Stats: 10 best dribblers in Europe in the 2015/16 season
As yet another season in Europe draws to a close, some champions have already been crowned while a couple of other leagues may still see the title race go down to the final day.
This season saw a few players revive their career while others have maintained their stranglehold at the top with consistent performances. While the usual suspects have led the goalscoring charts, the same is not the case with the best dribblers in Europe.
There’s no surprise that younger, faster players are at the top of the list. What is remarkable, though, is that the top three are all from Ligue 1. 22-year-old Sofiane Boufal of Lille leads the way in Europe, averaging 4.4 successful dribbles per game in the league. The young forward who generally plays on the left but can play across the front three has made 127 successful dribbles in 29 matches.
Ousmane Dembele, the teenage sensation at Rennes, has been rumoured to be linked with all top clubs including Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund. Dembele has averaged 4.3 dribbles per game – a total of 103 dribbles in 24 matches.
Hatem Ben Arfa has reclaimed the reputation he once lost after a failed transfer and actually leads the continent with the most dribbles completed (137). But having played more games than the first two players, his average comes down to 4.3 per game. The French midfielder has recently been linked with Barcelona after having had “advanced talks”.
Barcelona’s Neymar makes the list but only in fourth place – the only other player to average more than 4 dribbles per game. His teammate Lionel Messi comes in sixth with 23-year-old Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha sandwiched between the two South American stars.
Leicester City’s star winger and PFA Player of the Year Riyad Mahrez only makes it to joint-eighth alongside Palermo’s Franco Vazquez – the only two player who single-handedly represents his league on this list. Meanwhile, Bayern Munich’s wingers Kingsley Coman and Douglas Costa also make the top 10.
| # | Player | Age | Club | League | Dribbles/Game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sofiane Boufal | 22 | Lille | Ligue 1 | 4.4 |
| 2 | Ousmane Dembele | 18 | Rennes | Ligue 1 | 4.3 |
| Hatem Ben Arfa | 29 | Nice | Ligue 1 | 4.3 | |
| 4 | Neymar | 24 | Barcelona | La Liga | 4.2 |
| 5 | Wilfried Zaha | 23 | Crystal Palace | EPL | 3.7 |
| 6 | Lionel Messi | 28 | Barcelona | La Liga | 3.6 |
| 7 | Kingsley Coman | 19 | Bayern Munich | Bundesliga | 3.5 |
| 8 | Franco Vazquez | 27 | Palermo | Serie A | 3.4 |
| Riyad Mahrez | 25 | Leicester City | EPL | 3.4 | |
| 10 | Douglas Costa | 25 | Bayern Munich | Bundesliga | 3.3 |