5 Clubs that have exceeded all expectations so far this season

Borussia Dortmund are one of the five teams in this article

What makes this season more exciting than any of the previous seasons of league football? It's the fact that underdog teams have been outperforming some of the most prominent and powerful squads in Europe. Just yesterday, Belgian First Division team Club Brugge thrashed a Thierry Henry led Monaco 4-0, while Serbian outfit Crvena Zvezda (Red Star Belgrade) humiliated Liverpool 2-0 at home.

In the recent decade, teams such as Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus have been dominating their respective leagues with barely any competition. This season, however, Borussia Dortmund lead the Bundesliga table with Bayern at third, while Inter and Napoli are tied for second in the Serie A.

Although some of the clubs mentioned in this article may not end up with any silverware, they are still on course to exceed all expectations. Without further ado, let's take a look at 5 of these such clubs that are performing above expectations this season.

#5 RCD Espanyol

The Catalan club is currently second in LaLiga

FC Barcelona is the most prominent club to represent Catalonia, but local rivals RCD Espanyol are slowly making a name for themselves. The lesser-known Catalan club currently sits second in the Spanish first division table due to some incredibly impressive performances.

Los Periquitos lost their star forward, Gerard Moreno, to Villareal this summer, but reinvested their profits in acquiring Borja Iglesias from Celta and making the loan deal of Sergi Darder from Lyon permanent.

While Iglesias has been a revelation for the club, fellow countryman Mario Hermoso has been a rock in defence. Him, along with David López, have done well to secure victories for Espanyol, and as a result, are being scouted by some of the best clubs right now. Hermoso has even been targeted by Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur according to MARCA.

Manager Rubi has been doing a wonderful job with the squad, as the team has only lost 2 out of their 11 league encounters and have a win percentage of 54.5%. If they continue to perform, Espanyol could be looking at European competition next season.