Yearender 2020: Five clubs who have performed below expectations this season

Bengaluru, December 21: The best thing about football is that it never fails to surprise us. Expectations are always big from big clubs each and every season and while in most of the cases, they usually live up to the standards set by them, there are often cases where expectations do not end up well.

In this article, we will take a look at five clubs who have failed to live up to expectations in 2020.

Juventus

While the Old Lady managed to win their ninth Scudetto on the bounce, it was by the closest of margins. Only one point separated them from second-placed Inter and even Atalanta and Lazio were not far behind. Also, the Turin giants failed to have any kind of joy in cup competitions or in Europe.

They lost both finals of the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana and were also knocked out in the hands of Lyon from the round of 16 of the Champions League. This season also, they have not been at their best and find themselves third in the table, 4 points behind league leaders Milan.

Napoli

Over the last decade, Napoli have arguably been one of the strongest forces in Italian football after Juventus but things have not quite worked for the Naples side over the past couple of years. The Gli Azzurri could only salvage a seventh placed finish last season but won the Coppa Italia to give their fans some joy. Gennaro Gattuso's side are fifth in the table right now, eight points behind league leaders Milan and have a long way to go in order to be back at their best.

Borussia Dortmund

Despite their best efforts to challenge Bayern Munich's dominance in German football, Borussia Dortmund have never been able to do so since Jurgen Klopp left the club. And, the club is going through a really difficult period at the moment.

While the BVB had their best chance to end Bayern's Bundesliga winning streak last season following the Bavarian's dismal start to the season, they finished 13 points behind Die Roten. They have been really poor this season and find themselves fifth in the table, eight points behind Bayern and have seen Lucien Favre also losing his job.

Barcelona

Barcelona have set themselves such a high standard that anything below the La Liga title looks like an underachievement. The last couple of years have been really difficult for the Blaugrana as they saw their La Liga title being snatched by their rivals Real Madrid. The Catalan giants also failed to find any kind of glory in other competitions. The 2020-21 season has been even worse for the Spanish giants as they find themselves fifth in the table after 13 games, eight points behind leaders Atletico Madrid.

Arsenal

Arsenal did win the FA Cup in 2020 as well as the FA Community Shield beating Premier League champions Liverpool but all that seem like a distant memory right now looking at the struggles the Gunners have been through this season.

The north London club are 15th in the table right now and are just four points beyond safety as the whole team look in complete shambles. If things do not improve really soon, it could be one of the worst seasons ever experienced by a club of Arsenal's status in recent times.