UEFA Champions League 2019-20: The best XI of the Group Stage

Centre Backs: Clement Lenglet (Barcelona) and Presnel Kimpembe (Paris Saint-Germain)

Clement Lenglet has starred in Barcelona's defence in this season's Champions League

Usually consistent performers such as Virgil van Dijk and Raphael Varane haven’t been that great in this season’s Champions League group stage, so two somewhat lesser-regarded central defenders make this team; Clement Lenglet of Barcelona and Presnel Kimpembe of Paris St. Germain.

France’s Kimpembe was a key component of PSG’s rock-solid defence – the tightest in the competition with just two goals conceded – and his statistics were hugely impressive, with a pass success rate of 90.7% and an average of 2.6 successful tackles, 1.4 successful interceptions and 1.8 clearances per game.

Fellow Frenchman Lenglet was an ever-present across the 6 group games for Barcelona, helping them to concede just 4 goals along the way, and he was equally as impressive as his countryman, creating formidable partnerships with veterans Gerard Pique and Samuel Umtiti that will make La Blaugrana hard to break down in the knockout stages.

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Midfield: Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Jorginho (Chelsea), Hakim Ziyech (Ajax)

The Champions League's knockout stages will be poorer without Hakim Ziyech

Our trio of midfielders is comprised of an outstanding holding man from Bayern Munich, Chelsea’s Italian metronome, and Ajax’s Moroccan magician.

Kimmich was part of the Bayern side that put together an impressive run of 6 wins from 6 matches in the group stage, despite facing last season’s finalists Tottenham Hotspur. His performances as a holding midfielder were fantastic throughout, as he registered a 90% pass success rate, averaged 70 passes per game, and was able to complete an average of 1.2 successful tackles per game to help to screen his defence.

Jorginho meanwhile acted as Chelsea’s deep-lying heartbeat throughout their 6 group matches, registering 2 goals along the way – both against Ajax from the penalty spot. That match alone saw him complete 56 accurate passes at a 92% success rate, and across all of his appearances he was able to provide 4 key passes for his teammates. His performances have remained at a high level throughout the competition despite Chelsea’s general inconsistency.

Finally, his Ajax side might’ve made an early exit from the competition, but it’d be hard to leave Hakim Ziyech out of this team. In his 6 Champions League appearances, he was arguably the competition’s most creative player, as he delivered 2 goals and 4 assists and was named Man of the Match by WhoScored.com in Ajax’s games against Valencia and Lille. The Moroccan averaged 2.5 key passes per game, and will definitely be missed in the knockout stages.