How Liverpool flop Iago Aspas is outperforming Ronaldo

It might seem incongruous to see Iago Aspas get the nod ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo among La Liga's best performers, but the decision is more than justified. 

The Celta forward is best known in England for a disappointing spell at Liverpool, where he scored just one goal in 15 fleeting performances over the course of the 2013-14 season. 

But in Galicia his talent has never been doubted, and he has reached a new level since returning to his boyhood club under the wing of Eduardo Berizzo. 

Marcelo Bielsa's old assistant at Chile has put together a typically dynamic, swashbuckling side in his two and a half seasons at the club, and Aspas has been a big part of that success. 

And he has even shrugged off the loss of equally influential Nolito to overshadow the likes of Ronaldo so far this campaign. 

Both strikers sit on 10 goals so far in La Liga, but the Real Madrid star's tally has been inflated by a flurry of eight strikes in just three games against Alaves, Atletico Madrid and Sporting. 

In all he has hit the net in just five Liga matches, while Aspas has proven a more consistent scorer having notched on seven separate occasions. 

In terms of strike-rate, too, Cristiano falls some way short of the Celta man. 

The Ballon d'Or winner's record of a goal every 6.8 shots is almost double Aspas', who converts on average every 3.8 attempts. Indeed, the Celta star's efficiency beats even Barcelona hitmen Luis Suarez (four shots per goal) and Lionel Messi (5.3). 

Similarly, while both Ronaldo and Aspas have recorded two assists the ex-Liverpool flop has proved a more prolific provider for his team-mates than his more illustrious rival. 

Just 12 of the Portugal captain's passes have resulted in a Madrid chance, a paltry figures compared to the 29 laid on by Vigo's favourite son. 

So while nobody would argue that Aspas is a better player than the Madrid idol, there is absolutely no doubt that he has comfortably out-performed Cristiano in the first half of this Liga season.