Top 11 assist makers of the last decade in the UEFA Champions League

Those wonderful European nights are the perfect stage for the best in the business to show the world what they can do with a ball at their feet. And that is what the men on this list are – playmakers of the highest quality who make their teams sway to their own special tune.And while many of them are in the mould of the traditional number ten, a few of them are also renowned goal-scorers. A most interesting trend in world football that seems to show the game gravitating toward less defined roles for the wide array of attacking talent we see today. A look at the crème de la crème of European football over the last ten years.

#12 Honourable Mentions

Clarence Seedorf - 14 assists

Philipp Lahm - 14 assists

Angel Di Maria - 14 assists

Juninho Pernambucano - 14 assists

Arjen Robben - 14 assists

Dani Alves - 15 assists

Thierry Henry - 15 assists

Andrea Pirlo - 15 assists

Wesley Sneijder - 16 assists

Franck Ribery - 16 assists

Wayne Rooney - 17 assists

Florent Malouda - 17 assists

Karim Benzema - 18 assists

#11 Lionel Messi - 19

Perhaps the only time we will ever see Lionel Messi not occupy one of the higher rungs on a list – unless that list is one of the players to have scored against Petr Cech.

However that duel may end is one we do not have the foresight to know, but this much is clear – the mercurial Argentine may well end up topping this list once he’s done strutting his stuff on those golden European nights.

Now level with the immortal Raul Gonzales on the all-time scorers chart in the Champions League after his heroics at the Amsterdam Arena last night, you can bank on the Argentine laying on a few for the likes of Neymar and Luis Suarez in the coming years.

There is even more responsibility on one of Barcelona’s captains (yes, there are four of them this year) shoulders in Luis Enrique’s team this year, and not without reason.

The three-time Champions League winner (2006, 2009 and 2011) has shared the European stage with some of the most illustrious names in world football, from Ronaldinho to Samuel Eto’O to Thierry Henry – having formed devastating partnerships with all of them.

His fellow captains Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta certainly belong in that exalted company, as the trio has overseen the unmatched successes of the last 10 years; irreplaceable assets of perhaps the greatest European club side of all time.

And they’re not done just yet.

#10 Samuel Eto\'o - 19

The Cameroonian’s glittering career has seen him play for some of Europe’s leading lights – and the reasons are not very difficult to see. After Real Madrid chose to let their one-time youth academy starlet move to Mallorca on a permanent deal, Eto’O may well have joined the sea of nameless, faceless stories that never panned out on the big stage.

But the youngster’s belief saw him rise to be counted as one of the league’s top strikers over the next four years. Barcelona came calling, with a deal that had even Real Madrid (who, as is their wont, still part-owned the player) could not refuse.

Los Blancos would come to sorely regret this piece of business, as the striker formed a deadly duo with the peerless Ronaldinho in a period that saw the Blaugranes rise up and be counted as Europe’s pre-eminent club once again, taking home Old Big Ears (the Champions League trophy) in 2006.

His determination shone through once again, as injuries and a number of controversies would not deny him from forcing his way into new boss Guardiola’s reckoning. A second Champions League title would follow in 2009; a year that saw the Catalans complete that Holy Grail of European football – the treble.

His subsequent move to Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan was one Barcelona, too, would come to regret – much the same way parent club Real Madrid did a number of years ago. The Cameroonian shone in his new role on the right flank – his pace and willingness to run for the cause a crucial element of Inter’s Champions League triumph that year.

He remains the only player to have won the treble in consecutive seasons – a true Indomitable Lion.

#9 Ozil - 20

The German is a wonderful, dexterous individual – the kind of player who inhabits his own universe, unwilling to come out into the world as we know it. He sees things that no one else has the vision to comprehend, and in his time at Real Madrid, had a stellar cast of team-mates who were on hand to take full advantage.

And even if he was unable to bring home the coveted La Decima in his time there, Ozil has rocketed into the upper half of this list within four years of making his debut in the competition. Needless to say, it is a territory that includes only the very best in the game today.

His subsequent transfer to Arsenal was met with shock from Madristas, while the streets of London poured with jubilant Gunners. Cristiano Ronaldo was distraught at his exit, and rightly so.

And even if the far more physical surroundings of the Premier League are nudging Ozil into the world the rest of us inhabit, the more familiar surroundings of the Champions League may provoke him into the kind of performance we have admittedly not seen from him in a while.

All of this, assuming of course, that Arsenal are still in the reckoning in the Champions League by the time their star playmaker returns from his latest injury setback. But then, that is a story for another day.

#8 Andres Iniesta - 20

For years, the world has crooned at the wonder that is Andres Iniesta, while the Spaniard has maintained that unassuming air that has made him even more irresistable to football purists.

A constant characteristic of Iniesta’s career has been his ability to deliver in crunch situations - the goal against Chelsea in 2009, that world-cup winning goal, of course – and a number of other performances that have cemented his status as a legend of the modern game.

And that is how the truly great players are judged – by how they rise up and be counted when the chips are down, the stakes are high, and their team is calling out for a saviour.

The high stakes game that is the Champions League has seen the diminutive Spaniard produce some enthralling football, with Barcelona picking up three titles in the last ten years.

His partnership with Xavi has been hailed as one for the ages, with the student’s touch, vision and ability on the ball wonderfully complementing the master’s distribution and positional play.

And today, with the arrival of stronger, faster opponents, Barcelona’s golden generation looks to be on its way down. Or is it?

It is precisely from this kind of situation that Iniesta and his mates have risen from before. Don’t bet against them doing it all over again.

#7 Cesc Fabregas - 20

Ex-Gunner Fabregas is certainly someone who comes out all guns blazing – when he’s able to make it out onto the football pitch, of course.

His early years at Arsenal were mired with injuries, while the dream move back to boyhood club Barcelona didn’t quite pan out the way the world thought it would.

That he has notched up 20 assists in the Champions League despite all this is a testament to his supreme abilities as a playmaker, and it is indeed a shame that the prodigiously gifted Spaniard has yet to lift the famous old trophy.

Famously described by Arsenal scout Francis Cagigao as having “GPS in his head”, Cesc’s ability to pick out a pass is nearly unrivalled in the modern game, with rivals tripping over their feet trying to quell his instant chemistry with hitman Diego Costa.

Jose Mourinho’s penchant for coming out on top in the big fixtures means that Chelsea look primed to go far in this year’s edition of the Champions League. And you can bet that the spurned Catalan will be looking to show his former employers just what they’ve missed out on.

#6 Zlatan Ibrahimovic - 20

The magisterial Swede is a serial winner – leaving behind a trail of 11 domestic titles in 13 years in his wake. But European football’s greatest prize continues to elude the big man, although he has been a touch unlucky in his career.

Leaving Inter Milan for a Barcelona side that was marking its territory around the Champions League trophy at that point in time was the move that was to change all that. But Guardiola’s preference to keep Lionel Messi as the focal point of his attack left Ibrahimovic disillusioned. To make matters worse, it was Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan that overcame Barcelona that year on the way to the Champions League title that year.

Ibrahimovic returned to the Serie A, this time in the colours of AC Milan. But this was a Milan that had begun reeling from financial troubles, and was no longer a major force in Europe. The Swede soon found himself playing for French side Paris St. Germain, the centrepiece of a hugely ambitious project funded by Qatar Sports Investments. .

PSG remain a perennial dark horse in the Champions League – and have shown that they are certainly capable of taking on the established powers in Europe. Their recent home win against Barcelona – who are a recurring theme in Ibrahimovic’s European dream – was all the more impressive as their talisman himself was unavailable through injury.

Perhaps all they need now is the ability to Dare to Zlatan to take them all the way, and that’s certainly in no short supply in Paris right now.

#5 Cristiano Ronaldo - 21

Football’s poster boy has constantly been attacked by the boo-boys for his propensity to go for goal, rather than bring his less-gifted team-mates into play.

But his presence on this list certainly suggests otherwise. Ronaldo may indeed prefer the solo-route, but when he does consent to passing the ball while in the danger area, it is normally because his sharp eyes have picked out a team-mate for a near certain goal.

The Portuguese’s Champions League dream started in his time at Old Trafford, where Sir Alex’s steady hand turned his fearsome pace and skill into weapons that United would increasingly look to on their European adventures.

His years in the red half of Manchester saw him develop into a well-oiled machine – and it is no coincidence that it went hand-in-hand with United’s re-emergence as a major player on the European stage.

The toils of their labour finally came to fruition when they edged out rivals Chelsea in the heart of Roman Abramovich’s homeland – the circumstances of the win itself cementing the views of the Red Army faithful that it was, indeed, destiny.

Destiny would play a major part when Ronaldo would lift the trophy again with Real Madrid in 2014. Despite playing wonderful football in the lead-up to the final against local rivals Atletico Madrid, it took a stoppage-time equaliser from Sergio Ramos to lift the Galacticos to a 4-1 win after extra time.

The man himself will hope that destiny has a few surprises for him yet, with the current team now looking to emulate the Alfredo Di Stefano–led Real Madrid side of the 50’s by retaining Europe’s top prize this time around.

#4 Frank Lampard - 21

In the early part of the last decade, Mourinho’s magic was turning everything at the Bridge to pure gold – and this was nowhere more prominent than in the Englishman.

Chelsea were beginning to mount a serious challenge in Europe, and their continued presence in the later stages of the competition were down to the core of the team, with Lampard’s remarkable consistency and box-to-box efficiency running the show at the Bridge.

The Blues were building to what would become a quite intense rivalry with Barcelona, and it is only fitting that some of Lampard’s best performances came against them. This slightly- off-the-balance quite exquisite pass for Ramires to chip home was perhaps a defining moment in Chelsea’s extraordinary triumph in 2012 – their talisman proving to be the difference once again.

Their hero had given it all for them – but is there a little more room in that glittering trophy cabinet for one more? Chelsea fans will certainly hope not – it isn’t quite the same shade of blue as the one they’ve grown accustomed to.

#3 Kaka - 22

It seems inconceivable that Milan’s golden prince was, around this time just seven years ago, being hailed as the rightful King of the footballing world, holding aloft what would prove to be his only Ballon d’Or prize.

The Rossoneri certainly thought that there was much more to come from their Brazilian hero. But the strangely hypnotic glow of Real Madrid’s white lured Kaka to the Bernabeu. And then revealed itself to be nothing short of a nightmare, as it had to so many before him.

But before those dark days came, the affable Brazilian was a cult hero – leading the Black and Reds to two Champions League finals – both of which turned out to be against Liverpool. For though Istanbul 2005 will long be a sore point for the red half of Milan, the chance to redeem themselves came two years later – and Kaka took home club football’s ultimate prize.

Arriving in 2003 as a scrawny prodigy, Kaka in his pomp was a thoroughbred stallion – a galloping, driving force that could scythe through the opposition with minimal fuss. A goal-scorer of considerable finesse and a playmaker above all else, perhaps Kaka’s finest pass was this 50 yard beauty that elicited a finish of sublime quality from Hernan Crespo.

Unfortunately, the horrors of Istanbul will keep this one locked in the inner confines of the Prince’s mind – knowing that that night, much like his career, could have been so much more.

#2 Xavi - 24

What do we say about the master that has not already been said already, a hundred times over, his adoring public fawning over his inimitable artistry?

Much of Barcelona’s troubles today can be traced to Xavi’s inevitable decline, with Father Time taking away the legs that enabled him to cover ground and mark his territory like few have managed to do before him.

His constantly ticking football brain, honed by years of adhering to Barcelona’s time-honoured philosophy as a football club, has overseen the most successful phase in Barcelona’s illustrious history.

In the final against Manchester United in 2009, it was the maestro who curled in a peach of a ball for Lionel Messi, of all people, to head it in as Rio Ferdinand and Edwin Van der Sar looked on helplessly.

Perhaps even more impressive was this goal that was eventually sent home by Marc Overmars – but then I would be doing all of you a disservice by trying to put it into words.

Enjoy!

#1 Ryan Giggs - 27

The familiar sight of the ageing Welshman in the red of United, the face lined with stubble, eyes searching, that all-too-familiar morose expression firmly in place is one Manchester United fans remember fondly.

The only time you saw him light up was when United were lifting trophies – admittedly a regular enough occurrence. And then, just as soon as you saw it, it was gone. The eyes were narrowed in concentration, back came the hunger, the desire for more – a player moulded in the image of his mentor Sir Alex Ferguson.

An image that has seen him lift the title twice, in a career spanning an astounding 151 appearances in the Champions League. The unmatched drama of that night at the Camp Nou in 99’ would come to define United in the years to come.

That prized ability to fight to the death saw them tempt destiny into favouring them once again on a cold night in Moscow; when all seemed lost as John Terry lined up to take on Edwin van der Sar. What followed a little later will have United fans singing long after you and I are gone – as much at the win as at the Chelsea hero’s stumble.

Their hero, however, still stands in the dug-out, his insurmountable belief now egging on his charges, back to where the big boys in Europe come to play.