelona’s managerial problems and the uncertainty surrounding the club’s future when Messi leaves, the Argentine striker has been playing unstoppable and exciting football as usual and recently scored his 700th career goal.
2. Cristiano Ronaldo
As long as he’s around, he’ll be at the top of the list. Cristiano Ronaldo is 35 years old, playing in Italy for only the second year, and still collecting absurd numbers in front of the goal. Ronaldo has contributed to half of Juventus’ total goals this season with 28 goals and 6 assists in the 28 league games he has played and a total of 39 assists in all competitions. He is currently challenging Lazio’s Ciro Immobile for the Capocannoniere (Serie A top scorer) and has been a star performer for Juventus in what looks to be a title-winning campaign. Ronaldo, who has won the Champions League with both of his former clubs, will be looking to complete his personal treble this season when the tournament resumes in August.
What’s even more impressive is that Ronaldo is managing one goal in the league with less help from his teammates than in the past. Out of the 20 teams in Serie A, Juventus are 16th in crosses and 14th in accurate crosses and assists this season. Ronaldo has the most headed goals in football history, so his lack of crossing ability has put a significant dent in his goal tally this season
3. Neymar
Despite struggling with injury this season and also not playing since early March due to Ligue 1’s decision to end the season early before resuming play after the lockout, Neymar Jr. is third on my list. That should indicate just how incredible the Brazilian winger is when fit. In just 15 league games this season, Neymar has scored 13 goals and provided 6 assists. Neymar has failed to achieve anything close to full fitness in his three seasons at Paris Saint-Germain, but his world-class ability is as clear as day whenever he is on the pitch. The only reasons Neymar didn’t win the Ballon d’Or are Messi, Ronaldo, and injuries. If it weren’t for these three factors, Neymar would easily be a contender, if not a shot, for the greatest player of all time.
Apart from the Ballon d’Or, Neymar’s next goal is to win the Champions League with PSG. Neymar will be fit and hungry for the title in the quarter-finals of the tournament after comprehensively defeating Borussia Dortmund in the Round of 16.
4. Robert Lewandowski
Bayern Munich’s world-class frontman has just completed his sixth season at the club and his tenth season in the Bundesliga, helping Bayern to an eighth straight title. And at the age of 31, Robert Lewandowski had his best season to date. Lewandowski secured the Bundesliga top scorer award for the fifth time with 34 goals in 31 appearances. In the entire season, he failed to score in only six games, scoring seven braces and one hat trick. In 43 games in all competitions, he scored 51 goals and provided 6 assists, including two in the DFB Pokal final, which Bayern recently won. Those numbers are also likely to increase in August when the Champions League resumes in Lisbon, as Lewandowski has scored in every Champions League game he has played so far this season.
In fact, the decision could turn out to be rather simple if Lewandowski can continue his incredible form and in turn help, Bayern Munich wins the Champions League and become the second European team to win the continental treble twice. That looks well within reach for the Poland international as Bayern Munich is widely regarded as the favorite to lift the trophy.
5. Kylian Mbappé
Mbappé falls behind Lewandowski on my list only because of his youth and the fact that he hasn’t played since March. However, in a few years, the French 21-year-old could be at the top of this list because his stats and skills are absolutely and objectively excellent. Already a World Cup winner with a goal in the final and a four-time Ligue 1 winner, Mbappé will continue to expand. Mbappé, who has been slightly hampered by injury this season, has nevertheless scored 18 goals and provided 7 assists in the 20 league games he has played. In all competitions, he managed a total of 47 goals and assists in 33 matches. These are Messi’s numbers. Those are Ronaldo’s numbers. These are Mbappé’s numbers.
Unfortunately, due to the sudden end of Ligue 1, Mbappé will most likely be an outsider for the 2020 Ballon d’Or. However, if he can win his and PSG’s first-ever Champions League title in August, with the help of Neymar, of course, he could be back in contention.
6. Kevin De Bruyne
Another player who could easily end up in contention for the Ballon d’Or at the end of the year is Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne. The Belgian midfielder is absolutely world-class. He is easily the best midfielder in England and his vision and passing skills are off the charts.
De Bruyne has 11 goals and 18 assists in the Premier League this season and with four games to go could be the player to finally break Thierry Henry’sPep Guardiola’s dominant Manchester City side, who conceded the Premier League title to Liverpool this season, will be looking to prove that the Champions League is on fire again in August, and Kevin De Bruyne will be a major factor in whether City can finally lift the trophy. the team wanted so much.
7. Virgil van Dijk
The Dutch defender was signed by Liverpool from Southampton in January 2018 and has since become one of the best Premier League defenders of all time. Virgil van Dijk, one of the most important players in the outstanding winning team, finished just behind Lionel Messi in the 2019 Ballon d’Or, becoming almost the first defender since Italian center-back Fabio Cannavaro in 2006 to win the award. In the Premier League last season, van Dijk conceded just 22 goals, kept 20 clean sheets, had a 74% save success rate, and made the second most passes, earning Liverpool a loss just once in the league and finishing the season in second place with 97 points, one point behind the team that beat them, Manchester City. However, Liverpool won the Champions League and has since won the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup. In all competitions, van Dijk has only passed once all season.
This season, van Dijk led Liverpool to their first Premier League title in 30 years. Although he hasn’t had as incredible a season as last year, he still has the most assists in the Premier League and has helped Liverpool keep the cleanest sheets in the league so far. Bolstering and commanding Liverpool’s midfield, he has certainly been the best defender in the world over the past two seasons and is arguably the most important player in Liverpool’s current success.
8. Sadio Mane
In addition to the team’s defensive strength, Liverpool has had one of the most threatening attacks in the world over the past few years, and Sadio Mané has been a major reason why. The Senegalese winger has been exceptional for the reigning English and European champions, scoring 16 goals and assisting 9 so far this season, and won the Premier League Golden Boot with 22 goals in the latest alongside Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and team-mate Mo Salah.
Despite Mo Salah’s record goalscoring streak two seasons ago or Roberto Firmino’s technical superiority over both wings, Sadio Mané stands out. His pace, finishing, and control are world-class and he has scored some incredible goals for Liverpool in the last two seasons, including a superb chip against Bayern Munich in the Champions League last year. Mané finished fourth in the 2019 Ballon d’Or and looks set to challenge for the award again in 2020.
9. Riyad Mahrez
Similar to Liverpool, it is incredibly difficult to pick one attacking player in a side with so much talent up front and on the wings. What makes it even more difficult is that the depth of Manchester City’s squad forces some of the team’s best players to sit on the bench. I knew I had to include at least one Manchester City striker, and amongst the likes of Bernardo Silva, Sergio Agüero, Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus, and even the injured Leroy Sané, I opted for the former Leicester City player and Algerian international.
While he’s actually only the fifth Man City player to reach double figures in goals and assists this season (a Premier League record, by the way), he’s only started 60% of City’s games and five of those have been on the bench. Mahrez’s control and first touch are absolutely extraordinary and he would probably make the starting eleven of any other team in the world.
10. Erling Haaland
After just one season in the limelight, Erling Haaland is arguably the best teenage footballer in the world and has quickly become one of the best strikers in the game. Although he is only 19, his numbers are too ridiculous to not be one of the best players in the world right now. Haaland started this season with RB Salzburg in Austria, scoring 16 goals and managing 6 assists in just 14 league appearances, as well as scoring 8 goals and 1 assist in the Champions League group stage. The Norwegian forward then moved to Borussia Dortmund midway through the season and continued his incredible form with 13 goals and 3 assists in 15 Bundesliga appearances. In total, Haaland has 44 goals and 10 assists in 40 games this season, and it’s these amazing numbers that put the youngster in the top 10 right now.
Haaland certainly has plenty of time to improve and will only continue to score more goals and play for bigger clubs, but this season isn’t just a breakout year. Should he win any trophies this year, the 19-year-old would undoubtedly be a contender for the Ballon d’Or. Despite being eliminated by PSG in the round of 16 of the Champions League, Haaland scored two goals, including a spectacularly powerful long-range strike. He and Mbappé, as well as several other youngsters considered for this list, appear to be the real deal and both will likely be near the top of this list in a few years.