The year 2015 was a touchstone year for some soccer clubs and a dismal one for others. Some clubs reached the pinnacle while others dropped from it. Some teams started 2015 on a tear and with promise only to face embarrassment as it came to an end.

Let's take a look at which soccer clubs had terrific years and which sides could not be happier to see 2016 come to them.

Teams that Reveled in 2015

Barcelona - Winners

This was undoubtedly the year of Blaugrana. The team started 2015 out of first place in La Liga but stormed to the top of the tournament and followed that up with wins in the Copa del Rey and the Champions League.

Not content to dwell on those laurels, the team went on to win the Club World Cup and is back on top of the world yet again in La Liga. Barcelona saw time without its top star Lionel Messi who has yet to get back into top gear. But in his absence, Neymar became a superstar and Luis Suarez showed his quality. It will be tough to top the kind of year Barcelona had in 2016.

Leicester City

Who would have thought that the English side that finished 14th place with 41 points last season would currently have three fewer points and be in the second place with one game in hand? Thanks to the supreme play of Jamie Vardy and his 15 goals as well as Riyad Mahrez and his 13 tallies, this team is among the most fearsome attacking sides in England and could be poised for an incredible 2016 if results hold up.

Juventus

The 2015-16 season has not started as well as Juventus would like it to, but the team is only three points out of first and still coping with the loss of Arturo Vidal and Andrea Pirlo in the midfield. That said, the team had a tremendous year culminating in a Champions League appearance against Barcelona. On the line in that game was not only a treble for Barcelona, but also the Italian club which won the Serie A and the Coppa Italia.

Teams that Can't Wait for 2015 to End

Real Madrid

In 2014, Real Madrid was the best team in the world.

In 2015, the team suffered one embarrassment after another. Carlo Ancelotti's sacking was questionable. The hiring of Rafa Benitez was moreso. The poor display to kick off the 2015-16 season has lost the support of fans and the Clasico is as low a lowpoint as anyone could try to avoid. Throw in the struggles of Cristiano Ronaldo and the off-field drama with Benitez and 2015 was a year in which Madrid stooped pretty low.

Manchester United

Speaking of drama, Manchester United has had its fill as well. Louis Van Gaal guided the team back to the Champions League in the first half of the year, a respectable result for a team that had taken massive steps back under David Moyes. But Van Gaal's future is in jeopardy with the team continually misfiring, getting eliminated from the Champions League in a relatively group and now sitting nine points out of first place.

Throw in Wayne Rooney's overnight decline and this team is arguably even lower than Madrid on the totem pole of embarrassment. And yet one other team remains...

Chelsea

Jose Mourinho led Chelsea to the title in May and was out of the team by December. How does that happen?

If you look at the league table you will notice that the defending champions have 20 points, are 19 points out of first place and are actually three points away from a relegation spot.

Diego Costa is struggling. Cesc Fabregas can't pick out a pass and Eden Hazard still hasn't scored a goal in 2015-16, just a few of the many issues plaguing last year's EPL champs.