Stats Endorse Reds' Signings

Manchester United have signed the best players in the French, German and Italian leagues this summer, according to statistics compiled by respected football website WhoScored.com.

That’s after the Reds completed the transfers of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, after his contract expired at Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain, Henrikh Mkhitaryan from Bundesliga runners-up Borussia Dortmund and Paul Pogba from Serie A title-winners Juventus.

WhoScored.com is produced by a dedicated team of analysts based in London and provides a unique database of statistics for the five major European divisions (England, Spain, France, Germany and Italy) as well as 15,000 teams around the world. Their player ratings are based on each event recorded in the game using a particular algorithm, with the scoring system starting from 6.0 and maxing out at 10.

Their extensive analysis of the 2015/16 season showed that Ibrahimovic was the best player in France with a rating of 8.29, thanks to his impressive tally of 44 goals in 46 games in all competitions.

Armenia captain Mkhitaryan was rated as the standout player in Germany with a rating of 7.90, while France international Pogba was viewed as the star man in Italy with a league-best mark of 7.81.

Barcelona legend Lionel Messi was rated as the best player in Spain’s La Liga – above ex-Red Cristiano Ronaldo – with an impressive score of 8.46 and Leicester City’s Riyad Mahrez was the top-ranked player in the Premier League on 7.84 after helping the Foxes win the title under Claudio Ranieri.

United’s other signing of the summer, Eric Bailly, was given a rating of 6.92 for his efforts with former club Villarreal, in Spain, and the highly-rated central defender has since been tipped for stardom at Old Trafford, particularly after his Man-of-the-Match display in the Community Shield.