As November begins to draw to a close and the halfway point of the 2023/24 LaLiga season creeps up on us, it’s time to take stock of the best performances of the campaign thus far, specifically, the individuals contributing to a season that has somehow been even more thrilling than last year’s unpredictable campaign.
Though the Premier League continues to draw the most eyeballs – and money – Spanish football has returned to the top in terms of excitement and quality of play on the pitch.
There’s a tight title race, a captivating top-four race, and intriguing relegation battle, and a host of mid-table teams worth rooting.
Who are the best individuals in LaLiga right now? Let’s rank the top 10, basing it on their overall quality – not just performances in the current season.
10. Brais Méndez, CM, Real Sociedad
Brais Méndez was one of the LaLiga Player of the Season candidates throughout the 2022/23 campaign, which was his maiden one for La Real.
The former Celta Vigo man elevated his game in an even more free-flowing and exciting Real Sociedad attack, helping the club achieve Champions League qualification.
This season, the highly technical midfielder is still going strong. Brais has already contributed to five goals while providing 1.3 key passes and 2.6 combined fouls drawn and dribbles completed per game to the La Real cause.
9. Takefusa Kubo, RW, Real Sociedad
His teammate Takefusa Kubo has been a LaLiga Player of the Season candidate in 2023/24, proving even more important to the Real Sociedad cause than even Brais Méndez.
Kubo was already fantastic in 2022/23 in his own first year in San Sebastián, having joined the club from Real Madrid after years of up-and-down loan spells around LaLiga.
Clearly, Kubo has found the right home for him with Imanol Alguacil as the manager. Alguacil has enabled Kubo to play with full confidence, taking defenders on and having the license to go for goal.
His goal threat has increased exponentially from even his days with Mallorca, which was really his only successful loan spell from Madrid.
Kubo has five goals and two assists this season with 1.8 key passes per game and 2.8 combined dribbles completed and fouls drawn per contest. He is one of LaLiga’s most exciting and productive attacking players.
8. Sávio, LW, Girona
The 19-year-old Brazilian winger Sávio is the latest gem from Girona, and he is becoming one of the hottest commodities around world football on the transfer market.
Sávio just might be Girona’s most impressive player, which is saying something considering this team has as good of a chance as any at winning LaLiga in 2023/24.
An electrifying wide playmaker, Sávio is already one of the best wingers in world football when looking at his productive and that dazzling X-Factor he gives to Girona.
He has four goals and four assists with 3.7 combined dribbles completed and fouls drawn per match. Girona could legitimately win the league, thanks to him.
7. Gerard Moreno, ST, Villarreal
A long-time LaLiga superstar, Gerardo Moreno is 31 and still in the prime of his career, even if he is on the other side of 30.
Moreno is still one of the most prolific goal-scorers in Spanish football, doing his best to help Villarreal avoid even more disappointment this season.
That the Yellow Submarine are in 12th and not near the relegation fight is a partial testament to the work Moreno has put in up top, scoring 8 goals with 2 assists in 12 appearances.
He has 3 seasons with more than 15 goals in LaLiga, and you wouldn’t bet against him notching 20 in 2023/24.
6. Frenkie de Jong, CM, Barcelona
With all due respect to some of his teammates and Real Madrid rivals Toni Kroos, Eduardo Camavinga, Fede Valverde, and Aurélien Tchouaméni, Frenkie de Jong was the best pure midfielder in LaLiga last season.
He elevated Barcelona in their quest to win the title, controlling matches, progressing play, and providing the best defending of his life.
FDJ did all this after being in the midst of transfer rumors that summer. Barcelona sure are glad de Jong decided to fight to stay in Catalunya, otherwise they may not have had such an easy road to the title over Real Madrid.
This season, de Jong has been slowed by injuries, but, honestly, his absence only increased his value to Barça. The midfield was in disarray without him, probably because he fulfills the roles of multiple players.
5. Aleix García, Girona
Aleix García was already one of the biggest stars in LaLiga during the 2022/23 season for breakout side Girona upon their promotion to the top flight, and he is proving that his first season was no fluke.
If anything, García has been even more impressive in 2023/24 for the darling team of European football right now.
With three goals and four assists, García has actually been just as productive as Sávio despite playing in deeper regions as an anchoring midfielder.
He averages two key passes per game as one of the premier deep-lying playmakers in world football, and yet the 26-year-old is also fully capable on the defensive end with 2.7 combined tackles and interceptions per match.
García has more than earned the right to be called one of the elite players in LaLiga, right there with the superstars from the “Big Three”.
4. Pedri, AM, Barcelona
Speaking of the superstars from the “Big Three” of Spanish football, Pedri has been back on the pitch for Barcelona after suffering yet another injury.
While the injuries have caused his stock to fall slightly due to the highly competitive nature of the rankings at the very top, Pedri is undoubtedly still recognized as one of the world’s finest footballers.
Blessed with that ability to create magic out of nothing, Pedri can run the show in midfield while being decisive in the final third as a playmaker. Pedri has a wealth of experience, yet he is still only 21 years old.
Don’t let the fact that he only has one goal and no assists fool you. Pedri is still tremendous. He is averaging 2.2 key passes with 3.0 combined dribbles completed and fouls drawn per match in 2023/24.
3. Vinícius Júnior, LW, Real Madrid
This actually hasn’t been Vinícius Júnior’s best season for Real Madrid, yet the world-class winger still shows his quality and importance to the Merengues every week, even in a less-than-ideal position for him as one half of a two-man front.
Vini Jr. is averaging 5.5 combined dribbles completed and fouls drawn per game, though his creative numbers have suffered due to a more forward and central role in the attack.
The 23-year-old Brazilian is entering the prime of his career and continues to inspire Real Madrid on the pitch with his performances.
2. Jude Bellingham, AM, Real Madrid
Yet it feels like Vinícius Jr. is not THE superstar in Real Madrid. Everyone knew Jude Bellingham would be a game-changing signing for Real Madrid from Borussia Dortmund, having nearly carried a mediocre BVB side to the Bundesliga title in 2022/23.
Even his biggest supporters, though, couldn’t have seen this kind of immediate impact at the Santiago Bernabéu.
Specifically, few saw this sort of impact from a goal-scoring perspective.
Bellingham has put Real Madrid on his back and won them games with goals out of nothing, whether they are brilliant individual efforts or tap-ins created by brilliant movement off the ball. In the 10 role, Bellingham has been Madrid’s X-Factor sans Karim Benzema.
1. Antoine Griezmann, ST, Atlético Madrid
As breathtaking as Bellingham’s rise in LaLiga has been, Antoine Griezmann is the consensus best player in the league, and with the likes of Lionel Messi and Karim Benzema now out of the picture, the 2018 World Cup winner is undoubtedly the man with the most significant attacking pedigree.
Griezmann can score goals and produce assists with the best of him, but he’s also the best because of all the things he does for Diego Simeone and Atlético Madrid.
He works tirelessly off the ball, helps out in defense, and is actually effective when he drops deep to create. Griezmann has the numbers with 9 goals in 13 games, but he also puts the team first.
The managing editor of The Trivela Effect, Kevin has 15 years of experience in digital media. He covered Real Madrid from 2019-2022 for The Real Champs as a site manager. You can contact him at the site’s official Twitter handle @TrivelaEffect or via the site’s official email thetrivelaeffect@gmail.com.