Liga - Euro Club Index: Barca crown slips

Spanish and European champions Barcelona are in danger of seeing their long reign at the top of the Euro Club Index ended by Real Madrid.

lionel messi after barcelona defeat to osasuna - 0

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HOW IT WORKS

This season we will use the Hypercube Infostrada Euro Club Index, which scientifically analyses hundreds of thousands of matches from the top divisions in all European nations as well as Europa League and Champions League games.

The Index takes into account all matches played over an eight-year period but with recent results carrying more weight than older ones. The most recent result has 20 times more impact than a result of three years ago.

The performance of a league's teams in the Champions League and Europa League reflects the rise or fall of the sporting level in that league. So, for example, if English teams perform well in Europe, all Premier League teams receive a small bonus in their ECI score. The ranking and its predictive power are thus made even more accurate.

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To paraphrase a famous quote attributed to Mark Twain: "There are only two certainties in life - death and Barcelona being top of the Euro Club Index."

Well, the reigning Spanish and European champions' dominance at the top of our European club form guide is in serious danger of coming to an end. Following their 3-2 defeat at Osasuna on Saturday, which puts them 10 points behind league leaders Real Madrid in the table, Barca's once insurmountable score has now eroded to the point where they could soon be overtaken by their bitter rivals. Just 35 points now separates them, so depending on how results go in the Champions League and La Liga over the next seven days we could be announcing a new table-topper next week.

Elsewhere in the top 10, Premier League clubs Manchester City and Arsenal continue to shunt up and down the odd place on an almost weekly basis. This week, the duo have shifted up one place each, to fifth and ninth respectively.

Italian giants Internazionale are another club struggling in the Euro Club Index. The 2010 treble winners lost to Serie A's bottom side Novara at the weekend for a second time this season, and that defeat sees Claudio Ranieri's side slump two places to 19th.

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Top 20

1 (1) Barcelona - 4268 points

2 (2) Real Madrid - 4233

3 (3) Manchester United - 3812

4 (4) Bayern Munich - 3441

5 (6) Manchester City – 3429

6 (5) Porto - 3412

7 (7) Chelsea - 3341

8 (8) Benfica - 3294

9 (10) Arsenal - 3229

10 (9) Valencia - 3224