Stoke's latest signing - Wales midfielder Joe Allen - has mockingly been referred to as the 'Welsh Pirlo' and 'Welsh Xavi', thanks largely to the outsized expectations ladled upon him by his former Liverpool and Swansea manager Brendan Rodgers.

Fact is, Allen does have the ability to split the tightest of defences with a precision pass - albeit inconsistently. Stoke fans will be hoping the 29 year-old can find consistent form under Mark Hughes and prove himself to be a bargain at $A29 million. 

As to how Allen stacks up on the continent, here are Europe's best modern passing maestros. 

Jorginho, Napoli

The Brazil-born Italy international topped Europe last season for number of passes per game, threading an average of 102.3 of them in each of the 33 times he laced on a boot for Napoli last season. The 24 year-old defensive midfielder completed 90 percent of those and his 95 percent short passing accuracy was second only to PSG metronome Marco Verratti, who only a played a third of the matches Jorginho did. We just can't work out how Jorginho was cut from Antonio Conte's final UEFA EURO 2016 squad, given the injuries to Verratti and Claudio Marchisio. Italy's loss, check out the highlights to see why. 

Marco Verratti, PSG

Considered something of an heir to Barcelona distribution outlet, Sergio Busquets, Verratti's average of 82 passes per game put him at fifth in the big five leagues, but his completion rate of 93 percent put him right at the upper echelons of that group. Verratti topped the list of successful short passes, with 96 percent. 

Lionel Messi, Barcelona

What would a football stats list be without Messi on it somewhere. When he's not bleaching his hair, or scoring goals himself, he's setting them up. The Barcelona attacking star's 16 assists last season put him at third in the list of creators behind Mesut Ozil and Angel Di Maria, while he clocked an incredible one completed through-ball per game on average. To put that into perspective, the next best player at splitting the defence was Di Maria, with .7 completed through balls. Messi proving again he's not just a finisher but a key creative plank for Barcelona.  

Sergio Busquets, Barcelona

The quintessential '6', Busquets may not have dominated the statistics last season like some of his passing contemporaries on this list, but he is worthy of commanding a place purely on aesthetics alone. that's to say nothing of his vasy array of skills. The Barcelona defensive midfielder always seems to be in acres of space when he receives the ball. On the odd occasion he is being closed down by a rampaging opponent, Busquets has the skills to retain possession and manoeuvre himself into space with seeming ease.  Can you remember a time you saw him dispossessed? The 28 year-old anchors and orchestrates Barca's vaunted attack, his ability to play the pass that you might see coming but can do nothing to stop, making him a true artist of his craft. 

Toni Kroos, Real Madrid

The highest-ranking midfielder in the 'big five' in terms of successful percentage of passes - at 93.9 - Kroos also chipped in 10 assists for Real Madrid last season. the 26 year-old took that form into UEFA EURO 2016, rattling off a tournament-high 642 passes at an impressive 92 percent accuracy. Kroos didn't find the net for Germany, but he took as many shots on goal as France's Paul Pogba, the man who was at one stage rumoured to be offered to Madrid in a swap for the German and piles of cash. Based on passing effectiveness, we know which player we'd prefer. 

Xabi Alonso, Bayern Munich

At 34 years-of-age, the veteran Spaniard is entering Andrea Pirlo territory and, like the Italian maestro, his passing game seems to be maturing with age. Last season Alonso had the third-highest average passes per game, with 90.1, with 90 percent of those hitting the desired target. That strike rate puts the veteran above the likes of Arsenal recruit Granit Xhaka and City's Gundogan, and allowed Xabi to hold down a starting spot at Bayern Munich last season. A classic pivot, Alonso's laser-like long passes are a particular feature of his game, allowing his teams to break quickly in attack.

Mesut Ozil, Arsenal

A oddly polarising figure, Ozil continues to be a play-maker of the highest quality, topping the big leagues last season for assists, with 19. While his comparatively low 86.3 percent passing accuracy doesn't quite match the likes of Verratti, Ozil's game has an all-action quality to it, with the German firing in crosses, completing a through-ball every two games and trying his hand at 1.5 long balls per game. 

Ilkay Gundogan, Manchester City

Injury hampered Gundogan's last season, at Borussia Dortmund, but his resemblance to Busquets in style and precision has made him a key transfer window acquisition for Pep Guardiola's Manchester City. Like Verratti, Jorginho and Busquets, Gundogan plays the role of conductor, controlling the temp of play through the middle third of the pitch with his range of passes. 

Andres Iniesta, Barcelona

Iniesta, like Busquets, is one of those transcendent play-makers who seems to glide around the pitch like he's playing a different game to the one everyone else is involved in. While he may not have scaled the heights last season in terms of stats, he remains an integral part of the Barcelona machine that continues to dominate Spain's LaLiga. We couldn't not have him in our list.