Scholes- Real, Barca, Bayern would win EPL by 10 pts

[mmeny]

People just love to argue sha. Scholes is indirectly saying that the Premiership has been poor in the last two seasons and with the current failings of the EPL teams in the Champs league he does have a point.

Meanwhile during that time span Bayern and Real Madrid have won the champs league playing the best football in the process in that timespan. Also Bayern, Real and Barcelona arguably have the best squads in Europe in the last 2-3 years while the EPL has been lagging behind so ofcourse they could win the EPL by 10 pts, kini big deal.

It is not like he said they will always WIN the league by 10 points every single season. At this rate, Chelsea might even win the league this season with double points and they aren't that good of a side to start with evidence by their belabored wins in the second half of the season and getting knocked out of the Uefa Champs League.

[The real deal]

but anyone can come up with quotes abi

where were the quotes when Buy-earn were spanked 0-5 last year?

where were the quotes when same Buy-earn spanked UEFAlona 7-0 the year before?

Dude, you always expose yourself as an incorrigible EPL subject....Who beat barca 7-0? Bayern. Who beat Bayern 5-0? Real Madrid....See? Same 3 teams mentioned!!!
O gbele o!!!!

[Waffiman]

My bro, cic you don come again oh.

You are a football fans, of that there is no doubt, but you are not an EPL man and your bias against the EPL is manifest all over the Eagle's Nest.

Not arguing with Scholes on the basis of his experience playing both teams, you notice I did not even go there. There is no substitute for experience. Note, I have seen all these team and players in the flesh and I cannot doubt their quality against the EPL's. I will not argue that Barca, Real Madrid and Munich do not have better players than EPL clubs and the chances are on a given 90 minutes, they win more often than not, because it is a no brainer. However having the best players has never automatically equated to winning another league by 10 to 15 points. This is were Scholes who should know better is is dumb and stupid, and you know it.

My point is not about the quality of Barca or playing against Messi, Neymar and co, my point is different, it is about writing off a league prematurely and I have been clear in stating this issue. My point remains, it is much too early to talk of demise of a league, the demise of a league is a long process in which critical factors that makes a league the best are gradually eroded. For example, you and I have broken bread on when Seria A was the best league in the 80s. We have talked about so many factors that made the league the best, then, it attracted the best talent from all over the world, drawing vast crowds to their stadium every Sunday after church etc etc. But the Italian league did not stop being the best in one, or 3 seasons, it was a gradual process of decline over a long term period in which the league lost almost all the qualities that made it the best league. This is exactly my point on this issue. Talk about decline like Scholes is suggesting is just silly and premature and you know it.

Barca, Real and A. Madrid do not make a league, this is another mistake you make. I will not put A. Madrid in the same bracket, but let's not get carried away. Remove Barca and Real Madrid does the quality of football played by the other Spanish teams in La Liga and the Bundesliga in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players differ much from the EPL's other teams? Let's us look at the competitiveness of these teams and the league they play in, does the less competitive nature of their leagues help them when they play other teams from more competitive leagues? This is why I talk about simplicity in making comparisons. My simplicity is no dig at your apparent dislike for the EPL.

Disagree with A. Madrid, who are Borinho mark 2. Their negativity does not represent the type f football I aspire to. I am not arguing on football played by Barca, Real Madrid and Bayern. I am arguing about the fact that it is too premature to say the EPL is on the way down. Yes! EPL club have failed from the last 16 in the last 2 of 3 seasons but there are good reasons for this and it is not enough to even start suggesting the EPLis in decline. For a league to be in decline, you need to weight in a lot of factors like finances, attendance, TV coverage, integrity etc etc and how it has affected the quality of talent coming into the league?

Let me highlight this point, you know the govt has changed the VISA rules for players. The VISA rules that required players to play a certain % of international games before they can play in this league is no longer paramount. There is the salary ceiling, which effectively says if a players is offered/earns so and so, they get a VISA. Arsenal have actually given Gordon Taylor and the PFA a slap by signing Gabriel 6 months before the new rules take effect. With the new TV deal, expect EPL clubs to pay dollar recruiting top talent, this can only give the league the advantage in getting better.

My bro, I refer you to Serie A and its gradual decline, that for me is the example of how a league declines, the EPL has too much going fr it at present for it to even be considered as being in decline. I know it is not the first time it has been mooted, but it is ridiculous to even suggest it because the stats do not bear this out in any level.

You point to the last 3 seasons and the fact that EPL teams have nougat out of the last 16 twice as evidence of decline, I say you have a point, just like those who claim that the fact that EPL teams have not been in the last 3 finals is a decline. Consequently, the UEFA coefficient has dropped. Yes, these are all signs of the beginning of a decline maybe, but is it enough to conclude emphatically that the EPL is on the way down. I disagree, the EPL will address this so called decline before it becomes a rot. For me, there is no need to even talk of decline yet, it is much too premature.

Waffi, I am a football fan. They play football in the EPL. So I watch it regularly. I do not support any EPL team. And I think the technical quality of the league is low.

Scholes justified his opinion that Barca, Bayern and Real would finish 10-15 ahead of the rest in the EPl by saying they "simply have better players than the English teams in the Champions League". The 1st thing about winning games is having better players. The 2nd thing he talked about was the tactics of teams like City. He contrasted this against their tactics when they beat Barca in 2008.

I didn't put Atleti in the same bracket as Real and Barca. I said they play good football too. You don't have to believe me. Go and watch them against Chelsea over two legs last season. The quality of football in terms of technique and ability played by Almeria, Getafe and co is better than you would see with Hull, QPR, etc. Mark Lawrenson said if the 1st in Spain played 1st in England all the way to the last playing the last, the Spanish teams would come out tops. We all saw how Bilbao took Manure to school over two legs a few years ago.

The stuff about "competitiveness" is just a myth that benefits from endless repetition. Barca have not won at Sociedad for about 7 or 8 years. Malaga beat Barca away this season. Sociedad beat Real 4-2 this season, after going 2-0 down.

The biggest mistake you make with so many EPL fans is thinking money = quality. I don't know if you have seen the pics of Steven Fletcher with the Lambo and Bentley in his drive kicking up a storm on social media. He cost about 16m, earns 40k a week and is shite. That's the story of the EPL - top dollar is paid to very average players. The Atleti team that wiped the floor with Chelski at Stamford Bridge cost less half what Chelski paid for Torres.

Of course you are a football fan. But I insist, you are not an EPL fan.

As for the technical quality of the league, it has improved immensely, the days of teams players lacking technique are long gone. The top teams are loaded with player with tons of technique and teams like Swansea, Newcastle, etc have also shown you can succeed with such players. Yes, we do have teams with mediocre quality in terms of technique of their individual players and team play, but they are in a minority are opposed to a few years ago.

My bro, you also have to consider the league you play, in the EPL it is a physical, high tempo game, with little space to play. This calls for players with certain attributes as well as technique. It also means players with technique have little time, and when time and space is at a premium, you must have horned your technique as a player to make it the league. In the EPL, basic technique like controlling, shooting, passing dribbling the ball etc is tested under extreme conditions not witness in other leagues. This is compounded with physical intimidation. All of these sometimes makes players with good technique look bad. I argue that playing in the EPL requires technique and speed, unlike certain leagues where you have time and space, with protection by Refs from physical intimidation.

Until these players come and play under the conditions of the EPL, it is not correct to assume that they will be better. Indeed we are seeing many players from these countries come to this league, more often than not they fail. I am not saying this is a good thing, I want a league where gifted players can excel but we know, the EPL is more about levelling the playing field, consequently, players with technique must have other attributes they may not need in other leagues to succeed in the EPL. Yes! The lack of time and space has led to the league using certain type of players who are not blessed in basic technique but this is changing, and it is worth nothing how good you must be to make it is what is a very physical demanding league.

My bro, Bara and Real Madrid finishing 10 to 15 points clear is a matter of opinion, better players or not. We have seen many outstanding players fail in the EPL, it does not matter how good a player you are, there is no guarantee you can change leagues and make it like you did in the league from whence the player came. Fact is, until Barca and Real Madrid come to the EPL and do it, Scholes is just giving his opinion. I of course disagree.

As for there competitiveness of the EPL, it is no myth, the fixtures and results are there as evidence. I cannot see why we are even arguing on this issue. The evidence is there, just go have a look at the results between all teams in the leagues.

Money has never equated to quality. What counts is how you spend the money. You are spot on when you talk about money being sent on average players. However, do not forget the home players rule and how it impacts on the league. If the EPL had the same rules as Serie A and La Liga for player recruitment, I can assure you players like Fletcher will not be in the position they are in.

[Waffiman]

My bro, you seat firmly on the side of the fence that cannot stand English football, so you are definitely not a paragon of objectivity on this issue.

Barca winning the EPL by 10 points is based on the CL games in the last 16 of this year's CL. It's all a matter of opinion, they do not play in the EPL, so we will never know if they will not be relegated or finish top with 10 points in hand. What more can I say to that kind of beer parlour analysis? The fact is, an English team has contested the CL final 7 times in the last 10 years. How does this explain this gulf Scholes is talking about.

That English teams are not up there competing with Europe's top sides this year is not as simplistic as Scholes makes out.There are very good reason for and I am sure the top clubs in England will address this. In that same newspaper, a journalist offered well thought out reasons why English clubs are struggling in Europe, Scholes might learn a thing or two if he reads that article.

It is obvious to me Scholes is gloating at the problems of other clubs he does not like, maybe he should look at his beloved Manure and be reminded that those who live in glass houses should not throw stones.

My guy, I am a football fan. I watch English football. Being do so religiously since the 80s. My stance is not a simplistic "he cannot stand English football". My problem is with the claim that the EPL is the best in the world. It is not in my view. The Uefa coefficient also does not support that view.

Of course, Scholes is only offering his opinion. But there is beer parlour opinion and there is informed opinion. Scholes belongs to the latter. I wouldn't for e.g. argue with him about how to play against Barca. Scholes has every right to talk about "gulf" considering he has been on the receiving end of being outclassed in two finals by Barca.

You conveniently ignore the fact that no English team making the last 8 of the CL has happened twice in the last 3 years.

For me the simple fact is that the quality of football played by English teams in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players is no where at the level of the likes of Real, Barca and Bayern, and even Atleti. I don't need Scholes to tell me that. I don't know why people have to be "tribal" about this fact. It reminds me of Naijas insisting Mikel was more deserving of the African Footballer of the Year award than Yaya. Nobody that knows anything about football would claim Mikel belongs at Yaya's level. Just b/c I support the SE shouldn't blind me from reality.

My bro, cic you don come again oh.

You are a football fans, of that there is no doubt, but you are not an EPL man and your bias against the EPL is manifest all over the Eagle's Nest.

Not arguing with Scholes on the basis of his experience playing both teams, you notice I did not even go there. There is no substitute for experience. Note, I have seen all these team and players in the flesh and I cannot doubt their quality against the EPL's. I will not argue that Barca, Real Madrid and Munich do not have better players than EPL clubs and the chances are on a given 90 minutes, they win more often than not, because it is a no brainer. However having the best players has never automatically equated to winning another league by 10 to 15 points. This is were Scholes who should know better is is dumb and stupid, and you know it.

My point is not about the quality of Barca or playing against Messi, Neymar and co, my point is different, it is about writing off a league prematurely and I have been clear in stating this issue. My point remains, it is much too early to talk of demise of a league, the demise of a league is a long process in which critical factors that makes a league the best are gradually eroded. For example, you and I have broken bread on when Seria A was the best league in the 80s. We have talked about so many factors that made the league the best, then, it attracted the best talent from all over the world, drawing vast crowds to their stadium every Sunday after church etc etc. But the Italian league did not stop being the best in one, or 3 seasons, it was a gradual process of decline over a long term period in which the league lost almost all the qualities that made it the best league. This is exactly my point on this issue. Talk about decline like Scholes is suggesting is just silly and premature and you know it.

Barca, Real and A. Madrid do not make a league, this is another mistake you make. I will not put A. Madrid in the same bracket, but let's not get carried away. Remove Barca and Real Madrid does the quality of football played by the other Spanish teams in La Liga and the Bundesliga in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players differ much from the EPL's other teams? Let's us look at the competitiveness of these teams and the league they play in, does the less competitive nature of their leagues help them when they play other teams from more competitive leagues? This is why I talk about simplicity in making comparisons. My simplicity is no dig at your apparent dislike for the EPL.

Disagree with A. Madrid, who are Borinho mark 2. Their negativity does not represent the type f football I aspire to. I am not arguing on football played by Barca, Real Madrid and Bayern. I am arguing about the fact that it is too premature to say the EPL is on the way down. Yes! EPL club have failed from the last 16 in the last 2 of 3 seasons but there are good reasons for this and it is not enough to even start suggesting the EPLis in decline. For a league to be in decline, you need to weight in a lot of factors like finances, attendance, TV coverage, integrity etc etc and how it has affected the quality of talent coming into the league?

Let me highlight this point, you know the govt has changed the VISA rules for players. The VISA rules that required players to play a certain % of international games before they can play in this league is no longer paramount. There is the salary ceiling, which effectively says if a players is offered/earns so and so, they get a VISA. Arsenal have actually given Gordon Taylor and the PFA a slap by signing Gabriel 6 months before the new rules take effect. With the new TV deal, expect EPL clubs to pay dollar recruiting top talent, this can only give the league the advantage in getting better.

My bro, I refer you to Serie A and its gradual decline, that for me is the example of how a league declines, the EPL has too much going fr it at present for it to even be considered as being in decline. I know it is not the first time it has been mooted, but it is ridiculous to even suggest it because the stats do not bear this out in any level.

You point to the last 3 seasons and the fact that EPL teams have nougat out of the last 16 twice as evidence of decline, I say you have a point, just like those who claim that the fact that EPL teams have not been in the last 3 finals is a decline. Consequently, the UEFA coefficient has dropped. Yes, these are all signs of the beginning of a decline maybe, but is it enough to conclude emphatically that the EPL is on the way down. I disagree, the EPL will address this so called decline before it becomes a rot. For me, there is no need to even talk of decline yet, it is much too premature.

But nobody is saying that the EPL won't recover. Obviously the potential in money, interest in the league etc. is still there, but on the pitch the league has declined. How long the slump will last is different question, but there is no point in denying it exists.

the highlighted part: This is a myth. Why would not the Spanish league not be as competitive as different leagues? I would say that the Spanish league is probably more competitive than the English or German league.

Show me the stats that prove the Spanish league is probably more competitive than the English or German league.

[YUJAM]

This is one contorted explanation and your language and flow show you are struggling to provide a coherent explanation of why English teams are doing so badly in Europe.

The bottom-line is English for the most part teams have never been known for their skill. If you want skill and technique you go to Spain, Italy, Germany or even France but not England. It is simply not their style of football or their focus. So let's not try to manufacture a story of how much skill there is in the EPL or even more outrageous stories of how skills that the EPL players never have time to use are somehow tested under extreme conditions.

My bro, cic you don come again oh.

You are a football fans, of that there is no doubt, but you are not an EPL man and your bias against the EPL is manifest all over the Eagle's Nest.

Not arguing with Scholes on the basis of his experience playing both teams, you notice I did not even go there. There is no substitute for experience. Note, I have seen all these team and players in the flesh and I cannot doubt their quality against the EPL's. I will not argue that Barca, Real Madrid and Munich do not have better players than EPL clubs and the chances are on a given 90 minutes, they win more often than not, because it is a no brainer. However having the best players has never automatically equated to winning another league by 10 to 15 points. This is were Scholes who should know better is is dumb and stupid, and you know it.

My point is not about the quality of Barca or playing against Messi, Neymar and co, my point is different, it is about writing off a league prematurely and I have been clear in stating this issue. My point remains, it is much too early to talk of demise of a league, the demise of a league is a long process in which critical factors that makes a league the best are gradually eroded. For example, you and I have broken bread on when Seria A was the best league in the 80s. We have talked about so many factors that made the league the best, then, it attracted the best talent from all over the world, drawing vast crowds to their stadium every Sunday after church etc etc. But the Italian league did not stop being the best in one, or 3 seasons, it was a gradual process of decline over a long term period in which the league lost almost all the qualities that made it the best league. This is exactly my point on this issue. Talk about decline like Scholes is suggesting is just silly and premature and you know it.

Barca, Real and A. Madrid do not make a league, this is another mistake you make. I will not put A. Madrid in the same bracket, but let's not get carried away. Remove Barca and Real Madrid does the quality of football played by the other Spanish teams in La Liga and the Bundesliga in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players differ much from the EPL's other teams? Let's us look at the competitiveness of these teams and the league they play in, does the less competitive nature of their leagues help them when they play other teams from more competitive leagues? This is why I talk about simplicity in making comparisons. My simplicity is no dig at your apparent dislike for the EPL.

Disagree with A. Madrid, who are Borinho mark 2. Their negativity does not represent the type f football I aspire to. I am not arguing on football played by Barca, Real Madrid and Bayern. I am arguing about the fact that it is too premature to say the EPL is on the way down. Yes! EPL club have failed from the last 16 in the last 2 of 3 seasons but there are good reasons for this and it is not enough to even start suggesting the EPLis in decline. For a league to be in decline, you need to weight in a lot of factors like finances, attendance, TV coverage, integrity etc etc and how it has affected the quality of talent coming into the league?

Let me highlight this point, you know the govt has changed the VISA rules for players. The VISA rules that required players to play a certain % of international games before they can play in this league is no longer paramount. There is the salary ceiling, which effectively says if a players is offered/earns so and so, they get a VISA. Arsenal have actually given Gordon Taylor and the PFA a slap by signing Gabriel 6 months before the new rules take effect. With the new TV deal, expect EPL clubs to pay dollar recruiting top talent, this can only give the league the advantage in getting better.

My bro, I refer you to Serie A and its gradual decline, that for me is the example of how a league declines, the EPL has too much going fr it at present for it to even be considered as being in decline. I know it is not the first time it has been mooted, but it is ridiculous to even suggest it because the stats do not bear this out in any level.

You point to the last 3 seasons and the fact that EPL teams have nougat out of the last 16 twice as evidence of decline, I say you have a point, just like those who claim that the fact that EPL teams have not been in the last 3 finals is a decline. Consequently, the UEFA coefficient has dropped. Yes, these are all signs of the beginning of a decline maybe, but is it enough to conclude emphatically that the EPL is on the way down. I disagree, the EPL will address this so called decline before it becomes a rot. For me, there is no need to even talk of decline yet, it is much too premature.

Waffi, I am a football fan. They play football in the EPL. So I watch it regularly. I do not support any EPL team. And I think the technical quality of the league is low.

Scholes justified his opinion that Barca, Bayern and Real would finish 10-15 ahead of the rest in the EPl by saying they "simply have better players than the English teams in the Champions League". The 1st thing about winning games is having better players. The 2nd thing he talked about was the tactics of teams like City. He contrasted this against their tactics when they beat Barca in 2008.

I didn't put Atleti in the same bracket as Real and Barca. I said they play good football too. You don't have to believe me. Go and watch them against Chelsea over two legs last season. The quality of football in terms of technique and ability played by Almeria, Getafe and co is better than you would see with Hull, QPR, etc. Mark Lawrenson said if the 1st in Spain played 1st in England all the way to the last playing the last, the Spanish teams would come out tops. We all saw how Bilbao took Manure to school over two legs a few years ago.

The stuff about "competitiveness" is just a myth that benefits from endless repetition. Barca have not won at Sociedad for about 7 or 8 years. Malaga beat Barca away this season. Sociedad beat Real 4-2 this season, after going 2-0 down.

The biggest mistake you make with so many EPL fans is thinking money = quality. I don't know if you have seen the pics of Steven Fletcher with the Lambo and Bentley in his drive kicking up a storm on social media. He cost about 16m, earns 40k a week and is shite. That's the story of the EPL - top dollar is paid to very average players. The Atleti team that wiped the floor with Chelski at Stamford Bridge cost less half what Chelski paid for Torres.

Of course you are a football fan. But I insist, you are not an EPL fan.

As for the technical quality of the league, it has improved immensely, the days of teams players lacking technique are long gone. The top teams are loaded with player with tons of technique and teams like Swansea, Newcastle, etc have also shown you can succeed with such players. Yes, we do have teams with mediocre quality in terms of technique of their individual players and team play, but they are in a minority are opposed to a few years ago.

My bro, you also have to consider the league you play, in the EPL it is a physical, high tempo game, with little space to play. This calls for players with certain attributes as well as technique. It also means players with technique have little time, and when time and space is at a premium, you must have horned your technique as a player to make it the league. In the EPL, basic technique like controlling, shooting, passing dribbling the ball etc is tested under extreme conditions not witness in other leagues. This is compounded with physical intimidation. All of these sometimes makes players with good technique look bad. I argue that playing in the EPL requires technique and speed, unlike certain leagues where you have time and space, with protection by Refs from physical intimidation.

Until these players come and play under the conditions of the EPL, it is not correct to assume that they will be better. Indeed we are seeing many players from these countries come to this league, more often than not they fail. I am not saying this is a good thing, I want a league where gifted players can excel but we know, the EPL is more about levelling the playing field, consequently, players with technique must have other attributes they may not need in other leagues to succeed in the EPL. Yes! The lack of time and space has led to the league using certain type of players who are not blessed in basic technique but this is changing, and it is worth nothing how good you must be to make it is what is a very physical demanding league.

My bro, Bara and Real Madrid finishing 10 to 15 points clear is a matter of opinion, better players or not. We have seen many outstanding players fail in the EPL, it does not matter how good a player you are, there is no guarantee you can change leagues and make it like you did in the league from whence the player came. Fact is, until Barca and Real Madrid come to the EPL and do it, Scholes is just giving his opinion. I of course disagree.

As for there competitiveness of the EPL, it is no myth, the fixtures and results are there as evidence. I cannot see why we are even arguing on this issue. The evidence is there, just go have a look at the results between all teams in the leagues.

Money has never equated to quality. What counts is how you spend the money. You are spot on when you talk about money being sent on average players. However, do not forget the home players rule and how it impacts on the league. If the EPL had the same rules as Serie A and La Liga for player recruitment, I can assure you players like Fletcher will not be in the position they are in.

[kofi86]

My bro, you seat firmly on the side of the fence that cannot stand English football, so you are definitely not a paragon of objectivity on this issue.

Barca winning the EPL by 10 points is based on the CL games in the last 16 of this year's CL. It's all a matter of opinion, they do not play in the EPL, so we will never know if they will not be relegated or finish top with 10 points in hand. What more can I say to that kind of beer parlour analysis? The fact is, an English team has contested the CL final 7 times in the last 10 years. How does this explain this gulf Scholes is talking about.

That English teams are not up there competing with Europe's top sides this year is not as simplistic as Scholes makes out.There are very good reason for and I am sure the top clubs in England will address this. In that same newspaper, a journalist offered well thought out reasons why English clubs are struggling in Europe, Scholes might learn a thing or two if he reads that article.

It is obvious to me Scholes is gloating at the problems of other clubs he does not like, maybe he should look at his beloved Manure and be reminded that those who live in glass houses should not throw stones.

My guy, I am a football fan. I watch English football. Being do so religiously since the 80s. My stance is not a simplistic "he cannot stand English football". My problem is with the claim that the EPL is the best in the world. It is not in my view. The Uefa coefficient also does not support that view.

Of course, Scholes is only offering his opinion. But there is beer parlour opinion and there is informed opinion. Scholes belongs to the latter. I wouldn't for e.g. argue with him about how to play against Barca. Scholes has every right to talk about "gulf" considering he has been on the receiving end of being outclassed in two finals by Barca.

You conveniently ignore the fact that no English team making the last 8 of the CL has happened twice in the last 3 years.

For me the simple fact is that the quality of football played by English teams in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players is no where at the level of the likes of Real, Barca and Bayern, and even Atleti. I don't need Scholes to tell me that. I don't know why people have to be "tribal" about this fact. It reminds me of Naijas insisting Mikel was more deserving of the African Footballer of the Year award than Yaya. Nobody that knows anything about football would claim Mikel belongs at Yaya's level. Just b/c I support the SE shouldn't blind me from reality.

My bro, cic you don come again oh.

You are a football fans, of that there is no doubt, but you are not an EPL man and your bias against the EPL is manifest all over the Eagle's Nest.

Not arguing with Scholes on the basis of his experience playing both teams, you notice I did not even go there. There is no substitute for experience. Note, I have seen all these team and players in the flesh and I cannot doubt their quality against the EPL's. I will not argue that Barca, Real Madrid and Munich do not have better players than EPL clubs and the chances are on a given 90 minutes, they win more often than not, because it is a no brainer. However having the best players has never automatically equated to winning another league by 10 to 15 points. This is were Scholes who should know better is is dumb and stupid, and you know it.

My point is not about the quality of Barca or playing against Messi, Neymar and co, my point is different, it is about writing off a league prematurely and I have been clear in stating this issue. My point remains, it is much too early to talk of demise of a league, the demise of a league is a long process in which critical factors that makes a league the best are gradually eroded. For example, you and I have broken bread on when Seria A was the best league in the 80s. We have talked about so many factors that made the league the best, then, it attracted the best talent from all over the world, drawing vast crowds to their stadium every Sunday after church etc etc. But the Italian league did not stop being the best in one, or 3 seasons, it was a gradual process of decline over a long term period in which the league lost almost all the qualities that made it the best league. This is exactly my point on this issue. Talk about decline like Scholes is suggesting is just silly and premature and you know it.

Barca, Real and A. Madrid do not make a league, this is another mistake you make. I will not put A. Madrid in the same bracket, but let's not get carried away. Remove Barca and Real Madrid does the quality of football played by the other Spanish teams in La Liga and the Bundesliga in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players differ much from the EPL's other teams? Let's us look at the competitiveness of these teams and the league they play in, does the less competitive nature of their leagues help them when they play other teams from more competitive leagues? This is why I talk about simplicity in making comparisons. My simplicity is no dig at your apparent dislike for the EPL.

Disagree with A. Madrid, who are Borinho mark 2. Their negativity does not represent the type f football I aspire to. I am not arguing on football played by Barca, Real Madrid and Bayern. I am arguing about the fact that it is too premature to say the EPL is on the way down. Yes! EPL club have failed from the last 16 in the last 2 of 3 seasons but there are good reasons for this and it is not enough to even start suggesting the EPLis in decline. For a league to be in decline, you need to weight in a lot of factors like finances, attendance, TV coverage, integrity etc etc and how it has affected the quality of talent coming into the league?

Let me highlight this point, you know the govt has changed the VISA rules for players. The VISA rules that required players to play a certain % of international games before they can play in this league is no longer paramount. There is the salary ceiling, which effectively says if a players is offered/earns so and so, they get a VISA. Arsenal have actually given Gordon Taylor and the PFA a slap by signing Gabriel 6 months before the new rules take effect. With the new TV deal, expect EPL clubs to pay dollar recruiting top talent, this can only give the league the advantage in getting better.

My bro, I refer you to Serie A and its gradual decline, that for me is the example of how a league declines, the EPL has too much going fr it at present for it to even be considered as being in decline. I know it is not the first time it has been mooted, but it is ridiculous to even suggest it because the stats do not bear this out in any level.

You point to the last 3 seasons and the fact that EPL teams have nougat out of the last 16 twice as evidence of decline, I say you have a point, just like those who claim that the fact that EPL teams have not been in the last 3 finals is a decline. Consequently, the UEFA coefficient has dropped. Yes, these are all signs of the beginning of a decline maybe, but is it enough to conclude emphatically that the EPL is on the way down. I disagree, the EPL will address this so called decline before it becomes a rot. For me, there is no need to even talk of decline yet, it is much too premature.

But nobody is saying that the EPL won't recover. Obviously the potential in money, interest in the league etc. is still there, but on the pitch the league has declined. How long the slump will last is different question, but there is no point in denying it exists.

the highlighted part: This is a myth. Why would not the Spanish league not be as competitive as different leagues? I would say that the Spanish league is probably more competitive than the English or German league.

Show me the stats that prove the Spanish league is probably more competitive than the English or German league.

I don't have any definite stats that the Leauge is more competitive, but I think it is more competitive because of the fluctuation of teams at the top. In Germany or England we have the same teams in qualifying for the same competition (CL, EL) over and over again (for example between 2009/2010 and the following 7 teams have always finished among the top8: United, City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham & Everton) while the teams at the top in Spain (apart from Barca and Real obviously) fluctuate [Mallorca, Villarreal and Betis have qualified for the Europa League and have been relegated since then].

Also Spanish surprise teams often make deep runs in European competitions.

[Waffiman]

We all know where you stand, so there's no point you getting involved in any attempt to have a rational debate.

This is one contorted explanation and your language and flow show you are struggling to provide a coherent explanation of why English teams are doing so badly in Europe.

The bottom-line is English for the most part teams have never been known for their skill. If you want skill and technique you go to Spain, Italy, Germany or even France but not England. It is simply not their style of football or their focus. So let's not try to manufacture a story of how much skill there is in the EPL or even more outrageous stories of how skills that the EPL players never have time to use are somehow tested under extreme conditions.

My bro, cic you don come again oh.

You are a football fans, of that there is no doubt, but you are not an EPL man and your bias against the EPL is manifest all over the Eagle's Nest.

Not arguing with Scholes on the basis of his experience playing both teams, you notice I did not even go there. There is no substitute for experience. Note, I have seen all these team and players in the flesh and I cannot doubt their quality against the EPL's. I will not argue that Barca, Real Madrid and Munich do not have better players than EPL clubs and the chances are on a given 90 minutes, they win more often than not, because it is a no brainer. However having the best players has never automatically equated to winning another league by 10 to 15 points. This is were Scholes who should know better is is dumb and stupid, and you know it.

My point is not about the quality of Barca or playing against Messi, Neymar and co, my point is different, it is about writing off a league prematurely and I have been clear in stating this issue. My point remains, it is much too early to talk of demise of a league, the demise of a league is a long process in which critical factors that makes a league the best are gradually eroded. For example, you and I have broken bread on when Seria A was the best league in the 80s. We have talked about so many factors that made the league the best, then, it attracted the best talent from all over the world, drawing vast crowds to their stadium every Sunday after church etc etc. But the Italian league did not stop being the best in one, or 3 seasons, it was a gradual process of decline over a long term period in which the league lost almost all the qualities that made it the best league. This is exactly my point on this issue. Talk about decline like Scholes is suggesting is just silly and premature and you know it.

Barca, Real and A. Madrid do not make a league, this is another mistake you make. I will not put A. Madrid in the same bracket, but let's not get carried away. Remove Barca and Real Madrid does the quality of football played by the other Spanish teams in La Liga and the Bundesliga in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players differ much from the EPL's other teams? Let's us look at the competitiveness of these teams and the league they play in, does the less competitive nature of their leagues help them when they play other teams from more competitive leagues? This is why I talk about simplicity in making comparisons. My simplicity is no dig at your apparent dislike for the EPL.

Disagree with A. Madrid, who are Borinho mark 2. Their negativity does not represent the type f football I aspire to. I am not arguing on football played by Barca, Real Madrid and Bayern. I am arguing about the fact that it is too premature to say the EPL is on the way down. Yes! EPL club have failed from the last 16 in the last 2 of 3 seasons but there are good reasons for this and it is not enough to even start suggesting the EPLis in decline. For a league to be in decline, you need to weight in a lot of factors like finances, attendance, TV coverage, integrity etc etc and how it has affected the quality of talent coming into the league?

Let me highlight this point, you know the govt has changed the VISA rules for players. The VISA rules that required players to play a certain % of international games before they can play in this league is no longer paramount. There is the salary ceiling, which effectively says if a players is offered/earns so and so, they get a VISA. Arsenal have actually given Gordon Taylor and the PFA a slap by signing Gabriel 6 months before the new rules take effect. With the new TV deal, expect EPL clubs to pay dollar recruiting top talent, this can only give the league the advantage in getting better.

My bro, I refer you to Serie A and its gradual decline, that for me is the example of how a league declines, the EPL has too much going fr it at present for it to even be considered as being in decline. I know it is not the first time it has been mooted, but it is ridiculous to even suggest it because the stats do not bear this out in any level.

You point to the last 3 seasons and the fact that EPL teams have nougat out of the last 16 twice as evidence of decline, I say you have a point, just like those who claim that the fact that EPL teams have not been in the last 3 finals is a decline. Consequently, the UEFA coefficient has dropped. Yes, these are all signs of the beginning of a decline maybe, but is it enough to conclude emphatically that the EPL is on the way down. I disagree, the EPL will address this so called decline before it becomes a rot. For me, there is no need to even talk of decline yet, it is much too premature.

Waffi, I am a football fan. They play football in the EPL. So I watch it regularly. I do not support any EPL team. And I think the technical quality of the league is low.

Scholes justified his opinion that Barca, Bayern and Real would finish 10-15 ahead of the rest in the EPl by saying they "simply have better players than the English teams in the Champions League". The 1st thing about winning games is having better players. The 2nd thing he talked about was the tactics of teams like City. He contrasted this against their tactics when they beat Barca in 2008.

I didn't put Atleti in the same bracket as Real and Barca. I said they play good football too. You don't have to believe me. Go and watch them against Chelsea over two legs last season. The quality of football in terms of technique and ability played by Almeria, Getafe and co is better than you would see with Hull, QPR, etc. Mark Lawrenson said if the 1st in Spain played 1st in England all the way to the last playing the last, the Spanish teams would come out tops. We all saw how Bilbao took Manure to school over two legs a few years ago.

The stuff about "competitiveness" is just a myth that benefits from endless repetition. Barca have not won at Sociedad for about 7 or 8 years. Malaga beat Barca away this season. Sociedad beat Real 4-2 this season, after going 2-0 down.

The biggest mistake you make with so many EPL fans is thinking money = quality. I don't know if you have seen the pics of Steven Fletcher with the Lambo and Bentley in his drive kicking up a storm on social media. He cost about 16m, earns 40k a week and is shite. That's the story of the EPL - top dollar is paid to very average players. The Atleti team that wiped the floor with Chelski at Stamford Bridge cost less half what Chelski paid for Torres.

Of course you are a football fan. But I insist, you are not an EPL fan.

As for the technical quality of the league, it has improved immensely, the days of teams players lacking technique are long gone. The top teams are loaded with player with tons of technique and teams like Swansea, Newcastle, etc have also shown you can succeed with such players. Yes, we do have teams with mediocre quality in terms of technique of their individual players and team play, but they are in a minority are opposed to a few years ago.

My bro, you also have to consider the league you play, in the EPL it is a physical, high tempo game, with little space to play. This calls for players with certain attributes as well as technique. It also means players with technique have little time, and when time and space is at a premium, you must have horned your technique as a player to make it the league. In the EPL, basic technique like controlling, shooting, passing dribbling the ball etc is tested under extreme conditions not witness in other leagues. This is compounded with physical intimidation. All of these sometimes makes players with good technique look bad. I argue that playing in the EPL requires technique and speed, unlike certain leagues where you have time and space, with protection by Refs from physical intimidation.

Until these players come and play under the conditions of the EPL, it is not correct to assume that they will be better. Indeed we are seeing many players from these countries come to this league, more often than not they fail. I am not saying this is a good thing, I want a league where gifted players can excel but we know, the EPL is more about levelling the playing field, consequently, players with technique must have other attributes they may not need in other leagues to succeed in the EPL. Yes! The lack of time and space has led to the league using certain type of players who are not blessed in basic technique but this is changing, and it is worth nothing how good you must be to make it is what is a very physical demanding league.

My bro, Bara and Real Madrid finishing 10 to 15 points clear is a matter of opinion, better players or not. We have seen many outstanding players fail in the EPL, it does not matter how good a player you are, there is no guarantee you can change leagues and make it like you did in the league from whence the player came. Fact is, until Barca and Real Madrid come to the EPL and do it, Scholes is just giving his opinion. I of course disagree.

As for there competitiveness of the EPL, it is no myth, the fixtures and results are there as evidence. I cannot see why we are even arguing on this issue. The evidence is there, just go have a look at the results between all teams in the leagues.

Money has never equated to quality. What counts is how you spend the money. You are spot on when you talk about money being sent on average players. However, do not forget the home players rule and how it impacts on the league. If the EPL had the same rules as Serie A and La Liga for player recruitment, I can assure you players like Fletcher will not be in the position they are in.

[kalani JR]

We all know where you stand, so there's no point you getting involved in any attempt to have a rational debate.

This is one contorted explanation and your language and flow show you are struggling to provide a coherent explanation of why English teams are doing so badly in Europe.

The bottom-line is English for the most part teams have never been known for their skill. If you want skill and technique you go to Spain, Italy, Germany or even France but not England. It is simply not their style of football or their focus. So let's not try to manufacture a story of how much skill there is in the EPL or even more outrageous stories of how skills that the EPL players never have time to use are somehow tested under extreme conditions.

My bro, cic you don come again oh.

You are a football fans, of that there is no doubt, but you are not an EPL man and your bias against the EPL is manifest all over the Eagle's Nest.

Not arguing with Scholes on the basis of his experience playing both teams, you notice I did not even go there. There is no substitute for experience. Note, I have seen all these team and players in the flesh and I cannot doubt their quality against the EPL's. I will not argue that Barca, Real Madrid and Munich do not have better players than EPL clubs and the chances are on a given 90 minutes, they win more often than not, because it is a no brainer. However having the best players has never automatically equated to winning another league by 10 to 15 points. This is were Scholes who should know better is is dumb and stupid, and you know it.

My point is not about the quality of Barca or playing against Messi, Neymar and co, my point is different, it is about writing off a league prematurely and I have been clear in stating this issue. My point remains, it is much too early to talk of demise of a league, the demise of a league is a long process in which critical factors that makes a league the best are gradually eroded. For example, you and I have broken bread on when Seria A was the best league in the 80s. We have talked about so many factors that made the league the best, then, it attracted the best talent from all over the world, drawing vast crowds to their stadium every Sunday after church etc etc. But the Italian league did not stop being the best in one, or 3 seasons, it was a gradual process of decline over a long term period in which the league lost almost all the qualities that made it the best league. This is exactly my point on this issue. Talk about decline like Scholes is suggesting is just silly and premature and you know it.

Barca, Real and A. Madrid do not make a league, this is another mistake you make. I will not put A. Madrid in the same bracket, but let's not get carried away. Remove Barca and Real Madrid does the quality of football played by the other Spanish teams in La Liga and the Bundesliga in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players differ much from the EPL's other teams? Let's us look at the competitiveness of these teams and the league they play in, does the less competitive nature of their leagues help them when they play other teams from more competitive leagues? This is why I talk about simplicity in making comparisons. My simplicity is no dig at your apparent dislike for the EPL.

Disagree with A. Madrid, who are Borinho mark 2. Their negativity does not represent the type f football I aspire to. I am not arguing on football played by Barca, Real Madrid and Bayern. I am arguing about the fact that it is too premature to say the EPL is on the way down. Yes! EPL club have failed from the last 16 in the last 2 of 3 seasons but there are good reasons for this and it is not enough to even start suggesting the EPLis in decline. For a league to be in decline, you need to weight in a lot of factors like finances, attendance, TV coverage, integrity etc etc and how it has affected the quality of talent coming into the league?

Let me highlight this point, you know the govt has changed the VISA rules for players. The VISA rules that required players to play a certain % of international games before they can play in this league is no longer paramount. There is the salary ceiling, which effectively says if a players is offered/earns so and so, they get a VISA. Arsenal have actually given Gordon Taylor and the PFA a slap by signing Gabriel 6 months before the new rules take effect. With the new TV deal, expect EPL clubs to pay dollar recruiting top talent, this can only give the league the advantage in getting better.

My bro, I refer you to Serie A and its gradual decline, that for me is the example of how a league declines, the EPL has too much going fr it at present for it to even be considered as being in decline. I know it is not the first time it has been mooted, but it is ridiculous to even suggest it because the stats do not bear this out in any level.

You point to the last 3 seasons and the fact that EPL teams have nougat out of the last 16 twice as evidence of decline, I say you have a point, just like those who claim that the fact that EPL teams have not been in the last 3 finals is a decline. Consequently, the UEFA coefficient has dropped. Yes, these are all signs of the beginning of a decline maybe, but is it enough to conclude emphatically that the EPL is on the way down. I disagree, the EPL will address this so called decline before it becomes a rot. For me, there is no need to even talk of decline yet, it is much too premature.

Waffi, I am a football fan. They play football in the EPL. So I watch it regularly. I do not support any EPL team. And I think the technical quality of the league is low.

Scholes justified his opinion that Barca, Bayern and Real would finish 10-15 ahead of the rest in the EPl by saying they "simply have better players than the English teams in the Champions League". The 1st thing about winning games is having better players. The 2nd thing he talked about was the tactics of teams like City. He contrasted this against their tactics when they beat Barca in 2008.

I didn't put Atleti in the same bracket as Real and Barca. I said they play good football too. You don't have to believe me. Go and watch them against Chelsea over two legs last season. The quality of football in terms of technique and ability played by Almeria, Getafe and co is better than you would see with Hull, QPR, etc. Mark Lawrenson said if the 1st in Spain played 1st in England all the way to the last playing the last, the Spanish teams would come out tops. We all saw how Bilbao took Manure to school over two legs a few years ago.

The stuff about "competitiveness" is just a myth that benefits from endless repetition. Barca have not won at Sociedad for about 7 or 8 years. Malaga beat Barca away this season. Sociedad beat Real 4-2 this season, after going 2-0 down.

The biggest mistake you make with so many EPL fans is thinking money = quality. I don't know if you have seen the pics of Steven Fletcher with the Lambo and Bentley in his drive kicking up a storm on social media. He cost about 16m, earns 40k a week and is shite. That's the story of the EPL - top dollar is paid to very average players. The Atleti team that wiped the floor with Chelski at Stamford Bridge cost less half what Chelski paid for Torres.

Of course you are a football fan. But I insist, you are not an EPL fan.

As for the technical quality of the league, it has improved immensely, the days of teams players lacking technique are long gone. The top teams are loaded with player with tons of technique and teams like Swansea, Newcastle, etc have also shown you can succeed with such players. Yes, we do have teams with mediocre quality in terms of technique of their individual players and team play, but they are in a minority are opposed to a few years ago.

My bro, you also have to consider the league you play, in the EPL it is a physical, high tempo game, with little space to play. This calls for players with certain attributes as well as technique. It also means players with technique have little time, and when time and space is at a premium, you must have horned your technique as a player to make it the league. In the EPL, basic technique like controlling, shooting, passing dribbling the ball etc is tested under extreme conditions not witness in other leagues. This is compounded with physical intimidation. All of these sometimes makes players with good technique look bad. I argue that playing in the EPL requires technique and speed, unlike certain leagues where you have time and space, with protection by Refs from physical intimidation.

Until these players come and play under the conditions of the EPL, it is not correct to assume that they will be better. Indeed we are seeing many players from these countries come to this league, more often than not they fail. I am not saying this is a good thing, I want a league where gifted players can excel but we know, the EPL is more about levelling the playing field, consequently, players with technique must have other attributes they may not need in other leagues to succeed in the EPL. Yes! The lack of time and space has led to the league using certain type of players who are not blessed in basic technique but this is changing, and it is worth nothing how good you must be to make it is what is a very physical demanding league.

My bro, Bara and Real Madrid finishing 10 to 15 points clear is a matter of opinion, better players or not. We have seen many outstanding players fail in the EPL, it does not matter how good a player you are, there is no guarantee you can change leagues and make it like you did in the league from whence the player came. Fact is, until Barca and Real Madrid come to the EPL and do it, Scholes is just giving his opinion. I of course disagree.

As for there competitiveness of the EPL, it is no myth, the fixtures and results are there as evidence. I cannot see why we are even arguing on this issue. The evidence is there, just go have a look at the results between all teams in the leagues.

Money has never equated to quality. What counts is how you spend the money. You are spot on when you talk about money being sent on average players. However, do not forget the home players rule and how it impacts on the league. If the EPL had the same rules as Serie A and La Liga for player recruitment, I can assure you players like Fletcher will not be in the position they are in.

You see this argument could be made for everyone in this thread, matter of fact it should be.

[Waffiman]

My bro, you seat firmly on the side of the fence that cannot stand English football, so you are definitely not a paragon of objectivity on this issue.

Barca winning the EPL by 10 points is based on the CL games in the last 16 of this year's CL. It's all a matter of opinion, they do not play in the EPL, so we will never know if they will not be relegated or finish top with 10 points in hand. What more can I say to that kind of beer parlour analysis? The fact is, an English team has contested the CL final 7 times in the last 10 years. How does this explain this gulf Scholes is talking about.

That English teams are not up there competing with Europe's top sides this year is not as simplistic as Scholes makes out.There are very good reason for and I am sure the top clubs in England will address this. In that same newspaper, a journalist offered well thought out reasons why English clubs are struggling in Europe, Scholes might learn a thing or two if he reads that article.

It is obvious to me Scholes is gloating at the problems of other clubs he does not like, maybe he should look at his beloved Manure and be reminded that those who live in glass houses should not throw stones.

My guy, I am a football fan. I watch English football. Being do so religiously since the 80s. My stance is not a simplistic "he cannot stand English football". My problem is with the claim that the EPL is the best in the world. It is not in my view. The Uefa coefficient also does not support that view.

Of course, Scholes is only offering his opinion. But there is beer parlour opinion and there is informed opinion. Scholes belongs to the latter. I wouldn't for e.g. argue with him about how to play against Barca. Scholes has every right to talk about "gulf" considering he has been on the receiving end of being outclassed in two finals by Barca.

You conveniently ignore the fact that no English team making the last 8 of the CL has happened twice in the last 3 years.

For me the simple fact is that the quality of football played by English teams in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players is no where at the level of the likes of Real, Barca and Bayern, and even Atleti. I don't need Scholes to tell me that. I don't know why people have to be "tribal" about this fact. It reminds me of Naijas insisting Mikel was more deserving of the African Footballer of the Year award than Yaya. Nobody that knows anything about football would claim Mikel belongs at Yaya's level. Just b/c I support the SE shouldn't blind me from reality.

My bro, cic you don come again oh.

You are a football fans, of that there is no doubt, but you are not an EPL man and your bias against the EPL is manifest all over the Eagle's Nest.

Not arguing with Scholes on the basis of his experience playing both teams, you notice I did not even go there. There is no substitute for experience. Note, I have seen all these team and players in the flesh and I cannot doubt their quality against the EPL's. I will not argue that Barca, Real Madrid and Munich do not have better players than EPL clubs and the chances are on a given 90 minutes, they win more often than not, because it is a no brainer. However having the best players has never automatically equated to winning another league by 10 to 15 points. This is were Scholes who should know better is is dumb and stupid, and you know it.

My point is not about the quality of Barca or playing against Messi, Neymar and co, my point is different, it is about writing off a league prematurely and I have been clear in stating this issue. My point remains, it is much too early to talk of demise of a league, the demise of a league is a long process in which critical factors that makes a league the best are gradually eroded. For example, you and I have broken bread on when Seria A was the best league in the 80s. We have talked about so many factors that made the league the best, then, it attracted the best talent from all over the world, drawing vast crowds to their stadium every Sunday after church etc etc. But the Italian league did not stop being the best in one, or 3 seasons, it was a gradual process of decline over a long term period in which the league lost almost all the qualities that made it the best league. This is exactly my point on this issue. Talk about decline like Scholes is suggesting is just silly and premature and you know it.

Barca, Real and A. Madrid do not make a league, this is another mistake you make. I will not put A. Madrid in the same bracket, but let's not get carried away. Remove Barca and Real Madrid does the quality of football played by the other Spanish teams in La Liga and the Bundesliga in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players differ much from the EPL's other teams? Let's us look at the competitiveness of these teams and the league they play in, does the less competitive nature of their leagues help them when they play other teams from more competitive leagues? This is why I talk about simplicity in making comparisons. My simplicity is no dig at your apparent dislike for the EPL.

Disagree with A. Madrid, who are Borinho mark 2. Their negativity does not represent the type f football I aspire to. I am not arguing on football played by Barca, Real Madrid and Bayern. I am arguing about the fact that it is too premature to say the EPL is on the way down. Yes! EPL club have failed from the last 16 in the last 2 of 3 seasons but there are good reasons for this and it is not enough to even start suggesting the EPLis in decline. For a league to be in decline, you need to weight in a lot of factors like finances, attendance, TV coverage, integrity etc etc and how it has affected the quality of talent coming into the league?

Let me highlight this point, you know the govt has changed the VISA rules for players. The VISA rules that required players to play a certain % of international games before they can play in this league is no longer paramount. There is the salary ceiling, which effectively says if a players is offered/earns so and so, they get a VISA. Arsenal have actually given Gordon Taylor and the PFA a slap by signing Gabriel 6 months before the new rules take effect. With the new TV deal, expect EPL clubs to pay dollar recruiting top talent, this can only give the league the advantage in getting better.

My bro, I refer you to Serie A and its gradual decline, that for me is the example of how a league declines, the EPL has too much going fr it at present for it to even be considered as being in decline. I know it is not the first time it has been mooted, but it is ridiculous to even suggest it because the stats do not bear this out in any level.

You point to the last 3 seasons and the fact that EPL teams have nougat out of the last 16 twice as evidence of decline, I say you have a point, just like those who claim that the fact that EPL teams have not been in the last 3 finals is a decline. Consequently, the UEFA coefficient has dropped. Yes, these are all signs of the beginning of a decline maybe, but is it enough to conclude emphatically that the EPL is on the way down. I disagree, the EPL will address this so called decline before it becomes a rot. For me, there is no need to even talk of decline yet, it is much too premature.

But nobody is saying that the EPL won't recover. Obviously the potential in money, interest in the league etc. is still there, but on the pitch the league has declined. How long the slump will last is different question, but there is no point in denying it exists.

the highlighted part: This is a myth. Why would not the Spanish league not be as competitive as different leagues? I would say that the Spanish league is probably more competitive than the English or German league.

Show me the stats that prove the Spanish league is probably more competitive than the English or German league.

I don't have any definite stats that the Leauge is more competitive, but I think it is more competitive because of the fluctuation of teams at the top. In Germany or England we have the same teams in qualifying for the same competition (CL, EL) over and over again (for example between 2009/2010 and the following 7 teams have always finished among the top8: United, City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham & Everton) while the teams at the top in Spain (apart from Barca and Real obviously) fluctuate [Mallorca, Villarreal and Betis have qualified for the Europa League and have been relegated since then].

Also Spanish surprise teams often make deep runs in European competitions.

English teams are not interested in the Europa league. They make more money being relegated than winning the league which is played on Thursdays, costing them points on Sundays when they play.

With regards to competitiveness, it is not just about where you finish, it is much marathon that. It is about results between all teams (Home and Away) irrespective of your league standings. It is also about how many times you get thrashings or one sided results.

This from the Guardian Newspaper and the website STtato.com: This season, after 220 Premier League matches, just six games (2.7%) have been settled by more than three goals. A look back at the recent seasons in the EPL shows just how rare real thrashings have been this time around.

In the season before, 25 matches were settled by more than a three-goal margin. As a percentage of the total games played, that’s well over double this season’s proportion at 6.6%. Back in the 2009-10 season, 33 games produced a winning margin of four goals or more (8.7%). You would have to go back to the 2002-03 campaign to come anywhere near this season’s percentage, with 14 that season equating to 3.7% of the total matches played.

The leading teams in England have found it more difficult to steamroll inferior opposition than their counterparts in Europe. In La Liga, where Real Madrid and Barcelona run riot on a regular basis, 17 matches out of 189 have produced a winner by four or more goals (9%). The Bundesliga, after only 153 matches in comparison to the Premier League’s 220, has seen 11 winners by that margin (7.2%), and 5.2% of Ligue 1 matches have been won by at least four goals.

Italy’s Serie A, renowned for its tactical and perhaps more conservative approach, has had more routs this season than the Premier League (eight, 4.2%). Since the turn of the century no Serie A season has produced more than 13 wins by a margin of four or more goals, but the current campaign is well placed to reach that total.

The Premier League, however, has been no walk in the park for the teams competing at the top, which should ensure that there are a few more surprises between now and the end of the season to keep things interesting.

Competitiveness can be measured also by points per game, this is an interesting yardstick because in Spain if you remove Barca and RM, what you will find is the points per game between the teams below fighting for the remaining European places is the best in Europe. What it shows is, if you take out Barca and RM, it is the most competitive league. This is not just for one season it is a trend going back 10 years. The problem is, the league is made up of all teams.

I agree when the issue of competitiveness is raised and questioned. The fact is there are many ways to measure competitiveness, I have looked at all of them and it is clear that all of Europe's top leagues are very close in terms of competitiveness the reason is because each league have their dominant teams and of course money plays a huge part in deciding competitiveness.

However, in the last two seasons, with the EPL top clubs going through transition with their squad and losing quality players whilst failing to sign quality players thanks to PSG, Monaco, added to Juve, RM and Barca. The EPL has been the most competitive in terms of points per game. Since the 2010/11 season, the points per game amongst has fallen from its highs in the 2007/08 season to 2009/10 season.

[Al B Sure]

English league excitements La liga Techniques.

[YUJAM]

Waffi:
That's another myth that EPL teams aren't interested in the Europa. They've sent a few reps to the finals in the past 15 years but have only won it once since 2001. I thing what this shows is that the teams outside of the top four are simply not good enough to win that tourney.

My bro, you seat firmly on the side of the fence that cannot stand English football, so you are definitely not a paragon of objectivity on this issue.

Barca winning the EPL by 10 points is based on the CL games in the last 16 of this year's CL. It's all a matter of opinion, they do not play in the EPL, so we will never know if they will not be relegated or finish top with 10 points in hand. What more can I say to that kind of beer parlour analysis? The fact is, an English team has contested the CL final 7 times in the last 10 years. How does this explain this gulf Scholes is talking about.

That English teams are not up there competing with Europe's top sides this year is not as simplistic as Scholes makes out.There are very good reason for and I am sure the top clubs in England will address this. In that same newspaper, a journalist offered well thought out reasons why English clubs are struggling in Europe, Scholes might learn a thing or two if he reads that article.

It is obvious to me Scholes is gloating at the problems of other clubs he does not like, maybe he should look at his beloved Manure and be reminded that those who live in glass houses should not throw stones.

My guy, I am a football fan. I watch English football. Being do so religiously since the 80s. My stance is not a simplistic "he cannot stand English football". My problem is with the claim that the EPL is the best in the world. It is not in my view. The Uefa coefficient also does not support that view.

Of course, Scholes is only offering his opinion. But there is beer parlour opinion and there is informed opinion. Scholes belongs to the latter. I wouldn't for e.g. argue with him about how to play against Barca. Scholes has every right to talk about "gulf" considering he has been on the receiving end of being outclassed in two finals by Barca.

You conveniently ignore the fact that no English team making the last 8 of the CL has happened twice in the last 3 years.

For me the simple fact is that the quality of football played by English teams in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players is no where at the level of the likes of Real, Barca and Bayern, and even Atleti. I don't need Scholes to tell me that. I don't know why people have to be "tribal" about this fact. It reminds me of Naijas insisting Mikel was more deserving of the African Footballer of the Year award than Yaya. Nobody that knows anything about football would claim Mikel belongs at Yaya's level. Just b/c I support the SE shouldn't blind me from reality.

My bro, cic you don come again oh.

You are a football fans, of that there is no doubt, but you are not an EPL man and your bias against the EPL is manifest all over the Eagle's Nest.

Not arguing with Scholes on the basis of his experience playing both teams, you notice I did not even go there. There is no substitute for experience. Note, I have seen all these team and players in the flesh and I cannot doubt their quality against the EPL's. I will not argue that Barca, Real Madrid and Munich do not have better players than EPL clubs and the chances are on a given 90 minutes, they win more often than not, because it is a no brainer. However having the best players has never automatically equated to winning another league by 10 to 15 points. This is were Scholes who should know better is is dumb and stupid, and you know it.

My point is not about the quality of Barca or playing against Messi, Neymar and co, my point is different, it is about writing off a league prematurely and I have been clear in stating this issue. My point remains, it is much too early to talk of demise of a league, the demise of a league is a long process in which critical factors that makes a league the best are gradually eroded. For example, you and I have broken bread on when Seria A was the best league in the 80s. We have talked about so many factors that made the league the best, then, it attracted the best talent from all over the world, drawing vast crowds to their stadium every Sunday after church etc etc. But the Italian league did not stop being the best in one, or 3 seasons, it was a gradual process of decline over a long term period in which the league lost almost all the qualities that made it the best league. This is exactly my point on this issue. Talk about decline like Scholes is suggesting is just silly and premature and you know it.

Barca, Real and A. Madrid do not make a league, this is another mistake you make. I will not put A. Madrid in the same bracket, but let's not get carried away. Remove Barca and Real Madrid does the quality of football played by the other Spanish teams in La Liga and the Bundesliga in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players differ much from the EPL's other teams? Let's us look at the competitiveness of these teams and the league they play in, does the less competitive nature of their leagues help them when they play other teams from more competitive leagues? This is why I talk about simplicity in making comparisons. My simplicity is no dig at your apparent dislike for the EPL.

Disagree with A. Madrid, who are Borinho mark 2. Their negativity does not represent the type f football I aspire to. I am not arguing on football played by Barca, Real Madrid and Bayern. I am arguing about the fact that it is too premature to say the EPL is on the way down. Yes! EPL club have failed from the last 16 in the last 2 of 3 seasons but there are good reasons for this and it is not enough to even start suggesting the EPLis in decline. For a league to be in decline, you need to weight in a lot of factors like finances, attendance, TV coverage, integrity etc etc and how it has affected the quality of talent coming into the league?

Let me highlight this point, you know the govt has changed the VISA rules for players. The VISA rules that required players to play a certain % of international games before they can play in this league is no longer paramount. There is the salary ceiling, which effectively says if a players is offered/earns so and so, they get a VISA. Arsenal have actually given Gordon Taylor and the PFA a slap by signing Gabriel 6 months before the new rules take effect. With the new TV deal, expect EPL clubs to pay dollar recruiting top talent, this can only give the league the advantage in getting better.

My bro, I refer you to Serie A and its gradual decline, that for me is the example of how a league declines, the EPL has too much going fr it at present for it to even be considered as being in decline. I know it is not the first time it has been mooted, but it is ridiculous to even suggest it because the stats do not bear this out in any level.

You point to the last 3 seasons and the fact that EPL teams have nougat out of the last 16 twice as evidence of decline, I say you have a point, just like those who claim that the fact that EPL teams have not been in the last 3 finals is a decline. Consequently, the UEFA coefficient has dropped. Yes, these are all signs of the beginning of a decline maybe, but is it enough to conclude emphatically that the EPL is on the way down. I disagree, the EPL will address this so called decline before it becomes a rot. For me, there is no need to even talk of decline yet, it is much too premature.

But nobody is saying that the EPL won't recover. Obviously the potential in money, interest in the league etc. is still there, but on the pitch the league has declined. How long the slump will last is different question, but there is no point in denying it exists.

the highlighted part: This is a myth. Why would not the Spanish league not be as competitive as different leagues? I would say that the Spanish league is probably more competitive than the English or German league.

Show me the stats that prove the Spanish league is probably more competitive than the English or German league.

I don't have any definite stats that the Leauge is more competitive, but I think it is more competitive because of the fluctuation of teams at the top. In Germany or England we have the same teams in qualifying for the same competition (CL, EL) over and over again (for example between 2009/2010 and the following 7 teams have always finished among the top8: United, City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham & Everton) while the teams at the top in Spain (apart from Barca and Real obviously) fluctuate [Mallorca, Villarreal and Betis have qualified for the Europa League and have been relegated since then].

Also Spanish surprise teams often make deep runs in European competitions.

English teams are not interested in the Europa league. They make more money being relegated than winning the league which is played on Thursdays, costing them points on Sundays when they play.

With regards to competitiveness, it is not just about where you finish, it is much marathon that. It is about results between all teams (Home and Away) irrespective of your league standings. It is also about how many times you get thrashings or one sided results.

This from the Guardian Newspaper and the website STtato.com: This season, after 220 Premier League matches, just six games (2.7%) have been settled by more than three goals. A look back at the recent seasons in the EPL shows just how rare real thrashings have been this time around.

In the season before, 25 matches were settled by more than a three-goal margin. As a percentage of the total games played, that’s well over double this season’s proportion at 6.6%. Back in the 2009-10 season, 33 games produced a winning margin of four goals or more (8.7%). You would have to go back to the 2002-03 campaign to come anywhere near this season’s percentage, with 14 that season equating to 3.7% of the total matches played.

The leading teams in England have found it more difficult to steamroll inferior opposition than their counterparts in Europe. In La Liga, where Real Madrid and Barcelona run riot on a regular basis, 17 matches out of 189 have produced a winner by four or more goals (9%). The Bundesliga, after only 153 matches in comparison to the Premier League’s 220, has seen 11 winners by that margin (7.2%), and 5.2% of Ligue 1 matches have been won by at least four goals.

Italy’s Serie A, renowned for its tactical and perhaps more conservative approach, has had more routs this season than the Premier League (eight, 4.2%). Since the turn of the century no Serie A season has produced more than 13 wins by a margin of four or more goals, but the current campaign is well placed to reach that total.

The Premier League, however, has been no walk in the park for the teams competing at the top, which should ensure that there are a few more surprises between now and the end of the season to keep things interesting.

Competitiveness can be measured also by points per game, this is an interesting yardstick because in Spain if you remove Barca and RM, what you will find is the points per game between the teams below fighting for the remaining European places is the best in Europe. What it shows is, if you take out Barca and RM, it is the most competitive league. This is not just for one season it is a trend going back 10 years. The problem is, the league is made up of all teams.

I agree when the issue of competitiveness is raised and questioned. The fact is there are many ways to measure competitiveness, I have looked at all of them and it is clear that all of Europe's top leagues are very close in terms of competitiveness the reason is because each league have their dominant teams and of course money plays a huge part in deciding competitiveness.

However, in the last two seasons, with the EPL top clubs going through transition with their squad and losing quality players whilst failing to sign quality players thanks to PSG, Monaco, added to Juve, RM and Barca. The EPL has been the most competitive in terms of points per game. Since the 2010/11 season, the points per game amongst has fallen from its highs in the 2007/08 season to 2009/10 season.

[kofi86]

My bro, you seat firmly on the side of the fence that cannot stand English football, so you are definitely not a paragon of objectivity on this issue.

Barca winning the EPL by 10 points is based on the CL games in the last 16 of this year's CL. It's all a matter of opinion, they do not play in the EPL, so we will never know if they will not be relegated or finish top with 10 points in hand. What more can I say to that kind of beer parlour analysis? The fact is, an English team has contested the CL final 7 times in the last 10 years. How does this explain this gulf Scholes is talking about.

That English teams are not up there competing with Europe's top sides this year is not as simplistic as Scholes makes out.There are very good reason for and I am sure the top clubs in England will address this. In that same newspaper, a journalist offered well thought out reasons why English clubs are struggling in Europe, Scholes might learn a thing or two if he reads that article.

It is obvious to me Scholes is gloating at the problems of other clubs he does not like, maybe he should look at his beloved Manure and be reminded that those who live in glass houses should not throw stones.

My guy, I am a football fan. I watch English football. Being do so religiously since the 80s. My stance is not a simplistic "he cannot stand English football". My problem is with the claim that the EPL is the best in the world. It is not in my view. The Uefa coefficient also does not support that view.

Of course, Scholes is only offering his opinion. But there is beer parlour opinion and there is informed opinion. Scholes belongs to the latter. I wouldn't for e.g. argue with him about how to play against Barca. Scholes has every right to talk about "gulf" considering he has been on the receiving end of being outclassed in two finals by Barca.

You conveniently ignore the fact that no English team making the last 8 of the CL has happened twice in the last 3 years.

For me the simple fact is that the quality of football played by English teams in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players is no where at the level of the likes of Real, Barca and Bayern, and even Atleti. I don't need Scholes to tell me that. I don't know why people have to be "tribal" about this fact. It reminds me of Naijas insisting Mikel was more deserving of the African Footballer of the Year award than Yaya. Nobody that knows anything about football would claim Mikel belongs at Yaya's level. Just b/c I support the SE shouldn't blind me from reality.

My bro, cic you don come again oh.

You are a football fans, of that there is no doubt, but you are not an EPL man and your bias against the EPL is manifest all over the Eagle's Nest.

Not arguing with Scholes on the basis of his experience playing both teams, you notice I did not even go there. There is no substitute for experience. Note, I have seen all these team and players in the flesh and I cannot doubt their quality against the EPL's. I will not argue that Barca, Real Madrid and Munich do not have better players than EPL clubs and the chances are on a given 90 minutes, they win more often than not, because it is a no brainer. However having the best players has never automatically equated to winning another league by 10 to 15 points. This is were Scholes who should know better is is dumb and stupid, and you know it.

My point is not about the quality of Barca or playing against Messi, Neymar and co, my point is different, it is about writing off a league prematurely and I have been clear in stating this issue. My point remains, it is much too early to talk of demise of a league, the demise of a league is a long process in which critical factors that makes a league the best are gradually eroded. For example, you and I have broken bread on when Seria A was the best league in the 80s. We have talked about so many factors that made the league the best, then, it attracted the best talent from all over the world, drawing vast crowds to their stadium every Sunday after church etc etc. But the Italian league did not stop being the best in one, or 3 seasons, it was a gradual process of decline over a long term period in which the league lost almost all the qualities that made it the best league. This is exactly my point on this issue. Talk about decline like Scholes is suggesting is just silly and premature and you know it.

Barca, Real and A. Madrid do not make a league, this is another mistake you make. I will not put A. Madrid in the same bracket, but let's not get carried away. Remove Barca and Real Madrid does the quality of football played by the other Spanish teams in La Liga and the Bundesliga in terms of technique, tactics and the ability of the players differ much from the EPL's other teams? Let's us look at the competitiveness of these teams and the league they play in, does the less competitive nature of their leagues help them when they play other teams from more competitive leagues? This is why I talk about simplicity in making comparisons. My simplicity is no dig at your apparent dislike for the EPL.

Disagree with A. Madrid, who are Borinho mark 2. Their negativity does not represent the type f football I aspire to. I am not arguing on football played by Barca, Real Madrid and Bayern. I am arguing about the fact that it is too premature to say the EPL is on the way down. Yes! EPL club have failed from the last 16 in the last 2 of 3 seasons but there are good reasons for this and it is not enough to even start suggesting the EPLis in decline. For a league to be in decline, you need to weight in a lot of factors like finances, attendance, TV coverage, integrity etc etc and how it has affected the quality of talent coming into the league?

Let me highlight this point, you know the govt has changed the VISA rules for players. The VISA rules that required players to play a certain % of international games before they can play in this league is no longer paramount. There is the salary ceiling, which effectively says if a players is offered/earns so and so, they get a VISA. Arsenal have actually given Gordon Taylor and the PFA a slap by signing Gabriel 6 months before the new rules take effect. With the new TV deal, expect EPL clubs to pay dollar recruiting top talent, this can only give the league the advantage in getting better.

My bro, I refer you to Serie A and its gradual decline, that for me is the example of how a league declines, the EPL has too much going fr it at present for it to even be considered as being in decline. I know it is not the first time it has been mooted, but it is ridiculous to even suggest it because the stats do not bear this out in any level.

You point to the last 3 seasons and the fact that EPL teams have nougat out of the last 16 twice as evidence of decline, I say you have a point, just like those who claim that the fact that EPL teams have not been in the last 3 finals is a decline. Consequently, the UEFA coefficient has dropped. Yes, these are all signs of the beginning of a decline maybe, but is it enough to conclude emphatically that the EPL is on the way down. I disagree, the EPL will address this so called decline before it becomes a rot. For me, there is no need to even talk of decline yet, it is much too premature.

But nobody is saying that the EPL won't recover. Obviously the potential in money, interest in the league etc. is still there, but on the pitch the league has declined. How long the slump will last is different question, but there is no point in denying it exists.

the highlighted part: This is a myth. Why would not the Spanish league not be as competitive as different leagues? I would say that the Spanish league is probably more competitive than the English or German league.

Show me the stats that prove the Spanish league is probably more competitive than the English or German league.

I don't have any definite stats that the Leauge is more competitive, but I think it is more competitive because of the fluctuation of teams at the top. In Germany or England we have the same teams in qualifying for the same competition (CL, EL) over and over again (for example between 2009/2010 and the following 7 teams have always finished among the top8: United, City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham & Everton) while the teams at the top in Spain (apart from Barca and Real obviously) fluctuate [Mallorca, Villarreal and Betis have qualified for the Europa League and have been relegated since then].

Also Spanish surprise teams often make deep runs in European competitions.

English teams are not interested in the Europa league. They make more money being relegated than winning the league which is played on Thursdays, costing them points on Sundays when they play.

With regards to competitiveness, it is not just about where you finish, it is much marathon that. It is about results between all teams (Home and Away) irrespective of your league standings. It is also about how many times you get thrashings or one sided results.

This from the Guardian Newspaper and the website STtato.com: This season, after 220 Premier League matches, just six games (2.7%) have been settled by more than three goals. A look back at the recent seasons in the EPL shows just how rare real thrashings have been this time around.

In the season before, 25 matches were settled by more than a three-goal margin. As a percentage of the total games played, that’s well over double this season’s proportion at 6.6%. Back in the 2009-10 season, 33 games produced a winning margin of four goals or more (8.7%). You would have to go back to the 2002-03 campaign to come anywhere near this season’s percentage, with 14 that season equating to 3.7% of the total matches played.

The leading teams in England have found it more difficult to steamroll inferior opposition than their counterparts in Europe. In La Liga, where Real Madrid and Barcelona run riot on a regular basis, 17 matches out of 189 have produced a winner by four or more goals (9%). The Bundesliga, after only 153 matches in comparison to the Premier League’s 220, has seen 11 winners by that margin (7.2%), and 5.2% of Ligue 1 matches have been won by at least four goals.

Italy’s Serie A, renowned for its tactical and perhaps more conservative approach, has had more routs this season than the Premier League (eight, 4.2%). Since the turn of the century no Serie A season has produced more than 13 wins by a margin of four or more goals, but the current campaign is well placed to reach that total.

The Premier League, however, has been no walk in the park for the teams competing at the top, which should ensure that there are a few more surprises between now and the end of the season to keep things interesting.

Competitiveness can be measured also by points per game, this is an interesting yardstick because in Spain if you remove Barca and RM, what you will find is the points per game between the teams below fighting for the remaining European places is the best in Europe. What it shows is, if you take out Barca and RM, it is the most competitive league. This is not just for one season it is a trend going back 10 years. The problem is, the league is made up of all teams.

I agree when the issue of competitiveness is raised and questioned. The fact is there are many ways to measure competitiveness, I have looked at all of them and it is clear that all of Europe's top leagues are very close in terms of competitiveness the reason is because each league have their dominant teams and of course money plays a huge part in deciding competitiveness.

However, in the last two seasons, with the EPL top clubs going through transition with their squad and losing quality players whilst failing to sign quality players thanks to PSG, Monaco, added to Juve, RM and Barca. The EPL has been the most competitive in terms of points per game. Since the 2010/11 season, the points per game amongst has fallen from its highs in the 2007/08 season to 2009/10 season.

Sorry for the very late reply, thanks for the interesting stats!

The EPL has definitely been more competitive than in previous seasons, but despite the loss of quality of the top clubs, we have the usual suspects occupying the first 6 positions with only Southamption being close to them.

[tfco]

they would if the EPL had teams like Granada to run up pichichi numbers

[Molue Conductor]

they would if the EPL had teams like Granada to run up pichichi numbers

Or sunderland
http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/29580147

[Cristao II]

The one thing that would most likely occur. They would on a good day win two seasons, then the EPL clubs will catch up. Ask Jose.

[kofi86]

The one thing that would most likely occur. They would on a good day win two seasons, then the EPL clubs will catch up. Ask Jose.

Or Sir Alex Ferguson who won 13 of 21 EPL titles with United.

[Cristao II]

The one thing that would most likely occur. They would on a good day win two seasons, then the EPL clubs will catch up. Ask Jose.

Or Sir Alex Ferguson who won 13 of 21 EPL titles with United.

More than half of his victories were in his first ten years - after that they werent so regular.

[kofi86]

Well, if Ferguson's United could dominate the EPL for 10 years, surely the likes of Bayern, Barca or Real could do likewise, no?

[Cristao II]

Well, if Ferguson's United could dominate the EPL for 10 years, surely the likes of Bayern, Barca or Real could do likewise, no?

Not so straight forward. They could do it for 3-5 years but the league would catch up. Recall that money is shared differently in La Liga and the EPL.

[tfco]

Will Our Gary also import Valencia into The Best League when Real and Barca come over?

[TheTactician]

EPL the best league in the world? Surely that statement is a joke. One would have to be extremely stupid to believe that statement. It's one of the few leagues in the world where a team can be stupid enough to buy Sterling for 50 million. There are very few "good" players in the epl. They play a rubbish brand of football bereft of any tactical acumen or skill. If you watch the lowest teams in La Liga play, they play with more skill and technical ability that most epl teams barring arsenal, southampton, and manchester city.

All of the best epl players are not english and either come from spain, germany, france, etc. That in itself should tell you that it can't possibly be the best league in the world. As far as I'm concerned, the best league is where the best players ply their trade. As a result the best league in the world can either only be La Liga, or the Bundesliga. The average player in both those leagues are far far better than the average player in the epl. The best players in both those leagues are the top 1% of football players in the world.

The EPL is not the best league in the world and it's also not the most exciting league in the world. It's just the best brand. It's backed by solid advertising and a boat load of rich owners. If you are looking for exciting leagues, epl is not one. There are lots of leagues in the world where the team that finished in 14th the year before can finish first and it happens frequently. The epl is not one of those leagues. It's a boring predictable league with a low level of technical skill.

[bonecrusher]

Haha I never understand this argument that EPL teams are tested under extreme conditions. How comes these EPL teams don't put their opponents in the CL under the same conditions since obviously their opponents can't handle it.

Truth is we will never know if Barca, Madrid and Bayern (BBM) will win the EPL by 10+ points but if utd and chelsea have done it like someone pointed out, you better believe barca, madrid and bayern can.

Secondly, and the most important reason why I think BBM can win the league by 10+ points is the way they dominate games. I cannot count the number of times I'm watching and EPL game and once Chelsea scores and go up it's like they suddenly don't know how to pass a ball. It's like they decide to just relinquish possession even if it is to a lowly team(this happens in the CL as well). This is also true to City, Utd, Pool and to a lesser extent Arsenal. Most victories by top EPL teams are belabored and hard fought regardless of if it is the CL or EPL.

Sure enough they typically pay the price with the opponent equalizing, giving the opponents the confidence to go at chelsea. Contrast that to BBM. These teams dominate the game regardless of score line and lowly teams have to hope for counters.

Let us also act like Barca doesn't play high pressure. Yes they do keep the ball for long spells but once they lose the ball, they get it back almost right away. You want to tell me on a cold wintry tuesday at the britannia stoke can withstand this high pressure when they can barely string 2 passes together.

Again we will never be able to tell but one thing is for sure teams that dominate games typically win and there is NO team in the EPL that BBM wouldn't dominate more times than not.

[tfco]

You want to tell me on a cold wintry tuesday at the britannia stoke can withstand this high pressure when they can barely string 2 passes together.
.

As i was reading your shi.te, i was thinking that you have not watched games this season.

...then you came up with that gem. confirmed