It’s been over two years since Chelsea FC defied the odds to lift their first Champions League crown, after a win against Bayern Munich in the Bavarians’ backyard.
Before the start of the 2011-12 UEFA Champions League season, if you were to suggest that Chelsea would lift their first Champions League crown, many people wouldn’t have taken you seriously. But isn’t the Premier League the biggest and best league in the world and shouldn’t it have the best teams too?
In terms of revenue and popularity it is the best league in the world. But one would argue that in terms of performances on the European stage, English clubs are behind those from La Liga and the Bundesliga.
The 2012-13 Champions League final was held at Wembley – the same venue where Manchester United had been dismantled by Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona only two years earlier.
The Wembley final should have showcased at least one of England’s top clubs fighting for the biggest prize in European club football, but instead it was an all-German affair between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund.
There wasn’t even an English club in the quarter finals, as Arsenal and Manchester United had both fallen in the Round of 16.
One year later, only one English club made the semis, before Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid eventually met in the final.
The Premier League has the ability to lure many of the world’s top footballers. The country’s top teams such as Chelsea and Manchester City stand as testament to this. But are the world’s best footballers plying their trade in England? Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Franck Ribery, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Arjen Robben? No, they are not.
Sure, Ronaldo and Robben had stints in England at Manchester United and Chelsea respectively, but both have enjoyed arguably greater success abroad. Luis Suarez was the best player in the Premier League by a considerable distance last season, topping the scoring charts with 31 goals – despite missing the first six games through suspension.
Surely the Liverpool hitman didn’t need to move away from the Premier League after proving himself in the toughest league around? Wrong. The controversial Uruguayan striker decided to move to Barcelona in the summer in the search of European success.
In the last ten years, English teams have only lifted the coveted Champions League trophy three times: Liverpool in 2005, Manchester United in 2008 (in an all-English final with Chelsea) and Chelsea in 2012.
It’s a far cry from the days when English clubs dominated Europe, particularly in the late 70s and early 80s, where English clubs won the European Cup for six consecutive seasons.
Premier League clubs have still been present at seven of the last ten Champions League finals, but it’s fair to argue that English clubs should be performing better on the continental stage.
The all-English Champions League final in Moscow in 2008 between Manchester United and Chelsea – which United won on penalties – reminded the world that the Premier League is still king. However since then English clubs have faltered all too often in the Champions League.
Chelsea, Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool and even a rebuilding-Manchester United are currently England’s top clubs. They are more than capable of locking horns with Europe’s best.
Although Alexis Sanchez and Angel Di Maria joined the Premier League sides from Spain over the summer, clubs such as Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Borussia Dortmund and even PSG remain a more attractive option for Europe’s elite players.
In Europe, the promise of continental and domestic glory is greater and the football is less physical.
Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City have all had underwhelming starts to their Champions League campaign this season, while Chelsea remain the only club who have started their campaign well.
Whether an English club wins this season’s edition of the Champions League remains to be seen, but with Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, PSG, Juventus and particularly Bayern Munich all looking as strong as ever, it won’t come as a great surprise to see a continental final at Olympiastadion in Berlin on June 6.
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Frankly, it was a bad look for Hayes. She appears like a grumpy and frustrated manager as her tenure at Chelsea is coming to an end.
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