Best leagues in Europe discussion

[hizpcstr]

If that's a serious question then you don't seem to understand the game that well

serious. I really dont have a favorite team, I wouldnt care where the players would come from. A read an article a while ago that wenger got some heat for fielding a team without any english players a few years ago.

[TheMoneyTeam]

serious. I really dont have a favorite team, I wouldnt care where the players would come from. A read an article a while ago that wenger got some heat for fielding a team without any english players a few years ago.

Unsurprising since English players are the most overrated athletes in sports.

[NYKalltheway]

serious. I really dont have a favorite team, I wouldnt care where the players would come from. A read an article a while ago that wenger got some heat for fielding a team without any english players a few years ago.

Well English football has sold out to the $$$ so I'm not surprised people who only watch that pathetic excuse of a league find it weird when people are disgusted when foreigners form most of the league.

Football culture reflects to a nation's culture. So you want to see as many domestic players as possible. And preferably local ones but that's asking too much nowadays.

And nobody is arguing against bringing the very best possible foreign players to a team/league. But bringing average players just because they are cheaper or just because they are foreigners instead of domestic ones gives bad rep to a team among its fans.


And since football is one of the first interests of young kids, specially those who grow up by kicking a ball (95% of boys at least in most European countries), having a local as a role model is more appreciated than a foreigner. And in many countries past players and legends are highly regarded. If your team's best players are foreign, you'll probably never see them speaking about your team again since they'll retire back home. People love role models and this new era is killing that.

[OrangeCrush]

^ Not only this, but local players born and raised in the city, or at least from elsewhere in the country but raised by the academy, WILL be more passionate and loyal than anyone else. They will also understand the club and the club's tradition more.

Look at Barcelona, most of their key players are domestic, or were 'raised' in their academy (this includes Messi). Therefore from a young age the players have understood what the club is about. It benefits them a lot, as well as the club.

[hizpcstr]

^ Not only this, but local players born and raised in the city, or at least from elsewhere in the country but raised by the academy, WILL be more passionate and loyal than anyone else. They will also understand the club and the club's tradition more.

Look at Barcelona, most of their key players are domestic, or were 'raised' in their academy (this includes Messi). Therefore from a young age the players have understood what the club is about. It benefits them a lot, as well as the club.

Messi is foreign tho . So if they are foreign, but they signed with the club and was raised with its youth academy (like messi) then its ok?

[OrangeCrush]

Well if you had read my post properly, you'd realise I indeed did say it was okay, because they will have been 'raised' with the club's tradition and mentality in ind, therefore the player will be better off and so will the club.

Messi was 13 when he signed for Barca...His most important development years were with the club. He's practically Catalan.

[Pete Dahh Sneak]

what?

Acting like a light touch is a gunshot, and rolling around on the ground screaming in pain.

[hizpcstr]

Acting like a light touch is a gunshot, and rolling around on the ground screaming in pain.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ukFUEI5qz8

[Hellcrooner]

Acting like a light touch is a gunshot, and rolling around on the ground screaming in pain.

you would roll too if you had some cowards only coming out of their own goal to award you with constant pushes, pulls, tackles and general violence because they dont have enough talent to play any better.

Enjoy Uefa cup btw.

[NYKalltheway]

ffs Premier league has the worst divers (after Barcelona and Real Madrid maybe). Serie A has virtually no diving outside a few players who do it all the time plus Juventus and Milan players who can get away with it. Every league has this issue but to say it's an Italian virtue is simply hillarious. Most dives I've seen in the last decade came from the EPL and many by English players who are supposedly tough.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GKXAKQY-0Y

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1b8okLf0lk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1jvUjuzKn8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvLykEcCNqs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWOKWFWvf_8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lP-_es_sbKI


But if you wanna see proper diving.... this is what we call the Greek reality:

All of the following have been awarded as penalties for Olympiakos.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtoRbMk8HZY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCMXx-CHDxI one of the latest disgraceful Greek derbies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AzAWweOAZU this is what we have to endure every year just so that European football can laugh at them while they get CL money


And last few derbies http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d98A0R6cswo

[Robbw241]

Im stunned that NYK would make this thread and have the EPL as his least favorite.



/sarcasm

[Pete Dahh Sneak]

I mean, I did say Serie A AND La Liga, and said diving AND rolling around. But keep posting stuff attacking the BPL, that's fine.

Crooner, why you still mad?

[The_Pharouh]

I would say It is Bundisliga right now ,I want to say Liga but I think right now Bundisliga is taking over ,teams are starting to develop better,what BVB has done in the last few years is helping the league drastically,Schalke too is gaining popularity
tough _right now_ to say Bayern is the only team with star players ,best fans and Stadium IMO and competitive ,financially with Spain and Italy financial struggles expect them to get more stars in the next few years and becomes a bigger market in the near future
I would rate Liga second ,great 2 teams ,but always changing forces after that,once Deportivo then the likes of Mallorca(Eto's),Celta de Vigo , Sevilla ,Sociedad,Betis ,Viallreal,Malaga etc ,all those teams played in CL in the last 10 years or so if I am not mistaken,and many of them played in second division too in recent memory btw,it shows you that this league is still wide open more than people think(yes Barca and real hasn't lost a league in the last 8 years) not to mention Valencia as consistent team ,with Atl.Madrid with always some star players who are fun to watch,also one thing I always like that this league always find a way to bring new good coaches ,there was time when Getafe coach was signed every year from a bigger team

third comes EPL ,ok I understand why people loves it and so many ppl thing it is the best ,but they have overrated it way too much ,many fans said it is the inevitable best since 2002 ,and didn't accept any debut about it,that makes me admittedly hates it a little bit ,so may be I am not fair here
they have some strong teams ,but not as strong as they make ,Man utd won it way so much in last 20 years ,lost it twice in row only once in those 20 years and never been out of top 3
currently they lost some of the glamour the had around 2007-2009 tbh,Chelsea and Liverpool took some step backs ,Arsenal hasn't fully developed into a good team with all youth movements etc,don't like the league that much out of top 6
4th for me is Serie A ,bad to remember what this league was in 1990's and early 2000's
then come french
not sure who is 6th ,never been able to withstand watching either Portuguese or Eredivisie

[NYKalltheway]

I mean, I did say Serie A AND La Liga, and said diving AND rolling around. But keep posting stuff attacking the BPL, that's fine.

Crooner, why you still mad?

what's the BPL? We only have the EPL and the SPL.

EPL should be called Money Premier League as with Italian or Spanish funds they'd be worst than the French league just like they were considered in the late 90s (they still said "the best league in the world" while overrating players like Eric Cantona, David Ginola and Torre Andre Flo )

You forgot Serie A and La Liga is filled with players who think they're on fire and are dying.

You implied that diving is only a Serie A and La Liga virtue. It's not true. It's more common in the EPL than the other leagues. It's also a more dangerous league due to terrible tackling being allowed (eg Shawcross still being considered a professional player). Guys like Shawcross put Materazzi and Chiellini to shame with their dirty play.

You're free to watch the stupid league where players run up and down and the midfield is mostly used for consecutive heading after goal kicks (feels like a ping pong competition after a while), no one is holding you. You're just missing out on the real sport, that's the problem you're having.

EPL has turned the sport into a joke. Of course I'm not blaming all the sole EPL followers for that as you've probably didn't have much experience playing the game growing up and it's been the easiest league to follow in the USA. I've been watching this game for 20+ years and been playing for as long and have seen football games from most leagues possible during this time. From "village" leagues in small countries to a lot of World Cups, EUROs, Copa Americas, African Cups of Nations and Champions League, Copa Libertadores, Cup Winners Cup, Intercontinental Cups...


I don't speak out of hatred or anything for the EPL. I'm just stating facts. It was far more enjoyable for me when I was watching EPL in the 90s with Liverpool having a McManaman-Fowler-Collymore-Barnes quartet, a younger Man Utd, Arsenal had the all-English five at the back with Seaman, Adams, Keown, Dixon and Winterburn while Chelsea, Newcastle, Tottenham and Leeds Utd had legit squads. Back then, funds were limited and not as great as the other leagues for the EPL so their teams made sensible transfers and bought players that could adapt to their style. This marriage of British football with 'Latin' is very painful to watch. Sure you have some great players in the EPL, but it's really not enjoyable. It surely is better than the initial attempt to send Latin players there with Veron, Crespo etc struggling despite being world beaters.


Hopefully this gives hizpcstr something to reflect on when he sees arguments on foreigners flooding a league. It changes its identity. And it's usually ugly when they don't have any chemistry.

German football has never really changed. It has generally been pro-German with a small taste of samba and tango and lots of central Europeans. Italian football was always heavily influenced by South Americans as was the Spanish. Italian football only suffered during the 70s foreigners ban while Spanish football has always been top class. England on the other hand systematically sucks, their players are very overrated and then they say that it's the best league in the world when 65% of the league's players are bloody foreigners!


Look at facts and then form your opinions. Nobody is saying that you shouldn't watch league A and you should watch league B, but when people who are clearly biased because they've never really watched anything other than one league say cliche EPL-fanboy things, you're gonna get large responses like this one.



Other facts.

FIFA World Player of the Year award per competition since inception in 1991

Spanish Liga 11 winners
Italian Serie A 10 winners
English Premier League 1 winner
French Ligue 1 1 winner
Dutch Eredivisie 1 winner


Balon d'Or (European player of the year)

Italian Serie A 14 winners
Spanish Liga 11 winners
German Bundesliga 6 winners (from 4 clubs)
English Premier League 6 winners (from 2 clubs)
Soviet Top League 3 winners
French Ligue 1 1 winner
Dutch Eredivisie 1 winner
Portuguese league 1 winner
Czechoslovakian league 1 winner
Hungarian league 1 winner

+ 2 winners of the new joint FIFA Balon d'Or for La Liga


Numbers speak for themselves.

[Pete Dahh Sneak]

I did not imply diving was only in Italy and Spain. I stated that rolling around and crying "in pain" exists mostly in Italy and Spain, and is rarely seen in England outside of a few South Americans.