REVEALED – Europe’s top sides by points in 2023: Man City are No 1 while a surprise English team go toe-to-toe with Real Madrid and Italian giants climb into top five
- Real Madrid were matched by a surprising team, while Man City were the best of 2023
- Alongside Europe's elite, Wrexham deserves a special mention for achieving 104 points
- Chris Sutton and Ian Ladyman reveal their best sporting moments of the year It all starts
To no one's surprise, Manchester City won the most points of any team in Europe's top five leagues in 2023.
Pep Guardiola and his troops earned 93 points from 39 games last calendar year to claim their third consecutive Premier League title.
His alma mater, Barcelona, was tied for second next to Atletico Madrid with 88 points earned.
Xavi's side stormed to a first LaLiga title after four years of frustration, while Simeone finished a commendable third, where they remain in the table so far this season.
The 2023 stats are compiled by Squawka, and some of the teams that follow are surprising.
Manchester City earned more points (93) than any team in Europe's top five leagues in 2023
Barcelona and Atletico Madrid were tied for second with 88 points and hope to translate their domestic success into the Champions League
Inter Milan were next with 87 points, and at first glance you wouldn't think they had taken that many.
Although they currently sit at the top of the Serie A standings, last season did not go smoothly as they limped to third place.
The Champions League finalists even went through a difficult period between February and April, losing six of eight Serie A matches and winning just once.
Behind the Milan maestros were fourteen-time Champions League winners and a Midlands team that Steven Gerrard disposed of only two months before the year started.
That's right, Real Madrid and Aston Villa were tied for fifth place with 85 points.
Unai Emery has revolutionized Aston Villa, earning as many points as Real Madrid in LaLiga in 2023
Will Juventus return as European heavyweight? They had lost their way in recent seasons, but achieved 84 points in 2023
Unai Emery has done wonders at Villa Park, taking them to the heady heights of Los Blancos and positioning them as Premier League challengers.
His achievement is all the more remarkable when you consider that Aston Villa finished just 12th in the annual Premier League table for 2022 with 41 points – less than half their 2023 tally.
In seventh place, Juventus earned 84 points as the Old Lady turned back the years and became Serie A contenders again under Massimiliano Allegri.
Allegri, who led the Turin giants to five consecutive titles in his first spell at the club, has rejuvenated them with new inspiration this season.
It looked like he could lose his job last season as they trudged to seventh in Serie A, their lowest finish since 2011.
However, he has them firing on all cylinders this season and they are in their first title exit since 2020, just two points behind leaders Inter.
Spare a thought for Wrexham, whose lower league status means they miss out on this table despite blowing away their opponents by a whopping 104 points.
Wrexham enjoyed a dazzling 2023 with 104 points in the National League and League Two in the English football pyramid
Fueled by Hollywood pizza and the sensible head of Phil Parkinson, Wrexham romped to the National League title with a record 111 points and sit third in League Two.
Meanwhile, Harry Kane's Bayern Munich could have been top but only managed 75 points as the Bundesliga had four fewer games per season.
Napoli may be a surprising omission. They won Serie A with 90 points, 18 more than Inter and 28 more than Juventus, but only claimed 77 in 2023.
Meanwhile, Paris Saint-Germain led France with 81 points but may be disappointed with that gain given the often perceived weaker opposition in Ligue 1.
