Best of 2013: The top five football teams for 2013

As 2013 draws to a close, club football is at a highly spectacular position. In the English Premier League, Arsenal are holding on to a very slim lead to be at the leader’s position. Bayern Munich is sitting pretty at the top with a rather comfortable points difference with its nearest competitor. Barcelona are also facing stiff competition from Atletico Mardid. Here is a year-end look at the top five teams at the moment.

5. Arsenal

UDINE, ITALY – AUGUST 24: The Arsenal team pose for a group photo during the UEFA Champions League play-off second leg match between Udinese Calcio and Arsenal FC at the Stadio Friuli on August 24, 2011 in Udine, Italy. (Photo by Jamie McDonald/Getty Images)

The team managed by Arsène Wenger, ends the year 2013 at the top of the Premier League after winning over Newcastle United at St. James Park.

The team started the season by releasing 10 of its reserve team players including Conor Henderson, Jernade Meade and Sanchez Watt. Team manager Wenger, also declared that fresh contracts would not be offered to Andrei Arshavin, Sébastien Squillaci and Denílson Pereira Neves.

The season started for the Gunners on a rather disappointing note with a loss at their home stadium, the Emirates Stadium, to Aston Villa by a margin of 3-1 in favour of the visitors.Despite the promise of some big names being signed up for the season, Arsenal fans were left thoroughly disappointed by the lack of signings.

However, post their defeat to Aston Villa, the team provided a clinically perfect performance against Fenerbahçe Spor Kulübü, to win the match by a 3-0 margin in their favour, and thereby, almost secured their place in the group stages of the Champions League.

They followed this victory up with another victory over Fulham.Mathieu Flamini, who was released by A. C. Milan was signed on by the club.

Inconsistent performance, however, has continued to plague the club. Even after signing Mesut Özil from Real Madrid, the Gunners won a few games which took them to the top of the Premier League table, but then again, they faltered.

They were held to a 1-1 draw by West Bromwich Albion. Arsenal lost to Chelsea by a 2-1 margin in the League Cup, thereby, getting eliminated from the League Cup.

However, slowly but steadily, as the season has progressed, Arsenal have improved their performance and appear to be on track in their hunt for a trophy in eight years.

4. Atletico Madrid

MADRID, SPAIN – DECEMBER 11: Koke (R) of Atletico de Madrid clashes hands with his teammate Emiliano Insua during the UEFA Champions League Group G match at Vicente Calderon Stadium on December 11, 2013 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images)

Club Atlético de Madrid, or Atlético de Madrid, as it is commonly known has been having an exceptional season so far.

The club, in its 83rd season in the La Liga, has so far been on a barely broken winning streak.

This club saw a lot of activity during the transfer window with David Villa being among the more prominent signings for the club.

It started its 2013-14 campaign with an away win over Seville. They have consistently out-performed their rivals.

They started the year on a winning streak with a string of eight back-to-back victories before they were defeated by Espanyol.

In the year 2013, they have played a total of 17 La Liga matches. Of these 17 matches, they have won 15 times, drawn once and lost once.

This, incidentally, is the same number of matches as the leaders and defending champions, Barcelona have played, won, lost and drawn.

As far as points are concerned, they are tied at 46 points with Barcelona.

Even in the Champions League, their performance has been commendable. They were placed in Group G alongside the clubs, Austria Wien, Porto and Zenit Saint Petersburg.

In their six matches in the group stage, they won five and drew one. Atletico Madrid ended their group stage campaign in the Champions League at the top of their table with 16 points. They will now meet A.C. Milan in the knock-out stage or the round of 16 in Milan for the first leg.

This performance becomes even more praiseworthy, when considered against the fact that they are competing in the Champions League for the first time since the 2008-09 season.

The club participates in the Copa del Rey as well. In this competition, the club has proceeded from the round of 32 to the round of 16 after defeating Sant Andreu by a 6-1 aggregate.

3. Dortmund

LONDON, ENGLAND – MAY 25: Marco Reus of Borussia Dortmund in action during the UEFA Champions League final match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Bayern Muenchen at Wembley Stadium on May 25, 2013 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images)

Founded in December 1909, the Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e.V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund, is in its 105th year of competitive club football.

Dortmund is a German club that participates in Germany’s top-tier football league, Fußball Bundesliga. The club has played in this league for 38 consecutive seasons since being promoted to this league in 1976.

The club is currently under the managerial control of former Swiss player, Lucien Favre, with former German international player Jürgen Norbert Klopp, as the head coach.

Dortmund have been the regular giant-slayers with them defeating the formidable Bayern Munich in July by a convincing 4-2 margin in the DFL-Supercup.

They have also performed remarkably well in the Champions League group stages where they were clubbed with strong teams like Arsenal, the current English Premier League leaders, Napoli and Marseille.

They have emerged at the top of the group with 12 points from four victories in six matches and a positive goal difference of five goals.

They will next meet Zenit St. Petersburg in the knock-out stages of the Champions League in February.Robert Lewandowski has been the top scorer for the club this year with 16 goals in total, of which 11 have come in the Bindesliga and four in the Champions League.

The club is performing quite well in the Bundesliga as well.

Currently placed at the fourth position on the table, the club has recorded 10 victories from 17 matches and has 32 points in its kitty–only a point behind third placed Borussia Mönchengladbach.

2. Barcelona

LONDON, ENGLAND – MAY 28: Barcelona pose for photographs as they celebrate victory in the UEFA Champions League final between FC Barcelona and Manchester United FC at Wembley Stadium on May 28, 2011 in London, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)

Futbol Club Barcelona, commonly known as Barcelona or just Barça to its fans has been a club to watch out for every season. The club reached its peak under the managerial skills of Pep Guardiola.

It started the year with some high profile transfers like signing of Brazilian winger Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, or Neymar as he is commonly known; from Santos.

The club also released David Villa, who joined Atletico Madrid.

Barca has continuously re-invented itself throughout the year and tried to better its performance. It has already won the Supercopa de España against Atletico Madrid this year.

With an aggressive attack and a solid defence, the club is currently leading the La Liga tables with 15 victories from 17 games and a total points tally of 46. These are the same statistics as that of second placed Atletico Madrid. However, they have a better goal difference of 37.

Barcelona defeated arch-rivals Real Madrid in the La Liga match on the 26th of October with new signee Neymar and Alexis scoring. The match also recorded the highest fan turnout at the stadium with official figures pegging the footfall at 98,761 people.

They have scored 49 goals in their La Liga matches, which is three goals better than their nearest rivals.

In the Champions League, Barcelona were pooled in group H with Ajax, Celtic and Milan. Barcelona reached the knock-out stage of the Champions League with 13 points after topping the group with four victories from six games.

In their six Champions League matches, they have scored 16 times.

They have also reached the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey after beating Catagena comprehensively, both at home and away.

1. Bayern Munich

MARRAKECH, MOROCCO – DECEMBER 21: The FC Bayern Munchen players celebrate after winning the FIFA Club World Cup after the FIFA Club World Cup Final match between FC Bayern Munchen v Raja Casablanca at Marrakech Stadium on December 21, 2013 in Marrakech, Morocco. (Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images for Toyota)

Fußball-Club Bayern München e.V., or FC Bayern München as it is more famously known is Germany’s largest football club in terms of revenue.

The year 2013 has been a specially successful and satisfying year for this team.

The team is currently heading the Bundesliga tables with 14 wins from 16 games and a total point tally of 44, with a point difference of seven from its nearest competitor, Bayer Leverkusen. It has scored 42 times in Bundesliga so far this year and conceded only eight goals.

Bayern qualified for the Champions League knock-out stage as the leader from group D, where they had been clubbed with Viktoria Plze?, Manchester City and CSKA Moscow.

They won five of their six group matches and ended with 15 points. They scored 17 goals and conceded only five leaving them with a goal difference of 12. This put them ahead of English Premier League team, Manchester City who had the same points but with a poorer goal difference of 8.

Bayern Munich also broke the previous record of the longest undefeated streak in Bundesliga that was held by Hamburger SV of 30 wins in 36 matches. Bayern now have gone for 41 games without a defeat.

Bayern Munich won the UEFA Super Cup against Chelsea in a penalty shoot-out.

They also ended runners-up to Dortmund in the DFL-Supercup.

Bayern Munich also won the FIFA Club World Cup against Raja Casablanca.

With so much anticipation and expectation from each of these teams and a from some other teams as well like Chelsea, Real Madrid and Manchester United, to name a few, 2014 does promise to be a very intense and healthy year for club football at large.