European Team of the Week: Former Newcastle and Leicester star pushes out Kane and Mbappe | OneFootball

While the focus in England was on the FA Cup this weekend, Europe’s top leagues continued to race toward their conclusions.

There were some big clashes across La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A and Ligue 1 and with them, some inspired individual performances.

Who were the best players in Europe this weekend? We’ve used our Squawka Score to come up with a combined XI, based on the statistical leaders for metrics relevant to their positions. And as ever, we’ve thrown an honourable mention XI for good measure.

GK: Augusto Batalla (Rayo Vallecano)

Rayo Vallecano ended their five-game winless run at the weekend and, in the process, injected some faint hope into their push for European qualification. It was a 2-0 win away at relegation-battlers Deportivo Alaves that got them back on track, but it simply wouldn’t have happened without the heroic efforts of goalkeeper Augusto Batalla. The 28-year-old Argentine was in sensational form at Estadio de Mendizorroza, saving a penalty in the 14th minute with the scores still at 0-0, before going on to make three total saves and keep a clean sheet despite 1.33 xGOT faced. Batalla also made four high claims and 10 recoveries in a busy display.

Honourable mention: Aitor Fernandez (Osasuna) – 87%

RB: Ki-Jana Hoever (Auxerre)

Former Liverpool defender Ki-Jana Hoever has been quietly excellent on loan with French side Auxerre this season, continuing his good form in a 1-0 win at home to Montpellier on Sunday. The Dutchman provided the assist for substitute Florian Aye’s winning goal in the 82nd minute as one of three chances created on the day. Hoever also won both his attempted tackles, made three clearances and four recoveries, and played 10 passes into the final third. Parent club Wolves will be keeping a close eye on his progress.

Honourable mention: Mergim Vojvoda (Como) – 72%

CB: Bafode Diakite (Lille)

Lille have conceded just one goal in their last three league games since a 4-1 stuffing to PSG, and Bafode Diakite has been a key player in that solidity — which, through the course of the season, leaves them second only to PSG (26) for goals conceded (28). On Sunday, the 24-year-old won all nine of his combined ground (5) and aerial (4) duels while making one block, three tackles, six recoveries and six clearances — which includes a vital clearance off the line. Diakite was also solid on the ball, completing 92% of his 59 attempted passes, including five into the final third.

Honourable mention: Leo Ostigard (Hoffenheim) – 75%

CB: Piero Hincapie (Bayer Leverkusen)

Bayer Leverkusen were made to work by Bochum at the weekend, but they got the job done with a 3-1 win. Piero Hincapie provided the assist as Victor Boniface put Die Werkself 2-1 up on the hour but, more importantly, he won both his ground duels and three of four aerial duels, while making eight clearances, five recoveries and one block.

Honourable mention: Yeray Alvarez (Athletic Club) – 74%

LB: Tommaso Augello (Cagliari)

Cagliari gave their survival chances a massive boost with a 3-0 win over Monza, and left wing-back Tommaso Augello played a starring role. The Italian provided the assist for Nicolas Viola’s opener just after half-time, played six passes into the final third and attempted seven crosses. However, it was defensively where he really stepped up, making four tackles (winning two of them), five clearances and four recoveries. Augello impressively notched a 100% success rate from his nine combined ground (5) and aerial duels (4).

Honourable mention: Alejandro Balde (Barcelona) – 73%

DM: Lucas Torro (Osasuna)

Osasuna’s goalless draw away at high-flying Athletic Club wasn’t pretty, but sometimes, when you’re clawing away from the bottom three, you just have to get the job done by whatever means. Defensive midfielder Lucas Torro embodied that perfectly with a ridiculous, match-high 18 duels won at an 82% success rate, with nine on the ground and nine in the air. On top of that, he won four of his seven attempted tackles and made seven recoveries, three clearances, two interceptions and one block. All that, and he still managed six passes into the final third and two touches in the opposition box. The only low point was slicing a header wide from close range in the opening five minutes; an effort that registered 0.20 xG and could have significantly boosted his Squawka Score.

Honourable mention: Martin Zubimendi (Real Sociedad) – 71%

CM: Aleix Garcia (Bayer Leverkusen)

While Hincapie was busy keeping the back door shut — and helping out in attack when he could — Aleix Garcia got the show on the road with a long-range effort in the 20th minute. On top of that, the Spaniard created four chances — including one big chance — alongside playing 14 passes into the final third and seven crosses, while completing 76 of his 89 passes and having 105 touches of the ball. ‘Active’ doesn’t even start explaining it.

Honourable mention: Joao Neves (PSG) – 68%

RW: Riccardo Orsolini (Bologna)

Bologna are on the match to another shock Champions League berth with a run of just one defeat in their last 12 Serie A matches and six wins from their last seven — including their last five. The latest triumph was a narrow 1-0 away at struggling Venezia and it was the talismanic Riccardo Orsolini who came up with the goal in the 49th minute. The Italy international was sensational all game, attempting five shots and creating a match-high four chances — including one big chance — while also having five touches in the opposition box, playing four passes into the final third and attempting six crosses with three successful.

Honourable mention: Dilane Bakwa (Strasbourg) – 76%

AM: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid)

Jude Bellingham ended an eight-game run without a goal for club and country with a close-range effort just after half-time against Leganes at the weekend. It wasn’t the most memorable strike of his career — that overhead-kick at the Euros will take some beating anyway — but it was vital in helping Real Madrid to a hard-fought 3-2 home win. Goal aside, Bellingham was full of his usual dynamism, completing a match-high five dribbles at a 100% success rate and winning the most overall duels (14), while he was the most-fouled player on the pitch (4). On top of that, Bellingham created three chances, had four touches in the opposition box, won two of his three tackles and made one interception and one clearance.

When Bellingham is on it, Real Madrid are unstoppable.

Honourable mention: Mario Gotze (Eintracht Frankfurt) – 67%

LW: Mathias Pereira-Lage (Brest)

Brest’s Champions League campaign went terribly but the French side are still battling to make Europe again next season, with a three-game unbeaten run dragging them back to eighth, just six points off the Conference League place. This weekend saw them go 3-0 up away at Toulouse before being pegged back to 2-3, with a 90th-minute goal finally putting the game to bed. French winger Mathias Pereira-Lage did the damage, scoring the second goal in the first half before setting up the late clincher. The 28-year-old only had 35 touches and completed just 14 passes, but proved quality is far more valuable than quantity with his big moments.

Honourable mention: Vincenzo Grifo (Freiburg) – 65%

ST: Ayoze Perez (Villarreal)

From Kylian Mbappe to Harry Kane, there was a host of top-class striker performances this weekend, but it’s former Newcastle and Leicester star Ayoze Perez who stole the show when it comes to the Squawka Score. That’s because the Spaniard scored the first goal and set up the second as Villarreal ground out a 2-1 win away at Getafe to stay fifth in La Liga. Perez created two chances and attempted two shots throughout the match, while having seven touches in the opposition box and completing two of his four dribbles. He also helped out defensively with four tackles, six recoveries and two interceptions.