English Prem

With  Spurs dramatic win last night against the mighty Ajax does this mean the English Prem is now probably the best in Europe?

I don't like how the amount of money is being deployed there it's a different world but it is nice that football (our national sport) is on the crest of a wave right now.

To me just to see English clubs right up there is something to be proud of.

I have enjoyed both Liverpool and Spurs matches but still will only ever be a mariner til I die.


                                                                                          UTM.

Spurs have spent nothing for 2 Windows . They have nurtured  young players and created a team to be proud of . That can happen in any league any time if you have a tight group that believe in the coach .coys

I've never understood what 'best league' actually means, it's a bit like 'best fans'.

Seeing English players like deli ali, Kane etc is great to see it is just not based on expensive imports but though academies this is definitely the right way to do it.

Quoted from Abdul19

I've never understood what 'best league' actually means, it's a bit like 'best fans'.

it means the Best don't get your point but hey ho

Well the league is 20 teams. Do the fantastic achievements of 10% of them mean that the league is 'the best'?

Quite a simple (but possibly balderdash) point really.

The interesting bit is that the teams that were beaten this week were the ones the national media keep holding up to us as examples to follow. In the end both were found wanting in desire, fitness and physical presence. Spurs for instance were a different side when they brought on someone big who could head a ball and create chaos in the area. Suddenly crosses looked dangerous and Ajax had no answer. Messi did not play badly for Barca but who was the more effective on the night, Messi the media favourite or Jordan Henderson so often criticised by journos?

But it is an irony that this sort of play, an essentially British game, should be successful when the bulk of the Liverpool and Spurs squads are not British!

First CL for 6 years not to feature Messi or Ronaldo, apparently. That's a good indication of where the balance of power has rested in recent years. The huge, gazumping amounts of money now rolling in for the top PL clubs are obviously beginning to have an impact (plus the oil money) to make the big PL teams more competitive in Europe after a very lean period. However, I'd say that the overall quality of football is still higher in La Liga and the Bundesliga. Not by much, however, and some of the small/medium-sized PL teams are now actually playing some good football instead of just attempting to grind out results.

The only concern is that we may be heading to a place where the big boys are just so far ahead of the rest that upsets by smaller clubs become almost non-existent.

Quoted from Abdul19

Well the league is 20 teams. Do the fantastic achievements of 10% of them mean that the league is 'the best'?

Quite a simple (but possibly balderdash) point really.

It's 50% isn't it? 4 teams qualify for the champs league. 2 made it to the final. The maximum possible return.

With the possibility of 2 more English teams making the europa league final tonight.

The impact of Pep Guardiola (despite again missing out on the CL) can't be ignored. The way English teams play has transformed since his arrival to the PL and it has benefited the Premier League as a whole but also the England national team. I was a doubter of his for a long time, because he had incredible players at his disposal at Barcelona, then Bayern Munich and Man City were teams who *should* have been winning their leagues, but look at how Spanish teams, then German teams and now English teams have developed their style of play and dominate in European competition.

It can't be a coincidence, but I have absolutely no idea what he is doing differently to any other manager who has tried to instill the same tactics/ethos into their teams!