The 495th CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post presents the world’s 100 best performing players from an attacking perspective in terms of their statistics in three areas of the game : take on, chance creation and finishing. Michael Olise tops the rankings with an average index of 88.5 in these three domains and a maximum value of 99 in chance creation.

The Bayern Munich’s French international is ahead of Barcelona’s Spaniard Lamine Yamal (87.7) and Bayer Leverkusen’s German Florian Wirtz (85.0). The top 10 also includes two Brazilians (Vinícius and Savinho), two Frenchmen (Ousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué), an Englishman (Bukayo Saka), an Egyptian (Mohamed Salah) and a Dutchman (Noa Lang).

The latter is the top-ranked player active outside the big-5 European leagues. He is ahead of Estêvão Willian (Palmeiras, on loan from Chelsea) and Rodri Sánchez (Al-Arabi). The oldest players in the top 100 are Iago Aspas (Celta Vigo), Karim Benzema (Al-Ittihad) and Yacine Brahimi (Al-Gharafa). Only footballers who played at least 1,080 minutes during the current season were taken into account.

* This report provides more information on the CIES Football Observatory’s performance indices elaborated from Wyscout data.

>>> Top 100

Issue number 494 of the CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post presents the 100 players from outside the big-5 European leagues whose transfer value has risen the most over the last six months. At the top of the list is Porto’s Spanish striker Samu Aghehowa, second top scorer in the Portuguese top flight, with an increase of €39 million (from €29.6m to €68.6m).

Palmeiras’ new Brazilian full international Estêvão Willian, owned by Chelsea, comes second with an increase of €30 million (from €30m to €60m). Benfica’s Spaniard Álvaro Carreras completes the podium (+€28m) ahead of teammate Tomás Araújo (+€25m). Three other players active in Portugal are in the top 10 (Conrad Harder, Geovany Quenda and Roger Fernandes), along with Antoni Milambo (Feyenoord), Jan-Carlo Simić (Anderlecht) and Mika Godts (Ajax).

All estimates have been calculated on the basis of a statistical model developed exclusively by the CIES Football Observatory research team, built on almost 10,000 paid transactions, as detailed in this scientific paper. This tool presents the best-valued players per team in 65 leagues worldwide. A paying platform with weekly valuations of over 30,000 players is also available for professionals in the game.

>>> Top 100

To celebrate its twenty years of existence and pay tribute to the clubs developing the talent that makes us love football, the CIES Football Observatory is very proud to present a study of the teams that have trained* the most players fielded in Europe’s big-5 over the last two decades. The top three are Real Madrid (166 players), Barcelona (156) and Paris St-Germain (111).

Olympique Lyonnais and Manchester United (both with 103 players) are at the foot of the podium, followed by Stade Rennais and Atalanta (94). Among the teams outside the big-5, the three having trained the most footballers who have played in the five major leagues since 2005/06 are Ajax (73 players), Sporting CP (64) and River Plate (51). Boca Juniors (49 players) and Benfica (45) are also in the top 5.

To celebrate twenty years of hard work, the CIES Football Observatory research team has also prepared a more in-depth study, published as the 99th Monthly Report, notably including details of the footballers trained by team and a map of all the big-5 clubs in which they have played. Enjoy the read and thank you for your interest!

* Training clubs are defined as the first teams where footballers have played for at least three years between the seasons of their fifteenth and twenty-first birthdays (seasons of these birthdays included).

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>>> Monthly Report

Using technical data collected by our partners Wyscout, the CIES Football Observatory has developed various synthetic indices on a base of 100 to measure the level of performance of players in six areas of the game (more details here). This Weekly Post presents the hundred U23 midfielders from 46 leagues around the world with the highest values in ground defence (see below).

Borussia Mönchengladbach’s Rocco Reitz has the highest score. The German is ahead of another big-5 league player, Barcelona’s Spaniard Marc Casadó, and Genk’s Guinean Ibrahima Sory Bangoura. After a season in the reserve team, Bangoura is emerging as a potential transfer candidate to an even bigger club. Two other players from outside the big-5 are in the top 10: Amine Lachkar (Willem II) and Nick Fichtinger (Zwolle).

Tenth overall, Las Palmas’ Portuguese Dário Essugo (on loan from Sporting CP) has the highest score among players who have not yet celebrated their twentieth birthday. The three youngest players in the top 100 are Frenchmen Ayyoub Bouaddi (LOSC Lille) and Warren Zaïre-Emery (Paris St-Germain), as well as Swede Lucas Bergvall (Tottenham). Of the 46 leagues analysed, 32 are represented by at least one player in the top 100.

The ground defence index is calculated by adding up the defensive duels won by players below elbow height, pass interceptions and anticipations on loose balls (without clear possession) in relation to the average values measured at team and position level (on a pro rata basis of the different positions played). The value obtained is corrected by the success rate of ground duels undertaken and the sporting level of the matches played.

>>> Full rankings

The 491st CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post presents the U25 players who are sportingly the most deserving for a senior national team debut. The rankings were established on the basis of a performance index* specifically designed by our research team using Wyscout data. They include the ten players with the highest performance scores from 50 nations around the world.

For the major nations, the following U25 non-full international footballers are considered the most deserving: Santiago Hezze (Olympiacos, Argentina), Jarne Steuckers (Genk, Belgium), Murillo (Nottingham Forest, Brazil), Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest, England), Hugo Ekitike (Eintracht Francort, France), Nico González (Manchester City, Spain), Yann Aurel Bisseck (Inter, Germany) and Marco Carnesecchi (Atalanta, Italy).

For all the players listed, the Post also presents the estimated transfer value according to the CIES Football Observatory’s statistical model, based on the assumption of an international debut. In this case, the five highest values were recorded for Jamie Gittens (England, €74.2m), Désiré Doué (France, €62.9m), Santiago Castro (Argentina, €60.5m), Archie Gray (England, €56.6m) and Dean Huijsen (Spain, €51.2 m)

* The index is based on the footballers’ playing time over the last year, the sporting level of the matches played and the players’ performances in six areas of the game (method here).

>>> Full data

>>> Any organisation interested in our services is invited to contact us to find out more about all the possible applications of the multiple procedures developed.

In the last two transfer windows, only one team has had a negative net spending* of more than €250 million: Brighton & Hove. Now firmly established in the Premier League, the English club recorded a deficit of €197 million during last summer and €56 million this winter. Premier League newly-promoted Ipswich Town and Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr round out the podium of the teams with the worst balance sheets. All the data is available free of charge here.

In the other European big-5 leagues, the biggest deficits were recorded by Atlético Madrid (-€116m) in Spain, AS Roma (-€111m) in Italy and Bayern Munich (-€63m) in Germany. Manchester City totalled the biggest win last summer (+€157m) and the greatest loss in the transfer window that has just ended (-€226m). In terms of spending, Brighton & Hove (€317m) are ahead of Chelsea (€310m) and Manchester City (€278m).

An English club tops the list also in terms of the most positive results: Leeds United (+€132m). Another team relegated from the Premier League with a squad featuring many young players highly rated on the transfer market ranks in the top three: Burnley FC (+€101m). RC Lens is second (+€106m), while Benfica (+€92m) and Porto (+€82m) are just off the podium.

* All figures include any add-ons regardless of their effective payment or receipt, as well as fees earned from sell-ons. Loans with a non-conditional obligation to buy have also been considered.

>>> Full data for the 100 clubs with the highest transfer fee volumes

Issue number 489 of the CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post forecasts the results up to the end of the season of teams in 42 leagues around the world according to their performance level. The latter was measured on the basis of a statistical model including the number and location of the passes and shots made and conceded so far by teams (Wyscout data), regardless of the results obtained.

In the five major European leagues, the best progress in terms of points per match should come from Toulouse and Monaco in Ligue 1 (with Auxerre and Strasbourg at the opposite end), Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga (RB Leipzig at the opposite), Cagliari and Como in Serie A (Empoli at the opposite), Tottenham and Manchester City in the Premier League (Newcastle at the opposite), as well as Girona and Getafe in La Liga (Leganés at the opposite).

Across all leagues, the greatest positive gaps between the points per match achieved so far and those predicted up until the season end were measured for Bulgaria’s CSKA Sofia (+0.66), United Arab Emirates’ Al-Wasl FC (+0.54) and Cyprus’ APOEL FC (+0.5). Conversely, Serbia’s FK Mladost (-0.62), the Emiratis of Ittihad Kalba (-0.52) and Saudi Arabia’s Al-Riyadh SC (also -0.52) are expected to experience the biggest drops in form.

>>> Full data

The 488th CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post presents the 100 players who have scored the most goals in official club or national team matches (senior, U23 or U21) over the last year. Sporting CP’s Swede Viktor Gyökeres is clearly at the top of the list with no fewer than 64 goals: 54 for his club and 10 at national team level.

Erling Haaland (Manchester City and Norway) and Harry Kane (Bayern Munich and England) complete the podium with 52 and 47 goals respectively. In terms of goal frequency, the top three are Irishman Garbhan Coughlan of Cashmere Technical in New Zealand (one goal every 43 minutes), Japan’s Tomoyuki Doi of Geylang United in Singapore, and Uruguay’s Martín Cauteruccio of Sporting Cristal in Peru.

The Post also presents the rankings for the last two and three years. Over the last two years, nobody has scored more goals than Erling Haaland (101), while Kylian Mbappé tops the last-three-year list with 147 goals. The youngest player in last year’s top 100 is the Spaniard Chupete (Atlético Malagueño), while the evergreen Cristiano Ronaldo (Al-Nassr and Portugal) is the oldest.

>>> Full data

The 487th CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post presents the U23 players not yet in Europe’s big-5 who are most ready to take the next step in their careers. The selection is based on an index considering the footballers’ playing time over the last year, the sporting level of matches played, as well as their performances in six game areas (Wyscout data).

Sporting CP’s Belgian full international Zeno Debast tops the table with an index of 87.5 out of 100. Another centre back, PSV Eindhoven’s Dutchman Ryan Flamingo, ranks second, while his teammate Malik Tillman (86.2) round up the podium. Ukrainian Georgiy Sudakov (Shakhtar Donetsk) is fourth, ahead of Portugal’s Álvaro Carreras (Benfica). Sixth-placed Brazilian Wesley França (Flamengo) is the top-ranked player outside Europe.

The Post presents the overall top 100, as well as the ten highest-ranked players in 60 leagues worldwide. The following footballers head the rankings in their respective league: Christos Tzolis (Belgium), Manfred Ugalde (Russia), Mario Mitaj (Saudi Arabia), Martin Vitík (Czech Republic), Oscar Gloukh (Austria), Victor Guzmán (Mexico), Thiago Fernández (Argentina) and Semih Kiliçsoy (Turkey). For all players, the Post also unveils the estimated transfer value.

>>> Full data

>>> More information on the technical analysis of performance

>>> Scientific paper on the statistical model for transfer estimates

The CIES Football Observatory is the world leader in the scientific evaluation of professional players’ transfer values. Issue number 486 of the Weekly Post presents the 100 best-valued footballers in the world today. Englishman Jude Bellingham, under contract with Real Madrid until 2029, tops the list with a value of €251 million.

Manchester City’s Norwegian Erling Haaland (€221m) and Real Madrid’s Brazilian Vinícius Júnior (€206m) complete the podium despite contracts extending only until 2027. Fourth-placed Spaniard Lamine Yamal (€180m) is tied to his club for even less time (June 2026), which would facilitate a possible departure from Barcelona. Now aged 26, despite a contract with Real Madrid until 2029, Kylian Mbappé’s transfer value (€175m) is only the fifth-highest.

Three Premier League players, England’s Bukayo Saka, Cole Palmer and Phil Foden, one from the Bundesliga, Germany’s Florian Wirtz, and a fourth Real Madrid footballer, Brazil’s Rodrygo, also feature in the top 10. The highest value for goalkeepers was recorded for Bart Verbruggen (Brighton & Hove), while Joško Gvardiol (Manchester City) tops the list for defenders and Viktor Gyökeres (Sporting CP) for players from outside the big-5.

>>> Top 100

>>> Best-valued player per club in 65 leagues worldwide

>>> Scientific paper on the CIES Football Observatory method

Thanks to the collaboration with Wyscout, the CIES Football Observatory has developed a robust and innovative method for comparing player performance. This report presents the footballers from 65 leagues around the world born in 2004 or later with the best performance index in the current or last completed season for the leagues alredy finished.

The performance index used to establish rankings is calculated on a 100-basis from player activity in six areas of the game: ground defence, aerial play, distribution, chance creation, take on and finishing. This other study details the methodology exclusively developed to measure performance in each of these areas.

The scouting report presents the 20 best performing young footballers for 20 categories defined according to players’ main position and technical characteristics. For each player, we alspo present his estimated transfer value according to the exclusive CIES Football Observatory statistical model. At the top of the list in their respective categories are:

Goalkeepers: Guillaume Restes (Toulouse) and Rome Jayden Owusu-Oduro (AZ Alkmaar).

Centre backs: Abdukodir Khusanov (Lens), Pau Cubarsí (Barcelona) and Taras Mykhavko (Dynamo Kyiv).

Full/wing backs: Jorrel Hato (Ajax), Malick Diouf (Slavia Prague), Oliver Braude (Heerenveen), Martim Fernandes (Porto) and Geovany Quenda (Sporting CP).

Midfielders: Warren Zäire-Emery (Paris St-Germain), Aleksandar Pavlović (Bayern Munich), João Neves (Paris St-Germain), Kendry Paez (Independente del Valle) and Aleksey Batrakov (Lokomotiv Moskow).

Wingers: Kenan Yildiz (Juventus), Thiago Fernández (Vélez Sarsfield), Lamine Yamal (Barcelona) and Arda Güler (Real Madrid).

Centre forwards: Samu Aghehowa (Porto) and Kauã Elias (Fluminense).

>>> Top 20s per category (update if the file is not displayed)

The 485th CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post presents the 20 outfield footballers in 66 leagues around the world who played the most official game minutes in 2024, either for clubs (at senior level only) or national teams (A, U23 or U21). Up to December 15, the most-used outfield player in absolute terms is FC Barcelona’s French international Jules Koundé: 5,872 minutes spread over 69 matches.

Fluminense’s Colombian Jhon Arias and Real Madrid’s Uruguayan Federico Valverde complete the podium. The next three places are occupied by players over the age of 30: Dutchman Virgil van Dijk (33.4), Argentina’s Nicolás Otamendi (36.8) and Switzerland’s Granit Xhaka (32.2). Reading FC’s New Zealander Tyler Bindon is the only footballer under the age of 20 in the top 100, demonstrating the sensitivity of coaches when it comes to balancing the efforts of younger players.

Also with respect to the top 100 outfield players overall, a clear majority of minutes were played in domestic club competitions: 73.2% of the total. The remaining playing time spread almost equally between international club competitions and national teams: 15.1% for the former and 13.4% for the latter (including the Olympic Games). These reports provide more exclusive analysis on the hot topics of match calendar and player workload.

>>> Top 20 per league