The league titles have been awarded and now it’s time to praise the players who made the difference in England, Spain, Germany, Italy, France and Portugal

Premier League team of the season

The Premier League’s top scorer, Harry Kane, hit two hat-tricks in the final week of the season to win the golden boot for the second year running. With 29 goals from 30 appearances, he had to lead the line in our team of the season. Supporting Kane is the league’s top-rated player, Eden Hazard, who is the only Chelsea player in the side. The fact that the top two clubs are represented by just two players says more about their collective efforts than their lack of individual brilliance. The same cannot be said of Arsenal. The gap between their best player, Alexis Sánchez (7.76), and their second best, Laurent Koscielny (7.25), is the biggest in the league this season. Had it not been for Sánchez’s brilliance – 24 goals and 10 assists – Arsenal would have struggled more than they did.

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While Paul Pogba was castigated by many, he performed well and finished the campaign with a goal and an assist against Crystal Palace on Sunday. Pogba’s team-mate Antonio Valencia, the Manchester United players’ player of the year and the man in line to captain the team in the Europa League final this week, fills the right-back spot in our team. Remaining in Manchester, Kevin de Bruyne provided more assists (18) than any other Premier League player this season, while Nicolás Otamendi and Aleksandar Kolarov both impressed at the back. Otamendi ranked high for tackles (2.3), interceptions (2.7), clearances (6.3) and aerial duels won per game (3.2), while Kolarov was a sturdy performer when called upon.

Roberto Firmino enjoyed a solid second season at Anfield, scoring 11 goals and laying on seven assists, while Virgil van Dijk was by far the best centre-back in the league before an injury cut his season short in January. Between the sticks, Jordan Pickford proved once again why he is so highly rated. The 23-year-old was a shining light in Sunderland’s abysmal season, making 135 saves in 29 appearances. Only Burnley keeper Tom Heaton – 141 saves in 35 appearances – made more.

La Liga team of the season

Neymar (8.52), Lionel Messi (8.46) and Luis Suárez (7.81) scored 79 goals between them in La Liga this season to finish as the top three rated players in the league. Neymar’s inclusion means there is no place for Cristiano Ronaldo in our side, with Real Madrid represented by Toni Kroos and Dani Carvajal. Kroos finished second for assists (12) in La Liga, while Carvajal returned impressive figures for tackles (2.5), interceptions (2) and key passes per game (1.5).

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Across the Madrid divide, three Atlético players made the cut in the shape of Diego Godín, Filipe Luís and Antoine Griezmann. Godín missed the run-in due to suspension, but was again a solid performer at the heart of the Atlético defence, while Filipe Luís provided the required width from deep, having completed more dribbles (74) than any other defender in Spain. Griezmann endured his worst goalscoring season for the club so far but still scored 16 and set up another eight. It’s no wonder Manchester United are prepared to spend big on the striker.

There’s a place at the heart of the defence for Athletic Club’s young centre-back Yeray Álvarez, who averaged more interceptions per game (3.7) than any other player in La Liga this season. Asier Illarramendi (3.5) had the second most interceptions and his 69 passes per game also ranked highly. Alaves were the surprise package in Spain this season, securing a ninth-place finish after 10 years outside of the top flight, and goalkeeper Fernando Pacheco deserves much credit. Alaves conceded the fifth fewest goals (43) in the league and Pacheco ended the campaign with a respectable 73.2% save success rate.

Bundesliga team of the season

The Bundesliga’s top two clubs make up the bulk of the team of the season. Starting with the debutants, RB Leipzig astounded everyone in their first campaign in the league. While every player deserves credit, Naby Keïta and Emil Forsberg were the standout stars. Keita was second for dribble success rate (63.8%), while Forsberg provided more assists (19) than any other player in Europe’s big leagues. The man to beat Keita in the dribble stakes? Thiago Alcântara (70.6%), who enjoyed a stunning season under Carlo Ancelotti. The Spaniard earned a rating of 8.28 and made more interceptions (125) than any other player.

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His Bayern Munich team-mate, Arjen Robben, rounds off the midfield, with 13 goals, nine assists and 67 dribbles. Further forward, Robert Lewandowski was pipped to the golden boot by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on the final day, but his 30 goals and five assists helped earn a rating of 7.74. Max Kruse was one of Werder Bremen’s best players, with 15 goals and seven assists.

At the back, Arsenal target Sead Kolasinac features at left-back, while FC Cologne’s Frederik Sorensen takes the right-back spot. In the middle of the defence, Mats Hummels lines up alongside Benjamin Hübner, who averaged 2.9 tackles, 3.3 interceptions and 3.1 clearances per game. Hübner’s Hoffenheim team-mate, Oliver Baumann, plays in goal, having made more saves (115) than any other keeper in the league. Only Manuel Neuer (14) kept more clean sheets than the Hoffenheim No1 (12) as Baumann played a vital role in their top-four finish, a fine feat given Hoffenheim were nearly relegated a year ago.

Ligue 1 team of the season

There isn’t a better place to start in the Ligue 1 team of the season than right at the back, where Yohann Pelé excelled for Marseille. The 34-year-old kept 18 clean sheets in 38 appearances in what was a fine campaign. In front of him, we have two Paris Saint-Germain defenders and one each from St-Étienne and Guingamp. St-Étienne captain Loïc Perrin is one of the more consistent players in the league and was again impressive this season, with 2.2 tackles, 2.1 interceptions and 5.7 clearances per game. Fernando Marçal, who spent the season on loan at Guingamp from Benfica, provided more assists than any other defender in the league.

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Thomas Meunier was perhaps brought in as an understudy for Serge Aurier but he earned his place in the starting line-up and impressed alongside the experienced Thiago Silva. Lucas Moura enjoyed a successful season, with 12 goals and five assists enough to earn him a place alongside his Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Marco Verratti. The Italian made the second most passes per game (87.5) in Ligue 1 and remains one of the best midfielders in the game.

Champions Monaco are well represented in the Ligue 1 team of the season through Fabinho and Thomer Lemar. Alexandre Lacazette scored 28 goals this season to become our top rated player in the league and he plays up front with creative sensation Ryad Boudebouz, who made more key passes (117) than any other player in the league. Considering Montpellier could only finish in 15th, a big summer move is in the offing for the 27-year-old Algerian.

Serie A team of the season (so far)

There is still one week left in Serie A, but little is expected to change in the team of the season. The champions have only two representatives in our team but, as with Antonio Conte’s Chelsea, that says more about their collective effort than their lack of quality. The two stars who really stood out in the Juventus team were Brazilian full-backs Dani Alves and Alex Sandro. Mattia Caldara, who was on loan from Juventus at Atalanta this season, caught the eye with seven goals and he is joined by surprise package Federico Fazio at the heart of defence.

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Gianluigi Donnarumma, who turned 18 this season, earned the best rating of any goalkeeper in Europe to make our team. In midfield, Lazio’s Felipe Anderson and Roma’s Radja Nainggolan are joined by Napoli duo Marek Hamsik and Lorenzo Insigne. Hamsik ranked third for key passes (75) and Insigne impressed with 17 goals and eight assists.

The top two rated players in Serie A partner in attack, with Edin Dzeko (7.82) leading the way both in rating and goals scored (28). Atalanta’s Alejandro “Papu” Gómez (7.75) partners Dzeko in attack. No player has won more our of man of the match awards (10) in the league this season, though his place is under threat from Dries Mertens, who has scored 27 goals so far.

Primeira Liga team of the season

The standout star in the Primeira Liga team of the season is Bas Dost, who scored 34 goals for Sporting in in his debut campaign. Incredibly, he scored more goals than nine of the 18 teams in the league. Benfica forward Jonas partners Dost in attack and for good reason, with the 33-year-old ending the campaign with 13 goals and four assists from just 19 appearances. The champions are also represented through Pizzi, who scored 10 goals and provided eight assists from midfielder. Pizzi ranked top for key passes (90) and total passes (2495) with the 27-year-old’s ball retention and creative qualities crucial in Benfica’s success.

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Yacine Brahimi and Gelson Martins provide the speed out wide in our team, with Danilo Pereira rounding off the midfield, having averaged 1.8 tackles and 2.2 interceptions per game. Porto team-mates Felipe and Alex Telles impressed at the back this season. Telles made the second most crosses per game (2.3), while Felipe’s proactive approach to defending gave him averages of 4.4 clearances and 2.4 interceptions per game as Porto conceded just 19 goals this season.

Raul Silva was solid at centre-back for Maritimo in their excellent campaign and Nelsinho’s impact from full-back helped ensure Benfica landed the title. Last but certainly not least, Vana features in goal, with the 26-year-old averaging a notable 3.6 saves per game.

Premier League team of the week

La Liga team of the week

Bundesliga team of the week

Serie A team of the week

Ligue 1 team of the week

Primeira Liga team of the week

Infographic: WhoScored Photograph: Infographic: WhoScored

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