Voting: Each writer picked their top 20 teams. We then assigned points to each vote, with 20 points awarded for a first place vote, 19 for second, 18 for third and so on, to create the final list.
Presenting the second edition of The National’s European football Power Table, our view of the top 20 European clubs of the moment as voted on by Thomas Woods, Jon Turner, Jonathan Raymond and Steve Luckings.
Others receiving votes this week: Manchester United 7 (last week: T18); Villarreal 7 (last week: 13); Club Brugge 6; Hertha Berlin 6; Red Bull Salzburg 2; Aberdeen 2; Fiorentina 1; Schalke 1.
Dropped from top 20, no votes: KAA Gent, Fenerbahce.
20 – AS Roma, 8 points (last week: unranked)
They have been strong since a January 24 loss to Juventus, with the injection of Stephan El Shaarawy and Luciano Spalletti beginning to steady their ship.
19 – Dynamo Kiev, 9 points (last week: unranked)
They didn’t play, and don’t until a Ukrainian Premier League match on March 12, but our voters took notice ahead of their Champions League last 16 tie against Man City.
18 – AFC Ajax, 11 points (last week: unranked)
Scored a nice 2-1 win over Feyenoord as they remain neck-and-neck with PSV Eindhoven in the Dutch Eredivisie.
T16 – Besiktas, 14 points (last week: unranked)
Dealt Gaziantepspor a 4-0 defeat as the Turkish Super Lig returned to action following a winter interruption, where they sit second but have by far the division’s best goal difference.
T16 – Sporting CP, 14 points (last week: T18)
Given a bump in voting despite a middling result in a goalless Primeira Liga draw with Rio Ave.
15 – Olympiakos, 19 points (last week: 15)
Unchanged placement for the runaway Greek Super League leaders, who held off PAOK for a league win.
14 – Manchester City, 20 points (last week: 8)
The week’s big sliders after their harrowing 3-1 defeat to Leicester City, which brought into serious question their place among Europe’s true elite. For now, they will dwell in the second tier.
13 – Borussia Dortmund, 31 points (last week: 12)
Small dip after labouring to a goalless draw with Hertha Berlin in the Bundesliga.
12 – PSV Eindhoven, 32 points (last week: 14)
A 2-0 win over Utrecht continued their league leading pace, though they did suffer a 3-1 loss to the same side in the KNVB Cup quarter-final.
11 – Benfica, 36 points (last week: T16)
A nice little bump for the Portuguese giants after blasting Belenenses in a Primeira Liga contest 5-0.
10 – Arsenal, 48 points (last week: 9)
Slight dip for Arsenal after a 0-0 draw with Southampton last week, tough they recovered some of their best form for a 2-0 win over Bournemouth, boding well for the road ahead.
9 – Atletico Madrid, 50 points (last week: 5)
Atletico did fine this week, beating Eibar 3-1, but they have been felled by, well, the vagaries of voting and other teams impressing.
8 – Tottenham Hotspur, 52 points (last week: 10)
We’re beginning to believe in Spurs. Given a boost by their ascension to second in the Premier League following wins over Watford and Norwich City.
7 – Real Madrid, 55 points (last week: 7)
Similarly, there is not much about Real Madrid to consider differently after just a 2-1 victory over Granada in La Liga, though it was a change of pace to see Luka Modric score the winner.
6 – Paris Saint-Germain, 57 points (last week: 6)
PSG won their Ligue 1 fixtures last week, and the sun continued to rise in the east. There just is not much to make of Paris Saint-Germain until they either lose or play a Champions League match.
5 – Leicester City, 63 points (last week: 11)
We tried our best to ignore Leicester City in this space last week, leaving them a lowly 11th, but their 3-1 win over Manchester City made clear what can no longer be denied – Leicester are the best team in England.
4 – Bayern Munich, 67 points (last week: 2)
Dropped from No 2 in last week’s list, after a goalless draw with Bayer Leverkusen and rumblings about a lack of discipline inside the dressing room. Harsh perhaps, but the margins are tight at the top of European football.
3 – Napoli, 69 points (last week: 4)
Continuing with the gargantuan task of holding off Juve in Serie A – just. A nervy win over Carpi and a more comfortable victory over Lazio last week held them steady atop Serie A.
2 – Juventus, 73 points (last week: 3)
Juve set a new club record for consecutive league wins and ought to be giving Bayern Munich jitters ahead of their Champions League last 16 tie.
1 – FC Barcelona, 80 points (last week: 1)
With an epic hammering of Valencia in the Copa del Rey and straightforward La Liga win over Levante, Barcelona are easily the unanimous No 1 club in Europe for the second straight week by our reckoning.