With less than 16 days to go until Christmas, Squawka’s advent calendar moves along another spot.
We’re edging closer and closer until the big day. It is not quite panic stations just yet in the shopping department but we’re right in the thick of things now, with decorations up, trees out and presents starting to get wrapped.
Advent calendars are also getting run through. So is ours, where we are comparing players via the grouping of their shirt numbers.
While overall quality was obviously considered when ranking our top three players of the year, the deciding factors were obviously how well they performed during the year, with notable weighting being given to the World Cup.
No. 1: Marc-André Ter Stegen
No. 2: Kyle Walker
No. 3: Giorgio Chiellini
No. 4: Virgil Van Dijk
No. 5: Raphael Varane
No. 6: Paul Pogba
No. 7: Kylian Mbappé
No. 8: Saúl ÑÃguez
There’s been lots of talent to choose from, but here are Squawka’s three favourite No.9s in Europe for 2018:
3. Roberto Firmino (Liverpool/Brazil)
What makes him special? Firmino was instrumental as Liverpool reached the Champions League final last season, spearheading the attack and allowing the likes of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane to flourish in the final third, while also chipping in with a fair few goals himself – 10 in Europe. He was named in the Champions League Squad of the Season and continues to be indispensable for Jurgen Klopp.
Key stat: Last season, Liverpool’s front three became the most prolific in Champions League history with 30 goals – Firmino contributed to the most (10 goals, 7 assists).
2. Edinson Cavani (Paris Saint-Germain/Uruguay)
What makes him special? This was a memorable year for Cavani, not only because his goals helped PSG clinch a plethora of domestic titles last season, but he also managed to surpass Zlatan Ibrahimovic as the Parisians’ all-time top scorer. His exploits in Russia also helped Uruguay reach the World Cup quarter-finals, injury cruelly ending his tournament early.
Key stat: Cavani clinched a second successive Ligue 1 top scorer award after finding the back of the net 28 times last campaign.
1. Luis Suarez (Barcelona/Uruguay)
What makes him special? Suarez is simply mesmeric on the pitch and it has been an absolute privilege watching his silky movement and goalscoring potency over the past decade. The rough-around-the-edges Uruguayan was imperious as Barcelona came agonisingly close to securing the La Liga title unbeaten, though they clinched it nonetheless along with the Copa del Rey. He was also brilliant as his homeland reached the World Cup quarter-finals.
Luis Suárez is the first #URU player to score in three different #WorldCup tournaments:
2010: ⚽️⚽️⚽️
2014: ⚽️⚽️
2018: ⚽️Off the mark in Russia. pic.twitter.com/gltnahY6je
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) June 20, 2018
Despite looking his age at times this season, he has also reminded us just how talented he is. Ask Real Madrid.
Key stat: Only Lionel Messi (33) and Cristiano Ronaldo (26) managed to scored more La Liga goals than Suarez (25).
Honourable Mentions:
Alexandre Lacazette (Arsenal/France), Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich/Poland), Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United/Belgium), Karim Benzema (Real Madrid, France), Paco Alcacer (Barcelona-Borussia Dortmund/Spain), Reiss Nelson (Arsenal-Hoffenheim/England), Mauro Icardi (Inter Milan/Argentina), Gonzalo Higuain (Juventus-AC Milan/Argentina), Edin Dzeko (Roma/Bosnia and Herzegovina), Emiliano Sala (Nantes/Argentina), Krzysztof Piatek (Genoa/Poland), Radamel Falcao (Monaco/Colombia), Sebastien Haller (Eintracht Frankfurt/France), Wissam Ben Yedder (Sevilla/France)
Which No.9s would make your top three for 2018? Let us know!
The post Squawka’s Xmas advent squad: who is 2018’s top No.9 in Europe? appeared first on Squawka News.
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