Europe's top 50 - Part IV: Liverpool star and rejuvenated Lukaku feature from 35-31

Continuing our countdown of the best players in Europe's top five leagues this season, it's time to turn our attention to those ranked 35 down to 31.

The likes of Paulo Dybala, Marcus Rashford and Joshua Kimmich have already been drawn out and some more big hitters are on the way, including arguably the best centre-back in the world and a former Manchester United forward.

Nabil Fekir made the unusual decision to leave Lyon for Real Betis in the summer and the 26-year-old has enjoyed a solid first season for the Spanish side, even if there is plenty more to come from the Frenchman. Fekir has returned eight WhoScored Man of the Match awards in the league this term, three more than he managed during his last season at Lyon and behind only Leo Messi (13) in LaLiga.

Fekir has weighed in with seven goals and three assists from 22 league appearances for Betis, while a return of 3.3 dribbles per game ranks eighth in Europe's top five leagues. Currently nine places better off compared to where he finished in the top 50 last season, Fekir is on the right path in Spain.

Virgil van Dijk is the top WhoScored rated centre-back in Europe's top five leagues this season, cementing his position as the standout defender in world football for a second campaign in succession. Only one team in Europe's top five leagues have a better defensive record than Liverpool this season (21 goals conceded) and Van Dijk has been key to that.

The Dutchman has impressively won 73.5% of the aerial duels he has contested in the league this season and matched last season's goal tally (4) in just 22 appearances. Van Dijk, however, has dropped in the top 50 from his position of 23 in Europe last season. This is perhaps in part owing to the fact last season he had a tackle success rate of 100% compared to being dribbled past on six occasions in 2019/20.

Suat Serdar has been one of the unsung heros of the 2019/20 campaign, in part due to Schalke's inconsistent form this season. Indeed, there is a WhoScored rating gap of 0.31 between Serdar and Schalke's second top rated player (10+ starts) in the Bundesliga this season. Six of the seven goals Serdar has scored this season have come from open play, with three coming from outside the box.

The 22-year-old is particularly strong at breaking up opposition attacks, as illustrated by 2.8 tackles per game, and carrying possession forward with 2.7 successful dribbles per game. He is on course to follow in the footsteps of Leroy Sane, Manuel Neuer and Leon Goretzka to make a big money move from Schalke. Last season in Europe's top five leagues he ranked 1050th.

It is rare to find instances of transfers where all parties benefit but Romelu Lukaku's summer switch from Manchester United to Inter achieved just that. Marcus Rashford, Mason Greenwood and Anthony Martial have flourished at Old Trafford and Lukaku has helped transform Inter into genuine title challengers. Lukaku has returned 17 league goals in his debut campaign for Inter, already more than he managed in a single campaign for United.

A return of three WhoScored Man of the Match awards is also superior to what he managed in either of his two league campaigns at United. Lukaku finished the 2018/19 campaign as the 520th best rated player in Europe's top five leagues but has established himself as one of the best forwards on the continent this term.

Teji Savanier concludes the run down from 35 to 31 following his controversial move from Nimes to local rivals Montpellier in the summer. The 28-year-old was a complete unknown last season, and still is to a certain extent, having registered 14 assists for French side Nimes in 2018/19. Savanier hasn't quite managed to have the same impact for Montpellier, with only two assists to his name in 19 appearances, but he is still an effective all-round midfielder for his new club.

Savanier has matched last season's league tally in half as many appearances (six goals), for example. Not only that, but the Frenchman has a solid dribble success rate of 61.1% in 2019/20. As a natural consequence of missing 14 assists, however, Savanier has dropped down the top 50 significantly from last season to this. He finished the 2018/19 campaign as the third top WhoScored rated player in Europe's top five leagues. 

Catch up on rankings: 50-46, 45-41, 40-36