Ranking 5 teams with the best pass completion rate this season
The 2021-22 season has seen more teams adopt a possession-based style of beating opponents. The presence of managers like Pep Guardiola, Mauricio Pochettino, Thomas Tuchel and several others is a major reason behind this trend.
More often than not, the teams with the best players hold a major share of possession and try to play through their opponents. However, for this to happen, the entire team needs to be in sync with the style of football and good passers of the ball. Some teams have, however, managed to do so better than others.
On that note, let us take a look at five teams across Europe that have achieved the highest pass completion rate this season.
Note: Only Europe's Top 5 Leagues have been considered.
#5 Barcelona (86.5%)
Barcelona may not be the giants of La Liga or European football anymore but their style of football has hardly changed. The 'tiki-taka' method, which was introduced by Pep Guardiola more than a decade ago, continues to this day.
A large reason behind this is down to players like Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets, and Jordi Alba. Talented youngsters like Gavi, Frenkie de Jong, and Ronald Araujo from the club's academy are also suited to playing this style.
Barcelona announce XAVI as HEAD COACH.
Are we seeing TIKI- TAKA again ❓
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So it is no surprise that Barcelona have attempted 12804 passes in 20 league games and have completed 11,079 of those. This has ensured a pass completion rate of 86.5%, indicating that Xavi still has quite a few capable passers of the ball in his team.
Despite having a poor season so far, it is remarkable that Barcelona still have incredible passing numbers.
#4 Marseille (87.6%)
Marseille have been one of the teams to watch in Ligue 1 this season. Led by their energetic manager Jorge Sampaoli, Marseille have inculcated a high-intensity brand of football.
Throughout the team, there are various slick passers like Boubacar Kamara, Dimitri Payet, Cengiz Under, and Gerson. Although they do have a tall centre-forward in Arkadiusz Milik that they can play long balls to, Marseille prefer to keep the ball on the ground.
Boubacar Kamara (21) vs Stade de Reims:
120 Touches
89/100 Passing
3 Key Passes
7/10 Long Balls
1/3 Dribbles
10/15 Duels Won
7 Tackles
Great as a centerback! Amazing as a defensive midfielder! So much versatility and potential! https://t.co/thkrZsSOnJ
The team's movement and ability to continue running for long periods of the game makes them an efficient possession-based team. Thanks to these elements, they have an 87.6% pass completion rate. They have completed 11,875 passes out of the 13,551 ones they have attempted in 21 league games.
Marseille are currently third in the table. Their slick brand of football could help them reduce the gap with table-toppers PSG.