ASSISTKINGS QUARTERLY: BRANDT RISING, TADIC SKEWERS MADRID & THE BEST OF THE REST
WELCOME BACK TO ASSISTKINGS QUARTERLY
There has been much movement in the creative adventures of many a world class player around Europe, with big clubs going down in the Champions League to hot young upstarts, one Man City attacking mid goes down and another rises up to take his place in the final third production line and the G.O.A.T continues his match-altering exploits as some of the best attackers (young and old) nip at his heels.
JOIN US AND GIVE US YOUR TOP 10!!!
BEST OF THE REST AND THE REST THAT AREN'T BEST
JADON SANCHO (Dortmund)
-12 assists (10 in the Bundesliga)
-UDGC: 4
While Sancho misses our proper top 10 list for the first time this season, the British youngster was still at his best, producing a shot on target, 3 dribbles, 2 chances created and 72 total passes completed in a suitable performance as Dortmund got back on track with a 3-1 victory over Stuttgart.
Though he went yet another match without an assist or a goal, Sancho continued his growth as a player, posting an 81% completion rate from 72 passes total, 58 of them wholly accurate, a fascinating range of passing from the attacking / midfielding winger.
MOHAMED SALAH
-7 assists total
-UDGC: 7 (2 this weekend)
Salah doesn't have the overall numbers in assists to navigate his way into the top 10 of this list, though by sheer goal creation, Mo Salah finds his way creeping on the cusp.
Although you could call all 3 Liverpool goals Salah created (against Burnley) "garbage giveaways", they were all from the dangerous right wing antics of the Egyptian. While their appearance may look built of luck, we see these Uncredited direct goal contributions as staunch examples of the force of will Mo Salah harnesses as he drives into the box from the right, usually forcing defenders into tough choices at the back, catching them in between thoughts and reactions, putting a toe, a sizzling afro and a shoulder into the mix and the ball usually ends up in the back of the net.
Two of them came from Salah being robbed of the ball at the last moment by a slight deflection by the defender, only to see the Egyptian get a poke in to redirect the ball towards the sprinting Firmino and Mane, who buried both of the Uncredited Direct Goal Contributions Salah set up. Although he could be directly credited with 3 UDGCs', one of them is more from sheer luck than anything, which defeats the point of tallying UDGCs (it's all about the mind & intention for creating, not just the luck).
More often than not, Liverpool's goals have come through the type of unofficial means that deflected crosses, rebounds from shots and loose touches from defenders brings, with Salah (whether unofficially or officially) at the heart of it all.
BERNARDO SILVA (Man City)
-8 assists overall
-UDGC: 2? (earned pen / dive vs West Ham, created first goal vs Chelsea in the 6-0 match,
-68 key passes overall (all comps.)
The 24 year old Portugal midfielder has created havoc on the biggest of occasions: creating the first goal in the 6-0 drubbing of Chelsea, dishing 2 assists against United in the Manc Derby, engineering a brilliant assist to Sergio Aguero to open the scoring early in the pivotal 2-1 victory over Liverpool in January, etc...all of these examples illustrate how Bernardo has been huge for City on the pitch.
More than that, he's been decisive.
And not only that moniker, he's also been a leader Guardiola can trust: Bernardo has created or scored 6 times in close matches, scoring or assisting in each of the three City defeats (scoring vs Lyon and Leicester and assisting against Crystal Palace). The Portugal man who's only just been allowed into the international setup, has been an absolute mainstay in the starting XI for Pep Guardiola, almost an unheard of circumstance in this era of Man City squad expansion, but such is his dominance on the pitch and his absolute knack for creating chaos.
He's scored or assisted against Liverpool (x2 if you want to count preseason), Arsenal, Chelsea (x2), Man United (x2) and Lyon and Shaktar Donetsk in the Champions League, showing everyone he's been a man for the biggest stage and the brightest of lights.
Stats will never depict how effective Bernardo Silva has been in some matches, with his fingerprints being all over many of City's 100+ goals on the season already, while only posting 8 official assists. We're still trying to verify certain Uncredited Direct Goal Contributions Bernardo may have had this season, because the list is long and it is lengthy.
THE LIST
10
RIYAD MAHREZ (Man City)
-11 assists overall
-5 assists in his last 8 apps.
-0.8 assists per game in the UCL (fantastic statistic)
-2.2 key passes per match in the UCL
-44 chances created total
(all comps, in 2,271 minutes)
-11 goals scored
Mahrez has been far from voluminous in his creation this season, seeing himself on the periphery at times in the City squad, although an extremely valuable peripheral figure at that.
Besides contributing to 23 goals directly (11 goals assisted, 11 goals scored, 1 UDGC) while barely allowed to function in a starting role, the Algerian has not only boosted Manchester City's multi-title winning ambitions, he gives them a firm, world class option in lieu of the often injured Kevin De Bruyne, or even in replacing an under performing Leroy Sane, Raheem Sterling, or Bernardo Silva in the lineup, if such issues ever arose.
Mahrez came in for the injured De Bruyne on the weekend and provided a delicious cross on the ground for Raheem Sterling to tap in, executing a perfect assist to end the 3 goal City destruction of Watford, capping off a fantastic all around performance full of shooting, massive time on the ball and a few goalscoring chances carved out.
What especially sets Mahrez's absolute title winning pedigree apart (not only the fact that he shouldered the load for Leicester City in one of the greatest modern sports stories of all time) is the fact that he's averaging just fractionally under an assist a match in the Champions League (the competition by which Guardiola's City side's progression will be judged), while also being 2nd in the Assists table behind only Kylian Mbappe, who has only one more than the Algerian wizard.
Mahrez returns to our list after he was out of our last one due to being an unused substitute with De Bruyne returning to fitness. Now that De Bruyne missed yet another match, Riyad Mahrez got the nod from Pep and delivered.
44 key passes is marginal compared to most of the names in this list, but with 11 assists overall and 11 goals scored, the Algerian is nothing but clinical.
9
ALEXANDRE LACAZETTE (Arsenal)
-9 assists overall
- 7 in the Premier League
- UDGC: 7 goals
(Newcastle, West Ham, against United in both matches, handball assist that wasn't called against Crystal Palace, Blackpool, etc)
- 3 created goals in his last 2 appearances.
- Aubameyang and Lacazette have combined for 7 goals
Lacazette has been making expert usage of every minute Unai Emery has given him as as he swaps or shares time on the pitch with Aubameyang, a striker he's combined for 5 goals with this season (directly) and 7 he's played a hefty part in altogether.
The Frenchman cruelly missed out on both Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup (thanks to France's ridiculous wealth of riches at forward) though it's only seemed to light a fire under him even more as he produces match defining moments, especially against top opposition: scoring against Liverpool at the death in a 1-1 draw, the 2 goals he just created in the 2-0 victory over Manchester United, he also scored against Chelsea and Tottenham in both London derby victories, then assisted in a 1-1 draw vs Tottenham and scored against United in the FA Cup.
Lacazette is showing what made him such an admired talent at Lyon: the finesse on the ball, the gliding miracle motion of his turns inside and outside of the box, or his hold-up play, or the dribbling dynamism, the feisty high pressing, the brilliant final ball and sublime first touch....all of this he brings to Arsenal.
And if he wasn't stunted by being played in random positions, Lacazette could hold even more influence over Arsenal's attack.
If Emery wants him to only support Aubameyang, then let him take over the Ozil role. Emery needs to give the Frenchman what he's longed for his entire career: the keys to the car.
He's surely created enough to earn that right.
8
RYAN FRASER (Bournemouth)
-11 assists overall
(3 for Scotland in Nations League play)
-10 Premier League assists
(2nd overall)
Fraser hadn't notched an assist in a wee bit, but it wasn't for the lack of trying: he assisted Dan Gosling against Arsenal, only to see Gosling ricochet the shot off of the bar instead of into the goal. He was producing scoring opportunities while playing with little to no possession and few clear cut openings to score against the top clubs of Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City that Fraser and Bournemouth have gritted through in the last two weeks or so.
But this weekend was his time: the Cherries' talisman made a sick give and go become a showcase for his devastating pace as he cut through the Huddersfield left wing and then blasted a pinpoint cross to the far post that was so wicked and deceiving (in that it first looked like a shot before it bent away from the goal at the vital moment and towards the diving chest of Callum Wilson).
Wilson returned the favor later on as he fed Fraser a rolling ball into the middle of the box, which the Scotland international met after making a darting run nobody else (not even defenders) were making and took advantage of a wide open blast into the goal.
Although, if you watch it closely, the replay reveals the Scot's true potential: the bend on the earlier assist, and then the finish on the later goal, proving to be not so wide open as we thought: the goalkeeper for Huddersfield comes charging out with both legs and arms wide open (absolutely dwarfing the hobbit-like Fraser) but Rod Stewart's favorite player opened his body and literally played the ball across the bottom left leg of the keeper, outrageously beating and cheating the keeper into the ground, nary a touch, nor a whine to cry about, just watch as Fraser passed the ball into the back of the net with a caressing venom.
We are very pleased he returns to the list.
7
DUSAN TADIC (Ajax)
-15 assists overall
-3 in the UCL
(another 3 in UCL qualifying, giving Tadic 6 in UCL comps.)
-Key Passes per match: 2.8 in UCL
(3rd behind Kroos & Depay for total chances created in Champions League with 22 total)
2.6 in Eredivisie
-99 chances created in total
(inc. KNVB Beker, UCL qualifying rounds)
-UDGC: 2
-15 goals scored in his last 17 matches (27 goals total)
With 1 goal, 2 assists and 5 chances created against Real Madrid in the masterpiece 2nd leg victory at the Bernabeu that knocked the 3x defending European champions out of the Champions League, Dusan Tadic announced himself yet again to the world (this was the first UCL match Real Madrid had lost at home since the 2015 semifinal second leg defeat vs Buffon, Pogba, Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal, Alvaro Morata, Carlos Tevez and their Juventus team........my does that show us how time does change).
Tadic was routinely running the show in Madrid, pulling and pushing Modric, Kroos, Casmeiro and Raphael Varane around like marionettes, playing in 5 outrageous chances that all had GOAL written all over them...literally the Serbian deserved 4 or 5 assists at the Bernabeu, with what he already accomplished being unimaginable to most pundits and fans (I knew Tadic would play well and prove a point, but creating 3 goals on the way to victory in Madrid??? I didn't see that coming!).
To get the all encompassing savagery of his passing in the final third against Real Madrid, one has to only watch how (in the final 5 minutes) with the score already settled and Ajax only toying with their supposed "betters", the Serbian underdog and self-described "Assist King" rolled this absolutely peachy square / on the ground ball to his Moroccan teammate, Hakim Ziyech, for the tap-in from inside the 6 yard box and the goal mouth gaping (bigger than Chris Christie's anus after Thanksgiving) for what would've been his hat trick of assists, only to see Ziyech completely sky and waste an otherworldly and once in a lifetime chance to pull off such a feat against a quality opponent such as Madrid, in that moment, in that match that we will all remember...it's such a criminal miss by Hakim Ziyech that we nearly took the Moroccan off of this list.
Tadic has been doing this routinely all season, scoring a ridiculous 27 goals, 6 of them in the Champions League (tied on goals for 2nd with Lionel Messi, although to be fair, Tadic has played in 4 more Champions League matches this season than the Argentine).
With another easy 2 goals, 6 chances created and an uncredited assist (that we credit here, because it's absolute garbage that it wasn't credited), Tadic kept it rolling in the Eredivisie, now at 15 assists overall in all competitions (we included Champions League qualifiers, since they are matches of consequence and competition) second only to Lionel Messi for the leaders of the all around Assists Table in European Competitions (Messi at 16).
The 30 year old seems a new product to some, with his World Cup exploits and chance creation causing some American viewers to throw his name around in hushed whispers so they wouldn't be made fun of, but the British and the Dutch knew of him for quite some time: during his time at Southampton, Dusan Tadic had ripped off two hat tricks of assists against none other than a 2 time Premier League champion Manchester City (May 1st, 2016, when City was 3rd in the table) and created 4 goals in total and dished another 3 assists against Sunderland in October 2014, both Premier League matches (keeping him in esteemed company with only a couple players such as Ryan Giggs and Thierry Henry who've ever achieved a duo of 3 assist matches in the Premier League in their entire career). In the Eredivisie at Groningen and Twente, Tadic had more than three more hat tricks of assists and 68 assists and 46 goals in 161 appearances, capping off a phenomenal time in Holland.
After his first successes at Southampton, Tadic flamed out and his form went flat on him for a few wilderness seasons, but thanks to his driven desires to usher the Serbian National team to the 2018 FIFA World Cup (which he did and a World Cup that Tadic played very well in), his form has recovered and he finally left Southampton to go back to the Eredivisie, this time to Dutch giants Ajax who were expected to be replacing the supposedly outgoing Hakim Ziyech. But the Moroccan's post World Cup transfer to a "bigger club" never went through, though Tadic had still been handed Ziyech's #10 shirt at that point of uncertainty.
What is certain is that Dusan Tadic has produced and delivered like a #10 and even more, the guy has been filthy good.
At 6 goals and 3 assists in the Champions League, the Serb has been delivering in big moments against the likes of Bayern Munich and now Real Madrid (in the knockout rounds no less) and producing the goods as he leads this young star-studded Ajax team on a Champions League quest.
6
DAVID SILVA (Man City)
-10 assists overall
-5 assists in his last 10 apps.
-88 chances created (all comps.)
-7 chances created that hit the post
-UDGC: 5
Silva was at the helm again for City, logging another EPL assist on the way to a controversial second half explosion, all started by a Sterling goal suspected to be offside, however once the Watford player deflected the ball from Aguero's chest and into Sterling's boot, he played Raheem onside.
The controversy is really only for those who don't understand the rules, or are hard-done-by Watford fans who just watched their team battle City for 45 minutes (keeping it at 0-0) only to see it disappear in 10 or so minutes as Sterling bagged his second career City hat trick, with help from his pal David Silva, who scythed a perfect on the ground cross to Sterling at the far post.
The Spaniard is in devastating form as of late, carrying the load for City as Sane underperforms, Sterling looks to goal and De Bruyne is out hurt.
The World Cup and 2x Euros winner is who Guardiola will look to when needing goals to finish off Schalke on Tuesday in the Champions League.
5
JULIAN BRANDT (Bayer Leverkeusen)
-12 assists overall
-9 in the Bundesliga (really 10, but Volland / Bailey stole one)
-UDGC: 5 (1 today, shot on goal that Volland tapped in)
- directly created 8 goals in his last 6 apps.
This weekend Brandt created all 3 goals in the snow against Hannover, assisting Kevin Volland with a shot on target that was rebounded to the German striker who tapped it in and later, a bold hold up through ball (a tough pass to complete in the snow) that his teammate buried for his 2nd of the game.
Brandt was turning the tables in midfield, scraping a delicious through ball that nearly created another goal later in the match. Then, his fellow German prodigy, Kai Havertz, played a sick combination with Brandt that was finished off when the blonde #10 one-touched a cross to Havertz who knocked the ball into the net, using the pace from Brandt's assist to power it passed the keeper.
All 3 of these goals were vital, as Leverkeusen fans watched their club completely collapse after leading 2-0, surrendering 2 goals as Hanover tied it late in the match until that Brandt to Havertz goal sealed what was a delayed, snow drenched 2-3 victory on the road.
All Because of Julian Brandt.
4
MEMPHIS DEPAY (Lyon)
-14 assists total
-113 chances created
-did not play this weekend
(wisely rested for UCL match vs Barcelona on Wednesday, unlike Barcelona's manager, Lyon's understands rotation)..
DNP
3
EDEN HAZARD (Chelsea)
-11 assists overall (EPL leader)
-103 total chances created (all comps)
Hazard had two chances that amounted to blocked shots in the 1-1 draw vs Wolverhampton, though he turned hero once again for Chelsea, scoring the stoppage time equalizer.
Chelsea were bad in the whole of things once again, giving the ball away cheaply in the final third, and so what if Jorginho had another 100 passes...none of them created anything of substance and their midfield (with Kante at right center mid instead of defensive mid) is being hijacked by the Italian and his manager / compatriot's obsession with him.
The London club is embarrassingly lucky to have Eden Hazard there to still rescue them. It's unbelievable when you understand that the Belgian has been there since the summer of 2012 and has endured just as many seasons out of the Champions League as in it....
In the era of King's Ransom transfer fees, the betrayal of Neymar, Buffon to PSG, Ronaldo to Juve, Fabregas from Arsenal to Barcelona and then to (of all clubs) Chelsea, or even what Coutinho did last year, among many many more swapping clubs in an almost surreal fashion, it's beyond bizarre how long Hazard has stayed put at Chelsea.
We can't wait for him to move, as long as its not to Madrid.
2
HAKIM ZIYECH (Ajax)
-14 assists overall
-4 assists and 3 goals in his last 5 matches
(inc. 1 goal against Real Madrid)
-122 chances created total
-UDGC: 9
(#1 leader in all of Europe, all comps. including UCL qualifiers)
Remember how we said we had it all figured out and that we were wrong: Memphis Depay had the most chances created on the season?
We recalculated, adding all of the available data of Ajax attacking midfielder Hakim Ziyech, including the often overlooked Champions League qualifiers (judging by Ajax's upset over Real Madrid, arguably one of the club's greatest achievements along with hiring Rinus Michels, signing Johan Cruyff as a youth product and then selling Cruyff to Barcelona, this UCL campaign had to start somewhere, so we count the qualifiers) and we tallied the few KNVB Beker (Dutch cup) matches he's played in.
What we're left with is the Moroccan eclipsing the century mark easily and while playing in 5-8 more matches than Messi, Depay or Hazard (if not more due to injuries Messi suffered) he's gone beyond the creative efforts of the Argentine, Dutchman and Belgian in key passes on the season.
Yes, the odds of Messi conjuring nearly 200 key passes in the Dutch league is solid thanks to the lax defending and frankly bad defensive coaching in the Eredivisie, so just because Ziyech, Tadic or even Memphis Depay can lodge 100+ chances in the Dutch or French Ligue 1 doesn't mean they can provide anywhere near the same amount of chances in a top league such as the 103 Eden Hazard has produced, with over 90 key passes in the Premier League alone, or Messi having to be at the top of his game every match as he becomes a player that (too often) finds himself hunted, fouled and harassed on a scale that (frankly) the Moroccan hasnt had to deal with match in, match out in the Eredivisie.
But what affirms the greatness of those three players from the "lower leagues", is their wondrous Champions League seasons so far, with Ziyech scoring on Real Madrid in the monumental 4-1 win.
Ziyech was unreal against Madrid, putting in a performance nearly as sparkling as Tadic's, although his Serbian teammate will be bothering him about that wide open goal Ziyech skied from 2 feet away that would've given Dusan Tadic his 3rd assist.
Besides the awful miss and the brilliant goal, Hakim was fantastic against Scolari/Mourinho's/ Ramos'/Zidane's side, leading the stat sheet in interceptions (3) and shots (7), while still posting 3 key passes.
He was also 2nd for both tackles completed (3) and attempted (6) in an all action, dynamic performance that along with Dusan Tadic's masterpiece, helped sink the 3x defending European champions.
In addition, the Moroccan destroyed Feyenoord in the Dutch cup final, producing 2 hearty assists in the 3-0 victory, giving Ajax their first silverware of the campaign.
1
LIONEL MESSI (Barca)
-16 assists overall
-105 chances created
-UDGC: 4?
The enigmatic talisman wrapped up another man of the match performance against Vallecano with a divine cross to Gerard Pique, who headed the ball into the net with a graceful salute from his skull for yet another goal in a truly remarkable campaign for the Barca center back (with 6 goals and an assist for Mr. Shaqira as he's played every minute of the La Liga campaign). 4 of the 6 goals were engineered by the boots of Lionel Messi.
Messi also curled another vicious cross into Umtiti, the World Cup winner pulling off an identical run into the box as the one Pique scored from, but the Frenchman narrowly missed his head to the ball.
Lionel Messi has looked like he's pacing himself for the Champions League tie against Lyon, while still looking like the best player in the world, showing how effortless his complete mastery of the game can be on the weekend, with a buried penalty joining his 12th La Liga leading assist in the 3-1 come from behind Barca victory.
Messi was rampant again, after calming down his dribbling persistence against the fouling, cynical Madrid in those back to back El Clasico matches. Leo sprang to life on Saturday, going for 6 dribbles against Vallecano and ripping the same number of shot attempts.
Although we've seen many creative forces conjuring chances left and right in all of the top leagues, with Ziyech, Depay, Tadic and Hazard nipping at the Argentine's heels, Messi must keep his top spot due to the overall assists record (1 more than Tadic, 2 more than Depay and Ziyech), coupled with his continued exploits in the final third and his shouldering of complete attacking responsibility, the Barca man retains his spot at #1 although if he hadn't assisted this weekend, he was close to losing out for the first time in Assist Kings Quarterly history.
ASSISTHAPPENINGS:
- Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery came off of the bench in the 55th minute to replace Serge Gnabry who had played a wonderful match, ushering Bayern's 5-0 victory with a goal and an assist. Though the 34 year old, oft-forgotten Frenchman who replaced him had a point to prove. In 9 minutes, Franck Ribery assisted 3 goals to 3 different players: Kimmich, Lewandowski and Thomas Muller (to Muller: a beautiful, on the ground pass to the top of the box and an off the ground, floated cross to the back post for both Lewandowski and Kimmich to head into goal).
This anoints Ribery as the true Assist King, beating Mesut Ozil, Lionel Messi, Zinedine Zidane, Andres Iniesta, Xavi, Cruyff and a whole host of others as no player has achieved more hat tricks of assists (8) than Ribery.
-2019, 2016, 2013 (for France, vs Australia), 2012 (x2), 2010 2007 (for France, vs Faroe Islands), 2007 (UEFA Cup) among a host of other debatable matches.
ASSISTERS OF NOTE
-IVAN RAKITIC (Barca)
7 assists
-NABIL FEKIR (Lyon)
8 assists
(Did not play this weekend)
-KYLIAN MBAPPE (PSG)
13 assists
(UCL leading 5)(Did not play this weekend)
There has been much movement in the creative adventures of many a world class player around Europe, with big clubs going down in the Champions League to hot young upstarts, one Man City attacking mid goes down and another rises up to take his place in the final third production line and the G.O.A.T continues his match-altering exploits as some of the best attackers (young and old) nip at his heels.
JOIN US AND GIVE US YOUR TOP 10!!!
BEST OF THE REST AND THE REST THAT AREN'T BEST
JADON SANCHO (Dortmund)
-12 assists (10 in the Bundesliga)
-UDGC: 4
While Sancho misses our proper top 10 list for the first time this season, the British youngster was still at his best, producing a shot on target, 3 dribbles, 2 chances created and 72 total passes completed in a suitable performance as Dortmund got back on track with a 3-1 victory over Stuttgart.
Though he went yet another match without an assist or a goal, Sancho continued his growth as a player, posting an 81% completion rate from 72 passes total, 58 of them wholly accurate, a fascinating range of passing from the attacking / midfielding winger.
MOHAMED SALAH
-7 assists total
-UDGC: 7 (2 this weekend)
Salah doesn't have the overall numbers in assists to navigate his way into the top 10 of this list, though by sheer goal creation, Mo Salah finds his way creeping on the cusp.
Although you could call all 3 Liverpool goals Salah created (against Burnley) "garbage giveaways", they were all from the dangerous right wing antics of the Egyptian. While their appearance may look built of luck, we see these Uncredited direct goal contributions as staunch examples of the force of will Mo Salah harnesses as he drives into the box from the right, usually forcing defenders into tough choices at the back, catching them in between thoughts and reactions, putting a toe, a sizzling afro and a shoulder into the mix and the ball usually ends up in the back of the net.
Two of them came from Salah being robbed of the ball at the last moment by a slight deflection by the defender, only to see the Egyptian get a poke in to redirect the ball towards the sprinting Firmino and Mane, who buried both of the Uncredited Direct Goal Contributions Salah set up. Although he could be directly credited with 3 UDGCs', one of them is more from sheer luck than anything, which defeats the point of tallying UDGCs (it's all about the mind & intention for creating, not just the luck).
More often than not, Liverpool's goals have come through the type of unofficial means that deflected crosses, rebounds from shots and loose touches from defenders brings, with Salah (whether unofficially or officially) at the heart of it all.
BERNARDO SILVA (Man City)
-8 assists overall
-UDGC: 2? (earned pen / dive vs West Ham, created first goal vs Chelsea in the 6-0 match,
-68 key passes overall (all comps.)
The 24 year old Portugal midfielder has created havoc on the biggest of occasions: creating the first goal in the 6-0 drubbing of Chelsea, dishing 2 assists against United in the Manc Derby, engineering a brilliant assist to Sergio Aguero to open the scoring early in the pivotal 2-1 victory over Liverpool in January, etc...all of these examples illustrate how Bernardo has been huge for City on the pitch.
More than that, he's been decisive.
And not only that moniker, he's also been a leader Guardiola can trust: Bernardo has created or scored 6 times in close matches, scoring or assisting in each of the three City defeats (scoring vs Lyon and Leicester and assisting against Crystal Palace). The Portugal man who's only just been allowed into the international setup, has been an absolute mainstay in the starting XI for Pep Guardiola, almost an unheard of circumstance in this era of Man City squad expansion, but such is his dominance on the pitch and his absolute knack for creating chaos.
He's scored or assisted against Liverpool (x2 if you want to count preseason), Arsenal, Chelsea (x2), Man United (x2) and Lyon and Shaktar Donetsk in the Champions League, showing everyone he's been a man for the biggest stage and the brightest of lights.
Stats will never depict how effective Bernardo Silva has been in some matches, with his fingerprints being all over many of City's 100+ goals on the season already, while only posting 8 official assists. We're still trying to verify certain Uncredited Direct Goal Contributions Bernardo may have had this season, because the list is long and it is lengthy.
THE LIST
10
RIYAD MAHREZ (Man City)
-11 assists overall
-5 assists in his last 8 apps.
-0.8 assists per game in the UCL (fantastic statistic)
-2.2 key passes per match in the UCL
-44 chances created total
(all comps, in 2,271 minutes)
-11 goals scored
Mahrez has been far from voluminous in his creation this season, seeing himself on the periphery at times in the City squad, although an extremely valuable peripheral figure at that.
Besides contributing to 23 goals directly (11 goals assisted, 11 goals scored, 1 UDGC) while barely allowed to function in a starting role, the Algerian has not only boosted Manchester City's multi-title winning ambitions, he gives them a firm, world class option in lieu of the often injured Kevin De Bruyne, or even in replacing an under performing Leroy Sane, Raheem Sterling, or Bernardo Silva in the lineup, if such issues ever arose.
Mahrez came in for the injured De Bruyne on the weekend and provided a delicious cross on the ground for Raheem Sterling to tap in, executing a perfect assist to end the 3 goal City destruction of Watford, capping off a fantastic all around performance full of shooting, massive time on the ball and a few goalscoring chances carved out.
What especially sets Mahrez's absolute title winning pedigree apart (not only the fact that he shouldered the load for Leicester City in one of the greatest modern sports stories of all time) is the fact that he's averaging just fractionally under an assist a match in the Champions League (the competition by which Guardiola's City side's progression will be judged), while also being 2nd in the Assists table behind only Kylian Mbappe, who has only one more than the Algerian wizard.
Mahrez returns to our list after he was out of our last one due to being an unused substitute with De Bruyne returning to fitness. Now that De Bruyne missed yet another match, Riyad Mahrez got the nod from Pep and delivered.
44 key passes is marginal compared to most of the names in this list, but with 11 assists overall and 11 goals scored, the Algerian is nothing but clinical.
9
ALEXANDRE LACAZETTE (Arsenal)
- 7 in the Premier League
- UDGC: 7 goals
(Newcastle, West Ham, against United in both matches, handball assist that wasn't called against Crystal Palace, Blackpool, etc)
- 3 created goals in his last 2 appearances.
- Aubameyang and Lacazette have combined for 7 goals
Lacazette has been making expert usage of every minute Unai Emery has given him as as he swaps or shares time on the pitch with Aubameyang, a striker he's combined for 5 goals with this season (directly) and 7 he's played a hefty part in altogether.
The Frenchman cruelly missed out on both Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup (thanks to France's ridiculous wealth of riches at forward) though it's only seemed to light a fire under him even more as he produces match defining moments, especially against top opposition: scoring against Liverpool at the death in a 1-1 draw, the 2 goals he just created in the 2-0 victory over Manchester United, he also scored against Chelsea and Tottenham in both London derby victories, then assisted in a 1-1 draw vs Tottenham and scored against United in the FA Cup.Lacazette is showing what made him such an admired talent at Lyon: the finesse on the ball, the gliding miracle motion of his turns inside and outside of the box, or his hold-up play, or the dribbling dynamism, the feisty high pressing, the brilliant final ball and sublime first touch....all of this he brings to Arsenal.
And if he wasn't stunted by being played in random positions, Lacazette could hold even more influence over Arsenal's attack.
If Emery wants him to only support Aubameyang, then let him take over the Ozil role. Emery needs to give the Frenchman what he's longed for his entire career: the keys to the car.
He's surely created enough to earn that right.
8
RYAN FRASER (Bournemouth)
-11 assists overall
(3 for Scotland in Nations League play)
-10 Premier League assists
(2nd overall)
Fraser hadn't notched an assist in a wee bit, but it wasn't for the lack of trying: he assisted Dan Gosling against Arsenal, only to see Gosling ricochet the shot off of the bar instead of into the goal. He was producing scoring opportunities while playing with little to no possession and few clear cut openings to score against the top clubs of Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City that Fraser and Bournemouth have gritted through in the last two weeks or so.
But this weekend was his time: the Cherries' talisman made a sick give and go become a showcase for his devastating pace as he cut through the Huddersfield left wing and then blasted a pinpoint cross to the far post that was so wicked and deceiving (in that it first looked like a shot before it bent away from the goal at the vital moment and towards the diving chest of Callum Wilson).
Wilson returned the favor later on as he fed Fraser a rolling ball into the middle of the box, which the Scotland international met after making a darting run nobody else (not even defenders) were making and took advantage of a wide open blast into the goal.
Although, if you watch it closely, the replay reveals the Scot's true potential: the bend on the earlier assist, and then the finish on the later goal, proving to be not so wide open as we thought: the goalkeeper for Huddersfield comes charging out with both legs and arms wide open (absolutely dwarfing the hobbit-like Fraser) but Rod Stewart's favorite player opened his body and literally played the ball across the bottom left leg of the keeper, outrageously beating and cheating the keeper into the ground, nary a touch, nor a whine to cry about, just watch as Fraser passed the ball into the back of the net with a caressing venom.
We are very pleased he returns to the list.
7
DUSAN TADIC (Ajax)
-15 assists overall
-3 in the UCL
(another 3 in UCL qualifying, giving Tadic 6 in UCL comps.)
-Key Passes per match: 2.8 in UCL
(3rd behind Kroos & Depay for total chances created in Champions League with 22 total)
2.6 in Eredivisie
-99 chances created in total
(inc. KNVB Beker, UCL qualifying rounds)
-UDGC: 2
-15 goals scored in his last 17 matches (27 goals total)
With 1 goal, 2 assists and 5 chances created against Real Madrid in the masterpiece 2nd leg victory at the Bernabeu that knocked the 3x defending European champions out of the Champions League, Dusan Tadic announced himself yet again to the world (this was the first UCL match Real Madrid had lost at home since the 2015 semifinal second leg defeat vs Buffon, Pogba, Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal, Alvaro Morata, Carlos Tevez and their Juventus team........my does that show us how time does change).
Tadic was routinely running the show in Madrid, pulling and pushing Modric, Kroos, Casmeiro and Raphael Varane around like marionettes, playing in 5 outrageous chances that all had GOAL written all over them...literally the Serbian deserved 4 or 5 assists at the Bernabeu, with what he already accomplished being unimaginable to most pundits and fans (I knew Tadic would play well and prove a point, but creating 3 goals on the way to victory in Madrid??? I didn't see that coming!).
To get the all encompassing savagery of his passing in the final third against Real Madrid, one has to only watch how (in the final 5 minutes) with the score already settled and Ajax only toying with their supposed "betters", the Serbian underdog and self-described "Assist King" rolled this absolutely peachy square / on the ground ball to his Moroccan teammate, Hakim Ziyech, for the tap-in from inside the 6 yard box and the goal mouth gaping (bigger than Chris Christie's anus after Thanksgiving) for what would've been his hat trick of assists, only to see Ziyech completely sky and waste an otherworldly and once in a lifetime chance to pull off such a feat against a quality opponent such as Madrid, in that moment, in that match that we will all remember...it's such a criminal miss by Hakim Ziyech that we nearly took the Moroccan off of this list.
Tadic has been doing this routinely all season, scoring a ridiculous 27 goals, 6 of them in the Champions League (tied on goals for 2nd with Lionel Messi, although to be fair, Tadic has played in 4 more Champions League matches this season than the Argentine).
With another easy 2 goals, 6 chances created and an uncredited assist (that we credit here, because it's absolute garbage that it wasn't credited), Tadic kept it rolling in the Eredivisie, now at 15 assists overall in all competitions (we included Champions League qualifiers, since they are matches of consequence and competition) second only to Lionel Messi for the leaders of the all around Assists Table in European Competitions (Messi at 16).
The 30 year old seems a new product to some, with his World Cup exploits and chance creation causing some American viewers to throw his name around in hushed whispers so they wouldn't be made fun of, but the British and the Dutch knew of him for quite some time: during his time at Southampton, Dusan Tadic had ripped off two hat tricks of assists against none other than a 2 time Premier League champion Manchester City (May 1st, 2016, when City was 3rd in the table) and created 4 goals in total and dished another 3 assists against Sunderland in October 2014, both Premier League matches (keeping him in esteemed company with only a couple players such as Ryan Giggs and Thierry Henry who've ever achieved a duo of 3 assist matches in the Premier League in their entire career). In the Eredivisie at Groningen and Twente, Tadic had more than three more hat tricks of assists and 68 assists and 46 goals in 161 appearances, capping off a phenomenal time in Holland. After his first successes at Southampton, Tadic flamed out and his form went flat on him for a few wilderness seasons, but thanks to his driven desires to usher the Serbian National team to the 2018 FIFA World Cup (which he did and a World Cup that Tadic played very well in), his form has recovered and he finally left Southampton to go back to the Eredivisie, this time to Dutch giants Ajax who were expected to be replacing the supposedly outgoing Hakim Ziyech. But the Moroccan's post World Cup transfer to a "bigger club" never went through, though Tadic had still been handed Ziyech's #10 shirt at that point of uncertainty.
What is certain is that Dusan Tadic has produced and delivered like a #10 and even more, the guy has been filthy good.
At 6 goals and 3 assists in the Champions League, the Serb has been delivering in big moments against the likes of Bayern Munich and now Real Madrid (in the knockout rounds no less) and producing the goods as he leads this young star-studded Ajax team on a Champions League quest.
6
DAVID SILVA (Man City)
-10 assists overall
-5 assists in his last 10 apps.
-88 chances created (all comps.)
-7 chances created that hit the post
-UDGC: 5
Silva was at the helm again for City, logging another EPL assist on the way to a controversial second half explosion, all started by a Sterling goal suspected to be offside, however once the Watford player deflected the ball from Aguero's chest and into Sterling's boot, he played Raheem onside.
The controversy is really only for those who don't understand the rules, or are hard-done-by Watford fans who just watched their team battle City for 45 minutes (keeping it at 0-0) only to see it disappear in 10 or so minutes as Sterling bagged his second career City hat trick, with help from his pal David Silva, who scythed a perfect on the ground cross to Sterling at the far post.
The Spaniard is in devastating form as of late, carrying the load for City as Sane underperforms, Sterling looks to goal and De Bruyne is out hurt.
The World Cup and 2x Euros winner is who Guardiola will look to when needing goals to finish off Schalke on Tuesday in the Champions League.
5
JULIAN BRANDT (Bayer Leverkeusen)
-12 assists overall
-9 in the Bundesliga (really 10, but Volland / Bailey stole one)
-UDGC: 5 (1 today, shot on goal that Volland tapped in)
- directly created 8 goals in his last 6 apps.
This weekend Brandt created all 3 goals in the snow against Hannover, assisting Kevin Volland with a shot on target that was rebounded to the German striker who tapped it in and later, a bold hold up through ball (a tough pass to complete in the snow) that his teammate buried for his 2nd of the game.
Brandt was turning the tables in midfield, scraping a delicious through ball that nearly created another goal later in the match. Then, his fellow German prodigy, Kai Havertz, played a sick combination with Brandt that was finished off when the blonde #10 one-touched a cross to Havertz who knocked the ball into the net, using the pace from Brandt's assist to power it passed the keeper.
All 3 of these goals were vital, as Leverkeusen fans watched their club completely collapse after leading 2-0, surrendering 2 goals as Hanover tied it late in the match until that Brandt to Havertz goal sealed what was a delayed, snow drenched 2-3 victory on the road.
All Because of Julian Brandt.
4
MEMPHIS DEPAY (Lyon)
-14 assists total
-113 chances created
-did not play this weekend
(wisely rested for UCL match vs Barcelona on Wednesday, unlike Barcelona's manager, Lyon's understands rotation)..
DNP
3
EDEN HAZARD (Chelsea)
-11 assists overall (EPL leader)
-103 total chances created (all comps)
Hazard had two chances that amounted to blocked shots in the 1-1 draw vs Wolverhampton, though he turned hero once again for Chelsea, scoring the stoppage time equalizer.
Chelsea were bad in the whole of things once again, giving the ball away cheaply in the final third, and so what if Jorginho had another 100 passes...none of them created anything of substance and their midfield (with Kante at right center mid instead of defensive mid) is being hijacked by the Italian and his manager / compatriot's obsession with him.
The London club is embarrassingly lucky to have Eden Hazard there to still rescue them. It's unbelievable when you understand that the Belgian has been there since the summer of 2012 and has endured just as many seasons out of the Champions League as in it....
In the era of King's Ransom transfer fees, the betrayal of Neymar, Buffon to PSG, Ronaldo to Juve, Fabregas from Arsenal to Barcelona and then to (of all clubs) Chelsea, or even what Coutinho did last year, among many many more swapping clubs in an almost surreal fashion, it's beyond bizarre how long Hazard has stayed put at Chelsea.
We can't wait for him to move, as long as its not to Madrid.
2
HAKIM ZIYECH (Ajax)
-14 assists overall
-4 assists and 3 goals in his last 5 matches
(inc. 1 goal against Real Madrid)
-122 chances created total
-UDGC: 9
(#1 leader in all of Europe, all comps. including UCL qualifiers)
Remember how we said we had it all figured out and that we were wrong: Memphis Depay had the most chances created on the season?
We recalculated, adding all of the available data of Ajax attacking midfielder Hakim Ziyech, including the often overlooked Champions League qualifiers (judging by Ajax's upset over Real Madrid, arguably one of the club's greatest achievements along with hiring Rinus Michels, signing Johan Cruyff as a youth product and then selling Cruyff to Barcelona, this UCL campaign had to start somewhere, so we count the qualifiers) and we tallied the few KNVB Beker (Dutch cup) matches he's played in.
What we're left with is the Moroccan eclipsing the century mark easily and while playing in 5-8 more matches than Messi, Depay or Hazard (if not more due to injuries Messi suffered) he's gone beyond the creative efforts of the Argentine, Dutchman and Belgian in key passes on the season.
Yes, the odds of Messi conjuring nearly 200 key passes in the Dutch league is solid thanks to the lax defending and frankly bad defensive coaching in the Eredivisie, so just because Ziyech, Tadic or even Memphis Depay can lodge 100+ chances in the Dutch or French Ligue 1 doesn't mean they can provide anywhere near the same amount of chances in a top league such as the 103 Eden Hazard has produced, with over 90 key passes in the Premier League alone, or Messi having to be at the top of his game every match as he becomes a player that (too often) finds himself hunted, fouled and harassed on a scale that (frankly) the Moroccan hasnt had to deal with match in, match out in the Eredivisie.
But what affirms the greatness of those three players from the "lower leagues", is their wondrous Champions League seasons so far, with Ziyech scoring on Real Madrid in the monumental 4-1 win.
Ziyech was unreal against Madrid, putting in a performance nearly as sparkling as Tadic's, although his Serbian teammate will be bothering him about that wide open goal Ziyech skied from 2 feet away that would've given Dusan Tadic his 3rd assist.
Besides the awful miss and the brilliant goal, Hakim was fantastic against Scolari/Mourinho's/ Ramos'/Zidane's side, leading the stat sheet in interceptions (3) and shots (7), while still posting 3 key passes.
He was also 2nd for both tackles completed (3) and attempted (6) in an all action, dynamic performance that along with Dusan Tadic's masterpiece, helped sink the 3x defending European champions.
In addition, the Moroccan destroyed Feyenoord in the Dutch cup final, producing 2 hearty assists in the 3-0 victory, giving Ajax their first silverware of the campaign.
1
LIONEL MESSI (Barca)
-16 assists overall
-105 chances created
-UDGC: 4?
The enigmatic talisman wrapped up another man of the match performance against Vallecano with a divine cross to Gerard Pique, who headed the ball into the net with a graceful salute from his skull for yet another goal in a truly remarkable campaign for the Barca center back (with 6 goals and an assist for Mr. Shaqira as he's played every minute of the La Liga campaign). 4 of the 6 goals were engineered by the boots of Lionel Messi.
Messi also curled another vicious cross into Umtiti, the World Cup winner pulling off an identical run into the box as the one Pique scored from, but the Frenchman narrowly missed his head to the ball.
Lionel Messi has looked like he's pacing himself for the Champions League tie against Lyon, while still looking like the best player in the world, showing how effortless his complete mastery of the game can be on the weekend, with a buried penalty joining his 12th La Liga leading assist in the 3-1 come from behind Barca victory.
Messi was rampant again, after calming down his dribbling persistence against the fouling, cynical Madrid in those back to back El Clasico matches. Leo sprang to life on Saturday, going for 6 dribbles against Vallecano and ripping the same number of shot attempts.
Although we've seen many creative forces conjuring chances left and right in all of the top leagues, with Ziyech, Depay, Tadic and Hazard nipping at the Argentine's heels, Messi must keep his top spot due to the overall assists record (1 more than Tadic, 2 more than Depay and Ziyech), coupled with his continued exploits in the final third and his shouldering of complete attacking responsibility, the Barca man retains his spot at #1 although if he hadn't assisted this weekend, he was close to losing out for the first time in Assist Kings Quarterly history.
ASSISTHAPPENINGS:
- Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery came off of the bench in the 55th minute to replace Serge Gnabry who had played a wonderful match, ushering Bayern's 5-0 victory with a goal and an assist. Though the 34 year old, oft-forgotten Frenchman who replaced him had a point to prove. In 9 minutes, Franck Ribery assisted 3 goals to 3 different players: Kimmich, Lewandowski and Thomas Muller (to Muller: a beautiful, on the ground pass to the top of the box and an off the ground, floated cross to the back post for both Lewandowski and Kimmich to head into goal).
This anoints Ribery as the true Assist King, beating Mesut Ozil, Lionel Messi, Zinedine Zidane, Andres Iniesta, Xavi, Cruyff and a whole host of others as no player has achieved more hat tricks of assists (8) than Ribery.
-2019, 2016, 2013 (for France, vs Australia), 2012 (x2), 2010 2007 (for France, vs Faroe Islands), 2007 (UEFA Cup) among a host of other debatable matches.
ASSISTERS OF NOTE
-IVAN RAKITIC (Barca)
7 assists
-NABIL FEKIR (Lyon)
8 assists
(Did not play this weekend)
-KYLIAN MBAPPE (PSG)
13 assists
(UCL leading 5)(Did not play this weekend)
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