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Cristiano Ronaldo Real Madrid 2017-18
Harry Sherlock

Messi top, Salah sixth but Ronaldo 16th?! Europe's top 20 players revealed

The Barcelona icon tops a list based on effectiveness through the season, but Neymar is completely absent, and the Liverpool star outside the top five

The CIES Football Observatory ranks players who have played 1,800 minutes of football (1,440 for Germany), or 20 matches, on their efficiency and performance level. The rating is out of 100, and there are a fair few surprises...

(NB: Neymar only played 1,797 minutes for PSG in Ligue 1 this season, so just missed out on being ranked.)

  • Ivan RakiticGetty

    20Ivan Rakitic | Barcelona | Rating: 88.18

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  • Albiol Napoli Serie A

    19Raul Albiol | Napoli | 88.46

  • Marek Hamsik Napoli Torino Serie AGetty Images

    18Marek Hamsik | Napoli | 88.53

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  • Lorenzo Insigne NapoliGetty Images

    17Lorenzo Insigne | Napoli | 88.58

  • Cristiano Ronaldo Real Madrid 2017-18Getty Images

    16Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 88.58

  • Miralem Pjanic JuventusGetty Images

    15Miralem Pjanic | Juventus | 88.67

  • Jorginho Napoli

    14Jorginho | Napoli | 88.74

  • James Rodriguez Bayern Munich Real Madrid UEFA Champions LeagueJAVIER SORIANO

    13James Rodriguez | Bayern Munich | 88.97

  • Harry Kane Tottenham 2017-18Getty Images

    12Harry Kane | Tottenham | 89.02

  • Kalidou Koulibaly NapoliGetty

    11Kalidou Koulibaly | Napoli | 89.17

  • Robert Lewandowski Bayern Munich Bundesliga 2018Maja Hitij

    10Robert Lewandowski | Bayern Munich | 89.61

  • Raheem Sterling Manchester CityGetty

    9Raheem Sterling | Manchester City | 89.76

  • Kevin De Bruyne Manchester CityGetty Images

    8Kevin De Bruyne | Manchester City | 90.14

  • Fernandinho Manchester CityGetty Images

    7Fernandinho | Manchester City | 90.45

  • Mohamed Salah Liverpool golden boot Premier LeagueGetty

    6Mohamed Salah | Liverpool | 90.45

  • Nicolas Otamendi ArgentinaGetty Images

    5Nicolas Otamendi | Manchester City | 90.47

  • Sergio Aguero, Man CityGetty

    4Sergio Aguero | Manchester City | 90.48

  • Paulo Dybala Juventus 2017-18Getty Images

    3Paulo Dybala | Juventus | 91.37

  • David Silva Manchester City 06052018Getty

    2David Silva | Manchester City | 91.69

  • Lionel Messi Barcelona Real Madrid La Liga

    1Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 92.12

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