Saturday 26 December 2015 09:27, UK
Sky Sports is counting down the top 100 players of 2015 with the help of WhoScored.com.
After every game WhoScored.com gives players competing in Europe's top five leagues a mark out of 10 based on a wide range of statistical data. Each player then gets an average score for 2015, and to qualify for this countdown, players must have made at least 20 league appearances.
Our list of the top 100 players this calendar year kicks off on Tuesday with those ranked from 100 to 76. We'll reveal 25 more each day until we reach the No 1 player on Christmas Day.
Getting things started, we've got representatives from across Europe, including a Manchester United midfielder, an Atalanta wide-man and an Eintracht Frankfurt attacker...
100. Milan Badelj - Fiorentina - 7.299 average rating
Signed from Hamburg by former Fiorentina manager Vincenzo Montella, Badelj has thrived under new boss Paulo Sousa, and the deep-lying playmaker has been integral to the club's strong campaign so far.
99. Hilton - Montpellier - 7.300 average rating
Hilton remains a mainstay of Montpellier's backline and, even at 38 years old, shows no sign of losing that happy knack of being in the right place at the right time.
98. Alexander Meier - Eintracht Frankfurt - 7.301 average rating
Meier enjoyed his best goalscoring season last term, hitting 19 in 26 Bundesliga appearances, and that fine form has continued through 2015.
97. David Luiz - PSG - 7.302 average rating
PSG, streaking clear at the top of Ligue 1, conceded just nine league goals before the winter break, and perhaps it will surprise Chelsea fans to hear this, but David Luiz has been a crucial part of that impressive record.
96. Alejandro Gomez - Atalanta - 7.304 average rating
After an up-and-down first five months of the year, Gomez has appeared in every Atalanta league game so far this season, contributing eight goals (five goals, three assists) to produce a Whoscored rating that puts him fourth in Serie A.
95: Paulo Dybala - Palermo & Juventus - 7.305 average rating
Italian football's breakout star of 2014 earned a move to Juventus over the summer, and when he's on the pitch, he's been as good as advertised. Practically impossible to knock off the ball and with a keen eye for a pass, Dybala has a league goal or assist for every 100 minutes he's on the field.
94. Phil Jagielka - Everton - 7.309 average rating
Statistically, Jagielka enjoyed one of his best seasons for Everton last year. He was injury-free, chipped in with a handful of key goals, and seemed to be building a promising partnership with John Stones, but Jagielka's latter part of 2015 has been ruined by ligament damage sustained against Arsenal in late October.
93. Patrick Herrmann - Borussia Monchengladbach - 7.310 average rating
Herrmann scored 11 goals and provided four assists in the 2014/15 Bundesliga but missed the final three months of the year due to injury.
92. Claudio Marchisio - Juventus - 7.310 average rating
Marchisio was a regular for Juve in the 2014/15 campaign as they won Serie A, the Coppa Italia and reached the Champions League final. The midfielder finished the campaign with a rating of 7.37.
91. Romain Genevois - Nice - 7.312 average rating
Genevois has only made a handful of appearances this season, but in 2014/15 the defender was Nice's fifth highest-rated player at an average of 7.29.
90. Fernandinho - Manchester City - 7.313 average rating
Behind City's star forward players, Fernandinho has been a solid presence in midfield and has also pitched in with a few goals throughout the year.
89. Santiago Garcia - Werder Bremen - 7.313 average rating
Rated as Bremen's best player this season behind Jannik Vestergaard, Garcia was also influential for the Bundesliga side during the 2014/15 campaign.
88. Daniel Didavi - Stuttgart - 7.316 average rating
After scoring four goals last season, Didavi already has seven to his name in the Bundesliga along with three assists, and is the second highest-rated Stuttgart player behind Daniel Ginczek.
87. Wahbi Khazri - Bordeaux - 7.321 average rating
Midfielder Khazri has enjoyed a fine start to the Ligue 1 season with five goals and six assists to his name.
86. Idrissa Gueye - Lille & Aston Villa - 7.327 average rating
Gueye was one of Lille's standout performers in the 2014/15 season with a rating of 7.41, four goals, two assists and four man-of-the-match displays.
85. Jeremy Toulalan - Monaco - 7.337 average rating
The experienced midfielder has been among Monaco's top five highest-rated players in 2014/15 and in 2015/16 while also putting in four man-of-the-match performances this season.
84. Raul Bobadilla - Augsburg - 7.338 average rating
After finishing the 2014/15 season as Augsburg's top scorer in all competitions, the Paraguayan has netted six times in five Europa League matches and also three times in the Bundesliga.
83. N'Golo Kante - Caen & Leicester - 7.343 average rating
After being rated as Caen's top player last summer, Kante has proved to be one of the Premier League signings of the year. He ranks in the top five in the league for tackles-per-game and also interceptions-per-game.
82. Ilkay Gundogan - Borussia Dortmund - 7.344 average rating
The Germany international is the third-highest rated player in the Dortmund squad this campaign behind Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and scored three goals and provided four assists in the Bundesliga in 2014/15.
81. Wesley Lautoa - Lorient - 7.353 average rating
The versatile Lautoa played a key role in Lorient's Ligue 1 survival last season, and continued that form this term until injury interrupted his campaign in late October.
80. Gonzalo Rodriguez - Fiorentina - 7.353 average rating
Rodriguez has made the most interceptions and clearances of any Fiorentina defender this season and was La Viola's second highest-rated player in 2014/15.
79. Jannik Vestergaard - Werder Bremen- 7.359 average rating
Werder Bremen may be struggling in the Bundesliga, but their giant 23-year-old centre-back has been solid since joining the club in January and grades out as their best player this season.
78. Yaya Toure - Manchester City - 7.360 average rating
The year ended without a trophy for Manchester City, but Toure remains a force for Manuel Pellegrini's side. The midfielder is playing deeper following the additions of Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne but, as he showed against Swansea, he can still provide match-winning contributions.
77. Omer Toprak - Bayer Leverkusen - 7.360 average rating
Limited by a thigh injury earlier this season, Toprak has been back in the side and was back to his best in Bayer Leverkusen's 5-0 demolition of Borussia Monchengladbach on December 12.
76. Morgan Schneiderlin - Southampton & Manchester United - 7.360 average rating
The France international finally earned his big-money move to Manchester United after helping Southampton secure European football with a seventh-place finish, and he already looks a natural at the top level.
The countdown continues on Wednesday as we reveal the players from 75 down to 51...
