Top 10 defenders of this season

“Attack wins you matches, Defense wins you titles”

An age old saying holds true to this day. Defenders have often been overlooked in favor of their goal scoring counterparts by mainstream media but the fans of the game understand their importance. Over the past few seasons we have seen fantastic defensive displays by teams like Juventus, Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid. This season too we have seen high quality defending from different teams and individuals. Here is a look at the top 10 defenders of the 2016-2017 season:

Honorable mentions:

Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus), Thiago Silva (PSG), Davinson Sanchez (Ajax), Diego Godin (Atletico Madrid) and Dani Alves (Juventus)

10- Giorgio Chiellini

Season in Statistics:

Distribution- He has a pass accuracy of 87% and made a little over 68 passes per 90 minutes.

Defense- Chiellini has made 38 tackles with a win percentage of over 60. He has won approximately 70% of his duels and 72% of his aerial duels. He has made 36 interceptions and blocked 18 shots on goal.

Attack- His attacking output is nothing to boast of having scored just two headed goals from set pieces.

Discipline- Chiellini concedes 1.37 fouls per game which is a little high for a defender of his experience and stature. Despite this he has only accommodated only 4 yellow cards in the entire league season.

9- David Luiz

The Brazilian centre back rejoined Chelsea this summer for a reported fee of 34 million pounds. He has been played at the centre of the three man defense by Antonio Conte and has done an absolutely remarkable job. Luiz likes to step out of defense and spray passes around the pitch and initiate attacks. The Chelsea manager has drilled discipline into the centre back which clearly shows in his more responsible style of play this season.

Season in Statistics:

Distribution- Luiz completes 83% of passes with the majority of them being forward instead of sideways or backwards. He makes around 48 passes per 90 minutes of league football.

Defense- Luiz has made a total of 37 tackles with a 67.5 win percentage. Luiz has won 61% of his duels and 60% of his aerial duels. He has made 60 interceptions and blocked 13 shots on goal.

Attack- He has scored just a solitary goal this season coming from outside of the box courtesy of his right foot.

Discipline- Luiz makes 0.84 fouls per game and has earned himself a grand total of 6 yellow cards.

8- Niklas Sule

The young German centre back has flourished under the youthful tutelage of Julian Naglesmann at Hoffenheim this season. The club currently sit third in the Bundesliga, having undoubtedly exceeded their season’s expectations. The 21 year old has made huge strides towards realising his potential. Sule will be moving to Bayern in the summer. A move which will see his game time limited as he will be behind Mats Hummels and Jerome Boateng in the pecking order.

Season in Statistics:

Distribution- Sule has a passing accuracy of 89% and makes almost 72 passes per 90 minutes. He has even provided two assists this season.

Defense- He has won 71% of his duels and 66% of his aerial duels. With a frame of 6 foot 4 inches, he is expected to win more aerial duels. Sule has won 43 tackles with a win percentage of 67. He has made 78 clearances and 15 blocks.

Attack- He has scored two goals this season, one was a long ranger while the other was scored from a set piece.

Discipline- Sule has conceded just 14 fouls in 30 league games at the rate of just 0.47 fouls per game and earned a paltry three yellow cards.

7- Alex Telles

The 24 year old Brazilian left back has quickly become a player to watch out for. The Porto man joined the Dragao from Galatasaray at the beginning of this season. He is an integral part of the meanest defense in Europe conceding only 0.45 goals per game. Telles is quick, versatile, skilled and playmaking defender. A big move beckons for the talented youngster.

Season in Statistics:

Distribution- The Brazilian has provided 8 assists in the Portuguese league, a great attacking output. He has a cross accuracy of 20% and a pass accuracy of 76%.

Defense- Alex has made 52 tackles winning 41 of them with an accuracy of 79%. He has made 47 clearances and 78 interceptions this season.

Attack- Telles has scored a single goal from outside the box and has completed 23 successful dribbles.

Discipline- The youngster concedes 1.04 fouls per game and has received 4 yellow card and a red card in the league.

6- Virgil Van Dijk

The Dutch center half has seen his stock rise meteorically since arriving in the Premier League. Southampton bought him for 13 million pounds in 2015 from Celtic. He is currently priced at over 50 million pounds and is on the radar of clubs like Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City. Van Dijk is physically strong and good ball winner. He has missed a chunk of the season due to injury but has still been one of the best in Europe.

Season in Statistics:

Distribution- His passing accuracy is 84% completing 47.5 passes per 90 minutes.

Defense- He has made 39 tackles and completed over 75% of those. The Dutchman has won over 73% of his duels and 75% of his aerial duels this season. He has made 54 interceptions and 143 clearances.

Attack- Van Dijk has scored just a single goal this season.

Discipline- Van Dijk concedes only 0.87 fouls per game but has still got 3 yellow cards and a red card.

5- Samuel Umtiti

Needless to say that this has been a great first season for the young centre back at Camp Nou. Until Barcelona’s recent loss away to Malaga, he had an enviable record of being undefeated in all the games that he has started. Umtiti had a spell on the sidelines this season which led to him missing around a month of this season. Still his performances have sometimes overshadowed those of Gerard Pique.

Season in Statistics:

Distribution- He has an incredible passing accuracy of 93% completing 72.5 passes per 90 minutes on an average. A typical ball playing defender.

Defense- He has made 25 tackles winning 21 of them with a success rate of 84%. He has won 68% of his duels and 69% of his aerial duels. He has made 60 clearances and 40 interceptions.

Attack- He has scored one goal this season.

Discipline- Umtiti concedes 0.97 goals per game and has got 4 yellow cards this season.

4- Marcelo

The marauding defender is the best left back in the world. The Madrid vice captain is one of the most important player in the star studded line up. With no good enough back up, he has featured in virtually every match for the club. He has chipped in with some vital goals. The Brazilian is likened to his compatriot Roberto Carlos. His passing, crossing and attacking output is second to no defender.

Season in Statistics:

Distribution- He has made 9 assists in the league this season. His crossing accuracy is 30% and passing accuracy is 82% completing an average of 58 passes per game.

Defense- He has completed 34 tackles, 80% of the total 43 tackles made. He has won 51% of his duels and 38% of his aerial duels which is an expected return considering Marcelo 5’7” frame. He has made 27 clearances and 40 interceptions.

Attack- He has scored 2 crucial league goals this season. He has completed 39 dribbles, an unusually high number for a defender.

Discipline- Marcelo concedes 0.73 fouls per game and has only two yellow cards to his name.

3- Toby Alderweireld

The Belgium international has seen a meteoric rise since his arrival at Tottenham Hotspurs. Along with his compatriot, Jan Vertonghen, he has been a mainstay of the most miser defense in the Premier League. The 28 year old is a great passer and is an exceptional reader of the game. Rojiblancos offloaded the Belgian to the Premier League in 2014. Alderweireld has made a name for himself in English football and cemented himself as starter for the Belgian national team.

Season in Statistics:

Distribution- He has made a total 1264 passes with an accuracy of 83%. He makes an average of 51 passes per 90 minutes, most of them being long balls towards of the wings.

Defense- Alderweireld has a tackle success percent of 91, winning 31 of his 34 tackles. He wins 54% of his duels and 49% of his aerial duels. He has blocked 21 shots, made 20 interceptions and an astonishing 145 clearances.

Attack- His attacking output is zero, having contributed in none of Tottenham’s goals.

Discipline- He concedes a meager 0.28 fouls per game and has got a single booking.

2- Mats Hummels

The German is dominant in the air and on the ball. He is a good passer of the ball and also a good retainer of the ball. Hummels is often compared to Der Kaiser, Franz Beckenbauer because his ability to bring the ball out of defense. He returned to his boyhood club, Bayern Munich, this summer after spending 8 seasons at Borussia Dortmund. Hummels’ stock this season is as high as it has ever been.

Season in Statistics:

Distribution- Hummels has a passing accuracy of 89% and completes almost 86 passes per game. A perfect match for Bayern’s possession based game.

Defense- He has won a total of 43 tackles out of 57 with a win accuracy of 75.4%. Hummels has won 71% of his duels and 68% of his aerial duels. He has made 67 clearances and a commendable 57 interceptions.

Attack- Hummels has scored only one goal all season.

Discipline- The big German concedes only 0.62 fouls per game and has been booked 4 times.

1- Sergio Ramos

The ultimate match winner. This season Sergio Ramos has been the best goal scoring defender. His last minute goals have earned Madrid at least 6 points this season. Given how tight the title race has been, he might just be the difference maker in the race for La Liga. He has an occasional mistake in him but he makes up for it with his leadership, tough tackling and his last gasp goals.

Season in Statistics:

Distribution- Sergio Ramos has a passing accuracy of 90% making a little over 62 passes per 90 minutes.

Defense- Ramos wins 75.7% of the tackles that he makes from a total of 37. He wins 68% of his duels and 71% of his aerial duels. Madrid captain has made 90 clearances and 50 interceptions.

Attack- Ramos has scored 7 extremely important goals for Madrid, with most of them being either winners or equalizers.

Discipline- Ramos makes 1.01 fouls per game and has got 7 yellow cards. He got himself sent off in the latest El Classico at the Bernabéu.

*All the statistics are provided by Opta and are limited to league matches