‘Attack wins you games, defence wins you titles’ is Sir Alex Ferguson’s famous old adage. And there’s certainly something in that when you look at the sides with the best defensive records against Europe’s five major leagues in 2023-24.
Many of the usual suspects feature in the best defences this season, but there are some impressively well-organised backlines that are punching well above their weight to sit alongside some of Europe’s elite clubs.
We’ve taken a closer look at the 10 teams across Europe’s big five leagues – Premier League, Ligue 1, Bundesliga, Serie A and La Liga – that have conceded the fewest goals in 2023-24 so far.
Newly-promoted Las Palmas are punching well above their weight to sit in the top half of the La Liga table, with their strong form largely built upon their sturdy backline.
García Pimienta’s men have conceded just 17 goals from 20 outings. That’s the second-best defensive record in the Spanish top flight, bettering the likes of Barcelona, Atletico Madrid and surprise table-topppers Girona.
Not only is Bayern’s defence pretty sturdy, but they’re also comfortably the top-scoring side in Europe – giving them the second-best goal difference. The Bavarians also boast the lowest expected goals against (11.8xGA) across Europe’s top five leagues.
Leverkusen have their work cut out if they’re to take their Bundesliga crown, while they increasingly look strong contenders for the Champions League.
Another one of European football’s surprise packages this season, Brest are mounting what looks like a genuinely viable challenge for Champions League football next season.
They currently sit third in the Ligue 1 table, ahead of the likes of Monaco, Lille and Marseille, boasting an excellent defensive record of 15 goals conceded from 18 outings.
PSG’s lavishly-assembled attack inevitably get all the attention, but their defence isn’t too shabby either.
The Ligue 1 champions endured a slow start to the season, but they’re back at the top of the table having conceded just 14 goals in 18 Ligue 1 matches. They’re slowly but surely clicking into gear under Luis Enrique, increasingly scoring for fun, and have kept five clean sheets in their last 10 league outings.
Paulo Fonseca’s men boast as good a defensive record as the French champions.
Les Dogues don’t quite boast the quality that their title-winning side from a couple of years back did but they look capable of challenging for the top four, while Leny Yoro and Alexsandro Ribeiro have formed a solid central defensive partnership.
Bundesliga table-toppers Bayer Leverkusen have been a joy to watch under Xabi Alonso this season. They remain unbeaten in all competitions and have only dropped six points all season.
In Victor Boniface, they boast one of 2023-24’s breakout stars, Florian Wirtz is one of the finest young talents in Europe, and Alex Grimaldo and Jeremie Frimpong have been exceptional as wingbacks, chipping in with a combined 24 goal contributions (12 goals, 12 assists).
And on top of all that, they’re defensively sturdy too. Alonso is evidently a coach who puts a lot of thought into how to nullify the opposition. We wouldn’t expect any less, given how tactically astute he was as a player:
Juventus don’t have European football this season and have shown themselves masters of grinding out narrow victories by hook or by crook. The Entertainers they aren’t, but true to form Max Allegri has them well-organised and difficult to breach. That combination sees them looking Inter’s most viable challengers this season.
Their defenders have been pretty handy at chipping in with goals at the other end, too.
Nice’s outrageously good defensive record has tailed off a little bit over the Christmas period, but they’d have broken all kinds of records had they maintained their early-season form; by late November, Francesco Farioli’s men had only conceded four goals, but that tally is up to a still-more-than-respectable 11 now.
“The first thing for the defence is the state of mind, the desire to go the extra mile, to win a challenge,” Farioli explained when asked what their secret is.
“We concede very few goals but when we do let one in, we know how to get back into the game. Today, I don’t know how many shots were turned away by our midfielders. Everyone’s doing their bit. The rest is work, organisation and attitude.”
It might well be about the collective effort, but France international Jean-Clair Todibo is looking particularly impressive.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s involvement has resulted in the defender getting linked with a move to Manchester United. Watch this space.
Los Blancos have been dealt a number of injury headaches this season, with goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois plus key defenders Eder Militao and David Alaba suffering ACL injuries.
Carlo Ancelotti is blessed with a number of world-class options and real depth, but it’s still immensely impressive that they’ve registered comfortably the best defensive record in La Liga without some of their most important players.
Serie A table-toppers Inter have only conceded 10 goals in 20 games, keeping 12 clean sheets in the process.
They’ve been similarly strong at the other end, too, with Lautaro Martinez in the form of his life and one of the most prolific goalscorers in European football.
The Nerazzurri boast the best goal difference across Europe’s major leagues, having also registered the second-best attacking return. Front-to-back excellence.