Mini app · Europe’s top leagues, since 2024-25

Who is the best if players had Elo?

Elo is the chess system: every player has a score that goes up when they win and down when they lose, more or less depending on how surprising it was. In football nobody plays one on one, so here each player’s duel is against what was expected of them. Every match is measured with the La Lente rating, from 0 to 100: score more than their level promised and they go up; less and they go down. At the top are those who beat expectations match after match.

Your rules

Position

Season

Does the league count?

Decides whether a good rating in a strong league, like the Premier League, is worth more than the same rating in a weaker one.

What is this?

Each match rating compares a player with others in the same league. That makes standing out in a weaker league easier, because they are compared with worse players. You can see it in players who changed league: on moving to a stronger one, their rating dropped. “Yes, fairly” corrects exactly that gap, “Yes, a lot” doubles it and “No” treats every league as equal.

Does the opponent count?

Decides whether playing well against a big team is worth more than playing well against a small one.

What is this?

It sounds obvious, but in the data the difference is smaller than people think: good players perform similarly against almost everyone. “Yes, fairly” uses the real difference, “Yes, a lot” exaggerates it so you can see what would happen if the opponent really mattered, and “No” treats every opponent the same.

Keepers only: does organising the defence count?

Decides whether it is the keeper’s credit that their team concedes little, on top of their saves.

What is this?

A good keeper does not just make saves: they also organise the defence, come for crosses and close down, so they face fewer and easier shots. That does not show in saves, so with “No” a keeper who barely faces a shot has little to show. With “Yes”, they get part of the credit for how little their team concedes, and the rest stays with the defenders. The data shows the effect is real but small, which is why the starting choice is only “a little”.

Joshua Kimmich is the best midfielder of 2025-26.

Rating 1665, 16 points ahead of Aleix García. By average La Lente rating, Joshua Kimmich would be 1st. The biggest climber against the average rating is Sandro Tonali: from 74th to 26th: a stronger league, stronger opponents or a better finish than start.

The ranking

With at least 1500 minutes in the season.

#	Player	Rating	Avg rating	Opp.	Apps
1	Joshua KimmichFC Bayern München	1665	64.81	1547	42
2	Aleix GarcíaBayer 04 Leverkusen	1649	63.23	1533	44
3	Declan RiceArsenal	1628	60.58	1568	49
4	Frenkie de JongFC Barcelona	1627	62.14	1502	29
5	VitinhaParis Saint Germain	1625	63.72	1556	46
6	Aleksandar PavlovicFC Bayern München	1617	61.56	1567	35
7	Manuel LocatelliJuventus	1609	60.09	1508	44
8	Hakan ÇalhanoğluInter	1605	61.37	1525	26
9	Granit XhakaSunderland	1600	56.722	1569	33
10	Bruno FernandesManchester United	1599	56.623	1563	35
11	Federico ValverdeReal Madrid	1599	57.814	1545	46
12	Luka ModrićAC Milan	1597	59.310	1510	33
13	Aurélien TchouaméniReal Madrid	1595	58.112	1540	44
14	Joey VeermanPSV	1591	61.85	1463	36
15	Nikola MoroBologna	1590	58.911	1467	37
16	M. CaicedoChelsea	1587	55.533	1571	43
17	Angelo StillerVfB Stuttgart	1587	57.716	1503	44
18	RodriManchester City	1586	56.624	1593	24
19	James GarnerEverton	1585	55.929	1562	38
20	Fabián RuizParis Saint Germain	1582	57.318	1555	25
21	Piotr ZielinskiInter	1581	57.417	1518	36
22	Dominik SzoboszlaiLiverpool	1577	55.235	1567	48
23	PedriFC Barcelona	1574	56.427	1531	38
24	Arda GülerReal Madrid	1572	55.334	1545	45
25	Pathé CissRayo Vallecano	1571	54.741	1514	37
26	Sandro TonaliNewcastle United	1571	52.774	1580	43
27	Chris FührichVfB Stuttgart	1570	57.815	1504	34
28	Andrey SantosChelsea	1570	53.166	1545	26
29	Maximilian ArnoldVfL Wolfsburg	1568	56.525	1507	20
30	Amadou OnanaAston Villa	1567	54.047	1549	33

Tap a player to see their curve and the matches that moved them most.

How it is rated

The match rating. The La Lente rating measures a single match: what the player produced against what they cost, compared with the average for their position in that league and season, and adjusted by position (a 70 for a forward is as hard as a 70 for a defender). A normal match is around 50, 70 is very good and above 80 happens once in a hundred.

The duel. In football nobody plays one on one, so each player faces what was expected of them. Before every match, their rating says what they should score. Score more and they go up; less and they go down. How much depends on the surprise and the minutes: a full match counts in full, half an hour counts a third. Under 20 minutes does not count.

The opponent. A good rating against a strong opponent is worth more. The opponent’s strength is its team Elo, the one in the Elo league mini app. It matters less than people think: in the data, an opponent 100 points stronger lowers the expected rating by barely one point. That is why, by default, against one of Europe’s best sides a player is asked for about 3 points less.

The league. The rating compares each player with others in the same league, so a 60 in the Eredivisie is not a 60 in the Premier League. Players who changed league tell us by how much: about 3.5 rating points per 100 points of average league strength, measured by results in European competition.

The goalkeeper. A keeper who organises his defence well faces fewer and weaker shots, and that does not show in his saves. Keepers who took turns at the same club show differences in xG conceded slightly larger than chance. So the keeper gets a share, 20% by default, of what his defence concedes below or above expectation given the opponent. The rest belongs to the defence.

The start. Everyone starts at 1500 in 2024-25, the first season with ratings, which settles the numbers. At the start of each season, 20% goes back to 1500. A player who performs as normal stays near 1500; the best in each position go past 1550.

Frequently asked questions

Who is the best midfielder of 2025-26 by player Elo?
Joshua Kimmich (FC Bayern München), rated 1665, ahead of Aleix García and Declan Rice. This is the ranking with the starting rules: every La Lente rating against what was expected, given the opponent and the strength of the league.

How is a football player’s Elo calculated?
Since nobody plays one on one, each player faces what was expected of them. Before every match, their rating and the opponent’s strength say what they should score; score more and they go up, less and they go down, in proportion to the minutes played. Everyone starts at 1500.

Is a rating in the Premier League worth the same as in the Eredivisie?
No. The rating compares each player with others in the same league. Players who changed league show by how much: a 60 in the Eredivisie is roughly a 56 in the Premier League.

How is a goalkeeper measured?
By his saves and, in part, by what never reaches him: a keeper who organises his defence well faces less danger. He gets 20% of the xG his defence concedes below or above expectation given the opponent; the rest belongs to the defence.

Data: La Lente match ratings and league and European cup matches from 2024-25 onwards. Calculation: La Lente by Sir Balone, edited by Juan Carlos Vasquez. An exercise: no competition uses this rating.