FC Barcelona entered the international break as the best team in Europe, and will have that spot tested this weekend against a surprising Valencia side in one of several match-ups of teams in the SBI European Club Top 25.
There are a total of five match-ups involving Top 25 teams, with no match-up getting as much attention as Aston Villa vs. Chelsea. As appealing as that match-up is, the best battle in terms of rankings is in Germany, where Bundesliga co-leaders Hamburg and Bayer Leverkusen do battle.
There has been a considerable shake-up in the SBI Top 25 since we first introduced the rankings at the beginning of the European season. We will make this a regular Friday feature so stay tuned. Please remember that these rankings are subjective and their purpose is moreto keep readers informed on which teams are doing well in Europe and which quality matches are on the horizon than it is about trying to be perfect in putting rankings together. There is no perfect way to come up with rankings, but we are hoping the SBI European Top 25 will help you keep track of the vast realm of European soccer.
Now, without further ado, here are this week's rankings, along with a listing of Top 25 match-ups this weekend.
SBI European Club Top 25
1. Barcelona(6-0 in La Liga)
2. Chelsea (7-1)
3. Real Madrid (5-1-1)
4. Manchester United (6-1-1)
5. Sevilla (5-1)
6. Inter Milan (5-1-1)
7. Lyon (6-0-2)
8. Hamburg (6-0-2)
9. Manchester City (5-1)
10. Fiorentina (4-1-2)
11. Arsenal (5-2)
12. Bayer Leverkusen (6-0-2)
13. Sampdoria (5-1-1)
14. Bordeaux (6-1-1)
15. Juventus (4-1-2)
16. Liverpool (5-3)
17. Valencia (3-1-2)
18. Fenerbahce (8-0)
19. Genoa (3-1)
20. FC Porto (5-1-1)
21. Olympiakos (5-0-1)
22. Twente Enschede (7-0-2)
23. Dinamo Kiev (8-0-1)
24. Aston Villa (4-2)
25. Werder Bremen (4-1-3)
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Others Receiving Consideration: Benfica (6-0-1), Braga (7-0), Marseille (4-2-2), Tottenham (5-2-1), Galatasaray (6-1-1), Paris St. Germain (3-1-4), Bayern Munich (3-2-3), Shakhtar Donetsk (6-0-3), Panathanaikos (6-0), Schalke 04 (5-2-1), Feyenoord (6-1-2), PSV Eindhoven (6-0-3), FK Rubin Kazan (14-5-5), Spartak Moscow (14-6-4).
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Top 25 Match-ups this weekend
No. 1 Barcelona vs. No. 17 Valencia
No. 2 Chelsea vs. No. 24 Aston Villa
No. 8 Hamburg vs. No. 13 Bayer Leverkusen
No. 14 Juventus vs. No. 10 Fiorentina
No. 19 Genoa vs. No. 6 Inter Milan
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What do you think of this week's rankings? Who is ranked too highly? Which team isn't getting enough respect? Which of the five Top 25 match-ups are you most looking forward to?
Share your thoughts below.