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England Premier League

What do we make of the English teams' results in the Champions League this season?

Samrin Hasib, February 22 2012,
England’s entries in the Champions League have largely flattered to deceive this season.
Milan 4-0 Arsenal
Milan 4-0 Arsenal
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The scenes in Italy this week in Naples and Milan displayed jubilation. Milan, the European giants of years past put on a brilliant show as they battered London giants Arsenal. Napoli, despite going behind, took Chelsea to the sword today. Chelsea however still has a chance of qualification for the quarter finals considering they lost 3-1.

For Arsenal, only a miracle will allow them to qualify. They are four goals down as appalling as it sounds with no away goals to their name. Last season, England had just one quarter-finalist in Manchester United. United went on to the final. This season, whether England will have any representatives in the last eight at all is doubtful.

Manchester City in their first ever season in the Champions League finished third in their group. They did not disgrace themselves but did not fare well against European giants Bayern Munich and new boys Napoli. United, placed in a group they were expected to blitz through, finished third.

Basel, who plays Bayern, collected four points in two games against United. They beat United 2-1 on the final day to finish second in the group behind Portuguese giants Benfica. Manchester’s participation in the Champions League ended that night.

On the whole, the results reflect badly on what is supposedly the best league in the world. There are six teams who have the potential to win the Premier League: United, City, Chelsea, Tottenham, Liverpool and Arsenal. Arsenal is in poor shape currently while Liverpool is going through a transition.

The league in itself remains competitive. Yet, the competition in terms of actually winning the league this season is between two and if you consider Spurs, perhaps three sides. At the moment, the title seems to be destined to end up in Manchester. Competition in the league makes for success in the Champions League as competition arguably makes teams stronger.

So, considering results of the past two seasons, can we come to the conclusion that the Premier League as a whole has weakened? Considering just this season’s results, one could conclude that Serie A has strengthened. Yet, two seasons is a short time to really conclude that a league is in decline while one season is a short time to decide whether a league has strengthened.

However, what can be said is that the English teams haven’t really taken the Champions League by storm in the past three seasons. In 2009, England did not have a representative in the semifinal. Perhaps, it is time, that England improves its youth system. It is perhaps time the English teams and their owners such as Roman Abramovich take a look at long term goals rather than short team ones.

The English national team has had its fair share of criticism down the years but the league has rescued the country more than anything due to its team’s performances in Europe’s premier club competitions.

So, is this all a sign that the Premier League is decline? Let me hear your thoughts.

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