Last night saw another crushing demonstration of the quality that exists within the English Premier League, as Manchester United and Arsenal registered their first wins in this season’s champion’s league. Arsenal toyed with Porto and seemed to almost toy with them, like a cat playing with a crippled bird that it knows can’t get away. You almost felt sorry for them as Arsenal’s young guns played them off the pitch. Europe take heed, this season looks like it will be another one where the English teams thrive in the competition.
Across on mainland Europe United put in a professional display, seeing off the Danes of AaB Aalborg 3-0. It almost seems that when an English team takes to the Champions league it’s felt that whoever is put in front of them will be simply rolled over, unless it’s a team from Spain or Italy. Unfortunately the likes of the French, Germans, Portuguese and the Dutch are simply no longer able to compete with the billion dollar operations behind the teams of the Premier league and as more International businessmen invest their disposable incomes into English teams the situation will only worsen.
At the moment if you win your domestic league you not only get the prestige and money of being Champions of your nation but you also get a chance to partake in the money spinning, dream weaving fiasco that is the Champions league. Thus if your Champions of Denmark then you generate a pull to players within your own league and due to the money that can be made from winning competitions, or even making it to the Champions league, you can attract and afford the best that is available to you. This gives the reigning champions a potential advantage in retaining their own domestic crown and thus, getting back into Europe.
This situation seems to be happening almost everywhere. Think of the last time you saw a Dutch team that was not PSV or Ajax doing well in the Champions league? I bet you can’t. Look on wikipedia and you’ll still not be able to come up with anything. The simple truth is that their continuous involvement in Europe, coupled with their domestic dominance, puts them financially above their peers in their own country and more likely to win their league or qualify for Europe.
Let’s take this concept and apply it to the biggest, most lucrative league in the world, the English Premier League. The likes of Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea and United have been milking the benefits of qualifying for Europe on a yearly basis for many a year now. Each club can generate massive revenue from match day gates or, like Chelsea, have an owner who spends money for fun. It is the dominance of the big four at home and now abroad that is of major concern to me.
It’s almost taken for granted now that the English teams will make it to the knock out stages of the Champions league and to be honest, with the quality of player in their squads, let alone their starting 11, it would be a footballing and financial nightmare if they did not qualify. Each team boasts of some of the best players in the world and more and more seem to come to England to get their slice of the plentiful pie that is on offer. Money talks and a footballers career is short so who wouldn’t want to play over here? Unfortunately it means that a large percentage of world class footballers end up in England and not elsewhere in Europe. Take Nani for example or even Ronaldo. Both left Sporting Lisbon at young ages for big money, just imagine the potential success Lisbon may have had if both were kept and developed...Instead they were cashed in on.
The Champions league is almost becoming boring now as you know the familiar names and faces from Europe will qualify for it and the English clubs will inevitably do well in it. The magic that existed within the game is going as money takes a firmer grip on it and the same teams start to dominate the scene. You might say this is fair enough and is just reward for the efforts of the clubs at the top of the European tree but it just means the competition loses in the end. People will lose interest if it’s always Man United versus AC Milan or Arsenal versus Barcelona in the final. The competition is a victim of its own rewards handed out to the giants of the game, creating a bubble that is hard to pop or even break into. For many years the Scottish game has been mocked for its 2 horse nature but within a few years I feel the Champions league will be in a similar situation, just with a few more horses....
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Ah the great debate of the age, the predictablility of the Champions League. I have to say that there are definite problems with the way the Champions League distorts competition in the domestic leagues. However it also has to be pointed out that some clubs in Europe are very poorly run, do not forward plan as well as english clubs and are a lot less patient with their managers. Example, the english top 4 has managers who have been in charge 22, 12 and 6 years (excluding chelsea). You would be hard pushed to find this in Europe. AC Milan (who have had a long term manager) for example have not recruited well in recent years and not refreshed a defence that was ancient 4 years ago! Real Madrid have a terribly lopsided team. Barcelona seem to have turned into Real Madrids ill fated Galatico team. Yet there are some well run clubs, PSV punch well above their weight every year, rebuilding every year having had their best players stripped from them every year. Ajax havent qualified for the champions league since 2005.
Howeverbut it is good that UEFA recognises the distortion of the Champions league and is making changes.
From next year, the 4th placed team in England will potentially have to play against the 4th placed team in Spain, Italy, 3rd place in Germany or France. A lot harder than before. Also the UEFA cup, to be known as the "UEFA Europa League" is to be beefed up with more money ploughed in. hopefullt this will make a difference!
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