European Team of the Season: Centre-back – Willi Orban (RB Leipzig)

RB Leipzig suffered defeat on the final day of the season and lost to Bayern Munich in the DFP-Pokal final but it was nevertheless a thoroughly impressive campaign for the Bundesliga outfit. Borussia Dortmund and Bayern were out of reach for Leipzig, but Ralf Rangnick’s side finished third and eight points clear of fourth.

Leipzig may have finished closer to the league’s top two had Willi Orban been more readily available. Leipzig only lost one of the 23 league matches Orban started this season, while losing five of the 11 league matches he failed to start. His influence in Leipzig’s defence is therefore obvious, as Die Bullen conceded 0.65 goals per league game with him in the starting XI, compared to 1.27 goals when he didn’t start.

Orban was not only colossal at the back, helping Leipzig finish the 2018/19 Bundesliga campaign with the best defensive record (29 goals conceded), but he also chipped in with four goals at the opposite end. Combining his influence in both boxes, only Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk (7.44) garnered a higher WhoScored rating than Orban (7.41) of all centre-backs in Europe’s top five leagues this season.