Despite what has been the longest football season possibly ever, the 19/20 campaign has drawn to a close across Europe. For some, it has been a year of breaking record, bagging trophies and success. For others, they’d have been wishing the break never ended as their team stuttered to a meagre league finish or cup defeat.

Whatever your personal team managed in this crazy season, it’s hard to deny that there has been some outstanding football on show across the continent. In the major competitions, Bayern have been unbelievably strong and consistent, whilst further down the league system, the likes of Leeds, Harrogate, FC Lorient, Huesca and Benevento all had superb seasons.

To mark the end of this year-long season, I’ve put together my PERSONAL team of the season. Now, before we begin, I must again emphasise, this is my personal selection of players, and I understand it’ completely up for debate. Additionally, I physically can’t watch every game and every league in Europe, meaning some fantastic players who have had superb seasons may not be included purely because of my lack of knowledge. Instead, to decide on the 11, I am combining personal opinion and knowledge with the statistical side of things. For some positions, I may choose a player who although not statistically the best in their position, they have impacted massively, and likewise, some positions may just come down to the facts and stats.

If you do think I’ve missed off any player that deserves credit or a mention, drop me a tweet @NextGoalWinBlog and I’ll be sure to look into it.

Enjoy!

Formation – 4-2-3-1 (Bayern 19/20 Champions League Final)

So to start, I picked the formation of the Champions League winners from the actual final of the competition. I chose this because quite simply it won the Champions League. As basic as that sounds, it is the formation which dominated European competition, and I believe that means I should base my squad of the season using the formation and tactical style of the ‘best of the best’.

Bayern utilise this formation frequently, with their main striker Lewandowski leading the charge solo. However, the 3 attacking midfielders provide fantastic support in the form of Costa, Muller, Sane (or Gnabry/Coman). This formation is occasionally used by many others across Europe such as Manchester United, Dortmund, Tottenham, Arsenal and Leicester. Having a standard back 4 with 2 defensive minded midfielders means the team can dominate possession whilst having security in defence. The 3 attack minded midfielders can move the ball fluently in the final third and playing with just 1 out-and-out striker means the striker can focus on just getting in the box and scoring plenty of goals.

Manager – Marcelo Bielsa

El Loco may not have had the highest win percentage of any coach this campaign, however his work with Leeds United to bring them back to the big time, for the first time in 16 years, is truly remarkable.

It isn’t simply down to his league success that I’ve put him as my manager of the year, but the accomplishment given his squad of players, who many would agree aren’t necessarily the strongest even in the Championship. However, the combination of determination, tactical prowess and sheer drive that Marcelo Bielsa has brought to Elland Road has driven them to the top where they stayed till the very end. Additionally, h has been one of the more entertaining managers to watch on-field and off-field. Because of Biela, Leeds have become one of the most exciting teams to watch with their attacking play, fitness levels and squad determination.

Whatever happens in this Premier League season for Leeds, with Bielsa in charge it’s undoubtedly going to be a thrill ride from start to finish.

Goalkeeper – Jesse Joronen

The first man in the line-up is certainly a surprising one, even for myself. With the no.1 spot, I decided that it should be based on the statistics, as there is so much debate with goalkeepers, when ultimately their role comes down to goals conceded, saves made and important contributions. As as result, I chose to ignore my personal feeling of the likes of Alisson, Neuer, Oblak and went for the Brescia keeper Joronen.

Despite his side failing to avoid relegation just 12 months after leaving Serie B, their no.1, the Finnish stopper Jesse Joronen was resolute between the sticks. According to the WhoScored rating system, Joronen had a consistent 7/10 rating for the entire season, with his 5 clean sheets in 29 appearances. Although certainly not the most impressive clean sheet record, for a side who faced relegation, keeping the clean sheets he did certainly provided hope for any chance of survival. The keeper made a total of 123 saves and averaged 4.3 saves per 90 minutes, making his save record the 2nd highest across Europe’s top-5 leagues.

A truly solid season from the 27-year-old Finnish keeper.

Left Back – Alphonso Davies

Domestically solid with 3 goals and 4 assists in the Bundesliga, and even more dominant on the European stage, tearing apart the likes of Spurs, Chelsea and other major sides, Davies lit up the footballing world in the 19/20 season.

The 19-year-old demonstrated blistering pace at regular speeds of 35km/h, while completed 82 dribbles, more than any other defender across Europe this campaign.

This youngster has demonstrated serious talent this year, and only seems to improve with every performance. I for one cannot wait to see what he can do this coming campaign.

Right Back – Trent Alexander-Arnold

Along the other flank, we have another youngster in the form of TAA. Liverpool’s young right back had a stunning campaign once again in 2019/2020. Although statistically not the strongest right back’s, his performances and impact for Liverpool helped the side clinch their first Premier League title.

Across the entire season, TAA managed 4 goals and 15 assists from 49 appearances across all competitions. In what was a truly dominant season for the reds, Alexander-Arnold was at the forefront of the charge for Liverpool.

The future looks truly bright for the England international, and with the Euro 2020 campaign delayed till 2021, let’s all hope this form continues.

Centre Back – Virgil Van Dijk

At centre back is another of Liverpool’s resolute leading men, this time with VVD. At the heart of Liverpool’s defence, the Dutchman proved once again why he is regarded so highly.

This season, along with adding a Premier League winners medal, Club World Cup and Super Cup trophy to his growing cabinet, Van Dijk played every minute for a side who conceded fewer goals than any other Premier League side. His 5 goals also helped his side on many occasions and showed his threat from set-pieces.

Centre Back – James Tarkowski

Partnering VVD, is possibly a surprising inclusion with James Tarkowski. This time, I have again been led by the stats in my decision making, as the Burnley man managed a season rating of 7.19/10 for the entire campaign.

His defensive work along with Pope’s performances gave Burnley a resolute defence that kept 15 clean sheets across the season. Tarkowski played every minute in Burnley’s solid season as they finished in 10th.

Individually, Tarkowski made 200 clearances and won 198 aerial duels in the season. Incredible stats from the centre back which, if continued, will definitely give him a starting role in England’s Euro 2020/21 efforts.

Part 2 Coming Soon…