Old Nations, Young Teams, Same Respect

Emotion and sentiment were ripe as France took on England at Wembley stadium on Tuesday night in a friendly. However, it was more than just a mere friendly game. The game was special for several reasons.

Amidst the tension and grief caused due to the terror attacks last Friday in Paris, England and their fans joined together to pay respects to France, its people and players. The stadium was illuminated and decorated in the colors of the French flag. Both sets of fans sang the French national anthem in an emotionally charged atmosphere.

English fans at Wembley stadium paying respects to France and the victims of the terror attack

Two countries that have been through struggles and conflicts with each other since medieval times came together for an occasion of solidarity and respect. Both teams have been traditionally graced by experienced and established players. Some French players that come to mind are Zinedine Zidane, Claude Makelele and Laurent Blanc who were first team regulars even in their twilight years. The same can be said for English players such as Steven Gerrard, Tony Adams and Gary Neville.

 However, this was a night were both teams mainly comprised younger players. With England’s so called “golden generation” having come to an end in the last couple of years and an upcoming golden generation of French players, this game provided a unique setting.

It was 19 year old English midfielder Dele Alli who stole the show in just his 4^th international cap. It was not just his spectacular strike, but his energy and effort throughout the game that earned him the man of the match title.

19 year old Tottenham midfielder Dele Alli scores his first goal for England

Having been called up due to key absentees such as Jack Wilshere, Jordan Henderson, Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Alli proved Roy Hodgson’s decision correct to include him in the first team. Alli brought immense energy into the game while displaying great composure on the ball. The French were on the receiving end of some crunching tackles from the Tottenham midfielder.

Joining Alli in the first team was another Spurs midfielder, Eric Dier. Playing in only his second game for England, Dier provided a solid performance in defensive midfield allowing the likes of Rooney, Sterling and Barkley to push forward with the ball.

Highly rated English defender John Stones, earning his seventh cap, looked comfortable in central defense alongside experienced Chelsea center back Gary Cahill. Other young but slightly more established players on show were Spurs striker Harry Kane, Everton’s Ross Barkley, Man City winger Raheem Sterling and Stoke City keeper Jack Butland who replaced Joe Hart at half time.

The French side boasted a string of talented youngsters as well. 19 year old Manchester United striker Anthony Martial and established Real Madrid center back Raphael Varane started the game. Having already scored 5 goals for United this season, Martial has been garnering comparisons to French legend Thierry Henry. Perhaps it is too soon to make such comparisons but the young French striker certainly has the ability to become a prominent striker for club and country.

French striker Anthony Martial's shot blocked by England's Jack Butland

Amongst the second substitutes for France were 19 year old skillful Bayern midfielder Kingsley Coman, highly rated Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba and Athletico’s Antoine Griezmann but they were not able to affect the game to a great extent allowing England to cruise to a relatively comfortable win over the Euro 2016 hosts.

England asked most of the questions during the game and broke the deadlock through Alli’s stunning strike taking a slight deflection on its way to the top left corner of the goal. The second goal of the game came through some industrious work by Sterling on the wing providing a flighted cross for Rooney to smash home at Lloris’s near post.

The French seemed a bit subdued in their performance, as compared to their 2-0 win over reigning world cup champions Germany last week. Revitalized Nice midfielder Hatem Ben Arfa seemed most likely to cause England any trouble during the first half. France came really close to opening their account when Martial took Pogba’s back heel into his stride only for his strike to be stopped by Butland.

The game was by no means a thriller, but the emotions surrounding the occasion provided for a great exhibition. The fans deserve a great deal of credit for creating such a memorable atmosphere and giving their support to the players on the field.

A Slightly Statistical View Of The Relationship Between Domestic Players And International Success

England and Italy are two of the most lack luster international teams to watch during the world cup or the Euro's. Of course there are worse teams, but these two are regarded as two of the biggest teams in the world, especially with a host of star players in their ranks. So why have they continually under performed and failed to excite in recent times? 

Some might argue that Italy had won the world cup in 2006. But if one looked at that world cup closely, one would realize that Italy were not particularly rampant during that world cup and could have gone out against Australia in the round of 16 if it wasn't for a dubious penalty decision in stoppage time that propelled them into the quarters. Their most impressive performance was against Germany in the semis where they beat the hosts 2-0 in arguably the best game of the tournament. France were clearly the best team during that tournament and were unfortunate to lose the final against Italy on penalties following a Zidane red card. 

England's last decent tournament run was back in 2002 during the Korea/Japan world cup. They showed great promise with players such as Michael Owen, David Beckham, Sol Campbell, Rio Ferdinand, Paul Scholes and David Seamann at the peak of their careers. However, their run ended against the eventual and deserved winners, Brazil, in the quarters. 

Rio Ferdinand and Sol Campbell for England during the 2002 world cup

If we fast forward to the last 5 years or so, we have witnessed some abysmal performances from Italy and England. There is a trend that seems to be synonymous with their poor displays. Almost every player in the Italian or English squad seems to play in their own leagues. In fact, in the 2010 world cup, every player in the England squad played club football in England and the same goes for Italy. At first it would seem that playing in the same league would build a strong chemistry between the players. To the contrary, a team that has players from different top leagues have a higher success rate. 

Inzaghi (left), Maldini (center) and Gattuso (right) of Italy celebrating the Coppa Italia win for Milan

There are definitely some exceptions to that rule with Germany and Spain vastly containing players from their respective leagues as well. However, Germany and Spain have had the occasional player play in different leagues. Also, in Italy's and England's defense, their leagues are two of the best leagues in Europe along with Spain and Germany so one would not necessarily need to leave their own country to experience a great level of football. 

Let's take a look at the 2014 world cup. 39 % of Spain's squad played in a different league. For Germany, that number is 30 %. For England and Italy, the numbers are 4 % and 13 % respectively. Notice that all these percentages have increased from 2010 but the English and Italian trends have not increased at the same rate as that of Germany and Spain. 

English players Ashley Cole (left), Lampard (center) and Terry (right) for Chelsea

It is hard to explain the phenomena but the trend clearly supports the performances in recent times. One important point that comes to mind is that if you have all players from a country playing in the same league, it is highly probable that the players are distributed among the good teams and the not so good teams. But if your players are from different leagues, its possible that they play in the top teams in each league since international selection would favor the best players in club football and the best players usually play in top clubs. 

At the climax of the 2010 European club season, Inter, Roma, Milan and Sampdoria comprised the top four in Italy. Chelsea, United, Arsenal and Spurs comprised the top four in England. 30 % of the Italian squad for the 2010 world cup played for Champions League teams in Europe which includes 4 players from the aforementioned clubs and 3 from PSG in France. For England, that statistic is 35 %. The numbers are fairly shocking if compared with numbers from Spain or Germany. 

The top four in Germany were Bayern, Bremen, Schalke and Leverkusen. 65 % of their squad played in top four teams around Europe, including Arsenal, Real Madrid and Chelsea. That number increases to 82 % if we include Dortmund who finished in 5th place and contained several important players for Germany. In Spain, the top four were Real Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia and Sevilla. Statistics show that 70 % of their players played in top four teams across Europe out of which 10 players played just for Real and Barca. If 5th place Athletico Madrid and Man City are included, the percentage goes up to a staggering 91 %. Therfore, it is highly likely that the starting 11 contains players from only top four clubs. 

David Silva celebrates a goal for Manchester City

Mesut Ozil of Germany featuring for Arsenal

Having looked at these statistics, we can better connect the dots to explain the poor performances to majority of players playing in their domestic leagues. The trend may change in the future but for now, it seems like having a great mix of international talent at top clubs would allow top domestic players to head to top clubs in other leagues. Very few Italian and English players make their trade in other countries which could prove to be the key to international success. With the emergence of new European top contenders such as PSG, Dortmund, Athletico and Manchester City, players from a certain league have more opportunity to move abroad and continue to play at a high level. Whether, that will improve the fate of England and Italy in major competitions, only time will tell. 

The Prolific and the Poor

The English premier league has been graced by some of the best strikers in the world but often, you would see the so called star players and promising players go to waste. It is sad to see a promising career completely fall apart and often leaves people feeling empty when provoked to think what might have been. Another kind of falling apart occurs when big money transfers from other leagues get reduced to dust in the premier league. Over the course of this post we will go over the best and the rest in detail without stretching the post more than required. 

Arsenal striker Thierry Henry scoring during the 2002 season

Manchester City forward Sergio Aguero with the ball

The premier league years can be broken down to a set of eras in which particular strikers dominated the scene for years. The second half of the 90's could be the Alan Shearer era. The Thierry Henry era could range from 2000 - 2005. Didier Drogba's era stretched from 2006 - 2010. In more recent times, we have had the Sergio Aguero era from 2011 to the present. Some would argue that the Drogba era could well have been called the Christiano Ronaldo era or the Wayne Rooney era. Also, the Aguero era could be called the Robin Van Persie era. The reason for sticking with the current names is that Ronaldo was not the main striker during his time at United. The same thing could be said for Rooney. As for Van Persie, he has been largely inconsistent with injuries and he made the move to United from Arsenal which might not have been the best decision. The aforementioned strikers are, or were, the heartbeats of their respective clubs. Another fact to note is that they have all won the premier league at least once; Shearer with Blackburn Rovers, Henry with Arsenal, Drogba with Chelsea and Aguero with Manchester City. 

Alan Shearer after winning the league title with Blackburn Rovers in 1995

Shearer is clearly the best English forward in the premier league era possessing a stunning ability to strike the ball. Not the fastest, but his attacking instincts often made the opposing defenders irrelevant. Having won the premier league title with Blackburn in 1995 under the management of Kenny Dalglish, he spent the greater part of his career with Newcastle United and also helped the Toons reach the second stage of the Champions League in 2003. 

Thierry Henry is a name synonymous with Arsenal's best premier league years. In 2004, he helped Arsenal to an unbeaten league season and also clinched the premier league player of the year. He looked effortless when on the ball and could create a goal scoring chance from absolutely nothing. Much like his strike partner, Dennis Bergkamp, he made everything look easy. Extremely calm and intelligent on the ball, Henry would rip the opponents defense apart often by just himself. One of his most notable performances was against Leeds United at Highbury where he scored 4 goals in a 5-0 thrashing, Leeds being relegated at the end of the season. Considered the best striker in premier league history, his legacy will live on at Arsenal and hopefully he would someday return to manage the club. 

Didier Drogba never had the best ball control or obvious talent. But what he possessed was an innate ability to link with midfield players and spear head the front line on his own. Possessing great strength and pace, he was almost unplayable sometimes, as Arsenal players might account. He had a great chemistry with Frank Lampard of Chelsea with both setting up each other on numerous occasions. Drogba had a knack for scoring in big games, making him a true match winner. He scored in 4 FA Cup finals and 2 League Cup finals, Chelsea winning 5 out of the 6. His mere presence was enough to cause confusion in the ranks of the opponent's defense. At the age of 37, he has just won his 4th premier league title with Chelsea but his best years are clearly behind him. 

Sergio Aguero is arguably the best striker in the world today. Possessing a very different style of play from the above strikers, he has great bursts of pace and immaculate ball control. Let's not forget the amazing finishing ability. He has a low center of gravity and great balance making it difficult for opponents to bring him down or put him off. He has helped City to 2 premier league titles and also scored the late winner in 2012 to beat United to the title. Aged only 26, he is currently at the peak of his career and will be crucial to City's prospects in the following seasons. 

Now that we have covered some of the glittering careers in the premier league, it is now time to take a step down and look at some of the careers that did not live up to expectations. The biggest disappointment in the last 10 years has undoubtedly been Andriy Shevchenko who joined Chelsea from AC Milan in 2006 for a whopping 30 million pounds for that time. After winning several trophies with Milan including the Champions League in 2003, Shevchenko was expected to light up the premier league. However, the speed and physical nature of the league did not suite Shevchenko. Also, Chelsea's style of play, usually with one lone striker, did not complement Shevchenko's skills and ability. He was used to play along side another striker such as John Dahl Tomasson or Filipo Inzaghi at Milan. After 2 lackluster seasons at Chelsea, Shevchenko moved back to Milan but the striker was never the same again. Once, rated as one of the best strikers in Europe along with the likes of Henry, Raul and Ronaldo, Shevchenko's career took a leap in the premier league.

Andriy Shevchenko for Chelsea during the 2007 season.

The next striker had mixed fortunes in the premier league. Fernando Torres played for Liverpool for 3 years and during his time at the club, he was the best striker in the premier league without a doubt. One thing to note is that he played for Liverpool during the "Didier Drogba Era". However, Torres had a disastrous turn in fortune after a record breaking 50 million pounds transfer to Chelsea. Once again, a striker with mouth watering ability failed at Chelsea. Throughout this time, Drogba never failed to perform. Torres' first goal at Chelsea came after 14 games. For such a prolific striker, that is too long. He had moments of brilliance at Chelsea in his second and third season. He managed to win the Champions League and FA Cup with Chelsea in 2012 where he was instrumental. But overall, his time at Chelsea will always be remembered as a disappointment.

Next is an example of a player who had the potential to become the best striker in the world. Michael Owen was the youngest player to play for England in the world cup and became the youngest player in history to score in the world cup at an age of 18 during the 1998 FIFA world cup in France. He was one of the best strikers in the premier league during the late 90's and the early 2000's alongside the likes of Ruud Van Nistelrooy, Thierry Henry and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink. After his move to Real Madrid in 2004, he struggled to regain the same form in Spain and subsequent knee injuries obstructed his career. On his return to the premier for Newcastle, he was just a mere shadow of what he was. He also had a short stint at Manchester United during the 2010 season. If he had stayed at Liverpool, he could have achieved a lot with the club especially with the likes of Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher at the club. However, one of the greatest young talents of English football faded away into thin air.

A young Michael Owen for Liverpool.

In more recent times, the greatest disappointment has been Radamel Falcao for United. In the latest round of premier league games, Falcao was substituted in the 60th minute against Arsenal and the United fans were seemingly happy to see him go. Arriving at United with a prolific goal scoring record during his times at Porto, Athletico Madrid and Monaco, he failed to shine in the premier league like many strikers before him. He managed to score just 4 unimpressive goals for United and looked out of sorts during most of his appearances. It was anything but a treat to watch him play. With the absence of Van Persie due to injury, United were forced to play Falcao up front with no results whatsoever. After a horrendous loan spell at the club, he is almost surely set to leave England.

The premier league isn't the easiest league to play in. Due to that fact, the players that do succeed emerge as legends and many other falter. Another notable mention is Luiz Suarez for Liverpool. He was voted the premier league player of the year in 2014 but departed for Barca soon after. During his time in England, he was the premier league's top scorer in the 2013/2014 season. A new striker that has emerged into the limelight is Diego Costa of Chelsea. Finally, a striker has worked for the Blues after the success of Drogba and the decently impressive performances of Nicolas Anelka.

Are Real Madrid and Barcelona Stealing the Best Premier League Players?

It would seem that every star player that has emerged over the last 15 years has played for either Real Madrid or Barcelona at some point in their careers. Nistelrooy, Robben, Sneijder, Van der Vaart, Huntelaar and Seedorf to name a few. And these are only the Dutch players which is quite ridiculous. Another point to note is that these players had their best years in other clubs which creates the question if Real splash the cash just for the sake of recruiting the star players instead of having a long term goal in mind. Since we are talking about Spain lets list some Barcelona recruits as well. Frank and Ronald De Boer, Kluivert, Reizeger, Zenden, Cocu, Davids and Overmars have all played for Barcelona and are also Dutch. The point I am trying to make here is that if we simply just list players from a single country, it is easy to see the massive number of players who have played for the two clubs when we include other countries.

The core of this post is going to hinge about the players that have departed or will potentially depart for Spain from England. The earliest instance that I can recall is Steve McManaman who left Liverpool for Real Madrid during the late 90's. However, the biggest transfer from England to Spain would be David Beckham during the 2003/2004 season. That was soon followed by Michael Owen the following season. Owen was not able to stamp his authority in Spain whereas Beckham will always be regarded as a 'Galactico' regardless of his performances. The greatness of Beckham is ingrained in the popular culture and no amount of under par performances will tarnish that. At a point during the 2004/2005 season, Real had players such as Roberto Carlos, Raul, Figo, Zidane, Ronaldo, Beckham, Cassillas and Owen. Perhaps the most glittering phase for the Galacticos, they failed to perform domestically as well as in Europe.

Arjen Robben left Chelsea for Real Madrid in 2007 at the peak of his career. Some would rightly argue that Robben reached his peak last year at the age of 31. But Robben was already a star when he left Chelsea. After staying in Real for 2 years he departed for Bayern Munich where he won the league, cup and Champions League. In 2009, Christiano Ronaldo moved to Madrid having won the premier league player of the year title more than once. That started a common trend. In 2013, player of the year, Gareth Bale left Tottenham for Real and similarly in 2014, player of the year Suarez left Liverpool for Barcelona. Not only is this depriving the premier league of its best players but also greatly weakening sides such as Spurs and Liverpool. If we correlate these departures to the performance of English clubs in Europe, one can clearly see the point I am trying to make. Chelsea are the only team to have performed decently in the Champions League, whereas teams such as Manchester City, Spurs, United, Arsenal and Liverpool have struggled in recent times. There is a point I made in a previous post that English clubs dominated the European scene during the 2005-2010 time frame with Chelsea, Liverpool, United and Arsenal reaching the quarters, semis and even finals on a regular basis.

There are other players who need a mention. Players like Cesc Fabregas, Alex Song and Thomas Vermaelen left Arsenal for Barcelona leaving the Gunners in a weakened state. However, the Gunners have had sort of a rejuvenation over the last two seasons. Fabregas is now back in England with Chelsea and has already won the premier league title. Eidur Gudjohnsen left Chelsea for Barca in 2006 but that was not as consequential as some of the other transfers that I have mentioned. David de Gea of United, and the best premier league goal keeper of the season, is bound for Real during the summer with a contract apparently in place. As a result, United's best player and the main reason for their rejuvenation this season is gone.

When we look back at some of these players, they were the heartbeat of the teams they left. That has created an image that Real and Barca are the absolute pinnacles a player can reach which is wrong. That fact is proven by loyal players such as Steven Gerrard, John Terry, Ryan Giggs, Frank Lampard, Jamie Carragher, Tony Adams and more. The goal of a player should ideally be to help their current club, improve as a player and try to win as many trophies as possible. Simply going to Spain, resulting in a huge payroll, is not the answer. It will be interesting to see if Eden Hazard, the current premier league player of the year, will look at potential offers from Spain. Having recently signed a new 5 year contract at Chelsea, winning the league and cup titles, and with Jose Mourinho at the club, it is difficult to see why Hazard would leave for Real or Barca. Chelsea will only improve next year and with Real stuttering to the end of this season, it might not be a clever decision for Hazard to head their way. Him deciding to stay at the club could provide an example for future players and help strengthen the pedigree of the premier league. 

Chasing Europe

As the game between Chelsea and Liverpool came to a close at 1-1 last weekend, the fates for both the teams were decided. Chelsea having already won the title, now get a chance to rest several of their over worked players. Whereas Liverpool are now virtually out of the race to qualify for next season's Champions League. Mathematically, it is still possible however, I am not expecting United to relinquish a 15 goal advantage with only 2 games remaining. That leaves us with United, Arsenal and Man city battling it out for the rest of the Champions League spots. 

City are sitting at 73 points and Arsenal have an opportunity to catch up with them if they successfully negotiate their two fixtures next week. United, on the other hand are most likely to finish in 4th place and it will take a very late stumble from either City or Arsenal for United to gain automatic qualification for the group stages. Having said that, United host Arsenal this weekend and they will get a chance to not only close the gap but leapfrog the North London club into 3rd place, at least for 3 days. United have finally developed a spine in midfield with regulars such as Fellaini, Mata, Blind, Herrera and Young. Di Maria is a mere shadow of his former self. He had a great start to the season with United. However, over the course of the year, his form has taken a nose dive. Falcao, on the other hand never showed up. Both these players could be on their way out of Old Trafford in the summer. David De Gea, on the other hand, could be out of the club for the right reasons. He was one of the main reasons United are even able to compete for the top four spots. As always, Rooney has been the pillar for United and has played all over the field to help them to where they are right now. 

Arsenal have had a great run in to the end of the season. However, the rare loss to Swansea at home this past week put a slight dent in their hopes to clinch automatic qualification for Europe. If they had won that, they would have been tied with City with a game in hand and the United game this Sunday would have had less consequences. If Alexis Sanchez and company manage to even get a draw at Old Trafford, Arsenal should still be in great position to seal their place in the top 3. However, a loss could really heat up the fight for the top four spots. Consistent performances from the likes of Cazorla, Ozil and Giroud have provided the platform for Arsenal to challenge City and even Chelsea at an earlier point in the season. 

City have been the biggest disappointment in the top four. Despite their current position at 2nd place, they have often seemed lackluster and fallen against lowly teams such as Burnley and Crystal Palace. The absence of Toure and Kompany has clearly made a huge difference in their bid to win back to back premier league titles. However, the forms of Aguero and Silva have carried City on and the recent return of Toure should provide them with some much needed cover and drive in midfield. If they wish to contend against the top sides in Europe next season, they will need their captain fit for majority of the campaign as well as look for a new manager if Pellegrini decides to leave or loses his appointment at the club. With the best goal difference except Chelsea, they have a slight advantage if United or Arsenal do catch up to them. 

With just 5 points separating the three teams, the next 2 games could be extremely crucial and it could take us the last day of the season to completely know the top four spots. With the premier league being such as lucrative league in terms of money and winnings, each and every position matters. Therefore, along with European qualification there is also the matter of revenue to keep in mind and a jump in league table position by even a spot could make a noticeable monetary difference. Taking that into consideration, the three teams have plenty of incentive to compete till the very end. 

Flying Artists

There are very few wingers today who have raw pace and can just tear the opponent's defense with a blistering counter attack. The trend has shifted towards winger slash playmakers who have the ability to burst into pace in the center of the pitch as well as the wide areas. Also, they can provide defense splitting passes and combine with central players to penetrate opposition defenses. Let's take the example of Dutch winger Arjen Robben. During his time at Chelsea and Real Madrid, he mainly operated in the wings with a greatly ability to cut in and shoot. He was known more for his ability to dribble and shoot rather than combine with other attacking players. However, his game has improved immensely in the last 2-3 years which is surprising since he is 31 years old now. The reason for that is his slight decrease in pace which is understandable due to his age. But what makes him more devastating than before is that he drifts inwards more and combines dangerously with other players in addition to his blinding pace. He is able to take up central positions in midfield and operate as a playmaker when needed. Due to this, a lot of Bayern's play goes through him which results in more goal scoring opportunities.

The above example is a transitional story where a winger has adopted playmaking techniques due to age and improved maturity. Some players start out their careers with traits of both a winger and a playmaker. The best example today is Eden Hazard. Other players include Andres Iniesta, Alexis Sanchez, Willian, Mario Gotze, Juan Mata, Angel Di Maria, Lucas Moura, Phillipe Coutinho, Mesut Ozil, David Silva and Marco Reus. These are some of the most attractive players on the planet. That is largely due to their versatility and massive skill set. They are all known for their shooting, dribbling, passing, ball control, vision and pace which means that they could very well replace a couple of players in a team. Therefore, having them in the team is a massive advantage and luxury for managers to have. They occupy a role that is very well suited to the modern style of play which hinges on extremely custom formations. Gone are the days when managers would deploy simple 4-4-2 formations with each player sticking to their respective positions. In that formation, there is no room for a winger or a playmaker. The widest players are the right and left midfielders. Traditionally, they are just meant to cross the ball into the box with great accuracy of which David Beckham is a great example or Ashley Young in recent times. There would be two Lampard or Gerrard like central midfielders with no playmakers or defensive midfielders leaving huge gaps to exploit by the opposition.

The creation of the attacking midfield role has brought the playmaker to light. Nowadays, there is a great tendency to deploy right footed wingers on the left and vice versa. The main reason for this is for the wingers to cut in to the center to either create a proper shooting angle or engage in a passing move with the central players. It is relatively rare to see crossing as the obvious choice nowadays. The ability of the winger to drift inwards poses a great threat to defenders who already have one or two strikers to deal with in addition to the box to box midfielders. Put in the ability of a playmaker into the winger and you have the most creative and exciting player on the pitch which is the case with each and every player mentioned above. Every time any of these players receive the ball in a favorable position their is a high chance of a goal scoring opportunity to occur.

In my opinion, the playmaker is the most crucial player in a team. He is the creative source and the string puller of the team. He has great vision, which implies that he can see a pass several seconds before the pass is executed and he can see a pass which no one in the opposite team can see. The players mentioned above possess this ability and an important attribute of their play is that they know how to use their pace efficiently during a game. They engage in sudden bursts of pace when space provides itself without breaking into a raw sprint. This level of intelligence is what makes creative geniuses. This post would not be complete without ranking the aforementioned players. Most people would agree I think. Here it goes:

1. Eden Hazard

2. Mesut Ozil

3. David Silva

4. Juan Mata

5. Marco Reus

6. Alexis Sanchez

7. Angel Di Maria

8. Mario Gotze

9. Andres Iniesta

10. Phillipe Coutinho

11. Willian

12. Lucas Moura

As a parting note, let's form a distinction between the above players and those who are simply playmakers. Players who are purely playmakers lack pace and do not necessarily possess exquisite dribbling or shooting ability. In my opinion Luka Modric is the best player in this category. One can see the difference in Real's play when Modric is missing from the team. Other players include Santi Cazorla, Andrea Pirlo and Cesc Fabregas. As always, this is all my personal opinion.  

The Big Four

The European football scene is very different from the what it was 15-20 years ago. If we look back just 10 years, it would be fair to see several top clubs vying for the top prize of the continent. All the top leagues would have at least three contenders for the trophy. Let's take 2005 as an example. England had Arsenal, Chelsea, Man Utd and Liverpool. Italy had AC Milan, Juventus, Inter and Roma, Spain had Real Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia, and finally Germany had Bayern Munich, Schalke and Werder Bremen. It's probably fair to include some honorary mentions such as PSV Eindhoven, FC Porto and Lyon. There were also the occasional upsets to account for. However, now there is a clear distinction between the top clubs in Europe and the rest. Over the last 2 or 3 years, four clubs have emerged as heavy weights whereas the pedigree of some other clubs have been subdued over the years. The four clubs are Real Madrid and Barcelona from Spain, Chelsea from England and Bayern Munich from Germany.

All the four clubs have had different routes to becoming the best in their respective leagues. Real Madrid for instance, have always gone after the best players in the world, whether it be on paper or pitch. With a history of star players, 'Los Galacticos' have continued their trend and have included the likes of world cup winner Toni Kroos and golden boot winner James Rodriguez. After their Champions League win last year, Real Madrid look like the only team in the last 10 years to repeat the feat again. Some would argue that they have let two of their key players leave over the summer - Angel Di Maria and Xabi Alonso. Di Maria has failed to replicate his performances from a year back at Old Trafford whereas Alonso has been a pivotal figure in Bayern's campaign so far. Even then, Madrid look strong enough to win back to back trophies in Europe. With immense financial backing and a glorious history, Madrid have become a huge force in Spain and Europe. Their style of play is not too artistic or intricate. They heavily rely on the individual skills of each player with less emphasis on the chemistry between the players. That might be one reason why they could be undone by more coherent teams this season such as rivals Athletico Madrid and Barcelona. Also, their main approach to the game is counter attack and might struggle if forced to press against teams that sit back. Having said all that, the abundance of skill in the team might still be enough to break any defense in Europe, even if they are not operating at their highest efficiency.

Barcelona or La Masia, have a completely opposite approach to that of Real Madrid which might owe to the fact that they are from the more cultural and artistic side of Spain which is Catalunia. They believe in bringing up players through their famous youth academy and building a strong chemistry among players. One reason why they are consistently successful in doing this is that the youth players play together from a very young age through the academy and when they finally make it to the senior team, they have an inherent chemistry which is hard to break and easier to maintain. Academy products such as Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets and Messi are a typical example with new players such as Munir el Haddadi also breaking through to the main stage. Their intricate style of play puts a lot of stress on movement and pressing off the ball. They keep immense amount of possession which is largely due to their good movement and their interceptions while off the ball. Barcelona have consistently been one of the best teams in Europe since 2004 and are always one of the favorites to win the champions league. It's rare to see them not make it to at least the semi finals.

 

Bayern Munich have continued their strong league performances this year especially with Dortmund's hugely inconsistent performances over the course of the season. Having already clinched the Bundesliga title, they now look to go to the finals of the Champions League set to take place in Berlin. However, they have suffered a massive setback in the first leg against Barca losing 3-0 at the Nou Camp which virtually puts them out of the competition. Having said that, they still have a really strong team and could pull off a miraculous recovery in the second leg at home. The absence of Robben due to injury has hurt Bayern's attacking prowess which was not the case in the last 4-5 years.

 

Chelsea have already bowed out of the competition against French league front runners PSG who were able to capitalize on the Blues' complacency during the second leg. Although, Chelsea did win the league and cup double domestically ensuring a successful season. I still believe that Chelsea belong in the last four of the Champions League probably instead of Juventus. Chelsea have the ability to shift into multiple gears depending on the situation. The first half of the league season saw the Blues score goals at will while playing an exciting and flowing brand of football. The second half of the season saw Chelsea grind out low margin wins over small and big clubs alike. This particular ability to play according to the situation is necessary in a championship winning side and even more crucial in Champions League games due to the 2 legged nature of the ties where balances tend to shift in the blink of an eye. Having finished the season on a high, Chelsea are still one of the big four to look forward to next season as Jose Mourniho's desire to win the Champions League with Chelsea lives on.

 

Two other teams that also require mentioning are PSG and Juventus. PSG showed promises of breaking through to the big league when they defeated Chelsea at the Bridge. Unfortunately, they were brought down to earth by Barcelona who were able to defeat the French champions in both legs in the quarter finals. PSG are still on course to win the French league title and are certain to reinforce during the summer. Juventus have slowly crept up to the ranks of the big teams. They have dominated the Italian league in recent times with minimal resistance from other Italian clubs such as Napoli and Roma. Inter Milan and AC Milan are mere shadows of their former glory. With the likes of Vidal and Pogba in the center of midfield, Juventus have one of the best midfields in the world. Adding to the midfield are experienced Italians Claudio Marchisio and the ever creative Andrea Pirlo. The attack isn't too bad as well with Carlos Tevez and Fernando Llorente forming a two man forward line. Juventus deploy a three man defense with Chiellini, Barzagli and Bonucci forming the trio. Also, let's not forget the evergreen Buffon in goal. In the first leg of the semis against Real at Turin, they managed a 2-1 victory. This has setup a mouth watering encounter at the Santiago Bernabeau with Real having to attack from the start. With Juventus' disciplined defense and midfield, it will be interesting to see if Real can overturn the deficit.

The strengthening of these clubs has had a consequential effect on less powerful clubs. For example, the extremely promising Borussia Dortmund have lost several of their players over the last few seasons such as Kagawa, Gotze and Lewandowski. Similarly, Atheltico Madrid have lost players such as Costa, Curtois, Luis, Aguero, Torres and Falcao. As the bigger clubs get better, the lower clubs get worse which is a situation that needs to be addressed by UEFA by strictly enforcing the financial fair play and the foreign players cap rules. This will help other teams to rise to the top levels making the European competitions more competitive and less of an exhibition. Even then, we get the rare surprises such as Dortmund and Athletico Madrid making the finals of the champions league. Both the teams are managed by two of the best managers in the modern era - Jurgen Klopp and Diego Simeone. However, its often seen that these teams find it difficult to maintain the same level season after season due to their rosters being raided by the bigger teams. Until that happens, we will have to depend on giant killing acts to ensure competition at the biggest stage in Europe. No such acts have occurred this season with Real, Juventus, Bayern and Barca making it to the semis at the expense of the other member of the big four - Chelsea.