Ranked: The top 10 100% clubs in Europe so far

The first international break of this season is a perfect opportunity to look over how teams have begun their 2018/19 campaigns.

Not every side can make the perfect start, in fact only 10 teams across Europe’s ‘top five’ leagues currently hold a 100% record, with the Premier League and Bundesliga boasting three apiece.

Some of the names are familiar, the usual suspects tipped for glory, whilst one or two will raise an eyebrow.

Below are the 10 clubs in question ranked by goal-difference (from worst to best).

10. Hertha Berlin

Total matches played: 2
Goals for/against: 3/0
Number of players to feature every minute: 6 (Niklas Stark, Jordan Torunarigha, Ondrej Duda, Rune Jarstein, Valentino Lazaro and Arne Maier)

Hertha Berlin ended the 2017/18 season with back-to-back league defeats. They’ve made up for that misery by posting a 100% start to the current campaign. However, the east-German club haven’t been the most prolific in front of goal, their opening match – at home to newly-promoted Nürnberg – ended in a narrow 1-0 victory. But, it was their second game away to Schalke 04 which raised eyebrows, Pál Dárdai’s men inflicting a 2-0 defeat against one of the Bundesliga’s more formidable sides.

9. Wolfsburg

Total matches played: 2
Goals for/against: 5/2
Number of players to feature every minute: 5 (William, Maximilian Arnold, Ignacio Camacho, John Brooks and Robin Knoche)

Matchday three in Germany’s top division will see one or two 100% records fall as Wolfsburg welcome Hertha. So far the Wolves have looked impressive, averaging 2.5 goals per game, but they’ve yet to register a clean sheet which undoubtedly concerns boss Bruno Labbadia going forward as the games will come thick and fast.

8. Juventus

Total matches played: 3
Goals for/against: 7/3
Number of players to feature every minute: 5 (Wojciech Szczęsny, Cristiano Ronaldo, Giorgio Chiellini, Leonardo Bonucci and Alex Sandro)

The dominant power in Italian football, which has been the case for nearly a decade now, Juventus shocked world football by acquiring five-time Ballon d’Or winning Cristiano Ronaldo in the summer much to the annoyance of their rivals at home. Ronnie has yet to get on the score sheet, try as he might, as The Old Lady have been made to work for their opening three victories.

7. Bayern Munich

Total matches played: 2
Goals for/against: 6/1
Number of players to feature every minute: 6 (Manuel Neuer, Robert Lewandowski, Thiago Alcântara, Joshua Kimmich, David Alaba and Jerome Boateng)

A foregone conclusion? Such has been Bayern’s supremacy very few (if any) are backing them not to win a seventh consecutive Bundesliga crown. They’ve started in ominous fashion, a 3-1 home win over Hoffenheim before humbling Stuttgart 3-0 on the road. Winning every league game might be beyond them but you can’t see anyone stopping the Bavarian machine.

6. Watford

Total matches played: 4
Goals for/against: 9/3
Number of players to feature every minute: 7 (Christian Kabasele, Étienne Capoue, Craig Cathcart, José Holebas, Ben Foster, Daryl Janmaat and Abdoulaye Doucouré)

Every season in the Premier League there seems to be a surprise package. 2018/19 has already got one in the guise of Watford who, under manager Javi Gracia, could only muster one victory from their final eight matches of last season. That’s now behind them as they’ve established themselves as one of the early pace-setters, with title-chasing Spurs being their latest victim, next up is a visit from Manchester United.

5. Chelsea

Total matches played: 4
Goals for/against: 10/3
Number of players to feature every minute: 7 (Kepa, N’Golo Kanté, Jorginho, Antonio Rüdiger, Marcos Alonso, David Luiz and César Azpilicueta)

It naturally takes a while before a new manager’s ideas comes across but Chelsea and Maurizio Sarri are wasting no time. The Blues, no strangers to Premier League glory, are looking to put a disappointing campaign under Sarri’s compatriot Antonio Conte behind them and so far so good.

4. Liverpool

Total matches played: 4
Goals for/against: 9/1
Number of players to feature every minute: 5 (Alisson, Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez, Andrew Robertson and Georginio Wijnaldum)

Who can stop Manchester City? The consensus seems to be Liverpool. Nowhere near their optimum best the Reds have scratched and clawed, winning their last two league matches by a single goal, to give manager Jurgen Klopp a base on which to launch an aggressive title challenge.

3. Real Madrid

Total matches played: 3
Goals for/against: 10/2
Number of players to feature every minute: 4 (Toni Kroos, Karim Benzema, Daniel Carvajal and Sergio Ramos)

All eyes were on Julen Lopetegui when he succeeded Zinedine Zidane as Real Madrid boss and so far, given the pressures that comes with managing the 13-time European champions, the knives aren’t being clawed. In fact, the ex-Spain coach has started to stamp his authority, notably installing a possession-based style which has seen them be devastating in front of goal.

2. Paris Saint-Germain

Total matches played: 4
Goals for/against: 13/4
Number of players to feature every minute: 3 (Thiago Silva, Adrien Rabiot and Marquinhos)

Thomas Tuchel’s remit is to bring the European Cup to Paris but the league remains a priority. Life in the French capital has started well, PSG are the only Ligue 1 side with a 100% record, and their 13 goals is the most registered by any side across Europe’s ‘top five’ leagues this season to date.

1. Barcelona

Total matches played: 3
Goals for/against: 12/2
Number of players to feature every minute: 6 (Marc-André ter Stegen, Gerard Piqué, Lionel Messi, Jordi Alba, Sergio Roberto and Luis Suárez)

It feels like another two-horse race in Spain with Barça matching Real stride for stride. Ernesto Valverde’s men look peerless with their recent 8-2 mauling of new boys Huesca no doubt putting the league on notice.

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